HEY APW,
Here’s the funny thing I didn’t expect about making work-life balance my goal for this year: it makes for a real boring story. Whenever my friends or family from the East Coast call to see how things are going, I want to make it sound like I’m doing something new and exciting with my life. The truth is, getting to the gym, making dinner before midnight, and having the ability to say yes to social engagements feels like such a big deal right now. But it also feels weirdly anticlimactic. It’s less that I feel like I need something showy to be proud of (because there’s certainly plenty that I’m proud of right now), and more like I feel responsible for giving my loved ones a more tangible reason for why we’re so far away from them (other than my repeated insistence that once you find weather that’s seventy degrees with dry heat all year round, you hold onto that and never let it go). Though, things like getting to play dress up for work like I did last week tend to make up for it.
On the upside of all that, more gym time means more Scandal. Thanks to everyone who assured me it would continue to deliver beyond season one. Season two so far is not letting me down (we’re very #TeamHuck over here). Sometimes I just want to shut myself in a quiet room and write for days about the subversive feminism of Shonda Rhimes shows. Who’s with me?
And with that, it’s your happy hour! Do your thing.
Cheers,
MADDIE
HIGHLIGHTS OF APW THIS WEEK
Does your wedding have a mission statement?
If you haven’t already seen this heartwarming elopement in a stranger’s yard, you’re the last one. Get to it.
Glitter. Resin. DIY. You’re welcome.
What do you call the space between committed and engaged?
Najva’s dad sprung a surprise marriage on her. Here’s what she learned about the right (and wrong) way to tell your kids you’re getting married.
This ceremony script (for the epic elopement above) starts with bell hooks, and just keeps getting better. Tear warning: strong.
I don’t like my fiancé’s friends. How do I tell him?
Bagpipe player, school bus, custom bike entrance, and the wedding was still only $6500 for forty people? Must see.
LINK ROUNDUP
Competing for your morning workout? The layers of who gets to work out in a partnership, and when.
What would men sing about if women knew they were beautiful? I mean, seriously.
How the death of #Sandrabland changes everything for me, and my family.
If everyone benefits from childcare, everyone pays for childcare. Period.
Fighting racism from within the porn industry.
Need a buddy in a gendered space? #Illgowithyou
How did an open marriage teach one man about feminism?
Ex-NASA climate scientist says we’re all going under… water. And soon. He hasn’t been wrong yet.
