Weekly Journal 5.18.26

Reading

On one of those nights when I felt overwhelmed by household and parental obligations, I found myself in a sudden hurry to leave and grab a drink. Normally I don't leave the house at night unless I'm having dinner with a friend or going to the bar/coffee shop to write. This time I just wanted a quiet environment for casual reading. I logged into my Libby app to find a book that was available to send to my Kindle immediately, and landed on I'm Glad My Mom Died by Jennette McCurdy. I know I'm a little behind the bandwagon on this book, but waiting means it's easier to get from the library. Anyway, I started reading it at the bar and finished it a couple days later. It is morbidly fascinating and darkly funny. This poor girl was raised by an abusive stage mom and has just begun to heal from her childhood.

I also worked up the courage to finish Wave by Sonali Deraniyagala. If it wasn't so beautifully written, I wouldn't have been able to bear reading about the author's loss of her sons, husband, and parents in the 2004 Sri Lankan tsunami. Her older son was the same age as mine when this happened. Enough said.

Watching

I've been enjoying Death Inc., a Spanish comedy that's very reminiscent of The Office. I'm not sure what data I've given Netflix about my interest in the field of death care, but it was correct to recommend me a show about the staff at a funeral home. The humor is absurd and irreverent, and it doesn't hew too closely to the overused mockumentary style: none of the characters talk directly to camera. That format is what bugged me about St. Denis Medical, which I nevertheless binge-watched, in part because Allison Tolman is truly great.

Cooking

I made biscuits that attained a proper height—a fine achievement for this week.

Doing

Enjoying some praise from friends and family and admiring the presence of my first officially published piece of writing. Submitting lots of other writing to other places and trying not to get my hopes up.

Our May weather has been temperamental, but it permitted a really nice hike at a nearby wildlife refuge. I went with my friend, her two elementary-aged kids, and my son. The kids got along well. I loved watching them run along the trail together and gather exuberantly around the spot where one kid claimed to have seen a snake. I'm glad to be reminded that my video-gaming kid is still capable of making simple fun with only his imagination and a wooded trail stretching out ahead.

Listening

I'm not a big follower of Primus, so it makes sense that I didn't know that one of Les Claypool's other projects is a band with Sean Oko Lennon called the Claypool Lennon Delirium. I came upon their latest album and loved it, although its full power couldn't be felt through my teeny smartphone speaker. It deserves another listen on a good sound system.