Awesome cows near Lake Bloomington, IL where my parents live. Excited to get back there this weekend for Labor Day! ^
Mitch here!
Three “10 Things” posts in a week?! We’re clearly trying to catch up over here. You can pretty much bet that the Larkin Household is on fire when you see more than one in a week. ;)
Shoutout to Lindsey A. for the “Mitch’s Musings” column name suggestion. That’s the top contender right now! Though I did just come up with “Ain’t that a Mitch: 10 Things.” Thoughts?
- There’s a 12-foot skeleton in the room. Or, at least, I wish there was. Home Depot won Halloween with this giant skeleton last year and I’ve been checking this product listing once a week for the whole freaking year at this point to try to get one. I guess I’m not the only one because they appear to be totally sold out—again. The only question is where will I put it? Standing in the garden? Sitting on the balcony? (Does it sit? Don’t think so, actually.) Draped over the roof? (Does it drape?) Also, where does one store a 12 foot skeleton? Do I just leave it up all year?
- I’m working on Lucy’s passport this week. We don’t have any plans to travel out of the country or anything. I guess I’m just daydreaming of some elaborate trip when the kids are a bit older and life is, uh, easier. Also, I’ve heard horror stories about passport delays that have resulted in friends nearly missing trips and making last-minute plans to drive to Minneapolis to get passports in-person. (Lookin’ at you, Dave.) So here I am trying to learn from Dave’s mistakes and get Lucy’s out of the way. (Side note: We apparently had a passport appoint last week and I forgot about it and missed it. Look at me go! )
- I’m planning a trip to Puerto Rico to alleviate my end-of-summer blues. (No passport needed to go to Puerto Rico.) Kelly and I have always loved Puerto Rico. I traveled there as a kid, we took our honeymoon there (on Culebra!), and we taught in a community in the Bronx with a large Puerto Rican population. If you’ve never been before, look into Culebra. It’s incredible.
- I signed up for way too many newsletters during the pandemic. But I want to thank Circa Houses for sending me a perfect 10-minute distraction every Wednesday. Their list of beautiful historical homes is a great way to break up work hour. I mentally move in to each of them and plan out my little furniture and decor, as if my wife wouldn’t have anything to say about it. They’re also behind my all-time favorite Instagram account (and their new TV show) Cheap Old Houses.
- I just finished an 800-page biography of Alexander Hamilton, and I still haven’t seen the musical. I did not do this to be different or cool or something; the issue is that I don’t really like musicals and Kelly had already seen it anyway… but I still wanted to go in depth with my Hamilton knowledge! The book was great. Really great. So now I’m thinking I should see the show, even though I don’t like musicals. IS IT WORTH IT?! (Kelly says yes.)
- I’ve gotten into “trail cam” videos on YouTube. Every few weeks, the YouTube algorithm drops a gem like this in my feed and it sends me down some truly unique rabbit holes. In this video a guy leaves a pile of random food in the woods and records the animals that come to eat it. Fascinating!
- It’s the first week of school, so I want to shout out all the teachers who are reading this post. I’m fully aware of the importance and difficulty of your job, so please take this note as a big THANK YOU for everything you’re doing for our kids and communities. You guys rock!
- At-home COVID-19 tests are out and available. This test can give a reliable result in 15 minutes! Of course, it’s not a certified test result, but this is just a quick PSA.
- Kelly surprised me with a new wallet and I love it. The brand, Smathers & Branson, has a ton of this stuff and they’re on Amazon which makes things easy.
- Hurricane Ida scared our family to the core last week. Luckily, most of the family—with the except of Patrick, who had to work at the hospital—evacuated to Alabama. Everyone is safe, and Patrick’s house in New Orleans withstood minimal damage. If you have the ability, please consider donating to recovery efforts via the Red Cross. Also, consider buying a glass breaker tool in case you ever find yourself in a car in the water.
Mitch. OUT!
