Friday Flotsam

Frrrrrrrrrr ah! dah! Fla! tsa! amah!

I have a lot to cover today, but I’m trying to figure out my approach. It has to be a bit strategic. Do I tell you about the mouse FIRST THING? Or do we discuss your favorite Taylor Swift lyric? Like your very very favorite. The one that stills you, haunts you, calms you, destroys you. That one. Or you do want to hear about the mouse first? Which one, you tell me.

Whoa, mouse it is! Okay, didn’t see that coming.

So the other day we were driving to the pool, and we approach an intersection that’s typically very busy. Like a bunch of lanes, cars going this way and that. Out of my driver’s seat window I spot a little mouse just zipping around ON THE ROAD. Perhaps a little confused, a bit out of sorts. I go, “Look, you guys – a little mouse! In the intersection. This cannot end well.” I figure the mouse would zip out of view and back to its little cave out of the way of traffic. Nat and Will say together as the light turns green (omg) and I start to move, “Oh yeah I see the little thi!- NOOOOOOOOOOO OH NOOOOOO IT SPLAT UNDER THAT TIREEEEEEE OH I SAW IT ALLLLLLLL!” (A few Phoebe Buffay moment if you ask me. “My eyeeeees! My eyeeeeees!”)

Like, completely flattened under an SUV’s (not mine) tire. Blood spewed out in all directions. Hey, Natalie’s words, not mine!

So, RIP little mouse at 75th and Mission. Not quite the American Tail we all expected. The end.

You’re wishing you could change your answer now, don’t you?

(And now we look for the leftover splat every time we pass through the intersection. Oh you would too, don’t look at me like that.)

Your FAVORITE Taylor lyric. Let’s get on in. I have many. Which is obnoxious, yes. But she’s Taylor, there’s no WAY not to have multiple favorite lyrics. I prefer the more somber, gutting ones. Don’t get me wrong, I’m all about shouting about having bad blood and crying like a baby coming home from the bar, but my FAVORITES? And your FAVORITES? I need to know. What are the lyrics that obliterate your soul?

I’ll name a few:

You kept me like a secret but I kept you like an oath. (are you KIDDING me.)

Hold your hands through plastic now. (I tear up every time remembering the pandemic.)

All these people think love’s for show, but I’d die for you in secret. (um, wow.)

And the heart I know I’m breaking is my own. (OMG)

I’ve never been a natural, all I do is try try try. (hold me.)

Chasin’ shadows in the grocery line. (she rules at imagery)

I love how she intertwines casual sayings with rock solid poetry. She’s just a mastermind.

Okay, your turn!

So this past week I listened to two podcasts that you NEED TO KNOW about. I rarely ever listen to podcasts, but I had some solo runs I needed to knock out and a basement to prepare for a visitor, so in went the ear buds and off I went.

One was The Retrievals. It’s about a group of women undergoing IVF and during their egg retrieval, they experience the worst sort of pain imaginable. As in, they can feel everything. And you’re supposed to be completely asleep or heavily heavily sedated. I was UNDER. Completely under for mine. So why are they feeling every little thing? What’s happening to the drugs? Why aren’t they working? And why does no one even care? It’s infuriating. You have to listen. You’ll find yourself teetering on what the right thing is (I mean, I teetered for like half a second but NO.) as compassion surfaces while you look at the bigger picture. (again, for me like a nano second.) Go listen and tell me what you think!

The second one is a freaking doozy. It’s called Scamanda and a bunch of you are already listening after I posted it in Stories a few days ago. OMG, it’s about this girl named Amanda who lies about having cancer for like, EIGHT YEARS. She cons nearly every single person around her, lies constantly about treatments and money and travels and it is absolutely bananas. You just will not believe the donations, the trips, the freebies, the destruction with her step daughter. And like – why? Why did she do it for so long? Or at all? What’s the motive? You go listen and come back and we’ll discuss. Also listen to the bonus episodes! Lots of good grit to uncover there.

Now, what do I need to be listening to next? I need something gripping and seriously unreal. Spill it!

POLL: who here is already looking at blazers for the fall?

Weekend plans?

Aaron’s headed out for a dude’s weekend on the lake, so my sister-in-law is visiting! Not because he’s leaving. It just worked out that way. I think?

We’ll run, swim, hit an estate sale, the farmer’s market, make something delicious to eat and sit around sipping wine, discussing your favorite Tay lyrics. Duh.

From this week! Let’s have Baked Peaches with Rosemary and Cinnamon. SO SO GOOD. And also, your August mixtape! It’s light and breezy and you neeeed it.

Okay, I expect podcast recs out the wazooooo, you guys.