1) Olympics update! Anyone interested in my favorite Top Five moments?
a) Pommel Horse Guy winning the bronze for the team and how excited his teammates were.
b) The 1500 men's race and Hocker's amazing finish.
c) Celine Dion singing in the Opening Ceremonies? I don't know why, but this really gave me shivers. Also, Tom Cruise rappelling down at the Closing Ceremonies also made me cheer, which felt weird knowing all I know about him...
d) Watching the absolutely batshit insanity of them dropping people down from the sky in Kayak Cross, whatever is even happening in rhythmic gymnastics when they are throwing the hula hoop into the air, tumbling across the mat and then catching the hula hoop behind their backs, and don't even get me started on BMX freestyle where the riders sometimes are floating in mid-air not touching the bikes at all.
e) Kaylia Nemour winning a gold medal for Algeria on uneven bars in artistic gymnastics with a dominant performance. She lives and trains primarily in France and competed for France until about three years ago when she had dispute with the French gymnastics federation. One of her parents is Algerian, though, so she competed for Algeria. It was a weird sort of underdog story and I bet the French federation is beating themselves up over that since the French team did not make the finals and not a single one of their athletes made individual event finals. Good for Nemour for persevering and winning that medal in front of a supportive hometown crowd.
2) Last weekend was sort of crazy! I started by going to visit Maya, who served me a delicious dinner, let me pet her dogs, and went on a walk with me.
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| We're throwing Midwest pride signs here. And there's a black squirrel! |
3) After I went to Maya's, I went to hang out with my mother at my sister's house where we watched Olympics (lots of rhythmic gymnastics and modern pentathlon) while my sister's new puppy ran around like a maniac. He's pretty cute, though.
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| Seven months old. Cuddly, sweet, and crazy. |
4) Snail mail! I have gotten so many wonderful postcards and notes from fellow bloggers. Birchie sent me a postcard from her travels, Jenny sent me one from Waco, and J sent me a birthday card. It's been delightful to have so much mail flooding my inbox.
5) Today I am going on an adventure with my husband and dog. Hopefully more about that later, unless it is a disaster, in which case I will never utter another word about it!
Happy Friday, Engie! You are a travelling gal lately - hope this weekend goes well!
ReplyDeleteAnd we're already back from our adventure and it was mostly a success!
DeleteGlad you got the postcard : ). You got to visit lots of different dogs! Your sister probably has her hands full with that puppy.
ReplyDeleteYou watched a lot more of the Olympics than I did- I mostly just watched swimming, gymnastics, and all the running. And I missed the closing ceremonies- my sister had to text me about Tom Cruise's appearance.
I hope your adventure goes well!
My obsession with the Olympics was real and now I have all this free time. What did I even do with myself pre-Olympics?!
DeleteHave a wonderful adventure with Dr. BB and Hannah, friend!
ReplyDeleteThanks! It was a good time.
DeleteHave a great adventure - and happy Birthday! This must be your bday adventure? I hope it involves a delicious cupcake!
ReplyDeleteOne of my favorite Olympic moments was when the female Ukrainian high jumper won gold!! To think what she has been through! I also loved that Nemour won gold on uneven bars. I also loved how much the women dominated in track and field, especially in the relays. Like the 4x400m! Lastly, I loved seeing Leon Marchand win gold in the medley, I think the 400m medley? The crowd chanting "Leon" everytime his head came out of the water during the breast stroke was so cool and he won it by a massive margin as well!
The high jumping competition was so fun to watch! I have to admit that I missed Leon madness because I would always go do chores when swimming came on (I don't find it to be one of the more fun things to watch), but it must have been amazing for him to be so successful in his home country.
DeleteHave fun this weekend! I can't wait until Doggo is a bit older and then the Hubs and I are going to take her on some short trips - I'm thinking Lake Erie places & islands. I predict that the three of you will have a fun time on your trip, and of course I want to hear EVERYTHING about it. You reminded me of how much easier life is with a year old dog compared to a 7 month old dog...she still has a lot of mayhem in her but not AS MUCH mayhem. I just want to get to a place of less furniture chewing before taking her on the road.
