0:01

Welcome to

0:03

Bedtime Stories for Everyone,

0:07

in which nothing much happens.

0:11

You feel good, and then

0:14

you fall asleep. I'm

0:17

Katherine Nicolai. I

0:20

read and write all the stories

0:22

you hear on Nothing

0:24

Much Happens. Video

0:27

Engineering is by Bob Wittercheim. We

0:32

give to a different charity each week,

0:35

and this week we are giving to

0:37

Chi Haven of Michigan. Quote,

0:40

We are a foster-based rescue.

0:43

We may be small, but our hearts are big.

0:47

Our mission is to restore each

0:49

rescued dog's faith in humans. Unquote.

0:53

Learn more about them in our show notes. You

0:57

may have heard me talking about

0:59

the newest way for us to

1:01

unwind together. The

1:04

Nothing Much Happens wind-down box. Each

1:07

product inside has been chosen with care

1:10

by me. These

1:12

are all personal favorites that I use

1:14

and I hope will help you in

1:17

your evening routine. This

1:20

box is a treasure trove for

1:23

relaxation. It features a

1:25

versatile wellness' Chill Now, Reishi

1:28

Extract for Peace and Balance. Delicious

1:32

NutraChamps Tarte Cherry Gummies to

1:34

support sleep. A

1:37

really wonderful lavender candle from

1:39

Valabox. There's

1:41

also a mini coloring book from

1:44

A Brighter Year. Enjoy

1:47

soothing chocolates infused with sleep-supporting

1:50

mushrooms from Alice Mushrooms. and

1:53

unwind with Woolsey's essential oils. Plus

1:56

for those nights when you need a little extra

1:58

help, new strips, melatonin

2:00

strips are quick and effective. You

2:02

put them on your tongue, you'll

2:04

be asleep in minutes. Along

2:08

with all of this, you'll get three mini

2:10

episodes. I created these

2:12

especially for this

2:14

collection. One is an episode

2:16

specifically for when you wake in the middle

2:19

of the night. Click the

2:21

link in our show notes or visit

2:23

nothingmuchhappens.com to learn more and

2:26

bring a piece of the village into your home

2:29

with our wind-down box. This

2:33

method works by giving your brain something

2:35

to attach to. It

2:38

becomes like an anchor. Your

2:40

ship drops anchor and

2:43

instead of traveling all over the place, your

2:46

mind is held in one

2:48

soft, relaxing place and you

2:51

rest. All you

2:53

need to do is listen. I'll

2:56

tell the story twice and

2:59

I'll go a little slower the second

3:01

time through. If

3:04

you wake in the night, don't hesitate

3:06

to turn an episode right back

3:08

on. With time,

3:10

you'll wake less and

3:13

even when you do, you'll return

3:15

to sleep within moments. Our

3:19

story tonight is

3:21

called Date Night and

3:24

it's a story about a bike ride to

3:27

a place where X marks the spot

3:30

on a hand-drawn map. It's

3:32

also about lavender lemonade, minnows

3:35

in the shallows, wagging

3:38

tails, and a

3:40

toast made while the dogs wind

3:42

a leash around your ankle. Now,

3:50

it's time. Turn

3:52

out your light. Set

3:55

down your device. And

3:58

get as comfortable as you can. comfortable as

4:01

you can. Tuck

4:03

yourself in with all the loving

4:05

care little you

4:08

needs tonight. Draw

4:12

a deep breath in through the

4:14

nose and

4:18

sigh from your mouth. One

4:23

more, breathe in out.

