Category — Friday Blog Roundup

I was stressing about the fact that three books were all coming to me on the same day from my library holds list, followed by another book the next Tuesday. All four were super popular books, so if I suspended the hold, I would be waiting weeks to get them again.

But then it occurred to me that if you read 5% of a book per day, you would finish it in 20 days, leaving you with 1 day of wiggle room for a 21-day checkout. 5% of a 400-page book is 20 pages, and most books are under 400 pages. I could easily move each book forward by 5% per night, right? 15% seemed do-able.

I checked out the first book and read to 5%. Then I checked out the second book and took it to 10%. Then went back to the first book and brought that one to 10%. I was currently 1 day ahead of schedule! I waited until the next day to check out the third book and bring that to 5%. As long as I always end at the daily percentage goal, I can keep this going indefinitely. Though it feels like 4 books may be my limit.

Take that, library holds list.

*******

Stop procrastinating. Go make your backups. Don’t have regrets.

Seriously. Stop what you’re doing for a moment. It will take you fifteen minutes, tops. But you will have peace of mind for days and days. It’s the gift to yourself that keeps on giving.

As always, add any new thoughts to the Friday Backup post and peruse new comments to find out about methods, plug-ins, and devices that help you quickly back up your data and accounts.

And now the blogs…

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But first, second, helpings of the posts that appeared in the open comment thread last week. To read the description before clicking over, please return to the open thread:

• None… sniff.

Okay, now my choices this week.

Finding a Different Path is on a hunt for delights. I love this as a teaching concept, and while it’s similar to a gratitude journal, there is something different, too. Gratitude is more about acknowledging and thanking the world for a moment. It feels weighty. Noticing delights is more whimsical and speaks to the fact that there are good things in the world, even when it looks like a dumpster fire. And beyond that, noticing them is kind of the point of living. Love this.

Lastly, All & Sundry writes about two visits: one at a care facility and one at hospice. While I was deeply moved by the hospice story, it was a thought she wrote about in the care facility one that was a light bulb moment for me: “What I now understand is that he has trouble expressing things but no trouble at all receiving, if that makes sense. He can often answer questions, he cannot ask them.” The human brain is fascinating.

The roundup to the Roundup: 5% reading goal. Your weekly backup nudge. And lots of great posts to read. So what did you find this week? Please use a permalink to the blog post (written between January 2 – 9) and not the blog’s main URL. Not understanding why I’m asking you what you found this week. Read the original open thread post here.

Happy new year! May your 2026 be better than your 2025.

I had to do a weird speed-up slow-down thing with reading this week because I finished a book faster than I thought I would, and then had to race through an additional book to make it an even number again. Why an even number? Who knows. But I felt strongly that I needed to close the door on 2025 with an even number in my Goodreads end-of-year review. Though I don’t always put re-reads in that review so the number isn’t correct anyway.

The world is chaos.

But now it’s a new year. 2026. Let’s make it a good one.

*******

Stop procrastinating. Go make your backups. Don’t have regrets.

Seriously. Stop what you’re doing for a moment. It will take you fifteen minutes, tops. But you will have peace of mind for days and days. It’s the gift to yourself that keeps on giving.

As always, add any new thoughts to the Friday Backup post and peruse new comments to find out about methods, plug-ins, and devices that help you quickly back up your data and accounts.

And now the blogs…

*******

But first, second, helpings of the posts that appeared in the open comment thread last week. To read the description before clicking over, please return to the open thread:

• None… sniff.

Okay, now my choices this week.

Scientist on the Roof talks about a general sense of unease, disconnected from any single event. Everything is fine, “And yet, there is a nagging sense of discontent that’s just kind of there. Like a film on top of boiled milk. Like an unpleasant aftertaste that just lingers. I feel like I can’t trust myself. Like I am on a cliff edge but have no idea that I am a step away from a catastrophe.” This perfectly captures how I feel right now, too. Let’s hope that we’re not one step from catastrophe. May all of our fears not come true.

Lastly, Infertile Phoenix talks about recovering from burnout and taking time to rest. This thought stayed with me: “Moving doesn’t get easier. Maybe it gets harder. I was comfortable where I was. I lived there for five years. For four years, I lived in a home that I owned. I won’t be settled like that for a while. But I’m glad I moved.” Doing something more doesn’t always make it easier. Hope we all get stability in 2026.

The roundup to the Roundup: Happy new year. Your weekly backup nudge. And lots of great posts to read. So what did you find this week? Please use a permalink to the blog post (written between December 26 – January 2) and not the blog’s main URL. Not understanding why I’m asking you what you found this week. Read the original open thread post here.

Many months ago, we were in Deerfield, MA, and we decided that we’d watch The Holdovers during winter break. We had never seen it, though it had been on my TBW list for a long time. Winter break was the perfect time for a holiday movie, right?

So there we were, all snuggled up and ready for movie night, when we learned it had left streaming a week earlier. WHY WOULD THEY REMOVE A CHRISTMAS MOVIE BEFORE CHRISTMAS? That is probably the only time someone would want to watch a Christmas movie.

The ChickieNob quickly pointed out that it was probably in the library (it was) and we could borrow it (we could). Of course, we now need to rig up a way to watch the DVD.

The lesson of this story: Don’t wait to see things on streaming sites because they pull them off.

*******

Stop procrastinating. Go make your backups. Don’t have regrets.

Seriously. Stop what you’re doing for a moment. It will take you fifteen minutes, tops. But you will have peace of mind for days and days. It’s the gift to yourself that keeps on giving.

As always, add any new thoughts to the Friday Backup post and peruse new comments to find out about methods, plug-ins, and devices that help you quickly back up your data and accounts.

And now the blogs…

*******

But first, second, helpings of the posts that appeared in the open comment thread last week. To read the description before clicking over, please return to the open thread:

• None… sniff.

