mama

Author: jamers

  • <3

    <3

    Happy Father’s Day! Kiddo made a castle for Pete in Minecraft. She kept it a secret as she worked on it yesterday which was cute. Today the two of them played Barbie hair salon, created books about bears, and watched bear gymnastics (in which her stuffies were competing) complete with character voices. Just a few of the millions of reasons he’s a great dad. I’m so lucky to be on this journey with these two.

    Today’s reading

    Poem: V by Tony Harrison 1985

    Essay: The Last Stand of Free Town by Porter Fox 2010

    Short Story: The Lady or the Tiger by Frank Stockton 1882

    Reading today took me to England, Denmark, and an unspecified ancient kingdom. All three made me think about how people are always trying to change things to make them “right”.

  • Adventure!

    Adventure!

    We ran the arboretum 10k today. It’s the farthest I’ve run in a long time and that feels good. The weather was cool enough, the volunteers were all so merry, and Gaga, Grandpa, and kiddo all cheered us on.

    I’m writing this post while in bed listening to Pete read The Hobbit to kiddo for her bedtime story. It makes my heart feel full.

    Today’s reading

    Poem: Snapdragon by Kevin Young 2024?

    Essay: A Girls’ Guide to Saudi Arabia by Maureen Dowd 2010

    Short Story: Summer of Light by Jonathan Coe 2023

    I enjoyed all the reading today. The essay was an interesting if frightening glimpse into what life is like for women in Saudi Arabia. The short story also deals with navigating the world as a woman. I think the poem is about choosing life and I like its cadence.

  • Yo quiero

    Yo quiero

    It was kind of a dreary day and I started off obsessing about the car starter. At one point I tried packing for the road trip just to calm my brain. Then a freight train was blocking both crossings on the way to pickup kiddo and traffic on the alternate route was horrible. Perhaps I should have been looking for the glimmers instead of panicking. Like Taco Bell for lunch with Pete. And now finding an artist who makes oil paintings of fast food.

    Today’s reading

    Poem: Eat by Joy Harjo 2024

    Essay: My Year at Sea by Christopher Buckley 2010

    Short story: Where Do You Go? by Samar Farah Fitzgerald 2012

    Some of the short stories I’ve read recently have come from a book of winners of the O. Henry Award. I thought award based compilations would feel like I was feeding my brain quality stuff and getting inspired, but man they’re mostly depressing. I came across a site that tagged a bunch of the “best” short stories and I found out after the fact the one I just read was tagged “stories where you feel like something bad is going to happen”. Well that is often my brain’s natural anxious state so adding more fuel to the fire isn’t exactly helpful. lol. Then I looked at a listing of all the tags and the top five were “Death, Family, Ambiguous Ending, Slow Plot, Downbeat Ending” Why are they all so bleak?!

    The essays at least are on a decent track- I found a book of them that are travel themed, which I’ve been enjoying.

    For poetry, I’ve been taking the last few from a book called “You Are Here: Poetry In The Natural World” and that is pleasing as well.

  • Books and sleep

    Books and sleep

    Besides the short form writing, I’ve been tracking the books I read. I use Storygraph because it feels nice to support an independent app and not Amazon. The app has some fun stats.

    • So far I’ve read 27 books this year.
    • Every year it seems I seek out books that are lighthearted and adventurous
    • my top genre is always Fantasy.
    • It takes me an average of 11 days to finish a book.

    Today’s reading

    Poem: You Belong to the World by Carrie Fountain 2024

    Essay: Venance Lafrance Is Not Dead by Mischa Berlinski 2010

    Short Story: In the Shells of Broken Things by A. T. Greenblatt 2025

    Yesterday I purposely read Bradbury since that’s how the challenge started. But I didn’t write any thoughts on it. So I started earlier today intending to write more but now it’s late and I’m in bed and sleep is calling to me so I will try again tomorrow.

