so ANYway -

Since I wrote you a biglongemail and accidentally discarded the draft right before sending? I hate that. I’ll cover most of what I said here. All that I can remember anyway.

• I love your evening caffeinating. I theorize that you’ll soon build up tolerance and then it will be the only thing keeping you awake past 10 PM. #ithappenedtome
• Had computer conference call for new writing job yesterday afternoon. It sounds cool enough that I would almost consider using my real name. Almost. It’s a month-and-a-half-long project that pays a little more than the last one, and I’ve been bizarrely approved to write for all subtopics? But frankly, so far, the topics are completely foreign to me, and I feel like it might not go very far. Yet it also feels like some sort of cosmic luck that I found a little work again. #ThankYouGod
• Do you mean I haven’t been Lo.Co. blogging as much about the little Lo’s? It’s very true, and it’s part of a mostly-deliberate decision. Pictures yes, and the occasional written update – and I’m still sad when they say or do something awesome (good or bad) that I fail to record. I sadly can’t keep my grip on everything. But mostly, my gut tells me they are evolving into little persons and it no longer feels “right” to blog about them in the same way? I’m dancing that fine line between record-keeping (very important) and excessive spotlighting that will one day displease (or mortify) them. And I don’t want that. They will have their own impressions from this point forward after all. I feel like I’ve landed on the right balance, for the moment, between documentation that will satisfy both my future self and future-them. Does this makesense…?
• Although, more pictures would be good. I struggled with the first month of ipod ownership – I thoroughly love instagram. But the ipod camera specs are simply dismal when compared to the iphone. Really. Not to mention, I have to be in a wifi zone to capture/post. So I’ve more or less settled on latergramming, which means using my regular camera and later converting it to insta. Which I’m sure many would call cheating, but I’m also quite certain anyone who would say that owns an iphone, and not a pod. So biteme.
• The neighbor hag is a hag is a hag. She’s one of those people who, even if their life circumstances weren’t difficult (her husband has Alzheimer’s and requires a ton of care), she’d still be horrible. Vying for attention with her sadsongs and lots of fakery to your face while, to steal a line from Mr. P. Simon – “and when my back is tuuurned/ they like to stick it to me, yes they do.” She is very sweet to my children, with no mixed motives I can discern, so I’ll give her that -but then I draw the line in the sand. Daydream of tall privacy fences separating our yards. I feel like the whole pig-poisoning conspiracy is overblown and over-hyped, but then again, she has it in her to do such a thing. The pigs were part of a Future-Farmers project wherein he’d have the pigs for 6 weeks or so and then sell them. And it’s winter, so I wasn’t overly concerned about smell. I thought it was kind of cool, honestly. They built a pen and a house for them. Named them Cracker and Kojak. But now they’ve been shipped to another location (cousin’s house?) and Cracker’s name has been changed to Norma. True story.
• I fear saying we’re closing on our house because whatever. Fear of jinxing. But allegedly? And theoretically it’s better to own than rent, or at least in this case, because they wanted to sell and be done with it, like any normal person would, so how long would they/we even feel comfortable renting after all. But anyway. I do have a list of celebratory projects in mind for if and when, like painting bedrooms, shutters, front door… and making use of a kitchen drawer that currently contains Things Belonging to the Homeowners. That I will no longer have to keep.
• Re: our book, I feel like I already sent you a dropbox invite, but will resend if I musssst. Ahem. And then, I’ll require a deadline on the next chapter. You know how I am.
• Re: wireless internet security, right or left click on your signal icon, whichever takes you to Properties, and go from there. Autogenerate a security key and then write that sucker down in case you lose it. Because you won’t be able to remember it. And that’s a good thing, because no one else will figure it out either.
• We have no children this weekend! On tap for today: a walk/hike at a park we haven’t yet been to. Fancy-ish dinner out at a place called Mol@sses Gr!ll. And lots of mental space, free from somuch clamoring. Ahh.

love to yooooooooooooou. in jeju. where I hope you are enjoying your weekend. I feel like in spite of so many troubles, rocky adjustments and tornadic evil red-haired forces (she’s the Spa Boss! in a Korean school!), you remain steadfast and miraculous. a source of inspiration and pride for your east-coast pal. and of course you’re coming to blairs for a brief internship at loco upon your return. duh.

xoxoxo penelope