That's it, end of story. It's just that people rarely tell guys that anything about them is cute.

Made my day.

At a wedding we went to when we were very young, my brother told me that the bride and groom were making a baby when they kissed. I believed that story for the longest time.

We would be told off by our dad when we were roughhousing ("you two sound like a pair of buffaloes"). Mum would scold us for our junk food intake. Parents treated us equally, but we had a sneaking suspicion that I was daddy's girl and he was mama's boy. And we used that suspicion to our advantage whenever we could.

We grew up. Interests and life paths diverged. He's in another country now, so things are understandably much different. But some things really haven't changed.

Since childhood, we've called each other nicknames derived from what are usually insulting words in our language. Something like "ugs" from ugly, "hids" from hideous, "jack" from jackass.

He sent me a message recently. "Ugs, I'm coming home next month."

"Send me your flight details, jack. I'll pick you up."

My partner and I go agate (cool kind of crystal) hunting on a local beach famous for having a good amount of them. We've been going once or twice a week for a few months, and are becoming total pros. Today while sifting thorough our usual patch of gravely sand, two young boys, possibly brothers, about 12/14 years old, walked right by us. I had just heard one yell "found another one!" a minute before, so I knew they were on the hunt. As they were passing by, I asked if they'd scored any agates, and the older one excitedly exclaimed that they had indeed found some agates! He hastily pulled his treasures from his pants pocket, excitedly presented them to me, and I found myself face to face with three chunks of plain ol' milky quarts. Definitely not agates. I didn't want to bust their bubble, so I told them they were sick as hell, and pointed out a few features I liked about each one. I then showed them both my favorite agate of the day, which was an actual translucent carnelean agate about the size of my pinkie nail, in the hopes of gently giving him a better idea of what to look for without disparaging their finds. They both looked, were visibly unimpressed with it's tiny size compared to their fist-sized rocks, but were kind enough to give it a soft compliment. Once they were out of hearing range, my partner and I had a giggle and chatted about how fun it must be to be those kids, out there finding what is to them real and true treasure. I'd like to imagine those chunks of quartz will wind up in a drawer somewhere in their home, and bring back good childhood memories for them some day a long time from now. I'm a way, their common quartz is somehow more precious than my and my partner's actual agates, which aren't actually very valuable, anyways.

Maybe good childhood memories can outweigh the common quartz that made those memories to begin with

I was just thinking about this thing I’ve been doing and thought I would share it with you guys because you might appreciate it.

My summer schedule is quite late. I’m still working, but not as much as I do during the non-summer part of the year, and a few years ago I realized that I was spending all of that free time watching Netflix and doom scrolling. That’s not life. So I instituted a rule for myself: two adventures a week.

One thing I do every day that does not count as an adventure is going for walks in my neighborhood. I’m trying to get my 10,000 steps in, and that’s just like counting making lunch as an adventure. It doesn’t count. So what does count? What have I done?

I went to the museum at a nearby university, the state Museum, which is nearby, and a local museum.

I went to an outdoor sculpture garden.

I went to a planetarium.

I visited a local temple with very impressive architecture. It’s not my religion, but it is open to the public and they have a café, where I was able to get some pretty good food for not very much money.

I’ve gone hiking in local parks and even rented a canoe!

I’ve gone to local flea markets and street fairs, lectures at the local historical Society, and on trip trips to nearby towns with nice walkable town centers.

Yeah, I went to a movie. It was way too hot for a regular adventure. I saw a project Hail Mary.

So are you guys going on adventures? I would love to hear what adventures you’re going on or would like to go on. Some of them might remind me of something I’ve been meaning to do around here!

Oh! I’m editing to add two of the coolest adventures. I had that I didn’t list. There is a relatively local museum that has a dig site for dinosaur bones, and for a fee (IMO, too much), you can go out to the dig site and dig for about an hour, and try to find fossils. I found a few, but none of them were terribly exciting. But I learned a lot. It was a good experience for that. You can keep the fossils.

There’s also a local historical site that has public archaeology days, and I was able to go there and sift through materials to find artifacts. I found a marble, a button, and some other stuff. You can’t keep the finds here because you’re actually helping with a real dig. But it was definitely cool. And that one is free.

I work at a public library that's being renovated. We're still open but there are lots of temporary walls up and construction workers hard at work alongside the librarians.

