Same as the last two years, I am not writing my blog right now because I need to navigate the twins returning to college. Unlike the last two years, I didn’t aim to rerun a post from the same date, years earlier. Instead, I used a random date generator, and then took the closest post to that date, which is why you may see posts about winter in the middle of the summer.

I scheduled these posts so the blog wouldn’t be empty, and I could have space to process my feelings. A cop-out, but forgive me. Having them go is really, really hard. I need mental space to feel what I am feeling, help the kids through the transition, and sit in the quiet for a moment on the other side.

It began before it began. The twins were climbing out of the bathtub, scrubbed and ready to watch the opening ceremony for the winter Olympics and I knew I had to explain it now, when things were quiet, rather than when the words were spoken before the ceremony. Because you knew the words were going to be spoken before the ceremony.

“You might hear tonight that a boy died during practice today. He was doing the luge and he fell off and hit his head and the doctor couldn’t fix him.”

They froze as if I had just told them that I was going to be giving away all their toys. “Was he doing bad listening?’ the ChickieNob finally asked.

“No. He was doing everything right, but sometimes accidents happen.”

Read the whole post here.

Same as the last two years, I am not writing my blog right now because I need to navigate the twins returning to college. Unlike the last two years, I didn’t aim to rerun a post from the same date, years earlier. Instead, I used a random date generator, and then took the closest post to that date, which is why you may see posts about winter in the middle of the summer.

I scheduled these posts so the blog wouldn’t be empty, and I could have space to process my feelings. A cop-out, but forgive me. Having them go is really, really hard. I need mental space to feel what I am feeling, help the kids through the transition, and sit in the quiet for a moment on the other side.

At lunch time, a bunch of ALI bloggers got together in the lobby so both BlogHer people and Chicago people could see each other. We had Cecily, Julia, Emily, Aurelia, Kate, Kathy, Briar, Magpie, Alexa, and Me. Later on, Jenny, Amalah, and Gwen stopped by. It was so much fun and I loved getting to spend time with everyone. This is why I go to BlogHer—to get to see the people I read.

The Bloggess is also one of the people here with Nora’s head so…here, Nora, your head was at lunch too. And you thought the mozzarella salad was delicious.

Read the whole post here.

Same as the last two years, I am not writing my blog right now because I need to navigate the twins returning to college. Unlike the last two years, I didn’t aim to rerun a post from the same date, years earlier. Instead, I used a random date generator, and then took the closest post to that date, which is why you may see posts about winter in the middle of the summer.

I scheduled these posts so the blog wouldn’t be empty, and I could have space to process my feelings. A cop-out, but forgive me. Having them go is really, really hard. I need mental space to feel what I am feeling, help the kids through the transition, and sit in the quiet for a moment on the other side.

My parents almost named me something else. They had picked out a different name–something somewhat similar–and were leaning towards it when they realized how kids could make fun of the name. They picked Melissa instead because nothing rhymed with it, it wasn’t the subject of an embarrassing song (unless you count the Allman Brother’s “Sweet Melissa”), and it couldn’t be shortened or lengthened into something disgusting.

They wanted kids to work for their torment-able material.

I mentioned this to the secretary of my grad school program and she immediately responded with “Melissa; she’ll kiss ya. That rhymes.”

And indeed, it does.

Shit.

Read the whole post here.

Same as the last two years, I am not writing my blog right now because I need to navigate the twins returning to college. Unlike the last two years, I didn’t aim to rerun a post from the same date, years earlier. Instead, I used a random date generator, and then took the closest post to that date, which is why you may see posts about winter in the middle of the summer.

I scheduled these posts so the blog wouldn’t be empty, and I could have space to process my feelings. A cop-out, but forgive me. Having them go is really, really hard. I need mental space to feel what I am feeling, help the kids through the transition, and sit in the quiet for a moment on the other side.

I am admitting all of this here for two reasons even though this embarrasses me tremendously. (1) It could help someone else who is going through the same thing and (2) I want to reflect one day how far I’ve come because I do have a lot of hope that things will change.

I have been conducting my life out of the preschool library. By this point, I consider the end seat at the table my own and if need be, I would pee on it like a squirrel monkey to mark my territory. I spent the morning writing notes to my niece and friends on my new pink stationary. I read a book. Made some phone calls. And told myself that tomorrow would be the day I’d leave the building. And then I promptly felt ill and decided I would wait until the morning to make a concrete decisions.

I have not actually left the twins at preschool yet.

Read the whole post here.

Just as in past years, I am going to do reruns for a week or two at the beginning of September. The twins are going back to college soon, and I feel myself emotionally burrowing inward. I think about it all the time. It’s the first thing I think about in the morning, and it’s the last thing I think about at night. We’re entering our third year, and I feel the same.

I scheduled posts that you may not have seen in many years (or missed altogether), and I looked in the draft folder and pulled out a bonkers story I never posted. I’ll be back when I feel better.

*******

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.

Apron Strings for Emily has a very moving post, an open letter for World Childless Week to her dog Kirby, who died six months ago. Maybe it’s because Beorn is always on my mind, but this post made me start crying for a dog I never met. I sobbed at this: “Maybe you heard or saw it, but after your last breath, I broke out into sobs. All I kept saying was, ‘My baby! My baby boy is gone!’ I felt my whole world crumble underneath me.” Sending a huge hug over an enormous loss.

Lastly, The Barreness is back with a health update. She needs to be hyper-conscious, and it spills over into every minute of the day. I thought this was profound: “I have found myself looking at people and wondering what it is like to walk in their life, eat what they eat, socialize like they do. I have found myself so much more serious and introspective. I used to identify with Tigger and now I am a cross between Piglet and Eeyore.” Sending a lot of good thoughts to her, too.

The roundup to the Roundup: Super sad about the end of summer break. 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 August 22 – 29) 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.