ReplyDeleteI am totally into sending postcards now thanks to you! For those who don't know, it started the day that you, Anne, and I went to House on the Rock. You bought 3 postcards from the gift shop, and we picked three of our mutual friends who we had addresses for - so easy peasy. When I was on family vacay I suddenly found myself texting a bunch of people for their addresses and going on a postcard shopping spree. Now I've leveled up and even bought pretty stamps. And of course it was such a nice surprise to get your card.
I feel so honored that I am the one who spurred on your postcard obsession!! My nieces and nephews know that if they travel with me and not all their cousins, they'll have to write postcards to them at lunch. LOL. The love of sending postcards has not been passed on to them, so I'm happy you've picked it up! Snail mail is the best!
DeleteYou were quite absorbed with the Olympics, and it is good to read of your highlights. Enjoy your outing today.
ReplyDeleteMy entire personality was Olympics for a while. Thank goodness we can return to regular non-tv watching.
DeleteI loved all the Olympic moments you mentioned! It seemed like a fun Olympics this time, overall. The pommel horse guy was so great! I love snail mail too.
ReplyDeleteSo many great Olympic moments. I am excited for the upcoming ones in LA!
DeleteI did not watch any of the Olympics. I normally would, but this year I wasn't feeling it. I did see some highlights on social media, which was fun.
ReplyDeleteBlack squirrel! We finally have one in the neighborhood! Every time I see it, I squeal. 🖤
We definitely don't have any black squirrels, so I get PUMPED when I go to Michigan and they're just hanging out like they aren't PERFECTLY ADORABLE.
DeleteBatshit is the perfect word. Loved those other moments too.
ReplyDeleteThere's a lot of batshit in the Olympics, I found.
DeleteI'm now thinking I did not tune into the Olympics near enough, because I missed some of the moments that were highlights for you. Bummer. That dog is crazy cute - those eyes. I'm giggling over this adventure and look forward to hearing about it. So, I hope it was great. Black squirrels are really rare near us, but there is one that lives in my parents' yard. My brother got my mom a stuffed black squirrel for Christmas that she keeps in her kitchen window. ;)
ReplyDeleteI finished All the Light We Cannot See. Such an amazing book. So, yesterday I checked out I Capture the Castle, and started it last night. This is my first time trying to join the cool bloggers book club. I hope I can keep up, or catch up. I'm not quite sure where the club is, but I'm only on the first few pages.
I've never seen a black squirrel here, but they are super common in Michigan and I'm always amazed by them. I feel like your parents are lucky to be the caretakers of a black squirrel.
DeleteWelcome to book club! I hope you like the book (or at least enjoy the discussion).
So funny that a black squirrel is a novelty! I had to look it up as I wasn't sure what I was missing - we pretty much only have black squirrels around here. I get excited if I see a grey one!
ReplyDeleteBlack squirrels are relatively uncommon here in the States except for in Michigan. They're so pretty! I do not get excited about seeing grey ones. LOL.
DeleteI have to admit that I only saw Olympic Highlights, we didn't have it on much... but now that it's over, I wish I had paid a bit more attention.
ReplyDeleteYou have a lot going on. Your sister's puppy is so cute (I hope you had a good time with your mom) and I hope you'll have a great adventure with Dr. BB and will tell us about it.
There is a lot going on. Too much, in fact, and I'm a tiny bit exhausted. LOL. Hopefully a long nap will fix all of it!
DeleteAmazing that you and maya got to meet up! And that puppy is so beautiful... The eyes. My first and last black squirrel was a NY Botanical Gardens- what a creature :)
ReplyDeleteFor those of used to grey squirrels, the black ones are so special! They're just gorgeous.
DeleteIt was so fun to meet up with Maya and her house is on the way to my mom's, so hopefully we can meet up again!
I am so enamored with black squirrels! We have just a couple who live in our town, and if Rick or I see one, we automatically Win The Day. We have an ongoing contest: Rick counts deer and I count hawks, and whoever sees the most is the winner. Since black squirrels are so rare, spotting one Wins The Day.
ReplyDeleteI hope all of your visits were pleasant (I know the one with Maya was). You've been so busy! I hope you have at least a couple of relax days built in before the semester starts.