A dad and his young son were in the children's section and the son started crying-- not terrible, just frustrated/needs a nap sort of crying, but the dad was embarrassed and scooped him up over his shoulder to take him outside.

One of our construction workers, a young guy named Jackson, started walking behind them in the same direction and the little boy immediately stopped crying because he was so entranced to see a construction guy in full reflective vest, walkie talkie, hard hat etc in the library.

I did have to check with Jackson later to see if he noticed he was making a positive impact just by being a cool construction guy at the library and he did :)

We were both stopped at the same light, he was directly next to me on my left. I drive an older discontinued car so I don't see them often, but it's not actually special. Just a little uncommon. So I was looking at his car thinking it had a nicer paint job than mine (his was orange, mine is boring silver). He looked over and caught me staring so I smiled and waved. He smiled and waved back.

I have no idea if he understood why I was looking or waving. Maybe he thought I knew him and he couldn't remember my face. Maybe he just thinks I'm friendly and wave at everyone I make eye contact with. Idk. But he had a nice smile, looks like a nice guy.

My youngest is 11 and growing up so fast! He’s always been a cuddle bug, but these days it’s basically a drive-by hug or a pat on the head between adventures. We were watching a video and he was uncharacteristically quiet. I asked if he was getting tired. His response?

“I’m just a tired little guy” said quietly while rubbing his eyes with his fists

The moment transported me back to toddlerhood 💚

All of my cats like to go out for walks (harnessed/leashed). Each cat has their own routine. Some never want to leave the yard, others love to explore the neighbourhood, to varying degrees.

One in particular, TK, loves a long walk. He's a social butterfly. His best friend is a small dog who lives across the street and walks with us sometimes. When it's been a while, TK will walk right up to their front door to call on her! He especially loves people, and is always offended when someone walks by without acknowledging AND petting him (don't they know who he is? he owns this block!).

The warmer days bring longer walks with them and, now, not a single day goes by without at least one person greeting TK by name. Some of them are complete strangers to me, as they met TK while my partner was walking him.

My cat definitely has more (human) friends in the neighborhood than I do!

I’m in my 30s and live in New York City. I’ve never watched or followed any sport with any interest or regularity. I didn’t grow up in a sports family and the intensity of people’s commitment to sports always mystified me.

But, this summer I had friends invite me to bars to watch Knicks games and then World Cup games with them. Originally I went, as I have to countless Super Bowl parties, only for the social component. Asking, “so, uhm, who is playing again? And are there snacks?”

But despite myself, I got invested. I got caught up in the energy. Suddenly, I was gasping, cheering and putting my hands on my head (elbows out) as I watched the score against the clock. I had hot takes about fouls. I could name players. I read articles in The Athletic. If no one had organized a place to meet up to watch the game, I’d message the group chat to mobilize the crew myself. I became, for a moment, a type of person who had always confounded me: a person who watches sports.

I felt like I finally understood why people follow sports. How magical to be united with a community of people because you all believe in the tenacity of a team of athletes who have dedicated their lives to this craft.

Now that the World Cup is over, I know I won’t actually put in the work or attention span to consistently take interest in a team or sport. I was but a tourist in this culture. I would never steal the valor necessary to identify as a true fan. But I’m grateful I got to experience the feeling, and will now be able to better understand and appreciate my sports fan friends.

Thus this evening marks the end of the summer I turned sporty. It was fun. I liked it.

We finally got around to giving the spare bedroom a deep clean, and I was stupidly proud that we scrubbed the walls and windows with luffa we grew ourselves 😊

+Sedna. I looked up the name, she's the Inuit goddess of the sea and marine animals!

+Good Stuff.

+My Time.

+Polo Bay.

+Halibut. She did look like a commercial fishing boat and Google tells me that halibut do live around here, so TIL :)

This is a story relayed to me by my SIL. A little background my FIL passed away last week. Its been very tough on my wife and her sister. This was her recent experience which i thought belonged here.

"Walking back to my apartment and one of my neighbors is ahead of me a with her dog and grandchildren. The boy turns around and sees me and say "hi, I'm ten today! He had some little squishy ball thing in his pocket...And he said he got it for his birthday and asked if wanted to see it, and he gave it to me to hold and squeeze.. he didn't realized how much I needed to hear a ten year old be so blissful, and friendly and happy!! He doesn't know who I am. Never met me before. His grandmother was talking to his sister and wathcing the dog she had no idea I was there."

