Found Money

dive bars, baby-singers, dancing

On Saturday night, after a delicious dinner on MacDougal Street, my sister, mother and I went to a dive bar where these little baby-singers (God, they were so young) belted out songs from the last six decades.

The bar was jammed. The songs were awesome. And we danced.

You guys, it was so much fun.

And then on Sunday, it snowed.

And snowed.

And snowed some more.

The Blizzard of 2026 was a doozy.

The obligatory snow picture from Monday morning.

My youngest had not one but two snow days and a delayed opening, which is rare enough to feel magical. And, for a kid who doesn’t usually like a change in plans, in this particular instance he was giddy.

For me though, there shouldn’t have been a big difference in my days. Writing doesn’t require me to leave the house. Planning my classes happens at my kitchen table. Most meetings I attend are on Zoom.

And yet there is something about a snow day that feels like finding a surprise $20 in an old jacket pocket, isn’t there?

I used the two days of being homebound(ish) to make a big ol’ pot of lentil soup, giving myself a week of lunches. I also did a much-needed pantry clean out and caught up on and–this is key–put away laundry. Bo-ring. Except, clearing space felt good. All of these things felt like little gifts to myself for the week. A shift in energy.

Which is how staying out dancing on Saturday night felt. Being on a crowded dance floor with my sister, sandwiched between my mother and daughter, dancing to “Pink Pony Club” was like found money for the soul.

Something extra to carry in my pocket.

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Acorns for the Week:

(aka joys I hope take root)

This week, a writer from my book inc writing community received some lovely attention in The Guardian (go Half Baked Retirement!!) for her story about baking and giving away a pie everyday for a year. Read the article about Vickie here. And then check out her Substack here. I was lucky enough to read a draft of one of Vickie’s memoirs, and I cannot wait to read her latest about her pie baking year. She gave a TedxTalk on the subject: