Weeknotes: September 21–25, 2026

Monday, September 21

"I'm turning on the heat!" My upstairs neighbor and I share a thermostat; domestic climate control is achieved through texts.

Technically, it's the last day of summer, but the weather is giving off late-October vibes. I take a break from work to mow the lawn, shifting from vertical stripes to an angled pattern midway through, just to shake things up. I feel like I don't have enough spontaneity in my life right now.

At 4 p.m., I stop by a meet-and-greet happy hour at the Observer. I'm greeted at the back door by Bug, the editor-in-chief's Boston terrier. Staff and freelancers mingle and drink kombucha spiked with tequila (TK). There is pizza, and someone brought pimento cheese, which I spread on my leftover crusts, a delicious combo I've somehow never tried before.

After extracating myself, I navigate rush hour traffic, and arrive home just in time to log in to my 6 p.m. history class. We learn about the French-Indian War, which I am reminded was not between French colonizers and Indians, but between European rivals France and England.