The new normal

Yeah, so, how are you? Are you washing your hands? Are you staying home? Good job! Not all heroes wear capes, my friends.

It’s so strange. I feel like I’m busier than ever. Do you feel like that? I’m not commuting. I’m home all the time. I should feel like I have too much time on my hands. Instead, I feel swamped. Maybe that’s a good thing. It keeps me from overthinking and freaking out that we’re living through a global pandemic.

My work has been so great during this crazy time. The team is always finding fun projects and little things to make us feel connected. This week we launched a lunchtime radio hour. I’m hosting on Wednesdays, and the theme is songs from movies (duh).

I look so tired. No filter can fix that.

I’ve never hosted a radio hour before. Obviously, there were a few bumps, but the response was positive. And, more importantly, I had a good time. It’s all about MEEEEEEEEEE!

Speaking about MEEEEEEEEEE, I had to do an All About Me presentation at work. As readers of this blog you already know everything about me. I was pretty nervous about it. I was worried that I was oversharing, or maybe I’m boring. In the end, I decided to tell my story, and while it got pretty personal I’m glad I did it. I really, really love my job, and I want everyone to get to know me because I like getting to know them. Plus, I’m not going anywhere. Hopefully, they consider themselves warned.

So anyway, San Francisco schools are canceled until the fall. My mighty, mighty good boy Calvin has started online classes. It’s a challenge, but he’s getting the hang of it. He has speech twice a week, occupational therapy once a week, and a weekly check-in with his class.

Yes, Calvin has his own Macbook. I bought my work laptop when I left my old job. He’s so fancy.

When all of this first started I was carrying around a lot of guilt about Calvin. I was feeling like I was doing a shitty job. There’s a lot of folks out there that are being super creative about homeschooling their kids, and I tip my hat to them. They had color-coded schedules and shit like that. Some people are really dedicated and smart about it, and some are just, well, participating in something I call the Pinterest-ifcation of parenting. I try not to let that affect me. It’s important to remember that these are super weird times, and we’re all just doing the best we can. If your kid is getting way more screentime than usual, WHO CARES?! We’re dealing with a global fuckin’ pandemic. Do what you have to do to get through this.

Speaking of getting through this, we’re doing Saturday night movie nights with our good buddies Beegs and Sass. We kicked it off with “The Warriors.” We just set up a Zoom so we can see each other, and we start the movie at the same time. It’s a little wonky in that we can hear each other’s movies, and if the timing isn’t right, well, it’s not ideal. Still, it’s super fun, and we get to hang out with Beegs and Sass.

So, that’s how we’re dealing right now. Like everyone, we’re dealing with this new normal, and we’re trying to make the best of it.

And now, I’ll leave you with snuggling, warm, sleepy doggies.

 

 

Dorking Out about ‘The Net’

Yeah, so, on this week’s Dorking Out, Margo and I order a pizza ONLINE and dork out about “The Net,” starring Sandra Bullock.

Super weird times

Yeah, so, weird times, huh?

2019: “I’m the worst year.”
2020: “Hold my beer.”

We’re all being safe here, and we’re all healthy. My mighty, mighty good man David always works from home, and my rad company issued a work from home order a few weeks before this went down. I’m super grateful for my job right now. They’ve been so amazing and supportive. They really look out for their employees. Honestly, I feel lucky.

My coworker Jian Wei made a Zoom date with Calvin to show him his model cars and introduce him to Snapchat filters.

But yeah, everything is weird. I’m worried, but I try to keep my worrying to a minimum. The last thing we need in this house is for me to start having anxiety attacks again. During the day I focus on work, and I really love what I’m working on. That helps. In the evening and on weekends, I’ve been distracting myself with baking, movies, and Animal Crossing. It’s working. Plus, I’m trapped in the house with my two favorite boys, my doggies, and cat. Could be worse.

We’ve been trying to support the local businesses that we love. You can order food for take-out, buy merch, or get gift cards. A lot of businesses are finding creative ways to stay in business. Help them out! Obviously, my list is super SF-centric, but my hope is it will give you ideas for your city.

The Good Hop – You can pop in and grab beer to go.

Ocean Ale House – One of our favorite spots in SF, Ocean Ale House is filling up growlers. They have food, too. They make David’s favorite burger in SF, and I love their market greens. And they usually have a delicious vegan soup, too.

Goat Hill Pizza – My favorite pizza in SF is still delivering, and they have their own delivery drivers.

Laughing Monk Brewery – Laughing Monk has tasty brews, and they’re always giving back to the community and donating to school fundraisers, etc. If you can, order some beer for pickup.

Faction Brewing – This Alameda brewery was turning into a regular weekend stop for us because they’re kid-friendly, have outdoor seating, and serve rad beer. They have bottles and cans for pickup.

Rosamunde – We were having dinner at Rosamunde every Friday before the pandemic. They have a wide selection of tasty sausages (including vegan options – duh). I also super love their baked beans.