You win ALL THE DAYS when you see a black squirrel. They're just soooo pretty.
DeleteWell, I am very curious about your adventure and how it went! (And why you were concerned it might not go well!) Looking forward to the deets!
ReplyDeleteWhat a cute puppy! Looks like a fuzzy ball of mischief.
YAY for blog friend meetups!!!! You are really getting so much face time with amazing people this summer (and they are so lucky to be getting time with you!).
I have had so many blogger meetups recently, but I can't take credit for most of them. Birchie and Kyria came to me! It's been so fun and it's crazy how much I feel like I know bloggers right away! I feel like I will try to hunt down bloggy friends wherever I travel now.
DeleteSeeing a black squirrel is on my bucket list. Weird bucket list item, I know.
ReplyDeleteThey are everywhere in Michigan! So close and yet so far.
DeleteI've never heard of black squirrels, but they are sure pretty! I'm just cluing in that you spent time at your sister's house, and I missed perhaps where things got better with that whole situation, I thought you were banned. I AM GLAD!
ReplyDeleteThanks to you and Stephany, I checked out Kayak Cross and WOW, that's fun. Somehow it doesn't feel Olympic serious, but why the hell not J? Why be such a snob? Fabulous.
Oh that puppy. I have dogs on my mind a lot today. The rescue where we got Genevieve and Mulder has a beautiful dog that just came in and I WANT HIM. Also, a friend's dog was just diagnosed with Lymphoma. She's 14, they will not do chemo (nor would I) and it's giving me PTSD and breaking my heart. Also, my Ted is not sure he will ever want another dog. He is enjoying the freedom (and money) of petless life. HUGE SIGH.
People in Michigan just act like black squirrels are NORMAL. They're so pretty.
DeleteI was at my sister's, but things haven't improved much. I got there after she had left and left before she arrived, so we never overlapped. I just hung out with my mom and the pets.
Kayak cross is bonkers and I loved every second of it, but especially the first five seconds when they're all flailing about because they'd just been dropped out of the sky.
Can you convinced Ted that puppies aren't limiting, but bring so much to a household? Common on!! The rescue has a perfect dog!!
I am here for all of the Olympics talk! I loved all of those moments and also loved Stephen winning bronze on the pommel horse finals and how excited Brody Malone was for him! It was also fun to watch Simone win gold in the all-around and Suni win bronze. The 1500m men's race was CRAZY and so was the 100m where Lyles won by like a millisecond. Katie Ledecky being almost half an Olympic-sized pool length ahead of everyone else in the 1500 free. AHHH SO MANY GREAT MOMENTS.
ReplyDeleteIt really was a great Olympics and I have to give props to Peacock for having it all so accessible. I wish they still had replays up, though, for longer than three days after the events ended. I still hadn't watched all of badminton! (That's actually true. I was bummed I missed some badminton matches. And I didn't get to show my husband the insanity of the hula hoop in rhythmic gymnastics.)
DeleteWhat kind of dog is that? He looks like a little wolf! Those eye markings are really cool. As you know, I watched the Olympics with you and then again with Lisa and had a lot of fun doing it. However, I did not see the opening or closing ceremony, or the kayaking. I did watch about five minutes of the breakdancing and it was fun, but not something I need to watch hours of.
ReplyDeleteHe is a pomsky (Pomeranian/husky). This little guy has husky markings, but otherwise seems like a Pom. He's quiet and good-natured and didn't seem too stubborn, although it's hard to say because he's still a baby.
DeleteYay! I was glad we could introduce you to the power of being able to judge synchronized diving!
Snail mail is the best. Reading about you receiving some made me think about my intention to write letters this month. Haven't done so...
ReplyDeleteI was in awe about the kayak droppings too. I wonder why... is it necessary in that sport... who knows...
Sometimes just a line or two is all you need in a card or postcard. I've taken to just sending one whenever I think of someone!
DeleteDang it, I knew I missed your birthday. Sigh. By like, a lot.
ReplyDeleteI desperately want to know what this adventure is! I need to catch up, also sigh.
I know things are hard, still, with a few things subbed in and out. Life is a lot. Hugs.