The most exciting event of this week is that my cousin and I booked our tickets to the south of France! We’re going at a popular time, and decided we’d better book sooner rather than later. We are staying in Nice and Marseille iy”H (which have frum communities with lots of kosher food) and using them as bases for many day trips. We booked our hotels in each city last week as well (those are refundable). This week we also booked a lavender tour, a half-day tour leaving from Marseille to Valensole. And we booked a tour of a few Luberon villages. Those are our most expensive activities, and most other things can be handled on the ground (public transport, museums, etc.). I’m using Rick Steves to plan (obviously). We are very excited, and I’m so grateful to be able to go, especially with my cousin!
This week I also took a mental health day off of work on Monday (not the one planned here). I just needed a day for my brain to rest — I’ve been overdoing things a bit between work, teaching, PhD writing/fretting, and figuring out where to go next with my journaling business (I also made a website on Sunday, which maybe put me over the edge, haha). I was quite the angry gremlin by Sunday night and knew there was no way I could keep pushing forward. The day off was so needed and helpful. My mother took me shopping and now I am outfitted for Pesach, which is a relief because I hadn’t done much shopping last summer and really did not have much to go on. Very grateful for this!
I have ordered sunglasses, which was a goal for this year — I feel like a shopping genius because I ordered a pair in the kids’ size. Generally, sunglasses make me look like a housefly (narrow face) but I wanted to try and look cuter than that this summer. Hopefully, they will work.
I am also in the market for: a cute backpack for the aforementioned daytrips (this?), floppy sun hat (yes, for real), and sneakers. I’ve been told by fashionable people that On Cloud is the way to go, but that I can still do New Balance if I want to spend less? Opinions and links appreciated!
A couple more events of the week: I got a haircut, which feels so fresh. And I met my friend for lunch at Lox Café in the Museum of Jewish Heritage. It worked well for a meeting point (as I was coming from midtown and she was coming from Brooklyn) and it was so, so nice to catch up! It was a little emotional for me, actually, to spend time with an old friend that I hadn’t spent time with in years! I could feel the love and respect between us and it really touched my heart.
And that, my friends, is that! Quite the week b”H!
Have a beautiful Shabbos!
(Photo credit: Konevi/Pexels)
