Posts in the “Then” category were originally shared on my “Now” page.

This week provided confirmation of how bad Hurricane Helene devastated the people and places that we love in Asheville. We’ve heard from all of our friends and they are fine, but the destruction is almost incomprehensible. Asheville is a 2 hour drive from our house, and we make day trips up there all the time. Many of the stores, restaurants and spots we visit are quite simply gone. Lutheridge — a camp very special to my family — is okay, but with a lot of damage. The pen store in Biltmore Village is destroyed. So is the little bakery next door with the amazing Ginger cookies and the restaurant across the street with the pea salad that my wife loves. It’s hard to process all the loss.

Feels

  • Off balance. Last week was a dance of improvisation. School schedules were changing and shifting, normal rhythms interrupted. But still thankful that our family and house are fine.
  • Busy weekend. Ryan had his first lacrosse game of the season and it went well. Jill had her homecoming dance. We’ll be at the coffee shop later to work on homework.
  • Where has this year gone? How is it already October?

Health

  • Still doing pretty well with my diet. Still on track for my goals. Giving myself a year to get healthy was a good plan, but it’s hard to stay motivated over such a long span of time.

Projects

  • Didn’t really make much progress on projects this week.
  • Got a revise and resubmit with minor changes this week. Excited to see this work get published.

Entertainment

  • Didn’t watch any college football this weekend. Which means I missed my Gamecocks struggling against Ole Miss. And Vandy’s shocking upset against Alabama.
  • Looking forward to F1 being back next week.