  • It’s the little things

    It’s the little things

    I’ve found myself getting obsessed with gadgets and wanting to always be prepared for every situation. At first I think it was the worry of not having something we needed when kiddo was a baby. But now it’s morphed into so much more. I’m a little embarrassed about how obsessed I get, but also incredibly pleased when something I’m carrying comes in handy.

    One example is I keep a very small reusable bag in my purse. It couldn’t just be pretty small, it had to be the smallest I could find. Like I’m an ultralight hiker or something shaving ounces off my pack weight.

    Today after I picked kiddo up from camp, we stopped and had an ice cream sandwich (her current favorite). Her face got really messy and I didn’t have any napkins, but I did have some mini compressed towels I bought. I’m not sure why I felt I needed them. To save weight? Because other wipes eventually dry out or have other chemicals in them? Because I read a list of travel “must haves” and was influenced? Either way, I poured water on it and it expanded and kiddo went “Whoa! You’re like a spy!” So worth it.

    Today’s reading

    Poem: How American by Luther Hughes 2025?

    Essay: The Coconut Salesman by David Baez 2010

    Short Story: The Foghorn by Ray Bradbury 1951

    I thought I’d have something to say about what I read today but I don’t really.

  • Picture this

    Picture this

    All I have to do is take a photo of a plant and an app called PictureThis tells me all about it. Over the past few years I’ve learned so much about what grows in our yard. Most are considered weeds but I’ve always taken issue with that. So often these weeds have beautiful flowers that attract pollinators, have substantial root systems that combat erosion and flooding, and just grow in all situations where so many other plants can’t hack it.

    We’ve been noticing how many bumblebees are attracted to a purple flower that grows by the deck. I used the app and found out it is Ohio Spiderwort. I love all of the random facts I’ve learned about it: the flowers are edible, the leaves can help soothe insect bites like aloe, and if irradiated the flowers turn pink (eep!)

    Today’s reading

    Poem: Chicken for Breakfast by Kazim Ali 2025?

    Essay: Southern Culture on the Skids by Ben Austen 2010

    Short Story: Manjar dos Deuses by Anna Martino 2022

    Part of this reading challenge is to read about things I know nothing about and normally wouldn’t seek out. So the essay about NASCAR was enlightening! The thing that surprised me was how big some of the crowds are (100k+), even though they’re declining. Can’t say it’s anything I want to see after learning more, but it was an interesting slice of life.

    The short story I found in Clarkesworld, a sci-fi magazine I stumbled across a few years ago. I should pick it up more often. The story was about food and memory and love and loss.

    The poems are always challenging. I feel like I need to read them multiple times to see if I get it. This one opened with:

    “A book led me to the particular performance of the cello suite”

    Which felt nice to think about all the things books have led me to.

  • Summer days

    Summer days

    It was kiddo’s first day of summer camp today. Her main complaint was there was too much yelling by the counselors. At pickup I definitely heard it and it was a bummer. I had been told that the counselors were all going to be high school or college kids so I pictured a more laid back atmosphere. I hope my first impression is wrong and things get better. At least Pete and I already talked about cancelling some camp in favor of a more relaxed summer including more time at the pool.

    The walk there today was beautiful. Sunny and just warm enough for shorts. I feel real lucky to be able to take the slow way there. Especially at pickup the line of cars was so long and just felt so disappointing that that is the norm now.

    Today’s reading

    Poem: Intentions to breathe [“fantasia”] by bruno darío (translated 2025 can’t find the original date)

    Essay: My Monet Moment by André Aciman 2010

    Short Story: Leaving Maverley by Alice Munro 2011

    I often just don’t get poetry. That was the case today. But it was fine.

    Munro’s short story had that bleak quality that I’ve seen sometimes when dealing with suburbia and mean or uncaring characters. Then I remembered there was something negative that came out after her death. A quick search revealed she had stood by a child abuser. It reminded me of finding out Neil Gaiman was not a good person. Once I heard these things, it didn’t matter if their writing was great, I couldn’t read it without seeing every interaction in a new light. Characters that were horrible suddenly sounded like their real opinions thinly disguised. And if I’m honest, there were always parts of Gaiman’s stories that felt off. Some writing just gives me the ick and there are so many other people writing great things. So I’m going to follow my gut and not to read or stop reading anything that even hints at the ick.

