Skipping Town

A work day. But afterward I got in some hammock time. The kids played in the pond for a while.  In the afternoon, Andrew's sister and family arrived, so we're onto the next part of our NH stay now. We got Pizza Chef pizzas for dinner. I had a very late work webinar, but everyone else sat outside by the fire. I am still waiting to hear the sounds of an organ coming from the barn.   What We're Reading Margo: Expensive People by Joyce Carol Oates Andrew: Proust Lucia: Fable by Adrienne Young Greta: finished Murder on Mustang Beach by Alicia Bessette; started Forging Silver into Stars by Brigid Kemmerer

This morning, Andrew and the girls went on Andrew's long run, a hilly 6.5 mile trek that Andrew does every year. Andrew was excited to share the run with them, and they held their own. Lucia, of course, complained that she had to keep stopping to wait for everyone else.  While they were on their run, I made a batch of jam with the strawberries we picked. This is the only place I ever make jam, and it's just the worst place for a messy project like this, yet I continue to do this project every couple of years. I made nine jars. It's delicious. I should really get a canner to keep at home, too, and do some canning with farmer's market finds. But as with all things we do here, there seems to be no time to do them at home. Time stretches here. After lunch, we went to Books-A-Million and Newbury Comics so the kids could redeem a couple of punchcards. They each picked out a Funko and a Unicorno at Newbury Comics, and books at Books-A-Million.  Then we picked up a couple of th...

We did our annual Mount Ascutney hike this morning. It was so cool and cloudy it was like hiking into a cloud. When we climbed to the top of the fire tower at the peak, we couldn't see anything at all--a first. It was still great to be in the woods, despite the lack of view.  After our hike, we drove into Windsor and stopped at a pond we've been wanting to check out. We'd heard it's full of snapping turtles. Unfortunately, we didn't see any while we were there. Then we went to Frazer's for lunch. We all got burgers, and then maple creamees. This restaurant closes down for the entire week of July 4, so this was most likely our last visit. We stopped at the grocery store for a few things on the way home, and I got my canning supplies. Tomorrow I'll make some strawberry jam. The rest of the day was spent mostly reading in hammocks, the best kind of day. Andrew grilled steak for dinner and we ate outside behind the house. Then the girls and I played two rounds o...

A workday for me and Andrew. It was cloudy and cool, and the girls spent almost the entire day reading in their room. Glorious. Lucia also worked on making a Snapfish photo book of her trip to Spain. When I was done working, I, too, read for a long time. I also took a walk. The girls and Andrew all went for a run. Andrew grilled chicken and made a Greek salad for dinner, and then we played two rounds of Rummikub. This was a very quiet, restful day. The best kind of NH day when the real world just seems very far away. What We're Reading Margo: Sunrise on the Reaping Andrew: now it's Proust time Lucia: Star Bringer Greta: finished Don't Tell a Soul by Kirsten Miller; started and finished The Girls I've Been by Tess Sharpe; started Smile Beach Murder by Alicia Bessette

It was a cool, rainy day today, a nice relief after all the hot days. I had today off work but had to have one meeting this morning. After that, we went strawberry picking, which we hadn't been able to do last year. As usual, we picked far too many berries, and I'm going to make some jam this weekend, which I haven't done in a while.  After lunch, it rained, and the kids went out on the dock for a little while. Then the three of us played a few rounds of Rummikub before settling in with our books. At some point I took Farrah for a walk and spotted two red efts. Once Andrew finished working, he made steak mock frites for dinner, one of our top favorite NH meals. We didn't let our lack of an actual oven stop us from making the delicious mock frites; we just had to make several batches in our toaster oven. After dinner, we all played Rummikub and then a bunch of rounds of the "personality" version of Guess Who (Is your person really into community theater? Does y...

I started off the day reading in my hammock while the kids slept in. Is there anything more relaxing? There is not. Greta joined me when she woke up. Unfortnately, as she began making her way down the slight rise that leads to our hammock area, she saw a snake. It slithered out of her path, but did not slither away entirely. Greta said it was small. To my surprise, neither of us freaked out and ran inside. Instead, we coexisted with the snake while we read. Lucia eventually joined us as well. We did not tell her about the snake. Later in the afternoon, the girls and I went to Books-A-Million since they each had a punchcard to turn in. I bought Greta two bargain books and Lucia one non-bargain book, and a bargain book for myself.  The temperature seemed to double by the time we got home, so the girls went into the pond and I sat in a chair BY the pond. They played on the dock, their usual splashy game, and there was no sign of the snapping turtle. Once Andrew was done working, we sa...

