just nod if you can hear me

a prompt collection of idiots with crushes realizing that they are, in fact, idiots with crushes

touching the spot where the other brushed/touched them as though their fingertips had been a branding iron, the phantom heat of the contact lingering beneath their skin

replaying something they said over and over, until...

realizing that they're trying to get the other to laugh

something small/ordinary that the other did. then the “oh, fuck, why do i want to be with you when you buy eggs???” moment

trying to do something ordinary/they do all the time/that makes their mind quiet, but they can’t concentrate because all they can think about is some small moment from earlier with the other

realizing their social battery is drained, but they still crave time with the other and want them around

or that they should be tired/drained, but aren't, not while the other is around

catching themselves scanning rooms for the other upon entering

and the small moment of relief when they're there

the small feeling of victory when they get the other to smile

unconsciously adopting their mannerisms—a particular phrase, habit, etc

listening to music and thinking of them, then having their brain catch up and question why that is

[photos above from Pinterest, not mine]

But these ones ⬇️ are mine.

I took this ^ photo on a road trip in 2016, and I've been dreaming about that misty lake ever since. This photo was taken in Massachusetts, although my story will be set in upstate New York.

I've also decided recently that the story is set in 1989-1993. I quickly realized it needs to contain way more cigarettes and brown furnishings.

It's also about musicians! 🎵🎶🎵

That's us, together.

While we're looking up at the Artemis II astronauts journeying to the Moon, they're looking back home at us. 

In this image, Earth peeks through the capsule window, reminding us that a view like this relies on the ingenuity and hard work of countless people back home.

In the second image, we see our home planet as a whole, lit up in spectacular blues and browns. A green aurora even lights up the atmosphere.

Humpback Rocks, Blue Ridge Parkway Mile 6, Lyndhurst, VA

stats: length: ~2.0 miles, out and back elevation gain: 800 feet time: (with a 6-year-old and stopping to take lots of pictures) ~3.5 hours total, including breaks & time to sit at the top—most people complete this way faster! 🫠 difficulty: a short distance, but very strenuous. Continuous climbing up, with a few rock scrambles, then a faster but careful (steep) hike down.

This was one of my favorite hikes I've ever done! Such a fantastic view! I would have loved to sit longer at the top, but it was getting late and the kiddo was absolutely done by the top, so hubby and I had to take turns scrambling out to the rocks to check out the view. Definitely one of those times I would like to go back in time and redo my day to give this hike the importance it deserved. Maybe we might start a little earlier, bring more snacks (and maybe some knee braces 😵), to spend more time enjoying the reward of all that hard work. This view!

Ah, but we cannot go back in time, can we? We can only try again another day.

Oh, but my knees hated me for this one! So hard on the knees. So much climbing up, up, up. And then the steep descent was probably worse with the impact of each step.

Ezra did well the whole way up. He was having lots of fun, but his energy faltered near the top and he was not happy, because the only way off a mountain is to climb down it! I don't blame him, it was a difficult hike. But he wasn't injured or particularly tired (we took so many breaks!), he just didn't want to do it anymore. So I hope there is a lesson to be learned in there about fortitude, or something. Notes for next time: bring more chocolate!