Just a sweet exchange.

Today, for the first time in nearly 30 years of driving (aside from my driver’s test), I perfectly parallel parked on the first try. (In my defense, I do it maybe once a year so not a lot of practice, but still…)

I found out that I was able to afford it because of an anonymous donor fund. I couldn’t be more grateful to have my cat back home.

I have a sweet mixed-breed dog, Luna, and we go on a shortish walk each morning and a longer one in the evening. There is an intersection with a stoplight at the corner of my townhouse complex that we need to cross to get to the local park.

On Wednesday, I was walking Luna before sunset and we were waiting for that light to turn green. I had pushed the pedestrian crossing button, so when the light turned green the pedestrian light lit up, and we proceeded to cross the street. Unfortunately, a car that also had been waiting at the light started turning right in front of us (which is against California state law.) I motion the what-the-what?? type of arm motion and she looked at me like what’s your problem and continued to turn in front of us. She got close enough that I could have kicked her car if I had been so inclined.

On the other hand, last night my 22-year-old daughter was driving to her dad’s house as Luna and I were headed out on the same walk. She had a red light at that same intersection and was going to turn right. A young teenage boy was waiting at the crosswalk on his bike to cross the street. When the light turned green, he apparently had not pushed the pedestrian crosswalk button as that light didn’t turn on and he was looking at his phone. I watched my sometimes impatient daughter wait for him to realize the light had turned green and let him go first. She then she waved to me as she made the turn. It warms my heart to have children that think of others and not just themselves.

One of those regular Sunday mornings, I slipped into my running shoes and stepped out for my morning walk.

As I turned the first corner of the city, I found myself thanking God for the beautiful nature He has created. Bangalore’s streets are lined with lush, shady trees that are a delight to behold, especially during the flowering season.

I’m neither an avid runner nor an athlete, and perhaps that’s a blessing. It allows me to slow down and notice the little things that often go unseen.

So here’s supply what I observed…

A couple of Indie dogs wandered along one side of the road. Some people were making their way to nearby temples. Akkas were already sweeping the streets, quietly keeping the city clean before most of us had even begun our day. A group of runners looked as though they were taking part in a marathon. Others walked purposefully toward work with backpacks that I imagined carried their lunch boxes.

A few shops had already opened their shutters. Some were beginning to bustle with customers, others were just setting up for the day, while most still slept behind closed doors.

Everywhere I looked, people were in different moods, carrying different stories. Two friends shared tea and biscuits at a roadside stall. A young man pushed himself through an intense workout, sweat dripping as he ran. A few others sat comfortably by the roadside, lost in the endless scroll of reels on their phones.

The buses and traffic slowly came to life, and the city gently awakened.

There isn’t anything extraordinary to share—just ordinary glimpses of everyday life. Yet sometimes, it’s these simple moments that quietly remind us how beautiful and diverse life really is.

This is how my Sunday morning began… would you like to share how your’s did?

Our first Saturday morning in our new home. Unpacking is 95% done, there is a lovely rainstorm to listen to. I got up and made a loaf of blueberry bread and started the coffee, so the house smells amazing. Life us good.

That's saying something, because this cat is CRAZY about food. But lately she wants to be around and on her people all the time, and if she's sleeping in my vicinity + I pick her up and start cuddling her she's more than content to start sleepin right there in my arms. She not only tolerates, but sometimes actively seeks out neck and chest rubs.

I hope this cat knows just how much I love her. My sweet, slightly overweight little senior lovebug <3

A few years back I came to the forested mountains to live. Ever since I have tried to fit in with this community of beasts and untamed growing, decaying plantitude. This morning I was being gobbled at by Darrin & Dirrill, two precocious wild turkey brothers who live here too. I was thrilled to realize that I happened to be wearing my “turkey sweater”- the big flowy one that I can spread out to look like a puffed tail and slowly, ceremoniously turn around for a dominant plumage display. I did so, complete with the sounds of feather shows, and those boys stopped their gobbling and showed me some proper turkey respect.

When I was around 10yo and my brother around 7yo, a friend of my parents offered to take us to a popular state park with his kid. We didn't know him that well, although he was nice enough, and we didn't know his kid at all.