It was a brutally hot day. I had a busy day of work, and trying to focus while literally melting in the upstairs bedroom was miserable. We (I) were very worried about Nutmeg, since the girls' bedroom is the hottest during the day. Rabbits should never be in an environment hotter than 75 degrees, and it was easily a hundred degrees in the bedroom. So we relocated her to a much cooler downstairs bedroom for the day. While Andrew and I worked all day, the kids read and played in the pond. Things got a little out of hand in a way that remains unclear, but it appears Greta pushed Lucia off the dock (a standard part of this activity) and Lucia scraped her shin somehow. It's all fun and games etc etc. I was so swelteringly hot after I finished working that I decided it was time for my once-a-decade dip in the pond. Greta and Andrew came with me for moral support, and also for physical support, since my abs are still so weak/nonexistent that I was concerned I wouldn't be able to ho...

We're having a heat wave here in NH, and it was sweltering. I'd taken today off work, so I had the whole day free. While the kids slept in, I read in my hammock for a long time.  After lunch, we went to the pond. I floated around on an inflatable boat, and the kids played as they always do on the floating dock, with the whole crowd of inflatables. Their game (?) this time, from what I could make out as I drifted around, involved pushing each other off the dock or encouraging each other to jump off, thrashing in the water and scrambling to get onto an inflatable, then screaming "BIG BACK!" at each other in a highest-volume call-and-response. Indeed, the phrase "big back" seemed to be the only thing they said to each other, and it was used as noun, verb, name, exclamation, expletive, and adjective. They were wildly hysterical. Even though I was only marginally paying attention to them, now and then their insanity would reach me and I would snicker as I floated...

River rafting day. It was a perfect day for it--very hot and sunny. We booked the 12:00 slot and a 3:30 table at Harpoon, with the idea that we'd take the full three-hour allotment to do our float. It was a lovely day. We rowed to our favorite rocky outcropping and pulled the raft ashore for a long spell of swimming, floating, rock skipping, and relaxing. I floated in the river in my life jacket for a long time, tnen lay down on the rocks at the water's edge with my life jacket as a pillow, the water flowing around me. It was the most relaxed I've felt in ages. We had some snacks and then set off again. Swimming at this particular area is my favorite part of our rafting experience each year. The current moved us at a good clip, but there was still a lot of rowing, with Greta shouting insturctions to us in the language of her crew team and getting mad when we didn't understand, and Lucia adamently insisting she didn't have to row because that would push us in the wro...

This morning we headed to Books-A-Million for our first visit of the summer. Shopping here is as much a tradition here as reading in hammocks and hanging out in the pond. I bought the kids two books each from the bargain books area. Then we went to the comic book store, where they always pick out a Funko Pop. Lucia was ecstatic to find a character from Yellowjackets, which apparently is sold out everywhere. Greta was torn between a couple of characters from Supernatural and Shadow and Bone, so she decided to wait and figure out which one she wanted most. We'll go back soon. Then we picked up some groceries and a few things from Wal-Mart, including window fans to help us get through the next few days of ninety-plus temperatures. We had lunch back at home and then headed to the pond. Andrew hung the rope across the pond, the final piece of our summer preparation. Then we all engaged with the pond according to our own comfort level. The kids jumped off the floating dock onto inflatabl...

Andrew and I both had to work today. The kids slept late. At lunchtime, we put up the hammocks in the woods. Lucia worked on diamond art; Greta finished a book. She loved the book so much that she said, "If I could carve open my heart and put the pages inside, I would." After work, I read in a hammock for a while and went for a walk. Andrew and Lucia went for a run. Andrew grilled burgers for dinner, I threw Farrah some toys to chase in the yard, and then we sat around the fire pit. A quiet, nice New Hampshire day. It was very windy and cool, so no pond swimming took place. Andrew mentioned to Greta today his plan to excavate an old ping-pong table from the barn, a plan that none of us approve of. This isn't a place for ping-pong. As Greta put it: "This is a place to reconnect with yourself and with nature. It's not a place for modern games ." It's hard to convey the withering disdain Greta managed to convey in those words.  Final note: On Thursday, some...

