Monday was Zoom with Nancy and Judi, moved from our usual Tuesday because Nance and I headed up to SusanP's for Beach Day on Tuesday (it's been a while, because SP went back to the classroom in January, taught three weeks of summer school, and is just now free again, but only for a few weeks until she starts back teaching on August 9); babysat Colin Monday night; Wednesday morning the aforementioned get-together with Cynthia; Thursday lunch with Eric (his birthday was Wednesday, but he had to work), a library pick-up, and an afternoon phone chat with Michele... 💗
I've volunteered to nanny/governess/Lala this weekend for Colin so Sarah can attend both Dave Matthews' concerts in West Palm Beach (I will go up with her this afternoon to hang with the little guy tonight and Saturday, returning Sunday morning; we're staying with friends of hers who have a pool and, much as I'll miss attending the show, which I used to do with her years ago, it will be a bit of a vacation for me, not to mention a chance to hang with my darling grandbaby!
I haven't watched much of the Olympics, but I'm inspired by what I have seen, and read, and what others have reported back. Proud of Simone Biles for giving herself time and space from all the pressure. Very cool that skateboarding is now an Olympic sport. See article below about Pink and the Norwegian women's handball team. Our DVRs are full, we're all losing sleep, and "the thrill of victory and the agony of defeat" is a cliche for a reason. Especially since the Summer Games were cancelled last year because of the pandemic, it's more than a bit heartwarming to escape, even for a few moments, from Delta variants, long COVID, and anti-vaxxers.
It is indeed Feel Good Friday and, as is tradition, five items below of beauty, interest, and humor to brighten your day/weekend/week. Enjoy!
~ Medals That Were Won Not in Pentathlon or 100 Meters, but in Iambic Pentameter: But few people today recall that poetry, just like the 100 meters, was an official Olympic competition from 1912 to 1948. Sadly, the names of the medal winners are not listed on the International Olympic Committee’s rosters. (When I read the poem below, I of course had to Google the epigraph and d*mn if it's not true. Wow!)
~ Jill Biden, Changing the Fashion Game: Cheering the American Olympians, the first lady broke with recent sartorial customs.
~ Pink offers to pay fines for Norwegian women’s beach handball team: European Handball Federation fined players €1,500 for wearing shorts instead of bikini bottoms
~ How to Get Things Done When You Don’t Want to Do Anything: The drive to be your best can be hard to muster right about now. Here are some ways to get your mojo back.
~ Vegan Cinnamon Roll Chair Cinnaholic to Nearly Double in Size with 60 New Locations: Cinnaholic—which offers an array of customizable vegan cinnamon rolls—has 60 new locations in development across the United States and Canada. (Um, hello... there's already a Cinnaholic in Coral Springs, and no one thought to tell me?!? Can you say Road Trip?... 😍 )
BOOK: Total Olympics: Every Obscure, Hilarious, Dramatic, and Inspiring Tale Worth Knowing by Jeremy Fuchs
POEM: Taking Your Olympic Measure by Alberto Ríos
—Poetry was an Olympic event from 1912-1948.
Think of the records you have held:
For one second, you were the world’s youngest person.
It was a long time ago, but still.
At this moment, you are living
In the farthest thousandth-of-a-second in the history of time.
You have beaten yesterday’s record, again.
You were perhaps the only participant,
But in the race to get from your bedroom to the bathroom,
You won.
You win so much, all the time in all things.
Your heart simply beats and beats and beats—
It does not lose, although perhaps one day.
Nevertheless, the lists of firsts for you is endless—
Doing what you have not done before,
Tasting sake and mole, smelling bergamot, hearing
Less well than you used to—
Not all records are for the scrapbook, of course—
Sometimes you are the best at being the worst.
Some records are secret—you know which ones.
Some records you’re not even aware of.
In general, however, at the end of a long day, you are—
Unlikely as it may seem—the record holder of note.
QUOTE: "Keep some room in your heart for the unimaginable." ~ Mary Oliver
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