Life Lately | August 2023
Well that's that, I guess. Duke heads back to school next week and the weather has been prematurely cool and wet, and so I suppose summer is wrapping up early this year.
A few weeks ago, I took Duke to the fair. We go every year and besides a bad parenting decision to coax him onto a ride that went way too high and was way too spinny (whoops), it was business as usual. I thought we were getting on a regular scrambler, but this one lifted up and was really fast. Within 10 seconds, he was screaming "I'm going to puke!" Happy to report that he did not, but I probably burned up some trust for a while. Anyway, we had a good time. I went for the corn dogs and fair food, Duke came for the horse barn. We both left content.
As we were leaving, I was clutching Duke's hand and walking through this giant field of cars and that's when I got a little sad. Dang it - this is end of summer stuff.
I always get so morose in August, but this year is even more wearing. Some seasons are just hard, and this was one of them. I don't know how long it's going to last, but I'm about to throw in the towel on 2023 as a whole. But, you know, onward. Usually the only way out is through, so we carry on.
And anyway, as melancholy as all that sounds, there were lots of glimmers in a month that felt so rough. I'm looking at the pictures now and all I can think is "what was so bad?"
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In other news, I never advertise this while he's gone, but Ryan was gone on a three week adventure for a big chunk of August. It was mostly fine, but here's a list of things I learned while he was gone:
-How to check my tire pressure.
-How to use our air compressor.
-How to make an appointment to replace a flat tire.
-How to add coolant to my car.
-How to dislodge a dead mouse that had half crawled into an electrical outlet and presumably electrocuted himself (I have pictures if you're curious).
So to recap, things went sideways, mostly with my car. Both low beams also went out, but I opted to ignore that and only drive during daylight hours. Suffice to say, I'm very happy to have my husband, as well as my mechanic, home.
The mouse incident happened the night before he came home and I was so freaked out by it that I truly considered leaving it for him. Bravery settled in right at the same time that the scent of charred fur and decomposition did.
I felt all kinds of the 90's Spice Girl variety of girl power. Turns out I'm pretty self sufficient, but like, not interested in testing my limits any further.
Anyway, while I was fixing my own car and disposing of dead mice, here's what he was up to -
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Back to school, fall and halloween marketing is hitting heavy this week. I keep reading about these "back to routines" and "back in the swing of things" and I'm just like, wait, you guys were off your routine?
I'm signed up for an NPR newsletter that hit my inbox this week with a short guide for preparing for fall. Happily it ended on this note -
It ain't over til it's over. Hallelujah.
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A few more deeply enjoyed things this month -
My sister Samantha got married.
You know when you're in your twenties and everyone's getting married, so every weekend is a wedding? And then in your 30s, everyone has their first kids in a couple year span, so then you're going to baby showers all the time. Well I'm past all those things and in the weird middle years before people start getting divorced and I still have a few years to go before the invites start coming in for second marriages. Anyway, suffice to say it's been a while since I've been to a wedding and dang - they're so fun! I drank. I danced. I got emotional and told strangers that "we're family" now, which I guess technically we sort of are. See ya at Thanksgiving!
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I'm a big believer in Michigan's Adventure. We ate ice cream three times, literally waited less than 5 minutes for every ride, and didn't even get sunburned.
I saw two people that I haven't seen in 20+ years and it was like seeing ghosts. One for sure didn't recognize me, and the other, probably did, but we politely pretended not to. Sometimes I feel like that's the most generous thing. I stopped having anything to say to this particular person a long time ago and it's not dramatic or anything. Just....it would have been like waving to a stranger.
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Ryan and I quietly celebrated 10 years of being married. Our anniversary fell on a Thursday and it was raining and neither of us made reservations anywhere, but sometimes - most times - it's just nice to be together. I made a chicken pot pie, because Ryan and Duke love them and then later, we went out for ice cream. He gave me a lovely pair of earrings, which I will not be removing ever. 15 years ago, when we'd just started dating, he gave me a set of earrings and I promptly lost one of the studs, which I have felt guilty over ever since, although when I was much younger, I was grossly cavalier and defensive. This felt like forgiveness and a chance to resolve that old mistake. A little older, a little wiser, a little more careful with my diamonds.
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Last weekend, Duke and I drove the M22 loop - starting in Frankfort and ending at our house on West Bay. The drive made Duke sleepy, so he turned into a regular old crabby abby, but I had a nice time. He was cheerful enough to stop for a sammy in Fish Town, so there were wins along the way.
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I've come to terms and mostly have just accepted that this summer was a burner year. That's really tragic to me - I feel like summers are too short to have the whole season go to waste, but that's what happened this year. My job...just...consumed all my attention this time and it's simultaneously been the longest season and the shortest summer. I can't get that back and it's too far gone to turn it around. I'm going to let it go and look forward to the fall.
The way that August is ending in a weeks long cold front feels like things outside of my control are trying to put an abrupt end to a crummy summer as well. If the universe is a woo-woo thing that can send you messages, this one is loud and clear. Last night, I was cold and I heard our heat turn on. Summer is over and it's time for the next season to begin.
I know how boo-hooey that all sounds, but I think it's optimistic. Sometimes it takes a hard right to turn the corner and I believe there is something better as soon as I do.
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