Keep Going 052

Jul 18, 2021

👋 Hello everyone!

Today, a list:

We opened our new Etsy shop for Cleverly! I’d love for you to take a look, and favorite the shop if you like what you see. No need to buy anything—just adding a heart would be amazing. ❤️ We’ll be updating it often with all the fun things I love making and sharing. I’ll hold back on the BTS wallpapers, though. 😉
A funny conversation between me and Justin recently:
- Justin: This cake tastes like church cake.
  Me: You guys had cake at church?! We never got cake.
  Justin: That’s because you guys always left early. 😂
This week I am working on refilling my cup, FOR REAL this time. If I’m slow to respond or seem MIA… well, I am. 🙃 See you on the flip side.

What have you been up to lately? I’ve been…

Miso ramen with broccoli and a soft-boiled egg. (Eaten with kimchi, because I’m addicted.)
Gazpacho at Café No Sé. It was SO GOOD! It’s been forever and a day since I’ve had gazpacho. I used to make the French Laundry version because it was insanely good—I may have to make that happen again soon.
Caesar salad, fried catfish, slaw, potato chips, and mac and cheese at Colleen’s. I had a rough day, and the promise of fried catfish for dinner helped me through it.
To end a rough week, I made pizza. Kneading the dough is really soothing, and somehow I’m always amazed at how GOOD the pizza is fresh from the oven. This time I topped it with mushrooms, zucchini, and oregano, plus pepperoncini on my half, jalapeños on Justin’s half.

I made us banana-pecan pancakes with strawberries, veggie sausage links, and bubbly, fresh-squeezed orange juice. We had mimosas once at a cafe in Asheville, and they served them in little glasses over ice; since then, I feel like iced, fresh-squeezed OJ with a splash of bubbly water is such a fun treat! (We really like this pancake mix, especially with fruit and stuff mixed in.)
Justin made giant sandwiches for lunch. When I saw mine, I thought, “there’s no way I’m going to finish this.” And then I finished it. Mine had toasted bread smeared with Dijon, vegan mozzarella, a Boca spicy “chik’n” patty, pickles, tomato, lettuce, and sautéed mushrooms and onions that Justin whipped up. It was insanely good, especially with our favorite potato chips and a nojito.
Soft boiled eggs and buttered toast. Still one of my favorite things.
Tuna poke bowl from the grocery store. It was surprisingly good!

I finally read Beach Read. It’s been on my list forever, and I put it on hold at the library about 72 years ago, and it finally popped up in my Kindle last week. I read it in a couple of days—I liked that it was a summer romance that was a little meta in that it was about a romance novelist’s summer. The commentary on “women’s fiction” was interesting as well.
I enjoyed this piece on growing up in the 80s, the freedom we had, and how kids these days just won’t have the same experience. I definitely wasn’t neglected, but I also wasn’t watched nonstop or entertained. And look at me, I turned out fiiiiiiiiine! 😜
This post came at a really good time for me. My cup has been pretty empty of late, but I don’t think I do a great job of letting people know that it’s empty, or of allowing myself to step away and refill it. “It could be that, in an attempt to hide your vulnerability and perhaps loneliness, you have built a protective shell that is so effective, people think you are fine.” Maybe this will help other empaths out there. 💖