We’re 40!

Isaac and I do everything together.  Even be born.  Our birthdays are four days apart.  At the beginning of our relationship, this kind of annoyed me because my birthday celebration all of a sudden became “ours,” but now, 19 years later, everything is ours, lol.  But really, I’ve grown to love it so much.  It always feels like a season of joy, indulgence, and love, especially with our anniversary right around the corner. 

 I wish I could tell you that September 8th and September 12th were magical days this year, given the milestone, but in all honesty, they were pretty tough.  The highlight- we had a beautiful birthday lunch with eight friends (eight friends!) at our favorite restaurant around the corner.  It feels incredible to already know eight people well enough to want to celebrate with them- and such a gift that they also want to celebrate with us. Joy!  I’ll remember that for sure.  What I’ll also remember, however, is the climate disaster that is currently unfolding in South America.  The week of our birthdays, the city of Asuncion was shrouded in smoke.  It was worse than the worst days in 2020 in the Bay Area. The AQI meter was almost up in its blood red color, “Hazardous,” beyond “Unhealthy” and “Very Unhealthy.”  The AQI was just under 300 and the air was thick and oily.  My skin broke out.  Walking to tutoring one day, I actually had the thought, how high can the AQI go before I die? And then my student asked me the same question.  I don’t know.

The view out my bedroom window some day last week.

There are wildfires raging across South America. That week, the air quality across most of the continent was above the unhealthy range.  In my opinion, there hasn’t been enough news coverage about it.  Here’s one New York Times article if you’re interested.  It’s devastating the Amazon, the lungs of our planet.  This week, things have improved in Asuncion but not so much for the rest of the continent.  

The air quality in South America today.

Luckily for us, we had the forethought (and extreme privilege) to plan a birthday weekend getaway to the coast of Uruguay.  On Friday the 13th, we left our apartment at 4am and flew to Montevideo, a city I don’t think I ever would have visited unless we were in this very situation.

Getting off the (tiny) airplane, I looked up to the sky- it was blue!  If nothing else went right on this trip, this would have been enough.  But luckily- lots of other great things happened.  We found delicious, hipster coffee (it’s been so long!). Isaac bought a vintage leather jacket and found a viagra in the inside pocket (he did not sample it!). In three days, we had three steak and red wine lunches.  Indulgence! On Saturday nights, locals start drumming around 5 or 6pm in an Afro-Uruguayan tradition called Candombe.  People from the neighborhood gather and a dance/march ensues.  They’re practicing for Carnival.  Young and old, moving together; it was beautiful.

The highlight- I always love strolling along the beach for all the obvious reasons, but something I specifically love about an ocean is that it is also a border.  When you are walking down Ocean Beach in San Francisco or Zuma in LA, you are walking along the border of California and the United States.  I love picturing tiny me on the map, just making my way along that little line.  And here I was- all the way down in South America!  Dipping my toes in the South Atlantic!  And then I saw four different beagles.  Love.

Look at those blue skies!

Sidenote- For years, as an educator, I’ve given parents the advice, “Just add water!”  If your child is having a meltdown (at any age, actually- adults too), just add water- a cold drink, a run in the sprinklers, a plop in the bath usually changes the mood, adds a touch of whimsy, or simply provides some sustenance and miraculously, the vibe improves.  For me lately, the advice has become, just add music.  Right now, I’m very into Conociendo Rusia, an Argentinian musician an Uber driver in Uruguay was playing on our ride into the city from the airport to help shift my work from home vibes.  He’s maybe a little sappy, but maybe I’m in a sappy mood. And the songs are slow enough that every now and then I actually understand something.