Five Things for Friday / #Friday56 / Book Beginnings on Friday

 This week's goal was really just to make it through the elections. While it's only been three days, so I suppose I could still officially end up sick from exposures there, the actual experience is over and I'm sleeping and eating regularly again :) I'm a precinct co-chair, so I was very worried about argumentative voters and potential issues with other election inspectors. I did have one worker cancel the day before, but traffic wasn't too heavy at the polls, so we made it through with just four workers for the four positions (and some hustling around during meal breaks). Now when will my body start freaking out about working the November election? Only time will tell.

Let's start off with the weeks Five Things for Friday, shall we?

1. Sunday I dropped both kids off at my parents' house for their 2020 'Camping' trip. They usually go to a campground a few hours away with them, but having seen campgrounds in early July, I wasn't comfortable with having them that far away from me in that environment. They did sleep in a tent on the deck, and got to do lots of fun activities. My daughter made a small quilt (!), they both painted pictures, they tie-dyed shirts for themselves, and they made a wonderful chocolate dessert to share. It was a fun break from the norm for them, and we'll have lots of pictures they'll put in the scrapbooks they made. 
2. Sending them away gave me one less thing to worry about during the election on Tuesday (since they weren't home alone), but leading up to it, I missed the distraction they would have offered. I have never felt so anxious about it all before. I hardly ate anything on Monday, and my stomach still hurt all day. I never ran a temp or had any other symptoms, so I knew it was just my nerves. Once I got to work on Tuesday, I was distracted and felt fine.
3. More and more school districts around me are back-pedaling and going to just online learning for at least the month of September. I have little doubt that our district will follow soon. Right now parents could choose between in-person schooling or virtual schooling. Decisions were due today. I let my kids pick, and they both said they'd feel safer with virtual, and promised to do as they're told to keep their work up-to-date.
4. Hubs is off to a boat race this weekend in Springfield, Ohio. He's the crew chief for a friend's boat team. There are no spectators allowed. I wish them both luck! If they place well, they come home much happier ;)
5. Next week has nothing but a work 'support staff' (i.e. not just teachers) zoom meeting, and a few more book reviews. Just a few weeks left until I have to go back to work one way or another...

I'll be working on my Show Us Your Books post over the weekend - I finished 13 books in July! Right now I'm reading Invisible Women (which is due back to the library tomorrow, so I don't think I'll have time to finish), My One True North (I'm really enjoying this one, but I need to sit at my computer to read it - a pdf doesn't have an adjustable font size on my kindle), and Crave, which I'll be using for Book Beginnings and #Friday56. 

The beginning:

Chapter 0: If You're Not Living on the Edge, You're Taking Up Too Much Space

I stand at the outer tarmac door staring at the plane I am about  to get on and try my hardest not to freak the f out.

It's easier said than done.

Not just because I'm about to leave behihnd everything I know, though up until two minutes ago, that was my biggest concern. Now, though, as I stare at this plane that I'm not even sure deserves the dignity of being called a plane, a whole new level of panic is setting in.

Page 56:

I whirl around, adrenaline pumping, and make a break for the stairs. But Marc reaches out and grabs me before I make it more than a few feet. He yanks me hard against him -- my back to his front -- and wraps his arms around me as I start to struggle in earnest.