4:32

Good. Date

4:36

night. Out

4:39

in the garage the

4:42

bikes were almost ready. We

4:46

pumped up the tires and

4:48

made sure both of the trailers

4:50

were properly coupled to

4:53

our rear axles. At

4:56

first we debated on

4:58

just going the two of us. After

5:02

all, it was meant to be

5:05

a date night. But

5:08

what can we say? Our

5:10

dogs, Crumb and Bertie, our

5:14

sweet kitty Marmalade, they

5:17

are part of our love story and

5:20

we loved to be together. I

5:26

didn't expect Marmalade to

5:28

be a fan of riding in the bike

5:30

trailer. I

5:33

tried taking her out in a cat stroller

5:36

once and we'd only made

5:38

it past a few houses before

5:41

her yowling made it clear that

5:44

this was not her cup of tea. But

5:49

she kept sneaking out into

5:51

the garage and climbing into

5:53

the little mesh-sided wagon. And

5:59

the third time, I found her there. I

6:03

cautiously zipped her in and

6:05

opened the garage door. I

6:10

walked the bike down the

6:12

driveway watching her face.

6:17

She lounged on the blanket. I'd

6:20

spread over the seat, seemingly

6:23

at ease. And

6:27

when I got to the street and she

6:30

still seemed content, I

6:34

kicked one leg over the bike and

6:37

pushed off. Slowly

6:41

down a block across

6:43

another, she

6:46

stared at the trees in the avenue. And

6:51

when I stopped at the stop sign, I

6:54

could actually hear her purring

6:56

from behind me. Since

7:00

then, a few

7:03

times a week when I

7:05

am tying on my sneakers, she'll

7:09

approach on her

7:11

silent orange paws and

7:14

sit in front of me and

7:16

blink expectantly. Then

7:20

we take a ride together. As

7:24

for the dogs, they

7:26

were up for anything, especially

7:29

Crumb. He

7:32

was little and brown, like

7:35

a spunky, barking loaf

7:38

of bread. And he got

7:40

riled up when just

7:42

about anything happened. If

7:46

we were going for a walk, for

7:49

a ride in the car, out

7:52

into the backyard or up to bed,

7:56

he was just happy to be in on

7:59

the fun. Birdie,

8:03

a retired greyhound

8:05

whose dating profile would

8:07

say, must love

8:10

naps and cancelled

8:12

plans, was

8:15

less enthusiastic. He'd

8:20

still wag his thin, whipped

8:22

tail and

8:24

lean his shoulder into your leg when

8:27

you mentioned a ride, but

8:30

he didn't usually get the zoomies

8:32

about it. We

8:37

were headed out to a spot we

8:39

hadn't been to before, following

8:43

a map that

8:45

we'd been gifted at our wedding in

8:49

September of the year before. The

8:54

best man had drawn an X

8:56

on the map, a

8:59

spot near a lake where

9:02

we could picnic and

9:04

relax and

9:06

watch the ripples on the water. He'd

9:11

also gifted us these bikes, two

9:15

beautiful cruisers, mine

9:19

orange like marmalade with

9:21

the brown basket in tribute

9:23

to Crumb, his

9:27

grey like Birdie. He'd

9:31

attached one of the

9:33

trailers when he'd delivered the

9:35

gifts. None

9:38

of us knew then what ride

9:41

or die fanatics the animals would

9:43

become, but

9:46

once we'd realized how

9:49

much they enjoyed it.

9:51

He'd ordered us a second one so

9:54

we could all bike together. Drum

10:01

shared one of the trailers. They

10:04

were about the same size, though

10:09

her orange fluffy fur made

10:11

her seem a bit bigger.

10:16

They were snuggle bugs anyway,

10:20

and always had their paws

10:22

looped together, or

10:24

a chin resting on the other's

10:26

back. So

10:29

they were happy to ride together. Birdie

10:33

was so big, so

10:36

long and lanky with those

10:38

thin, stick legs that went for

10:40

miles. His

10:43

long back and knobbly knees. He

10:46

rode better on his own, and

10:50

we put an extra blanket in the cushioned

10:52

seat for him. Greyhounds

10:55

can get cold easily,

10:59

and he regularly wore sweaters,

11:02

even in the late spring. For

11:08

them, we'd packed their travel water

11:10

bowls and water. Treats

11:14

and toys. For

11:17

us, we packed lemonade, made

11:20

with lavender syrup. Small

11:23

savory pastries from the bakery,

11:27

which were filled with juicy

11:29

sun-dried tomatoes and

11:32

toasted pine nuts. Then

11:36

we had some fruit, a

11:38

little container of

11:40

the first strawberries of the season,

11:44

and pears from the corner store. There

11:49

were crackers and hummus, some

11:52

quick pickles and smoked almonds,

11:55

and a big chocolate bar to share.