Okay, now my choices this week.

Finding a Different Path is getting rid of things, which both weighs on and lightens the heart. She writes, “Even all these years later, to get rid of something someone bought us for a baby that never was feels somehow ungrateful. Logically we know that’s not a thing, but emotionally it feels icky.” I get that. Objects hold meaning, including nursing chairs.

Lastly, Not a Wasted Word gives an update on stressful, annoying, and happy things. The change in packaging (and formula?) for a beloved product resonated with me. I don’t do well with any change, but I especially don’t do well when I need to find a new product because a random manufacturer threw a curve ball. The “improvement” is rarely an improvement for the user.

The roundup to the Roundup: Streaming sites confuse me. Your weekly backup nudge. And lots of great posts to read. So what did you find this week? Please use a permalink to the blog post (written between December 19 – 26) and not the blog’s main URL. Not understanding why I’m asking you what you found this week. Read the original open thread post here.

The kids are both home — hooray! And I realized something brilliant this week. There are eight nights of Chanukkah, and with four people in the family, we each get to light twice. In the past, we’ve always repeated the same order, so whoever lights the first night also lights the 5th night, etc. Clearly, the best position (if you like lighting candles) would be on the 4th and 8th nights because you get the most candles.

BUT.

If you reverse the order on the back half of the holiday, everyone gets to light nine candles:

First night + eighth night = 9
Second night + seventh night = 9
Third night + sixth night = 9
Fourth night + fifth night = 9

I was this many years old when I realized that. So now everyone lights the same number of candles. Thanks, math.

*******

Stop procrastinating. Go make your backups. Don’t have regrets.

Seriously. Stop what you’re doing for a moment. It will take you fifteen minutes, tops. But you will have peace of mind for days and days. It’s the gift to yourself that keeps on giving.

As always, add any new thoughts to the Friday Backup post and peruse new comments to find out about methods, plug-ins, and devices that help you quickly back up your data and accounts.

And now the blogs…

*******

But first, second, helpings of the posts that appeared in the open comment thread last week. To read the description before clicking over, please return to the open thread:

• None… sniff.

Okay, now my choices this week.

The Road Less Travelled writes about the gut punch of learning someone has died, in this case, a friend of 41 years. She writes: “Hug the people you love. Make that phone call, send that email, arrange that lunch date.  Life is short, and tomorrow is not promised.” Sending a big hug after reading this beautiful tribute.

Lastly, All & Sundry writes about realizing you’re living a better life. I love this part so much: “How I did not realize just how much better my life could be. I was so afraid to leave the comfort I had, I didn’t know it was like riding wrong in the saddle. You think it’s fine until you feel something better, and then that just blows your whole world wide open.” So much of life is having the courage to make a change and see if something can be even better than what you have now.

The roundup to the Roundup: Thanks, math. Your weekly backup nudge. And lots of great posts to read. So what did you find this week? Please use a permalink to the blog post (written between December 12 – 19) and not the blog’s main URL. Not understanding why I’m asking you what you found this week. Read the original open thread post here.

Once a week, I diligently run down all of the tasks on my backup list, which includes backing up this space. I back it up four different ways, not truly understanding which type of backup I would want to use if I had to restore the site. Better safe than sorry.

So I was making my weekly backup in the cPanel file manager, when instead of clicking on the folder, I somehow MADE THE FOLDER DISAPPEAR. Like it was gone. And there is no undo button in the cPanel.

This story clearly has a happy ending because you are reading it on my blog, but I felt completely sick in that moment. I had no clue what I did. All I knew was that the file was not in the trash, and if you looked for my website on the internet, it showed a fatal error message because THE WEBSITE WAS GONE.

I started opening up nearby folders and finally found the folder inside another folder. Then I had to figure out how to move it back to the correct place. And then check that everything worked again. The whole thing unfolded in only a few minutes, but I felt sick for hours afterward because it was such a stupid mistake.

Note to self: Be extra careful when working in the cPanel.

*******

Stop procrastinating. Go make your backups. Don’t have regrets.

Seriously. Stop what you’re doing for a moment. It will take you fifteen minutes, tops. But you will have peace of mind for days and days. It’s the gift to yourself that keeps on giving.

As always, add any new thoughts to the Friday Backup post and peruse new comments to find out about methods, plug-ins, and devices that help you quickly back up your data and accounts.

And now the blogs…

*******

But first, second, helpings of the posts that appeared in the open comment thread last week. To read the description before clicking over, please return to the open thread:

• None… sniff.

Okay, now my choices this week.

Not a Wasted Word has a post about the stories we tell ourselves. In this case, it’s using coincidences to confirm that something is meant to be. She gives examples of small things and big things, but I related a lot to the post because we all try to make sense of a (possibly) chaotic world. But this is the part I found so interesting: “Anyway, I am definitely telling myself the story that, THIS WAS MEANT TO BE! Which makes me a little worried that I’m not considering all the issues. Can I be clear minded about something when I’m telling myself this story?” Yes? I think?

Lastly, The Barreness dumps out her brain and catches us up: From a trip that went well to car troubles to a scary moment with her FIL. She writes about the aftermath: “We went to a restaurant in town to stare at each other, ask each other over and over “you okay”; my hip/thigh pulsing in pain and try to process the evening that just unfolded under a beautiful full moon in front of the gallery on the biggest night of the year … Totally normal, totally surreal, absolutely baseline for this year.” I especially love the captured moment of kindness at the end.

The roundup to the Roundup: A blog backup horror story. Your weekly backup nudge. And lots of great posts to read. So what did you find this week? Please use a permalink to the blog post (written between December 5 – 12) and not the blog’s main URL. Not understanding why I’m asking you what you found this week. Read the original open thread post here.