I’ve been back from vacation for about two months and maybe now I feel more “in control” of my work life, she asks with a question mark? Summer feels more chaotic and less structured to me. I like that aspect of it, but it’s harder for me to get a routine with work. I’m the kind of unadaptable, uncool human where it seems that CONDITIONS HAVE TO BE PERFECT for me to feel “in charge.” I have not set myself up for success in that regards. I have a goal of being a more adaptable person, does that count?
I like to envision the day when unexpected things can happen to me all day long and I am unruffled and unrattled. Look at future me, unbothered by change and transitions, look at her go. I picture Matthew McConaughy being this type of person and now that I really think about it, I can’t think of a female version of this. If you have one in mind, drop me a note.
My last post promised another post about Albania so here we go! The second half of our trip was beach oriented and we stayed in a beautiful beach town, but it was kind of like a lot of other beach towns in the world in that we were there alongside other tourists. I don’t think many folks live there full time. We had a great time, the Ionian Sea is crystal clear, filled with salt and so warm. You rent beach chairs for the day and believe me, we struggled our first day there to understand how to go about this. Turns out, we are not cool as a family either. Go figure. I’m happy to report we nailed the beach chair situation on day two and the days afterward and felt like champs.
We spent our last day in the second largest city in Albania, Durres, which isn’t too far from the airport. It’s a beach town that reminded me of our beach towns like Atlantic City and Ocean City, Maryland. It’s built up and the beach wasn’t super pretty but there was a lot of people watching opportunity on the promenade and it was fun being back in the hustle of a lively city. If we’d had longer to spend, I would have liked to have gone into the capital city of Tirana.
Books I’ve Loved Recently:
Exit Party by Emily St. John Mandel. A speculative, dystopian novel that is meditative and beautiful. This will be on my best books of 2026 list.
Watching:
The new season of The Traitors is out and I am such a sucker for this show.
Listening to:
Just heard Oprah on The Mel Robbins Podcast and it took me back to being young in the 1990’s and having Oprah to check in with on TV.
“The point isn’t that the candle won’t last the night. Everything is temporary. The point is that the light is gorgeous while it lasts.” – Exit Party by Emily St. John Mandel
