Day 19 “around the house”

the mattress is out in

the living room. thanks heatwave.

cats are everywhere.

Dear California,

You’ve been in plus 100 degree weather for like a week now. I love you because I’ve grown up here, my people are here, and I live two hours away from the Pacific Ocean. Also, you’re a beautiful state.

But your summers kill me.

Your hot and smokey, and I’m not a fan.

Last year’s planned power outages aren’t helping you out any either.

So, Ant and I began sleeping out in the living room Sunday night. It’s too hot in our Tuff Shed-like closet-room combo to sleep. We started out on a pile of blankets, which did not make for good night’s sleep. Then, a conversation with co-workers at lunch led us (mainly Ant) to drag the mattress out into the living room and it’s been here ever since.

Last night we actually dropped below 80 degrees at like 9 o’clock at night.

Tonight, we opened the windows to let in the cool night air at like 8 something.

It’s kinda fun. It’s feels like . . . camping in a weird way.

The majority of married Christmases, we’ve dragged our mattress out into the living room on Christmas Eve–the first two or three years we made a fort–and fell asleep to the colorful lights and a movie. With the paper snowflakes hanging from the ceiling, it’s legit magical. Just thinking about it gets me all excited for the holiday season.

So, it’s been kinda fun. A weird, random blip in our lives that may become a California Summer staple.

Though, I’m still not a fan of your heatwaves or your fire season, I still love you.

Because I live two and half hours away from the Pacific Ocean, my people are here, and you’ve been my home for my entire 29 years.

Thanks for these unique memories.

Love,

Tracy

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Follow along with the #30daysofhakiuproject here on Instagram. I’m a little behind, but I’m finding the time to write these–even if just in my head and on paper for now. Job coaching hours have been long and days have been hot.

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Writing Process Notes:

8-20-2020

// Poem writing: like 5 mins. 9:40ish at night. Wrote it on the mattress next to Moochy. Ant liked it on the first try =) listening to fans and landlord’s AC.

// blog writing: maybe like half an hour? Mattress, still next to Moochy. Fans still going. Word TOTAL: 416