What's IN/OUT this week

Happy Friday! I can’t tell you how many times I start my day with “Every Morning” by Sugar Ray stuck in my head while I walk the dog. Which means I picture Mark McGrath in my mind’s eye with unsettling regularity. Would hypnosis fix this? Other people are probably using hypnotherapy to stop smoking or cure PTSD, while I just want to stop drowning in McGrath’s dimples.

IN: Other people making the plans. Last Friday my friend Abbie did all the planning for a night out for a few of us: Art gallery crawl (we managed two locations) and dinner. We deeply appreciated not having to make any decisions, outside of ordering our meals — which Abbie has actually done for us at prior group dinners, like the cool-headed school trip chaperone who’s memorized everyone’s allergies and remembers to take a good group photo. I believe the most exhaustive type of decision fatigue is logistics fatigue. Take the wheel, take my Google calendar, send a Venmo request. OUT: Confusing restaurants. None of us had been to the spot Abbie chose for dinner, and we found ourselves standing around, totally baffled when we arrived. There was a pastry counter with a couple of menus, but it wasn’t clear if this is also where you ordered your food. The employee standing near the pastries just looked at us without offering any help (there’s that famous Gen Z stare). Someone asked them if we should order at the counter or just grab a table. They said we could “do whatever.” I’m sorry?? We noticed there were QR codes on the tables and sorted it out ourselves. Please, I am hungry and begging for clarity. 

IN: An all-day activity. I love a flea market and finally found the time to hit one on Saturday. Vince and I drove out and poked around at dusty crap for a few hours. I found one thing on my list (glass cake stand) and also bought a basket of peaches. Vince got a couple of tiki masks and an aluminum folding rocker. Another vendor spotted Vince’s chair and they got into a big conversation about it. I walked away when the vendor told Vince, “So you seem to know lawn chairs.” I know when I’m out of my element. OUT: NFL RedZone. I had two all-day activities this past weekend, the second being a Sunday that was pretty dedicated to football. I enjoy kicking back with some snacks and my Steelers, but it is very frustrating to only see the big plays from 15 different games!! Let me get invested in one thing at a time!!

IN: Old-timey phrases. I never necessarily mean to, but every so often I drop a really dated phrase. I told my friend Lacy once that she really “cut a figure.” I was promptly made fun of. OUT: Probably some of these phrases I’m using. In conversation with my editor, I said that someone “really screwed the pooch.” I never stop to wonder whether people stopped saying these things for a reason! I looked this one up, and Dictionary dot com tells us that “Screw the pooch is a more euphemistic version of the vulgar expression fuck the dog (and sell the pups).” Slate explains that either phrase used to mean “to loaf around” or “to waste time,” then around World War II it started to mean “blundering.” I love language!!!

IN: Plowing through work. I’ve been focused to the max this week, coming up with new and better ways to operate, absolutely firing on all cylinders. I’m doing everything I can to confidently throw up my “out of office” message next week. OUT: Viral work trends. I’ve (unfortunately) learned about something called “The Great Lock-In.” We cannot do anything normal anymore, can we? Per Fast Company: “As the name suggests, it’s built around the Gen Z slang for fully committing or hyperfocusing on a task, goal, or activity. From now until the end of the year, the idea is to ‘lock in’ and to get your life in order and your goals checked off before 2026.” Looking forward to “The Great Burn Out” come Thanksgiving!

Tell me what you hated this week!