We're here! We loaded up the car this morning with the jetlagged kids and the pets and drove ten hours to NH. It wasn't a bad drive. The kids watched shows and slept. Andrew and I traded driving shifts and listened to Scam Inc, a podcast from The Economist. We stopped at Sheetz. Nutmeg glowered at us from her cage. We arrived around five, and after we unpacked the car we went into town to pick up groceries and pizza from Pizza Chef. Back at the house, the kids decided to go into the pond before eating dinner; they're wasting no time. Andrew and I inflated a bunch of the inflatables, and Andrew hung up the swing in the back yard. Tomorrow we'll hang the hammocks and put up the pond rope, and we'll be ready for our stay. We are all excited to dive into our carefully chosen book stacks and will, of course, add to them at Books-A-Million. When we left last year, we never could have predicted what the year ahead would bring. I'm so glad to be back, even more than oth...

We ended up staying at the airport until 2:30am last night. The kids were delayed out of JFK, and when they finally arrived in Pittsburgh, there was a problem with the jet bridge, and they were stuck on the plane for almost an hour. We didn't get home until 3:00am. Needless to say, we are all varying degrees of zombie today. But the kids had an amazing trip. I'm very glad they're home. They even brought gifts: magnets for Andrew (which he'd requested) and a flamenco dancer figurine; a hat (my request) and a beautiful pair of pomegranate earrings from the Alhambra gift shop. Delightful. After working today, we got packed up for New Hampshire. The kids unpacked their suitcases, did their laundry, and then repacked. Andrew loaded the car at 10pm. The pets are on edge, certain we're leaving them; Farrah hid in the attic, under the guest bed, all day. They'll be happy when we load them into the car along with us tomorrow. (Well, Nutmeg won't be very happy since s...

My scan was clear!! The results came in this afternoon, and I went into a quiet hallway at work to read them. I actually thought I might black out from anxiety (scanxiety). But the words were right there: "no evidence of metastatic disease" and "no tumors." Let the summer of recovery begin. Or, as Vinyard Vines called it in a promotional email to Andrew a few weeks ago, "the summer of Margo." They were referring to the name of a dress style (which now hangs in my closet), but I've adopted the theme.  It was another very busy day of work, which was fine while I needed distraction from test-results dread, but now I'm ready for a break. We leave for New Hampshire on Thursday, and I have never been so excited for the quiet and distance and isolation. I need a reset. I need a gravel road to walk on and a hammock in the woods to read in. I'll work four days while I'm there, two each week, but the rest of the time is mine.  The kids get back tonig...

Started off the day with a CT scan. Unlike last time, when it took several people four tries to get my IV in, this time I told the young nurse tech to please find the very best IV person they had because, as she termed it, I'm "a hard stick." She said she could try to get it in, and if she had a problem she could get the good-at-IVs nurse, and I said it was probably just a better idea to skip all the trying and get the other nurse from the get-go. (I was tactful. But there was no way I was going to let myself be a pincushion again.) It took the nurse that came over just one try, thank goodness, but it hurt like crazy and I nearly blacked out and had to be led to a gurney to lie down. Good times. Good times.  Now I have to wait for the results. Fortunately, today was an insane day of work, and I didn't stop between the time I got home from the scan until 8:30pm. I went into the office at 6:45pm to do a webinar from my office. I'm exhausted, but at least I didn'...

Thursday, June 12 Andrew's birthday! He had the day off from work, and I worked from home, so at lunchtime we went up to the pool for lunch and a swim. I rejoined him after I was done working for more swimming and reading. Later, we went downtown for dinner at Barcelona with some friends. It was a nice day of birthday activities. Friday, June 13 A very busy day of working. Andrew's uncle and brother-in-law flew in for the weekend since there's a big golf tournament happening in a nearby town, so I took myself up to the pool for the early evening. Sadly, I had to leave sooner than I wished because of rain. Saturday, June 14 With Andrew immersed in golf all weekend, Farrah and I drove to Connellsville. Mom and Dad and I went out to lunch at the River's Edge and sat at a table overlooking the river. Then we went to Gabe's, Ollies, and Target. In the evening, we watched Echo Valley. It was a very full and fun Connellsville day. Sunday, June 15 We celebrated Father's...

