Kelsey Hanson
9:13 — I wake up to my cat (her name is Owl and she is the love of my life) screaming in my face for breakfast. She’s so unbelievably adorable that I don’t even mind. Neil (my partner) gets up to feed her and make our coffee. He usually takes the morning cat shift. She’s 7 years old with bad asthma. She gets an inhaler and a steroid pill twice a day along with two extra pills at dinner. She’s so sweet and brave and we’d do anything to keep her healthy and happy.
10ish — I got a new video game console so I’ve restarted Stardew Valley and I’ve now sunk an embarrassing number of hours in it but I don’t care because it makes me happy and lets me turn my brain off. There’s something about creating a little character and building a little world that I just really like. Neil reads his book at the table and I play my game and drink the coffee he made. It’s my favorite coffee in the city.
11:40 — on my way to the ballet class that has quickly become the center of my life. I started adult beginner ballet two years ago and now take 4 classes a week with increasing difficulty. Neil is driving me and we listen to Wait Wait Don’t Tell Me. This is our Sunday ritual.
1:14 — ballet class was small today which I like because I get more detailed corrections and attention from my instructor (thanks to Beverly at Philly Dance Fitness). I really can’t believe how much I’ve improved in two years of dancing. I always just kinda thought ballet was something Russian 5 year olds did. But after two years I’m ready to start pointe and get fitted for my first pair of pointe shoes. It takes a discipline I don’t otherwise have but am doing my best to learn. It’s good for me I think.
1:52 — in the car headed to the Morris Arboretum for birdwatching. I’m realizing now I’m just a collection of several hobbies. But I have my binoculars and my bird IDing apps and I’m ready to go. It’s finally cooling down a bit so it isn’t miserable to be outside. It’s sunny and we brought a bunch of bug spray because the news is talking about West Nile virus and eastern equine encephalitis. I know better than to ignore advice from public health experts.
3:05 — bird totals: 1 cardinal, 1 blue jay, 3 robins, and 2 grey catbirds. This might not seem like much but we’ve started trying to identify birds by their sounds so we’re pretty pleased with ourselves. We record the sounds in the birdwatching app and it tells us what to look for. It feels like playing Pokemon when we finally see the bird we’ve been searching for flitting through the trees. It’s nice to have time to sit still and in silence for a long time. There’s so much to notice.
3:32 — Wawa break, chicken wrap and an iced coffee. Eating in the car, I watch an older couple go in and buy a water, an iced tea, and a pack of Marlborough’s. I think it’s nice to have someone to do things like that with.
4:15 — Owl is due for her flea medicine so we give her the little pill wrapped in a treat and an extra scoop of food cause we feel so bad giving her so much medicine. She’s on so many pills and goes to the vet so much. But she’s still so happy and purrs and snuggles up to us whenever she can. I think taking care of a little animal is good for a person to do. It makes me better.
4:41 — napped for an hour, I try to nap once a day because it makes me happy and is entirely useless. I’m not making money or thinking or being productive when I nap and I consider it my own little exercise in rebellion against modernity.
6:30 — produce run at Riverwards, I never eat enough vegetables but Riverwards makes everything look so pretty. I always spend too much on fruits I’ve never seen and fancy little jars of salsa or something. I’m so grateful to have a local grocery store in walking distance.
7ish — we bought fancy sodas to add liquor to for watching the Phillies. I got a clementine soda that is amazing with gin. We realized that Neil and I hadn’t spent much time just the two of us this summer so having a whole day just to hang out felt so refreshing. Summers always get away from us with traveling and seeing people who we love. It’s a good problem to have so I feel a little guilty when it exhausts me.
8:38 — tried a new pickle beer that we picked up from Bottle Bar last night and it was strangely incredible? I’m a pickle girl at heart.
10:27 — Phillies win in the 11th inning! I forgot to write anything down during the game because it was stressful and I was too absorbed. The long day of ballet and birdwatching and walking and drinking has caught up with me and I’m ready to sleep early. Good night!
Kelsey is a 29 year old, 4th year PhD student at Temple. She’s preparing to defend her dissertation proposal and fly to Northern Ireland (her home away from home) to complete her fieldwork on conflict, memory, and place. When she’s not staring at her computer screen, she’s showing strangers pictures of her cat, at a ballet class, or drinking gin with her friends in the backyard she shares with her partner. You can find her on insta at @kelseynhanson and @kelsey_makes_ (her sewing insta)
