Boats, Games and Ice Barrels

Whatcha got going on this weekend? Our family is flirting with perhaps a long (or short) boat ride to the Cove, a new horror movie opening, maybe some spirited games of Clue? My youngest is getting ready to head back to campus next week, so there’s that chaos. I have a few new recipes I want to try out, some swimming to do, and lots of research, schoolwork and organizing to finish.

Here are twelve yummy things we are loving for the weekend here at Chrysalis Collective:

“Modern Love” Season 2 with Minnie Driver on Amazon Prime.

This article about Biden cancelling student loan debt for those with severe disabilities.

HugglePod Canvas chairs from Hearthsong. So fun for the kids, and statistically proven to be a calming space for children with special needs.

Ice Barrel. I’m considering getting this for myself for Christmas. Cold exposure improves mood and brain health, and activates the nervous system. If it wasn’t so expensive, it would be in my house right now. I took an ice bath at a fancy spa a year ago, and I can’t tell you how good I felt afterward, for DAYS. The price just needs to come down. They are one of my affiliates, but yowsa, the $$ is pricey. Check it out.

10 Quick Dinners With Five Ingredients or Less for Back-to-School chaos. Key word: SLOW COOKER.

“Night House” coming into theaters today. We’re going to see it on Sunday.

“Women of the Week” on M.M. LaFleur. I swear by M.M. LaFleur and Modern Citizen for my teaching style, and their message of feminine power through professionalism and career resonates with me. If you like to look sophisticated and polished, give it a look. I love putting on my work clothes to teach my classes in the fall, then coming home to put on fluffy sweatpants and cashmere sweaters. Is there a more yummy feeling? Live with purpose, ladies.

The iconic American Giant hoodie dress just came out in plum. OMG. I have this hoodie dress in black, blue, and green. They are my casual hang-out, run-errands, read-on-the-patio go-to dresses in the fall, and the first articles of clothing I roll up and put into my luggage when I travel. They are thick, flattering and versatile, and again, not cheap, but I bet my American Giant hoodie dresses will last longer (can you say forever?) than anything you could get at Marshalls.

Another funny slideshow by the Onion: “Major Things Your Teacher Glossed Over in Sex Ed.” Warning: rated R+.

This obscure sweet lilting Lyle Lovett song, “If I Had a Boat.” This song works its way into my heart, lodges in my throat, and reminds me of everything in the world that is good and right and pure. Close your eyes and turn it up.

I will be making these perfect roasted Brussels sprouts this weekend.

Finally, drum roll please….“To Kill a Mockingbird” starring Jeff Daniels as Atticus Finch coming back to Broadway. Huzzah!!!! I’ve seen it twice, third time is the charm. Anyone want to join? Email me and have a great weekend!

Daily Harvesting

I need a break from gender observations and universal gratitude. Looks like it’s time for anotherrrrr…

List of Ten Things I’m Loving Right Now!

My French Press:  I got a French press for Christmas, and although I have always suspected that it would change the coffee experience for me, I had no idea how much it would change the coffee experience for me. I am a black coffee drinker, so my mid-morning (and last day’s) cup of coffee made fresh from my French press is an aesthetic experience. It even changes how my house smells. I love going to my favorite gourmet food store for freshly ground beans, then heating water in my Haden kettle and stirring the hot water into the pungent grounds. The four minutes I force myself to wait to depress the plunger and then drink that cup of coffee is a tough four minutes. The taste of a perfect cup of coffee made from a French press just hits different.

Frank and Eileen button-down voile shirts: Warning: these shirts are expensive. I mean, Oprah wears them. If you don’t believe in paying for quality, don’t even log onto the website, you’ll be horrified. Just know this: when you are a large-breasted woman like myself who likes to wear light gauzy boxy linen shirts, you are limited in your choices. It’s not like I can just go to Macy’s and find such a shirt. I know the Eileen voile shirt is going to fit me and look great when I’m on the boat, out to lunch at the country club, or just with a comfortable skirt at church or out for drinks. I have the Eileen voile shirt in black and white, and it looks great with everything.

You Say to Brick, a biography about Louis Kahn: I have a thing for architecture, and architects, for that matter. My obsession with Frank Lloyd Wright is a post for another day. But this book is knocking me out. Here are some fun facts:

Did you know that Louis Kahn died alone in a bathroom in New York’s Penn Station?

That he was so bedraggled in the airport that when fellow architect Stanley Tigerman saw him a few hours before his death, Tigerman didn’t recognize Kahn at first? “I see this old man, who looks like he has detached retinas, is really raggy and looks like a bum. If I had not known he was Lou Kahn, I would have thought he was a homeless person.”

