Growing up in Southern California, August always heralded the hottest time of the year. It’s troubling that in my (relatively) short lifetime, I can recall a time when the weather was drastically different, but when I was a child, it was rare to see days hotter than 90, even in the midst of summer. It was only during the month of August we would have the grossest days of the year, and by “grossest,” we always meant “humid.”
I’ve been living on the East Coast for half my life now, and I still haven’t gotten used to the summer humidity. When I first moved to New York for college, all my California relatives gifted me winter coats as graduation presents because snow and cold, but nothing could have prepared me for how thick and suffocating summer humidity can get. Because I have puppies, I’m outside far more now to run off their energy and let me tell you, summer is hands-down the most disgusting time of year. Everything is just moist. The air. The ground. Your skin. Your clothes. Your hair. Everything is saturated with moisture and bugs. I’m essentially the human equivalent of a citronella candle in that no one gets bitten when I’m around…because they all come bite me instead. Because the ground is so damp, a good chunk of my morning is spent meticulously wiping down my dogs of mud and slime, then brushing every bit of dirt out of their coats and spritzing them with doggie deodorant. On the plus side, they’re now used to being manhandled while groomed, I guess.
This is all to say that the humidity broke in the middle of August.
Sometimes I forget how much earlier fall arrives on the East Coast. Back home, it is uncomfortably warm through October, especially when the Santa Ana winds come screaming over the mountains, bringing searing hot desert air into the valleys. But here, I’m always taken by surprise when one morning I wake up and I feel like I can breathe again. The temperatures are still high, but there is…space. In the air, in my lungs. Spring is beautiful because even on the chilliest days, there is a hint of damp, of green, and life in the air, but fall is wonderful because it comes as a relief. A respite.
I am looking forward to a respite. <3
lexical gap: forplaint 🧩
This month’s lexical gap isn’t actually a lexical gap; it’s sort of the opposite of a lexical gap. It’s a word that actually exists in English, but is functionally useless.
Except I don’t think this word is functionally useless; I think it’s all too useful, especially in this climate of bad faith. Because forplaint means wearied by complaining, which…oof.
Yeah.
pupdates 🐶🐶🦭
The twins are full-on adolescents now, and they have both discovered the power of saying “no” to me. Moreover, they have discovered the joys of being naughty. They’re not being bad dogs, just…mischievous. If they belonged to anyone else, it would be adorable. But as they are my dogs, it is…exhausting. 🫠
But still…it’s cute. Both boys have now developed a habit of saving their treats to taunt his brother with later. It’s very funny when they have the same idea and turn into the Spiderman pointing at himself meme.
There is a combination bar and dog park in town and we now frequent several times a week. It’s actually pretty great because you have to register your pets and upload vaccination records, plus pay a membership fee, so I can let my twins run around and play with the other dogs while I have a beer. “Yard rangers” also patrol the place, making sure the dogs are behaving properly, and the artificial turf ensures the boys don’t come home too muddy.
Oh god, I’ve become the canine equivalent of the wine mom. Send help.
writing updates ✍🏻
After 5 years together, I had to retire Pantalaimon Mach III, my old 2017 MacBook, and get Pantalaimon Mach IV, a MacBook Pro. I miss how light and portable my old laptop was, but I appreciate the increased processing power.
I migrated my website from Wordpress to Squarespace. I’ve been considering biting that bullet for a while, especially as I find Wordpress janky af and way too bloated, even though I appreciate the ability to customize ad nauseam. Anyway, as I explore some more of Squarespace’s functionality, I might make more use of it for a regular old business updates kind of newsletter, but keep the essays here on Substack. We shall see!
How much did I get written on GUARDIANS 2? *nervous titter*
podcast 🎙
Bad faith. I’ve been toying with doing more podcast episodes like this. I miss the audio format, so I’ll probably be experimenting going forward. Let me know what y’all think!
notes from the underground 🥀
I’ve gotten news that Wintersong and Shadowsong will be available on Kindle Unlimited starting September 1! If you haven’t had a chance to read my debut duology, then now’s your chance! (Although to be honest, I’m not sure how many of you subscribed to my newsletter by randomly finding me without having read my first two books, but if you have, uh…welcome!)
I’ve been meaning to do a five-year post-mortem on these books as we approach winter, but I’m not entirely sure what form that will take. Anyone interested in a read-along?
the morning realms dispatch 🌞
I’ve been seeing some cover stuff for ZHARA and I am super stoked to see the final product. I don’t want to tease too much, but… 👀
for my 절친 🫰🏻
Now that a few of you have read or are reading the uncorrected bound manuscript of ZHARA, I am considering a private discussion thread either here or on Discord (or both). Let me know which platform might work better for you!
reading 📚
The Final Gambit by Jennifer Lynn Barnes. Not much reading at all this month, but the last book of the Inheritance Games came out just at the right time to make my August stats.
watching 📺
The Sandman. As far as adaptations go, it’s pretty decent, although I’m not sure what I feel about Tom Sturridge’s Morpheus. I suppose because in my head Dream will always and forever be early-90s Trent Reznor, it’s kind of hard to rewrite that with someone else.
House of the Dragon. Honestly, I wasn’t going to watch but curiosity got the better of me. And…it’s pretty decent so far! Even…good? I don’t know; it’s hard for me to judge because I’ve been so burned by Game of Thrones, but I am cautiously optimistic.
달려라 방탄! RUN BTS IS BACK!!!!! MY WEEKLY DOSE OF MY EMOTIONAL SUPPORT BOYS ARE BACK!!!! AND ON YOUTUBE TOO!!!!
listening 🎧
I should probably start organizing my ZHARA playlist. Tbh I don’t often write to music because I get distracted, but during the revision process I collect a lot of songs that remind me of the characters or the story or the atmosphere. Except I will admit my exposure to new music has been incredibly limited in the past few years, and I’m actually having a difficult time finding songs that fit the mood. I watched the Kid Laroi’s set at Lollapalooza at the end of July1 and realized that while I like his music, a lot of what's out there is vibe-y emo, and while I like vibe-y emo music, it’s not appropriate for ZHARA, who is a bit brighter and more…fun. Earnest. Playful.
Anyway, if any of y’all have recs, let me know.
That’s all for this month! Unless next time.
사랑해,
JJ
Speaking of which CAN WE TALK ABOUT HOBIPALOOZA BECAUSE OMG. OMGGGGGGGGGGG.