    The Monet essay had zero ick! I loved it and it made me want to travel and observe harsh light and patterns and walk and sit and listen and look closer and discover.

  • More Running

    More Running

    Pete and I ran at the Arboretum again today. At 4.2 miles, it was my longest run and included the fastest 5k since I started tracking again.

    I had heard that Nerds Gummy Clusters are good for fuel so I brought some. Back when I was doing this running thing more often, 4.2 miles wouldn’t necessitate any fuel, but I’m not sure what this body needs anymore. Maybe it was more of a mental boost or because I also ate them at the point in the route that started going downhill, but I felt less cranky and was able to carry on.

    I also want to sing the praises of wool clothing for running. I sweat a lot and tech fabrics always make me feel like I’m in a puddle long afterwards. I was pleasantly surprised by how quickly the wool bike shorts dried. They were also comfortable and great at regulating temp. Five stars.

    Today’s reading

    Poem: Romance by Ruth Stone 1999

    Essay: Concision: A Sprawl by George Estreich 2022

    Short Story: The Blue Hotel by Stephen Crane 1898

    I didn’t feel any sparks when reading today. Maybe I’m just tired.

  • Notice the glimmers

    Notice the glimmers

    We walked to the first farmers market of the season this morning. Kiddo rode her bike and we laughed a lot as we all made variations on “who has two thumbs and wants coffee? this guy”

    The market was bustling and the weather was perfect. There was an Irish band playing. I felt lucky that this is our community.

    Since yesterday’s random reading was too heavy, I purposely tried to seek out lighter options today. I didn’t research too thoroughly, and realized a bit too late that humor doesn’t have to be light. I did laugh quite a bit at “The Last Normal Day” about the beginning of the pandemic. It really captured the chaotic wtf is happening feeling of it all. “Bettering Myself” was about an alcoholic and some of the character’s nonchalant descriptions of what she drank and how hungover she was just made my stomach feel sour. I guess both stories brought me back to different times in my life. It makes me thankful for where I’m at now. The poem contained this line:

    “The way giggles sound sweeter when hurled against the din”

    which is how laughing this morning felt.

    While doing photo cleanup for June 7, I found a screenshot with this quote, “Glimmers are any moments in your day that bring you joy, happiness, peace, gratitude, or love, making you feel good. The more you look out for them, the more you’ll notice, and the fewer triggers you’ll encounter. We tend to see what we actively seek.”

    Seems like good advice.

    Today‘s reading

    Poem: Meta by Rev. Robin G. Wright 2024

    Essay: The Last Normal Day by Samantha Irby 2023

    Short Story: Bettering Myself by Ottessa Moshfegh 2017

  • It was all yellow

    It was all yellow

    Kiddo graduated kindergarten today and I have mixed feelings about it. I’m proud and also a little sad. It just feels like time is moving so damn fast.

    Today’s reading

    Poem: Birdsong of Shaker Way by Ann-Margaret Lim 2025?

    Essay: The Rough Ride by Sandra Hager Eliason 2022

    Short Story: The Yellow Wallpaper by Charlotte Perkins Gilman 1892

    The essay and short story both dealt with mental illness. It’s amazing how far things have come in treating it and how far they still need to go. I remember reading The Yellow Wallpaper in college and being so creeped out by it. Re-reading it today made me wonder if the creepy, moldy, actually alive walls in Silvia Moreno-Garcia’s Mexican Gothic was inspired by it.

    The poem helped clear my head, so here’s an excerpt:

    ”Every day is perfect, if

    when you wake, you hear birds

    in the garden, in the yard. Birds”

    I didn’t have an image for this post yet, so I searched my photos for June 6 and happened to have a Cedar Waxwing so that gets the featured image spot.

    Then I realized I didn’t have a title either and Coldplay lyrics popped in my head “it was all yellow” It’s a love song so this post ends on a double positive note. Yay!