When our baby first started recognizing us he’d get so happy every time he saw our faces. Which was often - he lived with us (still does) and he literally couldn’t move without us carrying him. Every time he woke up and saw me or Boaz he’d look at us like “You again!! What are the odds!?” We’ve got to stop meeting like this.

Do you have favorite things that aren’t the newest or the fastest or give you the most licks? I swear there are only about five good ballpoint pens in the world and they’re all old ones, I’ve been lucky enough to use a few of them. And my favorite shirt is the shirt I got when I played rec soccer in fourth grade - I’ve gotten lots of newer and flashier shirts since then, and honestly it has a little pen stain, but they don’t make shirts that good anymore. I’m lucky to have it. And I’m so lucky to have this dog.

This week I finished reading Long Island Compromise. Have you read it? It had a few really good sentences that I thought about pasting here, but I wonder if favorite sentences are a personal thing and wouldn’t do much for other people. Do you save your favorite sentences in books you read? Now I’m reading 2024’s Best American Short Stories, which my friends from White Whale gave to me.

Thanks for being here. (What are the odds!) I hope your week is full of familiar things you love the most, even if there are flashier things out there.