That a man (who remains nameless in the book, for good reason) encountered Kahn in medical distress in the Penn Station men’s bathroom, and asked Kahn if he needed medical help? When Kahn said yes, this stranger called a doctor and then proceeded to leave Kahn alone and ill. He claims that Kahn was “in complete control of himself and walking around,” so he thought it was fine to catch his train. I wouldn’t want anyone to know my name either, if I could have been the difference between Louis Kahn living or dying.

That he had children not only with his wife but also with two other women, but he was so beloved by all the women and all of the children that they all accepted each other and continue to love him to this day.

That Kahn positioned the plaza of the Salk Institute directly in line with the equinoctial sun so as to create maximum access to natural light? Kahn called it “daily harvesting.” How lovely.

Volunteermatch.org: I’ve been flailing a little, you know. A tad lost, meandering off my patch, as it were. Going on to volunteermatch.org and finding ways to help other people always sets my head straight. I never forget how lucky I am to have the life and family I have, and the time to express that gratitude. I am now signed up to work a table at a charity race in Philly, and to blog for Soroptimist.

Saucony sneakers: The new spring colors and styles are so beautiful. I have new light blue ones. So pretty.

Modern Citizen linen sweaters: Again, not cheap. But I don’t buy many clothes anymore, so the ones I do buy must be top notch and versatile. Modern Citizen is all about simplicity and economy of material.

St. Joseph Sunday Missal: I got really tired of sitting in church and not being able to follow along in mass with the daily readings. When are churches getting their books back? Anyway, I just went onto Amazon (thanks, Jeff) and ordered a 2021 Missal that I bring to church on Sundays. It’s small and easy to carry, and it smells good (book lovers understand this).

Elin Hilderbrand novels: Not because I like her writing. I actually think her writing sucks. Her tired clichés and contrived dialogue give me brain bleed, and her sentences are like reading Mad Libs. Hey, don’t get mad at me, I read her novels sometimes on the beach, too. I mean, Cheetos lack nutrition but I still like to eat them. It’s just that whenever I read an Elin Hilderbrand novel, it reminds me that some people get to be best-selling authors not because of their talent, but because of their social connections, and who they know in the publishing industry. This knowledge, while discouraging, keeps me sharp and on my toes.

Revlon The Gloss: These chunky little Revlon glosses with the soft thick felt lip applicator are available in all stores. So many colors and sheens. I keep them in my car, in my purse, in the kitchen junk drawer, in my luggage, in my gym bag, so I always have one available.

The sunshine: Just does a world of good for a mood, doesn’t it? Soak it up.

Miscellania

My Halloween movie post is not ready, so here are a few things you might find interesting but which do not rate an entire post:

Yesterday I was caught up on the laundry for 32 minutes. Then my son walked in the door. Remember, that’s what you can accomplish when your children leave home. Never let go of the dream.

Fairbanks, Alaska received the most votes on low-humidity places to visit in September. Thanks to all respondents. But get this: at the time of this writing, while Fairbanks is 38 degrees, humidity is a whopping 87 percent. It is 51 degrees here with 66 percent humidity. I dunno.

The Container Store has a chip clip in the form of a pig that squeals four times when you press it. The implication is clear. I bought it. I had no choice.

There are twenty different ways to wear a Breton shirt, according to the email I just received. Twenty. Including wearing the shirt on your head as a mask. Those people in London have way too much time on their hands.

The Metropolitan streams free live opera, and last night I watched a performance of Le Nozze di Figaro. Just wow. Too late for that performance now, but others are streamed regularly.

My yard squirrels are spoiled. One in particular is now comfortable enough to walk into my foyer and stare at me with his little hands clasped together adorably in front of him as if to say, “Yo, bitch. Peanuts?”

Things to ban right now: the heart-shape people make with their hands which they then post on social media, plus the terms “new normal,” “unprecedented times” and “uncertain times.” This will never be normal. It is not unprecedented nor uncertain. Read a history textbook. And if anything has ever been made right by posting a heart with your hands through the sunrise, please let me know. I’ll be right on it.

A murder hornet was recently captured alive in the U.S. for the first time. An entomologist snagged him in a net. He remains free on bond and despite appearances, is not considered a flight risk.

Something I am loving right now is the Modern Citizen clothing brand, but I must say to them: your models are six-feet tall and your dresses and skirts still come down to their mid-calf. You must know that short women like myself cannot buy your clothes without looking like an Olsen twin. Bummer.

While driving to Philly today the same strange-looking airplane kept flying low overhead. It passed me one way, then another, then another. I wish I knew enough about aircraft to know what kind it was. It was some kind of strange hybrid, like that new Jeep pickup, or one of those camelback crickets, which actually resembles some kind of terrifying mutant spider.  And I also couldn’t help but think that if the plane crashed on top of me it would make a great blog.

Just saw on Instagram that there are supposedly workers in the Edinburg zoo whose job it is just to pick up penguins who topple over. Turns out the zoo is close to the airport, so when the penguins stare up at the planes, they topple over. I want this job. I need this job.