The cry of a loon isn’t exactly a pretty sound. I’ve read it described as “eerie”, “haunting”, and “wolf-like” (it reminds some people of a coyote howl). Tonight I endured an onslaught of mosquitos so I could watch the moon rise over the lake and while I waited, I listened to the call of a pair of loons somewhere in the water and I am convinced that the loon cry is a perfect sound.
(I’m also curious what your perfect sounds are, if you are interested in sharing in the comments)
I’m not particularly a bird lover. I could probably only correctly identify maybe four bird sounds at first listen. But the call of a loon (our state bird) is unmistakable and it’s a sound that I associate with peace and contentment. If I’m hearing a loon, it means I’m near water, that I’m somewhere away from my regular life. (I love my regular life but sometimes I need a break from it too). If I’m hearing a loon, I’m probably moving more slowly, laughing more often, a little sunbaked, and calmer than my regular life allows me to be.
There’s probably also a decent chance that a hot dog blackened over a fire (a perfect food) and some s’mores are in my future, which is always a good thing. This trip we are trying s’mores with regular chocolate or with Reese’s cups or with Caramello bars (because s’mores aren’t sticky enough, apparently). All of those will pair wonderfully with the sound of loons, I think.
On a side note, my state recently updated our state flag (a good and overdue thing to do) and while this design didn’t become the official flag, it was almost certainly the fan favorite, for obvious reasons:
I’m delighted to report that this design became an option for library cards for my local library system, though I sadly have not gotten one yet.
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Some things I thought were interesting this week include:
Well, this is clearly haunted, right?
This is either giving “super villain lair” or “fortified embassy in a hostile foreign country” vibes.
Let’s Talk About Drowning. Not a cheerful read, but an important reminder about keeping kids safe near water and the importance of constant adult attention.
Thursday Murder Club movie casting. I have some questions about Pierce Brosnan as Ron but Joyce and Elizabeth’s casting seems pretty perfect to me.
A lovely short interview with the wonderful writer Catherine Newman. I love how she describes how her mother cared for her as a sick child… isn’t “She had this gracious way of taking care of us that made us feel not like we were a problem to solve but like we were permanent treasures in need of some temporary coddling.” the way we all want to feel treated when we are sick? Or just, like, always?
I’ll always love stories about people being petty and cheerfully burning some bridges.
I got this dress from Target and I love it for the summer. Super light weight, very comfortable, has pockets, and is only $25!
I've had a few other people react the same way as you do about Pierce brosnan, but I do think that many of us are thinking about him in the past and not...the present. He's roughly age appropriate and Ron is described as handsome. I think it'll be magnificent.
I loved the bridge burning stories! In my weaving class, a fellow classmate was complaining about her employer and considering burning a bridge. One of the older women in my class said, "Never burn bridges!!" and then I said, cheerfully, "Wanna hear about a bridge I totally burned professionally 15 years ago and have zero regrets about??" The tl;Dr is I was an academic postdoc and decided I didn't want to be in academia anymore after about a year. I did my best to write up all the experiments that I'd done so far and submitted for publication, even coming in a few evenings and weekends after I had officially quit and started my new job to get it into a good place. I really thought I had gone above and beyond. SIX MONTHS later the paper was rightfully rejected as half baked, and my former boss insisted I come in the evenings and weekends to complete ALL of the experiments the reviewers had asked for UNPAID .I was like, lol, no. She freaked out. Guilt trips! How I was being unprofessional! How she'd never be a reference for me. I still refused and it has negatively impacted me not at all.
I am excited for Thursday Murder Club casting!! I had Ben Kingsley and Helen Mirren on my list and am very intrigued by the rest of the casting… what a delightful series.