Tuesday, April 8

Coming out of the tired spell, I think. I felt better today. Work wasn't as crazy, just preparations for another event tomorrow. 

The kids were extremely excited about today because it was the release day of a novel they've been anxiously awaiting for months--Fearless by Lauren Roberts. They'd both pre-ordered it from Amazon, but when I checked this morning to see the delivery estimate, the books hadn't even shipped yet. That's the whole point of pre-ordering--the release day arrival! So I canceled those and ordered two copies from our local bookstore, Riverstone, then called later in the morning to make absolutely sure the order was going to be ready for pickup today.

After I picked the kids up from musical and crew, I took them to the bookstore so they could run in and get their books. The store had gotten a bunch of merch from the publisher--stickers, activity sheets, crowns, pouches, sticky notes--and the bookseller gave them a ton of fun things. They were so excited. Love a book-focused day. 

Andrew had a work dinner so the kids and I had leftovers. When Andrew got home, we went outside to look at the collapsed fence and rigged a barrier so at least I can let Farrah into the backyard over the next ten days while Andrew is gone. 

Is our retaining wall / fence a metaphor for the current societal moment, as in a stunning and expensive collapse? Perhaps it is. 

Lucia was talking about her schedule for next year, where she'll have an American history class and an American literature class, and she expressed a teenager's disgust for the entire idea of digging deeply into what she sees (rightfully) as a huge mess. I told her this is EXACTLY the right time to be learning Amerian history and literature, to examine the foundations that, LIKE OUR RETAINING WALL, are being destroyed. Side note: Highly recommend Heather Cox Richardson's daily newsletter "Letters from an American" for regular historical context and insight.