Anything Good This Weekend? #28
Did I mention we moved to Lancaster?
It’s been exactly a month (and a day) since we picked up from Philly and moved to Lancaster City. We’ve got a lot of boxes left to defeat, but much of the house is starting to look and feel like home.
I’ve spent a lot of my life feeling out of place and burdensome. The idea of belonging somewhere has existed as a far-off dream for so long, it’s hard to fathom that I “fit” anywhere without muscling my way in. I meditate enough to know I belong with myself, but the little kid in me who wants to be included struggles all the same. All of that to say, this weekend, and the last month in Lanc, has helped set me on a path to feeling more rooted in place.
So, anything good this weekend?
Between August 8 and August 10, I…
Walked to Central Market with my wife for produce and empanadas. We turned a pound of mushrooms into the body of a cream sauce for pasta on Saturday.
Bought a bunch of plants at Second Chance Plants, including some herbs and tomatoes that needed rehab, and flowers. And a pink “collector’s plant,” as my wife explained it.
Read 200 pages of Red Seas Under Red Skies. This series is so voice-y and enjoyable. I am a big fan. I’ll probably jump to another standalone after I finish this book.
Played Wraith and the Giants and It’s A Wonderful World. Both were superb solo board games, and Wraith is definitely Scott Almes’ best design.
Decided at 10AM on Sunday that I wanted nothing more than to babysit some pork shoulder in our braiser for hours while the Phillies played—I got my wish.
What does it mean to belong, anyway? I truly have no idea. It’s the kind of perfect, amorphous feeling that the mind can latch onto and dangle just out of reach to uphold the scary stories I tell myself about myself. So much of adult life is unlearning those stories we told ourselves as kids to make being a kid more tolerable. Can you tell I have paid top dollar (worth it) for therapy (the best) for years (highly recommend doing this if you are able) and now I have something to show for it?
Like everything else I pine after, belonging as a state of being blankets over me during otherwise small moments. Feeling “in place” is like being pinched by a well-placed arrow from the fringes of a field. I have no idea where it comes from, it strikes me sharply, and then I spend an inordinate amount of time examining the situation until all magic is gone and I am satiated to have logic’d my way through enjoying my life. Still learning to live life with an open hand…
In writing news, I have nearly finished final edits for my forthcoming novelette, Shouldn’t We Dance? and I am less than two months from having that book out in the world. My little story about grief, friendship, and space knights comes out in October and has been well-received thus far! Blurbs like, “an elegant journey,” and being called, “a master of grief,” have made me smile in the leadup to release.
You can pre-order my small press book today, right now. And if you do and send me an email, I will send you a photo of Khan! If you happen to pre-order my book and send me an email, and are a writer, I will talk shop with you on any project of your choosing. People helping people, to quote Kruk.
Finally, I’m making big progress on my kid lit series. I am getting over myself and just writing every single day again without worrying about Draft 2 when I am simply trying to complete Draft 0. And my board game book is also coming along. I am getting stuck in the front material so I’ll probably just dive into another essay and free myself from the need to be perfect in all ways all the time when it comes to writing. My third music book is still on sub, and I hope to have more to share there soon as well. It feels great to be writing kid lit and creative nonfiction at the same time. My projects all feed my good mood.
That’s all from me today. Will share more about writing and board games this week! Until next time.
"People helping people, to quote Kruk." Love this.
I’m so glad that you are feeling at home in Lancaster. I appreciate your posts on social media as you explore the oldest inland city in the United States and the city of my birth. I wish more people recognized Lancaster as more than just Amish Country.
Bravo on the writing!