Friday's Five ✋ #454
Castles & Giggles
Happy Friday! ☀️
A last Coucou for this year from the Dordogne region. This week, we visited two castles (Beynac and Biron) and we’re headed back to Vienna tomorrow. Three weeks of family time come to a close: long daily walks with audiobooks, my daughter’s giggles in the pool, cooking for the family, and the kind of laid-back time that’s hard to find the rest of the year.
What I’m reading 📖
Elizabeth Strout’s The Things We Never Say came out a few weeks ago and was gone in a day. Artie Dam leads a double life: outwardly present and good, inwardly plagued by a question he can’t shake… How little we actually know each other, even the people closest to us. What stayed with me most is the tone: quietly optimistic, and the way Artie talks to his students. Rare for a book that sits with loneliness at its centre. More about the book.
What I’m listening to 🎧
The year is 50% done. June’s playlist includes new songs by Liz Lawrence and Death Cab for Cutie, a return from all-time favourite Bell X1, and Fink. Hit play.
What I’m watching 📺
Just hearing the HBO ident followed by the theme music of Game of Thrones gets me excited about what's ahead. Last week the new season of House of the Dragon started and after a slow build across previous seasons, the tension is finally where it needs to be. The last season ended on a suspenseful note and the first episode of the new one looks promising. Watch the trailer.
What I’m thinking about 🧠
“To say anything real was to say things that nobody wanted to know. Or if they wanted to know, they would not care in the right way. Or even understand. It was a private thing, to be alive. He understood this now.”
― Elizabeth Strout, The Things We Never Say
What else?! 💯
It’s only towards the end of our stay that the mosquitos were out to get us. I heard this non-chemical product by Beurer works wonders after getting bitten and will get one for out next summer trip. Check it out.
Thanks for reading, have a great weekend!
David
450+ Fridays. 61 countries. 400k+ views.
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