Chris and I saw the Wicker movie on Sunday. It was kind of a wild story. A fisherwoman asked Peter Dinklage to make her a husband out of wicker. (Side note: I once saw Peter Dinklage outside of Billy’s Bakery in New York). Anyway, the wicker guy turned out to be a model husband, and the other women in the village were jealous. It was a bit like a Grimm’s fairy tale, with some happiness and some menace.
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Eric wanted me to stay longer in London. I wish I had; it was hard coming back. At home, I was hit with some severe annoyance. On the plus side, I stayed calm (outwardly) and did not escape to the forest. Once I sent Eric a meme about people running to the forest. He wrote, “Mom: returns from the forest because they have no iced coffee.” 😂 Also on the plus side, I liked Season 3 of Nobody Wants This. It reminds me of a Woody Allen movie (without the bad connotations): quirky, neurotic characters; clever dialogue; and lots of juicy misbehavior. It’s unusual in the sense that I prefer the side characters. I like Noah and Joanne well enough, but I really get invested when Sasha, Morgan and Esther show up. (Randomly, Esther reminds me of Alanis Morrissette.)
London visit
I went to visit Eric at college in London (or “uni,” as they would say). Everyone was very polite and the food was good. Highlights included the fried artichoke with romesco and gnocchi Gorgonzola at Bancone, and the roasted hake and sticky toffee pudding sundae at Hawkmoor. I also loved the iced latte and banana bread at Hideaway Coffee. We walked in Hampstead Heath, which I liked even better than Central Park. The one downside was my hotel shower, which had no ledge/rim and consequently flooded. I think I’ll stay somewhere else next time.
Nightswimming
My youngest was having a loud phone conversation with a friend and I slipped out the door and went swimming in the pool. It’s been a while since I did that, and I forgot how much I like swimming at night. I remembered when I was in high school and worked at Taco Bell (I know! Yuck!) and I would come home from a late shift, strip off my uniform, and jump in the pool.
On bureaucracy
Recently I finished a book where bureaucracy was the enemy - The Astral Library by Kate Quinn. I have to say this is accurate. It also dovetails with Hannah Arendt’s “banality of evil.” My building has been harassing me about insurance. My insurance people just emailed them what they wanted. (The building wouldn’t accept it directly from me.) So I think it might be over? Unless the building demands a physical copy. L’enfer c’est les autres… Update: they sent an email saying, “You’re all set.” I can’t believe it. Eric says, “We gotta celebrate.”
The kids are driving up to New York for the 4th of July weekend. I’ll be flying. When I planned the trip, I thought it would be cooler than Florida. It will actually be hotter, going into the triple digits on some days. So I feel a bit foolish. But we will be going to California from NYC in mid-July, and that is reliably cooler. Eric and I had a great time in Europe. Zoe (who wants to be called Chris now) was unable to come because of a broken ankle. Eric and I swam in the Aegean Sea and saw Harry Styles in concert (a fun sing-along). I’m still on the fence about whether to move back to NYC in 2029 (when Chris graduates) or stay in Florida. NYC is much cheaper for me because I only pay maintenance on the apartment there, instead of full rent. But Florida lets you avoid the winter. I haven’t really put roots down there, though anything can change, I suppose. Maybe I could go there for the winter…