It is still so weird and quiet here, but the kids appear to be having a fantastic trip. The chaperones send pictures throughout the day, and Lucia and Greta occasionally text us (today it was to ask for more money). They're still in Madrid; today they were at the Prado. The photos show happy, smiling travelers. It seems like a nice group of kids.  Andrew and I worked all day and then went up to the pool for a bit. Then we went out to a delicious dinner at Fish Nor Fowl. My favorite kind of dinner--lots of snacky things, plus mussels. It was a great meal.  (I would have liked a cocktail. Instead, I had a mocktail. These things are not the same. But alcohol just seems like poisoning my already poisoned body, and I still can't bring myself to drink anything at all. Maybe in a few weeks/months I'll feel differently, but maybe not.)  Nutmeg is reacting negatively to Greta's absence and won't let me pet her, even though she's been following me around. Tonight she foll...

Monday, June 9 We drove the kids to the airport this morning for their flight to Spain. When it was time for them to go through security, we said goodbye. Andrew cried when they walked away. We all cope in our own ways! For example, I forced Greta to move items from a pouch she chose to a much better, more organized pouch this morning. Now they're gone, first a long layover in Chicago and then on to Madrid.  The house is extremely weird and quiet. Andrew and I made dinner at home and watched Mountainhead. The girls didn't text us to tell us if they were sitting together on the plane. I'll feel better when they've arrived in Spain.  Tuesday, June 10 Lucia, forgetting the time difference, called me at 3:00 a.m. to tell me that they were in Spain, but that a bunch of kids, including her, had had to gate-check their bags and the bags were now missing. An hour later, she texted that the bags were all found--they'd been routed to the wrong baggage carousel. She also sent ...

A very rainy day didn't stop us from going to some yard sales this morning in Highland Park. Mom and Dad came with us too. We found a few things: some Christmas dishware (Mom and I), a huge candle (Greta), some books, some jewelry (Lucia), etc. But the best (?) find of the day was for the kids: more haunted dolls.  We were driving around Highland Park and turned onto a street we recognized as having been the spot where they got their haunted dolls last year. The same house was having a sale, and when we went onto the porch, there were three dolls--probably the ones that were left in the box last year after the girls selected theirs. They each selected one doll, for $1 each. When Lucia went to pay the owner, she told Lucia she could just take all three dolls. Then she said she remembered L&G from last year and rwas hoping they would come back and that her husband's grandmother would be very happy. I told the woman we were going to let her know if we "had any trouble...

Lucia had her training this morning for her camp counselor job, then went to a friend's house for the afternoon. Andrew and I took Greta shopping for a new travel bag and sports bag, which we found at Marshall's. Once we all got home, the girls began their packing--they leave on Monday for their trip to Spain. They're packing light, with one small suitcase and backpack each, but ten days is a long time to organize for. They're almost done. Tonight we all went to the club for dinner and music bingo. The girls swam.  Tomorrow we'll finish packing and preparing and then the kids will be on their way!

The kids are transitioning to summer mode. On Thursday they slept in then spent the day in a variety of activities: Lucia went for a run, made s'mores bars, and did some diamond painting; Greta read, did her laundry, and sat beside Lucia while she did her diamond painting (I think they were watching a show on Lucia's laptop). Later, we watched some This Is Us. Today, Lucia went for a run and ended at Dunkin' Donuts, where she met up with a friend and then hung out at Riverstone Books. They found a Taylor Swift lyric-analysis book, and called Greta to join them at the bookstore; Greta walked down and they all hung out there for a while. Meanwhile, during a break between meetings, I called all over the house for Greta; I had no idea she'd left. I'd actually had no idea Lucia had tacked a run onto her plan to meet her friend, until she told me later. Once they got home, they both did some diamond painting. They're planning to bring diamond painting supplies to NH t...

Monday and Tuesday have blurred together. The kids were still completing assignments so it felt like a regular couple of days. Today, Wednesday, was finally the last day of school--last day of ninth and seventh grade. I almost forgot to take a porch picture this morning--Greta reminded me as we were pulling out of the driveway, so I made Andrew park the car so we could get out and take the pics.  Andrew and I had been invited by the school to the middle school Moving Up Day ceremony, even though only eighth-grade parents attend, because Greta was receiving an award. We were so excited when her name was announced for the seventh-grade award, honoring the seventh grader who best embodies the school's motto: "Gentle in spirit, strong in deed." The faculty selects a student each year for this award. Well deserved, I think. After the ceremony, Greta went to Kennywood for the rest of the day with some friends. After the Upper School half-day concluded, Lucia walked to Walnut St...

My obsession with Lost over the past few months inspired an essay, which was published today in the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Excited to share it with you.  (Subscribers can find it here : https://www.post-gazette.com/opinion/insight/2025/06/01/cancer-lost-tv-diagnosis-treatment/stories/202506010035)