Slice of Life

Work deadlines, Father’s Day, and I’m tired of being cold all the time.

Jun 20, 2024

Hi, it’s me.

I am still in the throes of my busy season at work, juggling multiple huge and complicated grant proposals and reports that are all due between July 12th and August 9th. It is irksome to me that many funders open their application periods for short timelines—sometimes as little at six weeks—especially when they want to fund something “new” or “innovative.” I am irked! These deadlines are harshing my summer vibe!

Anyway, I am attempting to be chill about my (internal) commitment to publishing weekly newsletters, which is why I am typing this with my thumbs while riding the bus downtown. Should I maybe have chosen to skip this week? Perhaps. But then I wouldn’t receive the dopamine hit of likes and comments that fuels my fragile writer ego.

Speaking of work, I was at a conference last week and a vendor was taking headshots. I think this is the first headshot of myself that I haven’t hated.

In case you’re wondering what it’s like to live in Seattle:

Yesterday my 19-year-old asked me to turn on the heat.

“It’s June.” I said. “I’m not turning on the heat.”

“But I’m so cooooollllld!” he whined. And then with finality, “I’m turning it on.”

“WE ARE NOT TURNING ON THE HEAT IN JUNE.”

This is peak Pacific Northwest living and the reason we wear wool socks and Birkenstocks. Because it SHOULD be sandal weather, but it’s not.

If you live in Minnesota, it’s like when it snows in April, only worse because it doesn’t always snow in April but IT’S ALWAYS COLD HERE IN JUNE.

Happy (belated) Father’s Day to all who celebrate.

To honor Bryan who is a fantastic dad, I accidentally bought him a gift that he already owned. Ah yes, this is what it’s like to be married to an ADHD peri-menopausal, pre-dementia wife. 😂 He thanked me, assured me it was a great idea, and said he was excited to have two now. What a guy.

Other Father’s Day mishaps include arriving on time for dinner reservations and waiting more than an hour to be seated anyway. The good news is, the Mall Life is going strong in Lynnwood, a suburb north of Seattle, so we enjoyed some window shopping while we waited. Who knew that retail stores were still open?! I did not, for the downtown Seattle shopping core is turning into a ghost town.