What I’m Into: September

General Highlights:

Sorry to start off all Debbie Downer, but September brought serious lowlights. On the 3rd, when I took my beloved cat Gandalf to the vet for what I thought was a minor problem, I found out he had cancer. It was advanced enough that I had him put down, at home, on the 15th. It was my worst emotional whiplash since my divorce. Adjusting to life without Gandalf after twelve years will take a long time, but with lots of love from my friends and family (and the continued company of my other cat, Peach), I’m doing okay. Right in the middle of all that, I also found out that one of my good friends from college had died suddenly. She moved away years ago and we hadn’t been in close touch, but obviously I was shocked, upset, and so sad for her family.

In happier news, I spent Labor Day with my two college roommates/BFFs, Kathy and Emily. Em lives near Nashville, so it’s rare for the three of us to be together at once, let alone with their husbands and all their kids too.

Oh, and I went to Hawaii – and got a tattoo! But more about that later!!

Read and Reading:

My favorite book this month was Never Have I Ever: My Life (So Far) Without A Date by Katie Heaney, at which I LOLed repeatedly on a plane. I also enjoyed Megan Crane’s time travel romp I Love the 80s, and Rob Sheffield’s latest music commentary memoir thing, Turn Around Bright Eyes. (His first memoir, Love Is A Mix Tape, is still one of the most poignant, unique books I’ve ever read.)

TV/Movies:

I’m rejoicing at the return of my current fave, The Mindy Project! And not just because Mindy and Danny are together now (where is my own Danny Castellano??). This cast is one of the best ensembles on TV, and every character is hilarious… though Morgan has a special place in my heart (I busted up at his “Dog Fair” from last week’s episode). I still love New Girl too, but Mindy has surpassed it.

As usual, I don’t have time for a lot of new shows, but I want to watch A to Z (The Mother is in it!) and Red Band Society.

Music:

This month I saw one of those “If you like this, listen to this” columns in a magazine. It indicated that British singer Banks was an artist I would like, so I checked her out on Spotify. By the next morning her new album Goddess was on a loop in my car. I tried to pick a favorite track to recommend and could only narrow down to, like, five. She’s everything I hated to like about Lana Del Rey, but with more talent and depth, and enough independence that you’re not distracted by worry that she’ll end up in a ditch somewhere.

I’ve been listening to The Bridges steadily all year, but haven’t given them any press here. The Bridges are five cousins and siblings from Alabama and North Carolina, and they have a truly unique (and awesome) sound. Their only full-length album, Limits of the Sky, is kind of folky and retro. Then they took a grittier rock turn for their EP, Our Monster, which I like even better. It sounds like it was actually recorded in a garage… in the best possible way. Love love love.

Also, after realizing I already liked three of the songs, I finally purchased a Fall Out Boy album. Fall Out Boy has grown on me stealthily. I don’t know why I fought it.

Wearing:

I swung by Cooper-Young Fest a few weeks ago and scored a “When You’re Bad, You Get Put In The Corner” shirt from Memphis Made! I’d wanted one for a long time. #ilovememphis

I didn’t shop much in Hawaii, but we hit up a thrift store in Kailua (Bethany is the thrifting queen), where I found this Gap polka dot skirt. I asked Bethany if it was too young because I’m trying to dress a little more my age, and a lady nearby piped up, “Never do that!” She looked about 65 and was clearly taking her own advice!! Anyway, the skirt is totally me and makes me happy.

Random Happiness:

I got to spend a lot of time with Kathy in September. Normally the bulk of our togetherness happens during basketball season, but this month I went to her birthday party, we had that reunion at her house, and she came over several times to see Gandalf (he used to be her cat too) and me.

I attended a two-day new members class at the church I’ve been attending for several months. I still need to work out a couple of things, but I can pretty much join any time now and am excited about it! This is the first time I’ve mentioned my church change on the blog, but now that most of my friends from my old church are in the loop, I’ll be sharing more about the “move.” It wasn’t an easy decision, but it was the right one.

At work, I got a new computer after being six months overdue for a switch. My old one was basically a paperweight. It’s so refreshing to have a computer that takes less than five minutes to shut down.

Pinterest Quote of the Month:

Travel:

Did I mention I went to Hawaii?

On The Blog:

I wrote a tribute to my cat and our life together, and about my discovery that my heart is stronger than it used to be. I shared some thoughts about the dichotomy between waiting and being brave. I also gave an account of a typical day of Florida lobster diving with my family!

Posts I Loved:

♥ Abby at Accidental Devotional speaks my language: Heartbreak: A Spiritual Discipline. (I should ask her if she’s an INFJ too)

♥ Hollywood Housewife on moving on: Know When It’s Over

♥ Some real wisdom here from Glennon Melton at Storyline: 3 Ways of Looking at and Thinking about Other People

♥ Emily Freeman talks about our individual narratives: When You Want to be Joyful but You’re Not Quite There Yet

♥ Cara at Little Did She Know: On Brokenness and Mole-Whacking

♥ LOL of the Month: Suburban Turmoil: Enough With The Burlap.