Hello Friend,

Check it: I just got my Buffy baby back from the shop after dealing with a series of issues related to tires and the alignment. This whole saga has lasted so long I was beginning to think the alignment I was waiting for was of the celestial variety.

But before I even got it home, my A/C crapped out.

No, it’s not an earth-shattering problem, but it IS the middle of the one hot month of summer we get in Maine, and it’s a miserable, humid heat that makes you feel like you’re breathing through a wet dishcloth.

Corn sweats, I’m told…

Anyway, this weekend I had plans to drive a few hours south to visit a very good friend I haven’t seen in years. Renting a car is not a logistical choice, the train takes twice as long, and getting stuck in gridlock with no A/C sounds less than appealing.

So I thought about not going. And I thought about all the things I say yes to because I feel obligated. And all the things I actually want to do but don’t because I’m the only one who benefits from saying yes.

I seem to consider my own needs secondary to everyone else’s. Which puts them at the bottom of a list I rarely see the end of.

So screw it, I’m just going to leave in the evening and arrive a little later than planned to avoid the hottest part of the day. I grew up without A/C, I’ll live. And what I will get from reconnecting with someone who I absolutely adore and who remembers a time when I was young and far more selfish will more than make up for it.

Cross your fingers for cloudy skies and low temps – and if that doesn’t work, find yourself a cool, air-conditioned place to read a book while I melt into a puddle somewhere along the I-95.

Happy reading! 💗📚