The dog days are (almost) over
Or... Are they. I googled the phrase the other day, and got zero clarity.
According to Wikipedia, the dog days are "the hot, sultry days of summer. They were historically the period following the heliacal rising of the star Sirius, which Greek and Roman astrology connected with heat, drought, sudden thunderstorms, lethargy, fever, mad dogs, and bad luck." There seem to be quite varied opinions about whether the dog days last for 40 days or 60 days, and whether they end with the rising of Sirius (the dog star), as the Old Farmer's Almanac claims, or whether Sirius rising, on August 8th this year, will mark the beginning of the dog days. (Oh God.) (Also, apologies if you, like me, now have Florence + the Machine playing in your head.)
I'm not an astrology person, but I love the idea that there's this ball of gas up there I can blame for any/all lethargy, fever, mad dogs, bad luck.
I would add to that list: ANTS.
Hooo boy did we have ants this month, though R has tracked the little fuckers to their sources, obsessively sealing cracks and sticking traps in the line of traffic. Now there's just the occasional lone wolf ant, zig-zagging across the counter, confused.
I smoosh these intrepid loners with my index finger, feeling five years old every time. I have such a vivid memory of doing that as a kid. Smoosh. Smoosh. Smoosh.
Lately, when anyone asks me, "How are you?" or "What's going on?" I've taken to replying, "We have ants!" Seems more exciting than, "Welp. This rewrite is slow going, but I'm almost at the midpoint..." The dog days.
I'M IN THE DOG DAYS OF THIS REWRITE, YOU GUYS. I just realized. I've been through heat, drought, lethargy, all of it. But the dog days are almost over, for real.
*****
Here's a happy piece of professional news: Our Project Runway casting team got nominated for another Emmy. (That makes two for two Emmy noms! The Outstanding Casting for a Reality Program category was newly created last year.) It's bittersweet, as the show is moving back to Bravo without us... But a cool way to mark the end of an era. It was time for me to give up the gig, move on to other things, and I may never have done so voluntarily.
*****
This month in tacos: It's actually been two months since I last wrote. I was in Austin at the end of June, which seems like ages ago now, but the standout was the migas taco from the gloriously tacky, hella Austin-in-the-90s-vibed Maria's Taco Xpress. Holy shit their migas has so much cheese, I knew there would be cheese but wow so much cheese. Migas, which are an Austin specialty, are basically like a scrambled egg nacho? So a Migas taco is a scrambled egg nacho taco. Of course cheese. If you're in Texas and you're trying to avoid cheese--good luck. But also, the plant-based migas taco from The Vegan Nom is pretty good. As is their queso.
This month in "fashion": I haven't owned a pair of shorts in several years, but these dog days broke me. Copping the insouciant summer style of the 20something women of Austin, I ordered a pair of black running shorts, cut out the built-in underwear, and have worn them every day since.
This month on Hulu: I recommend the second season of Jane Campion's Top of the Lake. Push through that first episode, and the groan of "Oh God I don't know if I can do sex trafficking" which may be your initial reaction. It gets more complicated, it's not quite what you think. Also, Brienne of Tarth (aka Gwendoline Christie) as a lumbering, neurotic cop!! A++. I gave up on the second season of The Handmaid's Tale--the first few eps felt like torture porn--but two very trusted sources have convinced me to give it another shot.
This month in cooking: Gahd am I bored with cooking. Can I blame Sirius? I keep trying to make these lamb meatballs from the NY Times, hold the cream, hold the breadcrumbs, who can be bothered with parsley. And why would you make sauce from scratch when you can buy a jar from Trader Joe's? They are... fine. I do recommend, if you're feeling Whole 30ish, serving them over sweet potato ribbons (again, from TJ's) instead of pasta. But who am I kidding why would you want to eat these in the middle of summer?? Halp. Send me gluten-free, dairy-free, August-appropriate recipes 😐
****
xoxo,
Laramie
Forward this to your favorite astrology person, or a writer slogging through her dog days. If you're seeing The Laramie Report for the first time and you want mooooore, subscribe here to get it once a month(ish).
p.s. A quick PSA: Are you registered to vote? Please check your status/register before the midterms. If you're homebound, lazy, and/or travel often, I suggest registering to vote by mail. We've been doing this for a while now, and it keeps us from missing even local elections.
