Of the moment // 4.27.18
One of the reasons why I blog is simply to have the space to write: getting things “on paper” helps me to process my feelings and organize my thoughts. I also love having a record of my life over the past few years: a place that holds all of my stories, my photos, the ups and downs of travel. But sometimes, I also just want to remember and share the little things that brought me day-to-day joy. Every Friday, I’ll give you a peek into the book I currently can’t put down, a great restaurant discovery, a fun new product or an inspiring quote: a few things that I think you might enjoy before we all take off into the glory that is the weekend!
On a whim (and maybe after a couple of glasses of wine) a few weeks ago, I decided to get a 23andMe Health & Ancestry Kit. My husband and I were chatting about health history in our families, and given my grandparents’ experience with cancer, dementia and heart disease, I was interested in the kit’s ability to identify variants and risks for certain diseases. Anyway! The four- to six-week waiting period felt like FOREVER, but when I finally got my results this week…it was so unsurprising and boring in the best possible way! Other than a slightly increased risk for celiac’s disease and a confirmation I’m likely lactose intolerant, I didn’t have any health risks (which is great!). And I’m also 100% European: no real surprise there, although I always thought I was a quarter German, a quarter Italian, a quarter Irish and a mix of Polish and British. Alas! Apparently, I’m almost 40% German, 30% Italian, and the rest a mix of Scandinavian, Iberian and broadly European. I don’t have any huge desire to do any deeper genealogy reports, but it is SO crazy to learn just how much of our health and ancestry can be found in our spit. Even though it didn’t end up being that interesting, I’m still so glad I did it!
San Diego
Last Saturday, I went to a free (donation-based) yoga class on a bluff overlooking the ocean while David surfed in the waves at Pacific Beach below. It was so beautiful and relaxing, and basically everything we dreamed of when we moved to San Diego last year! After that morning, we pinkie-promised that we’ll do that every Saturday when we’re both in town going forward: it felt like something that we would make a priority on vacation, and we feel so lucky that it’s part of our “normal” life at home.
Reads
No surprises here, but two of my major interests are Sacramento and true crime and when they come together, I am ENTHRALLED. I had a few friends recommend I’ll Be Gone in the Dark: One Woman’s Obsessive Search for the Golden State Killer (knowing my obsession with both of those things), but it wasn’t until headlines broke this week about the Golden State Killer being arrested that I was finally spurred into action. I ended up reading the book in 24 hours before “breaking” the Golden State Killer news to myself and clicking on the headlines, and let me just tell you, it was a WILD ride. I wasn’t familiar with the Golden State Killer (or, as he’s known in Sacramento, the East Area Rapist) cases, but I mentioned that I was reading the book to my parents–and my dad, who grew up in Modesto and Sacramento, immediately recognized the cases (they occurred more than 40 years ago!). Anyway, the book is incredible: although the topic and details are grisly, McNamara writes about it in a way that is both direct and descriptive but also poetic.
Podcasts
One of my girlfriends recommended The Thread last week, and I totally binged the first season on a six-mile solo hike around San Diego this weekend. It’s a history podcast that traces current events back along the threads that tie all of these seemingly unrelated historic movements together: the first season connects John Lennon’s death to Lenin, and the second draws a line from the founding of MGM to the #MeToo movement.
Words
“A man is a success if he gets up in the morning and gets to bed at night, and in between he does what he wants to do.” -Bob Dylan
This weekend, I’m relaxing at Wigwam Resort in Arizona! Think reading by the pool, playing tennis in the sunshine and enjoying plenty of desert sunsets.
