Weeknotes: May 11th - May 17th 2026
Disclaimer: It should be mentioned that Weeknotes are always a snapshot of the week itself and lack the fullness of life - as is the case with any personal blogging.
✨ Happenings
- This was the best work week in a long time. I was blessed to lead outdoor educational programming at our pond all week. But more importantly, both Alexis and Nyx came back to work after an extended leave. It was a much needed morale boost!
- For the work week evenings, I played Geoguesser with Katelyn and Dylan (signs were important), went bouldering with Katelyn, played tennis with Bilan (very windy), and went to Cafe Beano with Alexis (then scouted out a pharmaceutical remedy for my bothered ears). So it was a fairly social week!
- For Friday, Taylor and I joined Alan, Kaitie, Abby, Raneem, and Blair for a feast of delightful Afghan cuisine before heading down to the Grand. At the Grand, we met up with other folks from my workplace to watch Nyx' theatre production: Love & Rage (more on that performance at the end). Afterwards, Taylor and I chatted with Nyx (the star ⭐) before having a nice night stroll back home.
- On Saturday morning, Taylor and I got breakfast at One Way Foods & Deli. We then joined Ang, Katelyn, and Alec for bouldering in the morning. Compared to usual, it was very quiet and that gave us a lot of opportunities to reattempt routes continuously. For the rest of Saturday, I read my book on the couch, played an excessive amount of Marathon, tried Scozzafava Deli's monthly sandwich, and went on a bike ride along the Bow River with Taylor. Also, as per tradition, May Long Weekend is odd, so we got snow on Saturday morning.
- On Sunday, whilst I did go on a brief bike ride, I mostly stayed at home to finish reading my book and play Marathon. Taylor made a wonderful vegan chili for dinner and we watched an episode of Game Changer on Dropout. It's good to have Sundays for puttering!
- For books, I finished reading Megan Garber's Screen People: How We Entertained Ourselves into a State of Emergency. As for video games, I (as one can rightfully expect at this point) played Marathon. Taylor and I also tried this puzzle game with split screen coop called Human: Fall Flat.
📷 Photos
👣 Taylor's Footnotes
- Unfortunately this work week led to a number of very late night meetings, but at least I did get to spend it with lovely Pride volunteers. This included an appreciation dinner for our committee members and Royal Readers! The Royal Readers ware some of the lovely folks who take part in a story time program we run with the library where drag queens, kings, and monarchs read cute story books to young families.
- Chance (and I) covered the rest below! Huge props to Nyx for working to create such an incredible production. 💜
🍄 On Love & Rage
- Taylor & Chance's Co-Writings: We were both so moved by Nyx' stunning and hopeful production and performance. Though Taylor has seen substantially more theater than I have - neither of us have ever experienced a roving show. The chosen location downtown was very unique as well. We met in the lobby of the Grand, only to be led back outside by a theater attendant, and taken to the 4th floor through a separate entrance. The initial performance space felt barren and clinical - comprised of concrete floors, white walls, and hanging plastic sheets. This environmental storytelling revealed the setting's dystopic reality, which foretells of a possible post-collapse future mired by ecological breakdown and authoritarian corporate governance. Throughout, heavy and effective symbolism supported incredible worldbuilding, amplified by the utterly embodied experience of being ushered through and immersed into the scenes with the characters. In those magical moments, we became interwoven with the play, sharing intimate space with the performers. By the end of Nyx' poetic and moving monologue, we had both shed tears and were left with a raw feeling of hope. What Nyx (and all of the Major Matt Mason Collective) created is so special and necessary – they should be so proud of the work they have done over these past three years!