12:00

I'd heard the concept

12:02

of a picky tea

12:04

recently, and

12:07

it had inspired me. It

12:10

was a meal made of little bits

12:12

and bites, some

12:15

of it from leftovers in the back

12:17

of the fridge, but perfect

12:20

for a picnic. I

12:24

took a minute to load the bikes

12:28

to get the pets and their harnesses buckled

12:31

into their trailers, but

12:34

the sun was still high in

12:37

the afternoon sky when we

12:39

set out. I

12:43

had the map stretched across

12:45

the top of my bike basket, held

12:48

in place with binder clips, and

12:53

I directed us through the neighborhoods

12:56

and downtown, then

12:59

down a long dirt road. We

13:03

went slow. The

13:06

ride was half the point. I

13:10

always found that being

13:12

on a bike made me

13:14

smiley, giggly,

13:16

and if we rolled down

13:19

a gentle hill, I

13:21

still thrilled at it like I had

13:24

when I was ten years old. We

13:29

followed a curve, and

13:32

where I expected to find a dead

13:34

end, the

13:37

scenery instead opened up on a

13:39

beautiful view. A lake

13:44

that came right up to the road with

13:47

pretty houses lining the far shore,

13:51

and a few picnic tables and

13:54

benches, shady

13:56

trees and soft grass to rest

13:58

on. We

14:02

turned our handlebars and

14:05

slowed on the grass, pulled

14:09

the bikes up beside a table. You

14:14

could smell the lake, that

14:17

good, sweet water scent.

14:22

And we paused, still

14:25

sitting stride the bikes with our

14:27

toes on the ground, just

14:31

sighing contentedly at the vista.

14:35

Then Crumb sneezed, and

14:38

we both laughed. Sometimes

14:42

dogs sneeze for the same

14:44

reason we do, but

14:49

they also do it when they

14:51

are playing or excited. I

14:55

often noticed that Crumb sneezed

14:58

when a wrestling match with Birdie

15:00

or Marmee was starting to feel

15:03

a little too serious. It

15:06

broke the tension. We

15:10

got off our bikes and

15:13

started to unzip the trailers. Marmee

15:18

did not walk on

15:20

a leash. No way. She

15:24

was not that kind of cat.

15:28

She might have let me carry her

15:30

around in a basket, but

15:34

the bikes were parked in the shade

15:36

and she seemed happy to

15:39

stay buckled in and listen

15:42

to the birds. I

15:45

gave her a few treats and

15:48

balanced a water bowl beside her and rezipped the slap after I snuck

15:51

Crumb out. Birdie

15:57

climbed down. taking

16:02

long, slow down dogs

16:04

and up dogs. We

16:08

walked them up to the water, and

16:11

I kept Krum close. He

16:15

was a muddle of many

16:17

breeds, and while I was

16:19

pretty sure none of them were a

16:22

retriever, I didn't want to

16:24

risk finding out I was wrong and

16:27

having to wade in to fetch him

16:29

back. Right

16:33

in the shallows, beside

16:36

the grassy edge, we

16:39

peered down together and

16:42

spotted tadpoles swimming awkwardly,

16:47

tiny minnows drifting in schools.

16:51

At the table, we

16:54

unpacked our picky tea, poured

16:57

the lemonade, and

17:00

toasted each other. This

17:04

love felt so

17:06

natural to me from

17:09

the very beginning, like

17:12

something that was obvious and

17:15

inevitable and instantly

17:18

comfortable. But

17:21

still, when our

17:24

eyes locked, when

17:27

we held hands, when

17:31

I heard his step on the stairs, coming

17:34

to bed at night, a

17:37

tiny flutter of butterflies still

17:41

bounded around inside me. Krum

17:47

tangled his leash around my ankle.

