weekly retro #33: being bad at new things is good
today my body and brain seemed to go on strike, it's been such a hectic week with my dad's health taking a bad turn. he's in the best possible position for what he's going through, and my brother and i have been in a good rhythm of being helpful in the situation. honestly, my brother is doing most of the work!
my dad and i have a similar sense of humor and also my hair is aging just like his did. that didn't stop him from calling me paulie walnuts when he noticed my grays. i now know how tech ceo's feel getting punched up on.
lisa came over earlier in the week to keep me company and help me break open some air dry clay kits i've had for awhile. i've not done air dry clay before and it shows. we were so bad at it and made such a mess, we decided that not only are we going to try again soon, we are absolutely going to become really fucking good at it.
failing at things as low stakes as crafts is a really good exercise for handling failure or a sense of helplessness in moments that are higher stakes. i'm doing pretty well considering everything going on, i just need to remember to rest more.
my dad had been moved to a hospital better suited for his condition which is closer and near a mall, which i needed to find a case for his new phone. the phone is least of his actual issues, but it's a big score to settle as it was his biggest issue before his health declined. my brother saved his life, i saved his phone is what i keep saying. i picked my brother up his first labubu at the mall for his troubles.
andy got a labubu too. he's been really supportive of my chaotic sudden train rides and exasperated rants about how fucking horrible it is to get around most parts of new jersey when you don't have a car. he's been taking good care to make sure i'm eating, but i feel most put together when i'm trying new meals for us. we really enjoyed this beans and tomatoes over yogurt by nisha vora that i made. she posted that just when i needed something quick to make and feel normal.
of course, this all has kept me away from candle-making. i managed to fit in a session where i've been experimenting with marbled hexagonal candles in glass. my first tries were better than i anticipated, but i learned a lot and know my next session will go much better. this and the clay have been welcome distractions and challenges. i finally published my post about candles i got myself last month. this means i can buy more, right?
i haven't had any candles to sell for almost 2 weeks now since the bugs rock restock sold out, so i think it may be a good time to list some watercolors to get them off my desk and make a few more bucks. i must say, it's very nice to not have to explain in detail what's going on to every manager and coworker that needs to know or just asks out of curiosity. i have been able to take however much time i need and work at my own pace, which is nice. i'm very eager and itching to do more, though.
things i enjoyed this week
- i've been obsessed with pablo torre's investigation into alleged salary-cap circumvention by steve ballmer as well as mark cuban's insane, droning and hole-digging response.
- i got the clay kits lisa and i used from barkley and it had more than everything we needed.
- i've started trying oils, dyes and jars from lone star candle company and they're good. supplies ship fast and customer service is very good.
this week i want to get back into my routines that have been fully on pause for 2 weeks, knowing full well that i won't be able to do everything i want, but that whatever i can do is more than enough.
xoxo jenn