Bird & Beckett – Instead of ordering a book on Amazon, I placed a copy of “Salt Water Flour Yeast” from Bird & Beckett, and I walked down the hill to pick it up.

And, of course, help all the animals! My favorites are Farm Sanctuary, Muttville, or SPCA.

Other random things we’re doing:

A weekly produce box – it’s an easy way to get fresh produce without having to go to the store. We use Farm Fresh To You, and occasionally Imperfect Produce.

Zoom happy hours with my favorite people:

I’m still recording with Margo for Dorking Out and What a Creep. We’re having a really great time. For Dorking Out, we talked about “Tombstone” and “Sleeping with the Enemy.” Over at What a Creep, we talked about Jim Jones, the Houston Astros, and creeps in romantic comedies.

I hope y’all are healthy and being safe. Wash your hands. Keep your distance. Stay home.

Dorking Out: ‘House Party’

Yeah, so, I’ve got nothing but love for “House Party.” I’m so glad that Margo and I finally did an episode about it on Dorking Out.

Awkward dog photo

Yeah, so, everything is awful right now except for this photo.

Dorking Out: ‘Outbreak’

Yeah, so, with the coronavirus spreading all over the world, Margo and I figured it was a perfect time to revisit 1995’s OUTBREAK on this week’s Dorking Out.

The movie stars renowned action star Dustin Hoffman, Renee Russo, Morgan Freeman, Cuba Gooding, Jr., Donald Sutherland, and super creep Kevin Spacey.

I hope you’re all being safe, my friends.

Unfortunately, here in the U.S., we have an ignorant president, who is more worried about increasing cases of this virus hurting his chances for re-election, and a vice president who doesn’t think science is a thing, so they’re not really doing anything to prevent it from spreading.

Good times!

 

 

Dorking Out: ‘Dave’ and What a Creep: Alfred Hitchcock

Yeah, so, the world is a political dumpster fire, so listen to me and Margo dork out about the movie “Dave,” starring Kevin Kline and Sigourney Weaver.

And over at What a Creep, we’re talking about director Alfred Hitchcock. It turns out psycho wasn’t just the name of one of his movies.

 

Sweatin’ to the oldies

Yeah, so, one of my New Year’s resolutions is to be more active. I’m trying to worry less about dieting and food. Instead, I’m focusing more on exercise and being healthy.

I love yoga, and I’m continuing to do that once a week. But I also wanted to try something different, so I signed up for a dance class.

Look, my friends! My hair is long enough that I can wear it up. That hasn’t been a thing in about 5 years.

My buddy Malaika came with me so that I wouldn’t be embarrassed all by myself. It’s not a serious dance class. It’s a fun, let’s get sweaty dance class.

I’ve never taken a dance class before, so I didn’t know what to expect. Actually, that’s not true. I did know what to expect: I expected that I wouldn’t remember the steps (even though they were repeatedly demonstrated for me), and I expected that I would always be about two beats behind everyone else. Both of those things happened.

It’s a hip-hop/jazz class. I have zero rhythm, and even the simplest dance step was challenging. But, those things are not important. What’s important is that I had a good time and upped my activity level. I’ll definitely go back. I want to make it a regular thing. Shit, maybe I’ll even get better.

In other news, cute dog photos!

Happy New Year, my friends

Yeah, so, more like The Snorin’ 20s, amirite?

Let’s do this, 2020

Yeah, so, it’s the end of a decade.

A lot has changed for me this decade. I got married. I had a baby. I lost a few loved ones. I got breast cancer (again). I started three (!) podcasts. I made a bunch of awesome, new friends. I got a new job. And so on, and so on.

Me at the end of 2009

Me at the end of 2019

In the past decade, I’ve changed from a person who could barely make boxed mac ‘n’ cheese to someone to absolutely loves to cook and bake all the time.

I fuckin’ made a vegan chocolate bundt cake.

I changed from the person who could barely work up the courage to talk in a meeting with more than 5 people to the person who cohosts multiple podcasts.

In 2009, I seriously wondered if not only could I have a baby, but should I have a baby. I worried that I didn’t have a maternal bone in my body. But here am I …

I have a lot of goals and wishes for 2020. On a national level, I’m hoping that this country can get its shit together and vote Predator Trump out.

You see, since I’ve got this amazing kid, I’d like the world to not be a massive dumpster fire all the time.

He got an Easy Bake Oven for Christmas. Lucky!

On a personal level, I’m hoping to be more active. I go to yoga on the weekends, but I know I can do more. I signed up for a hip-hop dance class (seriously, I did). And now that we have two dogs I have twice as many reasons to be walking more. #SoniaGetsHealthy in 2020.

I’m also hoping to do more traveling with my mighty, mighty good man David. We visited France, Belgium, Washington, DC, Baltimore, Denver, Portland, Las Vegas, Hawaii, and New York City in the past decade. Maui is on the agenda this summer with my family. I’d like to make a return visit to NYC, and I’d love to check out Chicago.

So anyway, I hope y’all have a completely rad New Year’s Eve. Let’s all link arms and dance into 2020 together.