It’s Friday the 13th, which I always point out when it aligns with the Roundup. It happens at least once or twice per year, or 33 times since the Roundup began. 34 if you count today, which you have to do because it is Friday the 13th; the second one in 2024.

Josh and I are celebrating by getting matching COVID and flu vaccines.

How are you marking the day?

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Stop procrastinating. Go make your backups. Don’t have regrets.

Seriously. Stop what you’re doing for a moment. It will take you fifteen minutes, tops. But you will have peace of mind for days and days. It’s the gift to yourself that keeps on giving.

As always, add any new thoughts to the Friday Backup post and peruse new comments to find out about methods, plug-ins, and devices that help you quickly back up your data and accounts.

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And now the blogs…

But first, second, helpings of the posts that appeared in the open comment thread last week. To read the description before clicking over, please return to the open thread:

• “Advent Calendars” (The Road Less Travelled) — it counts 🙂

Okay, now my choices this week.

Infertile Phoenix sends a preemptive text to protect her emotional well-being. But the kicker is the person’s response the next time she sees them: “She literally said, ‘I know you said you didn’t want to see any newborn pictures, but do you want to see just one’?” Nooooooooo.

Scientist on the Roof made me laugh with her list of things that are never ending vs. things that we wish were never ending. Especially the final point about sleep and the “finale of a romantic-era music piece.”

Lastly, Finding a Different Path has a post about the messaging around ‘giving up’. She points out: “It is so hard to move forward from something when the chanting beat of never NEVER never NEVER EVER give up! Next time will work! You’ll never know if you don’t just KEEP GOING!” She leaves us with a better message instead.

The roundup to the Roundup: It’s Friday the 13th. Your weekly backup nudge. And lots of great posts to read. So what did you find this week? Please use a permalink to the blog post (written between December 6 – 13) and not the blog’s main URL. Not understanding why I’m asking you what you found this week. Read the original open thread post here.

Josh received a discount code from my rain boot company. I think of it as my rain boot company because I have taken to wearing my rain boots as my normal shoes. If you’re always in rain boots, you’re always prepared. That may become my new motto.

But I convinced myself that I needed a new pair during Black Friday because I had a discount code and my boots were old and faded. Didn’t I want nice, new, shiny rain boots? Didn’t I deserve nice, new, shiny rain boots?

I went down a rabbit hole of rain boot options. Did I want to switch to a Chelsea boot style? Did I want mid-calf boots? What about the lining inside — how much cold protection did I want so the boot could double as snow boots?

I kept putting off and putting off the purchase because I wasn’t sure. Did I really need new boots? My current boots were fine. They were broken in. I knew I liked them. They made excellent hiking boots. The new boots were a bit unknown. Sure, they would be nice, new, and shiny, but would they be comfortable?

In the end, I realized that not buying the boots was easier than buying the boots. Not buying them took less time, and I ended up richer at the end of the exercise because I hadn’t parted with the money. My boots weren’t amazing, but they were fine. And fine sometimes has more benefits than amazing.

Forget that first motto. Maybe my new motto this holiday season will be not buying it is easier than buying it. It’s a good reminder when you’re bombarded with sales for things you don’t really need.

I read a great essay about a person who made little grab-and-go prep kits for going out with her potty-training child (e.g., clean underwear, wipes, etc.) and she would add a little gift to herself and a note inside each one — “a gift for future you.”

I love this idea of leaving yourself kind things for the future. I often think of this concept as the idea of doing something now that will make life easier later. For instance, preparing ingredients the day before so cooking goes smoothly. Or taking the time to clean up now so future Melissa can enjoy a neat space.

But all of those things require me to work now and rest later, without the promise that I will really benefit later. I mean, I know if I don’t do it, I will definitely have to do it later. So it’s a small kindness.

But this is different. This is not taking on any work right now, but leaving yourself little kind notes or treats for when you know you will most need them.

A love note. To yourself.

Not sure what #MicroblogMondays is? Read the inaugural post which explains the idea and how you can participate too.

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I think this is super solid advice to get you through the next few years, and it begins with the dek: “Sometimes it’s healthy to do something you love less, and differently.”

I’ve switched to only reading news — no opinion pieces. I don’t want the facts chewed up for me. I want my brain to break them down instead. I set a timer for 10 minutes and tell myself that I am sticking to that limit, even if I find something super interesting that I want to read in full. To be better informed, I read headlines and first paragraphs. And, like I said, skip all of the opinion pieces.

I don’t feel like I can remove myself from processing the news entirely, but I can limit and change the way I consume it, check in on how I feel while I do it, and stop for the moment when it is impacting my emotional health.

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Are you also doing #MicroblogMondays? Add your link below. The list will be open until Tuesday morning. Link to the post itself, not your blog URL. (Don’t know what that means? Please read the three rules on this post to understand the difference between a permalink to a post and a blog’s main URL.) Only personal blogs can be added to the list. I will remove any posts connected to businesses or sponsored posts.

Ever since Beorn’s massive freakout in October, he has random days where he is not himself. He doesn’t seem ill — he is eating and drinking water (though he only returned to drinking water a few weeks ago). He will happily come over and play with me. He begs for treats.

But he also sometimes runs frantically for a second. Or he acts as if he cannot find his bed. Things that are out of character for him, especially because more than any other pig I’ve ever met, he thrives on routine and loves reacting to cues.

When he does this, I feel like I need to unscare him. I need to speak to him in a quiet, normal voice and remind him that everything is normal around here. Nothing to worry about. There is nothing terrifying about the water bottle. His food bowl cannot harm him. His nighttime treat is on his bed, just as it has always been for the last 4+ years.

Sometimes, it works, but sometimes, he still seems off for a few minutes. I’m not sure why I believe I can unscare Beorn when Josh cannot unscare me when I am frightened or worried.