February 10

What a time to be an American employment lawyer.

In other spaces I am vociferously resisting the rapid destruction of protections for me and other non-majority folks by a fascist whose father didn’t hug him enough. But not here today. This is a space for a break.

Adding to my list of things that please me:

4. Nail polish. I have a zillion colors. I would buy a zillion more. It would make me exceedingly happy if I could figure out how to paint my own nails without them getting all creased and bubbly after a single night of sleep . . . but regardless. I am a magpie collecting all the colors, tucking them away in a zippered cosmetics bag.

5. Brightly colored eyeliner. I bought brilliant purple liquid eyeliner recently to play around with before Mardi Gras. It really looked good! Rich jewel tones compliment dark brown eyes, so now I have teal, dark green, dark blue, and another shade of purple.

6. Manual transmission. My car is a manual Civic. I love shifting those gears, leaning into a turn, like it’s some sort of racecar even though it DEFINITELY is not. I wonder if I would like driving a high-powered manual car? It’s a thing I’ve not yet experienced.

7. Seed packets. South Louisiana is not an easy place to have a successful home garden – Zone 9B. But I try different things every year, rotating and mulching and fertilizing. So far, tomatoes, potatoes, and kale have been a raging success. Bok choy and carrots a more limited success. Beets and brussels sprouts are abject failures, as were strawberries. But anyhow I love the stack of seed packets. They are so light and insubstantial, the seeds so fiddly and delicate inside.