Shoe sizes, and other things we think we know about ourselves
Also, lots of book recs and a throwback TV rec!
A couple of years ago when I was back on my running bullshit (I do this every few years, try to convince myself I’m a runner even though all evidence points to the contrary), I went to a sneaker store to get a pair of running shoes.
The guy there measured my feet, even though I knew what size shoe I wore: eight-and-a-half or nine, the same size I’d worn since junior high, although truth be told I was rarely an eight-and-a-half and almost always a nine. Anyway, I obliged the gentlemen, allowed him to gather up my feet and place them on that little metal slide rule thing nestled between his knees, and waited for confirmation.
Well, imagine my surprise when he told me I was actually a nine-and-a-half and proceeded to sell me a pair of sneakers size nine-and-a-half that fit like a dream.
Turns out I’ve been wearing shoes at least half a size too small for, I don’t know, my whole life? Life-changing news really because ever since that day I have been buying shoes in size nine-and-a-half and it’s been great. Here’s a pair of shoes I bought recently in my new size, lots of room for my toes and all that. Also these.
It got me thinking, what other small changes might I make that would change my life? Here’s one: I recently bought a new duvet that actually fits inside the duvet cover, replacing the too small one my husband and I have been sleeping with/fighting over for nearly a decade. Also, we bought actual poop bags for our dogs instead of scrounging around for a spare plastic bag like the kind the bread comes in or one of the plastic sleeves that protect our daily newspapers. And you know what? They’re just better!
What have you bought recently that changed your life for the better? Let us know in the comments!
But on a deeper level, the whole shoe size thing made me wonder: What else don’t I know about myself?
As I watch my kids start to move through the world in a more grown up and independent way, I’ve been thinking a lot about how we discover things about ourselves, namely what are we good at, what do we love and how might we use that information to find work that is interesting and meaningful? It took me so long to find my way to the work that makes my life meaningful, and I spent many of those years doing things I didn’t like and wasn’t particularly good at. And sometimes it made me feel like a big loser. But I wasn’t a loser, I was just doing things that didn’t suit me—kind of like wearing shoes a half-size too small.
Oliver just left for camp, and before he left we binged the first four seasons of Six Feet Under, the HBO series that ran from 2001-2005 (WHAT how is it so long ago?). You guys, it is so good. I’ve seen it before and loved it—was also crazy hot for Peter Krause as Nate (kind of still am, but maybe not as much? he seems a little more whiny to me now TBH). Anyway, I am here to say that it totally holds up on second viewing, and I am obsessed all over again—like I feel like the characters are not only real but actually my friends and I miss them the way I miss a group of friends I don’t hang out with anymore. But the best thing is that Oliver loves it too—yeah, I know it isn’t the most appropriate (lots of sex and drug use, and also it’s a show about death! but the kid loves it, so come at me). If you haven’t watched it before, or even if you have, check it out. It’s on Netflix. Anyway, now I have to wait six weeks for him to come home to watch the last season.
Recent reads: North Woods by Daniel Mason, Pet by Catherine Chidgey, James by Percival Everett, Loner by Teddy Wayne (also on my TBR is his latest, The Winner), Splinters by Leslie Jamison. Also, for a class I am taking with Priscilla Gilman on Elizabeth Strout’s Lucy Barton novels (in anticipation of her new novel, Tell Me Everything where Lucy meets Olive Kittredge!), I reread My Name is Lucy Barton and Anything is Possible and they are both just amazing.
Also: This just in! Catherine Newman’s Sandwich, which I read this past spring, is an instant NYT Bestseller! I have been reading (and semi-stalking?) Catherine since she wrote a column for Babycenter.com back in 2004, and her writing was so funny and honest, it made me think “I want to do that too.” She was also one of the first people I asked for a blurb for MLIY and her words literally made me cry. And so many years later she is writing fantastic novels (check out her first one We All Want Impossible Things if you haven’t already), and the world is in love with her. Well, I loved her first! Honestly, it couldn’t have happened to a nicer person. Also, I think Sandwich might be the first menopausal beach read ever written, so yeah!
Here’s a video of my dog swimming in the pool! Happy summer!
Daisy: SIX FEET UNDER, one of the best series ever and so tongue in cheek. Glad Oliver loved it too, and I for one ,think children need to be alert to all emotions and life/death, so no barbs from me coming your way…enjoy the summer and love the video of “your girl” swimming. I remember discovering that I wrote a size 9 shoe and not an 81/2. I told myself my feet get bigger with age like my ears. Lol Bonnie R.
It's been ages since I last watched SIX FEED UNDER but I think about the final episode kind of a lot! Like HOW did they stick the landing so well???? Sounds like it's time for a rewatch. :)