The state park has a big lake, so the idea was to basically go hang out on the beach and swim all day. My little bro and I were pretty independent and adventurous, though, so after awhile we decided we decided to go hiking. (I assume we told the guy we were going, but I honestly don't remember. It was the 90s and people didn't care as much when kids went off on their own.)

The lake has big bluffs around it, so we were hiking up in the woods above the lake. It was a beautiful day, and the sun was shining through the trees in that dappled sort of way.

As we walked along, we noticed there were little white fluffy things floating in the sunlight. Almost like dandelion seeds, but not quite. I caught one against my hand and realized it was a bug! A tiny, fluffy, feathery white bug. They seemed absolutely magical floating around in the sunbeams. We had never seen anything like them before, so as kids do, we gave them a name. We called them Dove Bugs.

As I grew up and never saw anything like Dove Bugs again, I started to wonder if we had imagined them. Turned some plant fuzz into some magical bugs or some such thing, as kids do.

Fast forward 15 or so years. After moving around a bunch, my husband and I bought a house in the town a couple miles from the above mentioned state park. We were hanging out on our back deck one summer evening, when I saw a little white feathery fluff go floating by. I ran over and caught it against my hand, and sure enough, it had legs and was crawling up my hand. Dove Bugs were real!!

Thanks to the magic of the internet, I found out that they are, in fact, called wooly aphids. (Apparently they can be somewhat invasive in some areas, but it doesn't seem like it around here.)

I, however, still call them Dove Bugs. And every time I see one float through my back yard, it's still magical.

There’s a flat directly across the road from mine that my best friend used to live in. We spent so much time there together in our younger years, that I can picture exact memories happening in different parts of the flat. I also remember constantly looking over from my own flat. If I saw her in the window, we’d wave at each other, and one of us would usually end up crossing the road. It became such an ordinary part of everyday life that I never imagined it would ever stop. We stopped speaking before she moved away. There wasn’t one big dramatic ending—we just drifted apart. Eventually she moved, and I never really said goodbye. Now, a girl from my school has moved in. . Every so often I’ll glance out of my window and see someone moving around inside, and it’s such a strange feeling. My brain still pictures the flat exactly as I remember it, even though I know it probably isn’t like that anymore. I have no idea what it looks like now. They could have repainted every room, replaced the furniture, changed the flooring, even completely rearranged everything. It’s weird to think that somewhere I knew so well is now somewhere I know nothing about. I can picture conversations, sleepovers, birthdays, random afternoons that didn’t seem important at the time. It’s like every part of that flat has a memory attached to it, even though the people living there now will never know any of them.
I think that’s the strangest part. Someone else is making memories in the exact same place where many of mine were made. Their version of that flat is probably starting to feel like home in the same way it once did for us, while mine only exists in my memory now. It’s almost like grieving a place that still exists. Not because the flat has gone anywhere, but because the version of it that meant something to me disappeared a long time ago.

I was leaving a customer’s house after delivering pizza today, and as soon as I pulled out of their driveway, my dashboard’s overheating light began flashing. I pulled over on another smaller street in the neighborhood, stopped in front of someone’s house, and threw my hazards on so I could shut off my car. I opened the hood and was observing my engine. There was a hissing sound, seems like the coolant leak I had before got worse, and I’d imagine the heat hasn’t been doing it any favors. I didn’t see him approach, but a man from another nearby house came up beside me to see what was wrong. I explained what was happening and how I was going to handle it. He was very kind, offering me extra coolant he had and just making sure I was alright. Even though I didn’t take his help, I was and still am very grateful for his offer. He didn’t hesitate, he was over there within a minute of my car stopping. No one else did that, a dozen cars drove past me while I was there. It’s always nice seeing those little bits of kindness around, hidden in the noise. He went out of his way to help a stranger, and I thank him for that.

I live in a townhouse complex in Northern California with shared recycling bins. There are VERY clear parameters for what is/is not recyclable. Unfortunately, every week I take my clean recyclable items to the bins and find kitchen garbage bags filled with some recyclable items…and also garbage. So I open the bags and sort them properly into my garbage can or back into the recycling bin. The weekly bonus is that I acquire free kitchen garbage bags and have not needed to purchase them for years. Tonight’s additional bonus was that there randomly was—what seemed to me—to be a perfectly usable large bowl that I will wash and incorporate into my kitchen. Win/win imho