According to Wikipedia, the dog days are "the hot, sultry days of summer. They were historically the period following the heliacal rising of the star Sirius, which Greek and Roman astrology connected with heat, drought, sudden thunderstorms, lethargy, fever, mad dogs, and bad luck." There seem to be quite varied opinions about whether the dog days last for 40 days or 60 days, and whether they end with the rising of Sirius (the dog star), as the Old Farmer's Almanac claims, or whether Sirius rising, on August 8th this year, will mark the beginning of the dog days. (Oh God.) (Also, apologies if you, like me, now have Florence + the Machine playing in your head.)
I'm not an astrology person, but I love the idea that there's this ball of gas up there I can blame for any/all lethargy, fever, mad dogs, bad luck.
I would add to that list: ANTS.
Hooo boy did we have ants this month, though R has tracked the little fuckers to their sources, obsessively sealing cracks and sticking traps in the line of traffic. Now there's just the occasional lone wolf ant, zig-zagging across the counter, confused.
I smoosh these intrepid loners with my index finger, feeling five years old every time. I have such a vivid memory of doing that as a kid. Smoosh. Smoosh. Smoosh.
Lately, when anyone asks me, "How are you?" or "What's going on?" I've taken to replying, "We have ants!" Seems more exciting than, "Welp. This rewrite is slow going, but I'm almost at the midpoint..." The dog days.
I'M IN THE DOG DAYS OF THIS REWRITE, YOU GUYS. I just realized. I've been through heat, drought, lethargy, all of it. But the dog days are almost over, for real.
*****
Here's a happy piece of professional news: Our Project Runway casting team got nominated for another Emmy. (That makes two for two Emmy noms! The Outstanding Casting for a Reality Program category was newly created last year.) It's bittersweet, as the show is moving back to Bravo without us... But a cool way to mark the end of an era. It was time for me to give up the gig, move on to other things, and I may never have done so voluntarily.
*****
This month in tacos: It's actually been two months since I last wrote. I was in Austin at the end of June, which seems like ages ago now, but the standout was the migas taco from the gloriously tacky, hella Austin-in-the-90s-vibed Maria's Taco Xpress. Holy shit their migas has so much cheese, I knew there would be cheese but wow so much cheese. Migas, which are an Austin specialty, are basically like a scrambled egg nacho? So a Migas taco is a scrambled egg nacho taco. Of course cheese. If you're in Texas and you're trying to avoid cheese--good luck. But also, the plant-based migas taco from The Vegan Nom is pretty good. As is their queso.
This month in "fashion": I haven't owned a pair of shorts in several years, but these dog days broke me. Copping the insouciant summer style of the 20something women of Austin, I ordered a pair of black running shorts, cut out the built-in underwear, and have worn them every day since.
This month on Hulu: I recommend the second season of Jane Campion's Top of the Lake. Push through that first episode, and the groan of "Oh God I don't know if I can do sex trafficking" which may be your initial reaction. It gets more complicated, it's not quite what you think. Also, Brienne of Tarth (aka Gwendoline Christie) as a lumbering, neurotic cop!! A++. I gave up on the second season of The Handmaid's Tale--the first few eps felt like torture porn--but two very trusted sources have convinced me to give it another shot.
This month in cooking: Gahd am I bored with cooking. Can I blame Sirius? I keep trying to make these lamb meatballs from the NY Times, hold the cream, hold the breadcrumbs, who can be bothered with parsley. And why would you make sauce from scratch when you can buy a jar from Trader Joe's? They are... fine. I do recommend, if you're feeling Whole 30ish, serving them over sweet potato ribbons (again, from TJ's) instead of pasta. But who am I kidding why would you want to eat these in the middle of summer?? Halp. Send me gluten-free, dairy-free, August-appropriate recipes 😐
****
xoxo,
Laramie
Forward this to your favorite astrology person, or a writer slogging through her dog days. If you're seeing The Laramie Report for the first time and you want mooooore, subscribe here to get it once a month(ish).
p.s. A quick PSA: Are you registered to vote? Please check your status/register before the midterms. If you're homebound, lazy, and/or travel often, I suggest registering to vote by mail. We've been doing this for a while now, and it keeps us from missing even local elections.
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