Television feels like an all-or-nothing thing. Either we have too many things we’re interested in seeing, or there is zero that feels worth watching over reading a book. But right now, we’re at the start of a “too much we’re interested in” moment after a long dry spell.

We’re currently finishing Fleishman Is In Trouble, which I didn’t love at first, but which I’m glad I gave a chance because the later episodes are fantastic. And we’re watching Hello Tomorrow, which I love so much that my heart hurts.

Other things I want to see:

• Three Pines (out now)
• The Reluctant Traveler (February 24)
• Ted Lasso 3 (March 15)
• Schmiggadoon 2 (April 7)
• The Afterparty 2 (spring)
• Big Door Prize (spring)
• Empire of Light (movie)
• Ripley (no release date)
• Good Omens 2 (no release date)
• Moonflower Murders (no release date)
• The Other Two 3 (no release date)
• The Palace (no release date)

What are you excited to see or watching?

I am really hoping that the trend of traveling with your parents continues for the next 10 – 20 years. I wrote 10 and then felt ill thinking about only having 10 years of trips ahead of us before the twins ditch us, so I extended it to 20. But in all honesty, I hope they’ll take me with them forever.

They are my favourite people to travel with. I mean, yes, Josh, too. But the twins are funny and clever, and they know interesting things, and the Wolvog is amazing with a map. Or even without a map. He somehow instantly memorizes how to get from A to B and gets us there.

They told me they’d continue to travel with me, mainly because they know we’ll stay in a good hotel. But I also know that I probably said the same thing, not imagining that I’d end up being okay with hostels and that airfare is cheap when you’re a student.

So the trend is exactly what I want. I just kind of wanted it to start later when I needed it.

Not sure what #MicroblogMondays is? Read the inaugural post which explains the idea and how you can participate too.

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I feel so seen. Lifehacker gave seven reasons to hoard Bonne Maman jars. Only seven? I can give you at least fifty because I often have to trot out my reasons when Josh insists that we have too many teeny tiny jam jars, and this needs to stop.

I am currently using three to test a self-watering plant system that I rigged using a wicking string. If it works well, I’ll need many more for the rest of the plants. I make salad dressing in one every night (put on the lid and shake). I drink out of them. Yes, they are spilling out of cabinets, but how does one get rid of them when they’re so cute?

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Are you also doing #MicroblogMondays? Add your link below. The list will be open until Tuesday morning. Link to the post itself, not your blog URL. (Don’t know what that means? Please read the three rules on this post to understand the difference between a permalink to a post and a blog’s main URL.) Only personal blogs can be added to the list. I will remove any posts connected to businesses or sponsored posts.

I was sad to hear the news about Jimmy Carter. While Bill Clinton may have been my first vote that counted, Jimmy Carter received my first vote in the elementary school Weekly Reader poll. I gave him my vote because I loved peanut butter and heard people calling him “the peanut farmer.” It made perfect sense in my brain that a second term for Jimmy Carter would be the best situation for the country and ensure that I had continual access to peanut butter, pretty much the only thing I ate at the time.

I cried hard when he didn’t win despite his strong support from my elementary school class. My dad told me that this wouldn’t be the first time the person I wanted to win would come in second, which is how it sometimes happened with elections. I remember that every time I go to vote.

No one is having a good time. It is the theme of my week — not good news followed by not good news — and based on my Facebook feed, it is the theme of everyone else’s week, too.

Our interconnectedness is never more apparent when everything goes wrong—for instance, COVID. One person does X (goes out while they’re sick), which impacts Y (gets sick because of the first person), who now cancels Z (because they’re sick), which throws A – W into chaos. You get it. Because you live it. So when bad news comes, you can usually trace it back through other bits of bad news.

Or sometimes it comes out of nowhere. Just a big bad news drop from left field. But more often than not, especially with little bad news (bad news with a lowercase b), it is connected to other bits of bad news.

Does it work the other way? Do good things lead to more good things for other people? Or is it only problems that spread from person to person?

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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.

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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:

• “Does It Make Us Stronger?” (No Kidding in NZ)

Okay, now my choices this week.

Grumpy Rumblings is also swimming through a sea of bad news. They post a long list of rejections, summing it up: “ It’s hard to have so much rejection without a single acceptance in between.” Amen. I include this because the ending gave me hope. Feel what you need to feel, and then take the next step. Onward.

Lastly, A Half-Baked Life has a story of a GrubHub driver that made me cry. Thankful for people in the world who do the small things that make the big differences.

The roundup to the Roundup: Sorry if you’re having a bad week, too. 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 February 10 – 17) 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.