[img]: A corgi looking up at the camera

Took Lemonade to the park for playtime with Norman and Hovis. They make easy friends. Their parents kept commenting on Lemonade’s eyes. Made me think of this photo.

• Met Tim Bleeker at Somerlust Park on Tuesday, a get-together that started as “chilling in the park”, and which turned into grabbing a drink at l’Osteria. The venue is not one I can recommend. When requesting a bigger table because more people would be coming, the waiter scoffed at us. Then he closed the red velvet roped entrance. Later, his colleague told me people often just barge into the venue, ignoring waiters’ requests. I couldn’t imagine the type of person that would do this, and then I looked around.
• I still seem to have a pinguecula because of the time I spent in an airconditioned car not too long ago, although my eye is far less red than last week. I feel guilty for disgusting any reader with this information, but hey, they’re weeknotes. Long story short, I now have sunglasses.
• Watched Hillsong, A megachurch exposed, and learned a lot about how the church has propelled itself into popularity. Knowing how anti-queer the church has always been, I never felt comfortable attending a service in Amsterdam. The early 10s fashion made me feel nostalgic, though.
• Had a lovely workshop at work about effective team work. It was inspiring, educational, and great for a sense of collaboration, not just with my peers, but also with the company’s leadership. It’s wonderful to be a part of a company that walks its talk so enthusiastically.
• I’m struggling to be a good dog mom to Lemonade, seeing Anja’s conduct and training as much more effective and kind. I’ve been working to praise her good behavior more than I punish her mistakes.
• I was off on Friday, and I went to an early-morning showing of Talk to Me (2023), which I’ll most likely do again. A cute retired Amsterdam couple were discussing their elaborate weekend cooking plans, which I found delighting. They proceeded to talk all throughout the movie.
• I tidied Annelie Wambeek’s house now that she’s coming back from her month abroad. I brought her some eggs, bread, milk, some treats, and flowers, and I made sure to leave the house smelling fresh. I hope it makes her feel good when she comes home tonight.
• I spent Saturday and Sunday tinkering on the website, and feel good about the results.
• I’ve been on the hunt for a good strategy for Bible study in Obsidian, and I managed to find a verse-per-file translation of the King James Bible on FaithBasedProductivity.com that I added to my Obsidian vault. It took a couple of days before the whole thing was properly synced across my devices, which I suspect might be the result of Obsidian Sync not be able to perform background syncs. It made me consider switching to iCloud Sync for a second, but honestly I can’t be bothered. I’m keen to see when I’ll actually begin using the 33,613 files that are taking up over 100 mb in my vault.
• I found myself missing church this week. I’m excited for All Saints Amsterdam to start back up again mid-September. I’m curious to see what’s in store for us.
• Mark Delany came over for Lemonade cuddles and dinner on Saturday. I made Tacos, successfully if I do say so myself, and we had a lovely time catching up and discussing what really matters: the fact that Mark uses the word “taco” as a standard synonym for female genitalia. I’m still laughing.

After two weeks in Scandinavia, it’s clear: we are both too Dutch for proper recycling. Secretly hoarding our trash to avoid a reprimanding from our AirBnb host as he hovers over his six-compartment recycling bin, we continue our trip from rural Sweden to Copenhagen looking for a public recycling station.

“Imagine if we got so nervous about doing it wrong that we ended up just dumping these bags by the roadside” I say to Anja.

Life sure is different now that we’ve gotten Lemonade on a proper walking schedule. She still feels most comfortable going potty on the puppy pads we have on our balcony, but she absolutely loves going out and exploring the neighborhood.

I’m surprised by how well she walks on a loose leash, and how few issues we’ve had with the stuff she puts in her mouth. I’m hoping to make most use of her imprint period, and that means familiarizing her with as many different things as possible.

Much like last year, I’m so excited for Mathilde to visit our house that I get a headache just thinking about it. We’ve known each other 23 years, and, by miracle, our friendship is both acclimatized to our adult lives and as full of energy and curiosity as it was when we met in our first year of secondary school.

She comes bearing gifts: seeds for the garden, dyke poetry, David Sedaris. She knows what I like. We eat, this time around I’ve kept it simple with dishes from the traiteur and not ten separate homemade recipes of intricate delicacies. We talk about what teaching means to her and Anja. We play with Lemonade.

• I got to meet one of my Internet heroes this week: Patrick Rhone and his family were on a Europe trip, and I was lucky enough to catch the planning stage on his blog right in time to extend an invitation. We spent a rainy Monday evening in de Jordaan at Cafe de Tuin, talking ye olde Internet productivity culture, the arts, politics, hopes and dreams, and how his teenage daughter apparently woke up one night singing “raise a glass to freedom”. Fine people, they are.
• After another week with Lemonade, I’m beginning to feel more confident about raising her to be a well-behaved, confident puppy. For the most part, she’s doing very well. The only real challenge we have is the barking to which she’ll resort every time she’s in the crate but not sleeping. Through trial and error, we’re slowly learning how to help her settle down more easily, and this week, the efforts have begun to pay off.
• I’ve got some exciting news forthcoming that isn’t quite ready for the public just yet, but it has managed to lift my spirits greatly. I’ll be able to write more in the next few weeks, but for now it’s safe to say I’m feeling hopeful, inspired, and ready.
• While Anja had apparently been around to watch season one when it was released, I’ve only now turned onto the wonderful journey that is Abbott Elementary. I would never actually ask the universe for a reboot of The Office: US, but this new mockumentary revolving around a poorly-managed, underfunded Philadelphia public school has exactly the vibe I would’ve hoped to get from that nonexistent reboot. It’s just nice that, with this show, Black people are at the front and center.
• Spring has officially begun, but as one of the regulars at my coffee place said: “the question isn’t when spring begins but when rain ends”. It seems the weather’s getting better, though, and I can feel I’m on the cusp of storing away my winter coat. It has been a long time coming.

• It snowed a few times this week and I was as baffled as I always am to see it happening in March. I don’t have a great understanding of what the weather’s supposed to do in a given period of the year.
• After two weeks of cocooning, we’ve finally been taking Lemonade out to various places. I aim to take her out at least once a day, usually to the park or a walk around the block. We also visited my favorite coffee place twice. It’s wonderful to see she’s such a relaxed and curious dog.
• This was my last full week off. I still have a few days left and then I head back into work. I don’t know how people work after they first got a puppy, and I’m grateful I was able to take this time off.
• I attended service at All Saints again. It was an intimate gathering with a rather inspiring reflection comparing “giving up” to “letting go” for Lent. I feel like I never get Lent right: I drop in too late, don’t see it all the way through, and this always makes me feel like I’m not a proper Christian. Regardless, it’s great to become acquainted with All Saints. Its focus on inclusivity gives me goosebumps.
• Lemonade met the other corgi in the building, Lalo. At only ten weeks older than she is, he towered over her as they played, but she didn’t let that bother her. He was so sweet playing with her, using his strength in a very gentle way. Here’s to hoping they’ll become best friends.
• Annelie came over for tea and lemon punitions. She had been gone for a few weeks and I had missed her. She’s Lemonade’s godmother, and as they met in real life for the first time it was clear to see why this is so.
• Anja started her ceramics course at Studio Pansa. On Sunday she had her second class, and she took pictures. She’s such a fast learner, and the pots she made came out beautifully. I’m proud of her.