17:52

Birdie let out a little

17:54

humming wine, Begging for

17:56

a bite of our meal. The

18:00

out each other's gays, Smile.

18:04

And. Touched or glasses together. Here's

18:09

to us. Date:

18:15

Night. Boat.

18:19

In the garage. The.

18:22

Bikes. We're almost ready.

18:27

We pumped up the tires.

18:31

And made sure both. Of the

18:33

trailers. For. Properly coupled

18:35

to our rear axles. At

18:41

first. We. Need

18:43

to be didn't. Just.

18:45

Going the two of us. After

18:51

all, He was

18:53

meant to be a date night.

18:59

But. What can we say? Bird.

19:02

Dogs. Crumb.

19:04

And birdie. My.

19:07

Sweet Kitty Marmalade. They.

19:10

Are part of our love story.

19:14

And we love to be together. I

19:20

didn't expect. Marmalade.

19:23

To be a fan of riding

19:25

in the bike trailer. I

19:31

tried taking her out in the

19:33

cat stroller once. And

19:37

then we'd only made it past a

19:39

few houses. Before.

19:42

Her yowling made it clear

19:44

that. This. Was

19:46

not her cup of tea. But.

19:52

She kept sneaking out

19:54

into the garage. And

19:57

climbing into the little. Mess.

20:00

And the

20:03

third time I found her there, I

20:07

cautiously zipped her in and

20:10

opened the garage door. I

20:15

walked the bike down the driveway,

20:18

watching her face. She

20:23

lounged on the blanket I'd spread

20:25

over the seat, seemingly

20:28

at ease. And

20:32

when I got to the street, and

20:35

she still seemed content, I

20:39

kicked one leg over the bike and

20:43

pushed off. I

20:48

could see her slowly down a block

20:52

across another. She

20:56

stared at the trees and the avenue. And

21:00

when I stopped at a stop sign, I

21:04

could actually hear her purring

21:07

from behind me. Since

21:13

then, a few

21:15

times a week, when

21:17

I am tying on my sneakers, she'll

21:23

approach on

21:25

her silent orange paws and

21:30

sit in front of me and

21:32

blink expectantly.

21:37

Then we take a ride together. As

21:43

for the dogs, they

21:46

were up for anything, especially

21:49

Crumb. She

21:53

was little and brown,

21:56

like a spunky, barking loaf of

21:58

bread. And

22:01

he got riled up when just

22:03

about anything happened. If

22:07

we were going for

22:10

a walk, for

22:12

a ride in the car, out

22:15

into the backyard or up to bed,

22:19

he was just happy to

22:21

be in on the fun. Birdie,

22:27

a retired

22:29

greyhound whose dating profile

22:32

would say, must

22:34

love naps and

22:37

cancelled plans, was

22:40

less enthusiastic. But

22:44

he would go with the flow. He'd

22:48

still wag his thin whip tail

22:52

and lean his shoulder into your leg

22:55

when you mentioned a ride. But

23:00

he didn't usually get the zoomies about

23:02

it. We

23:07

were headed out to a spot we

23:10

hadn't been to before, following

23:14

a map that

23:17

we'd been gifted at our wedding in

23:20

September the year before. The

23:25

best man had drawn an

23:28

axe on a map, a

23:32

spot near a lake where

23:35

we could picnic and relax and

23:38

watch the ripples on the water. He'd

23:45

also gifted us these bikes. Two

23:50

beautiful cruisers. Nine

23:54

orange like marmalade

23:59

with a brown bath. basket in tribute to

24:01

Crumb, his

24:04

gray like birdie. He'd

24:09

attached one of the trailers when

24:12

he'd delivered the gifts. None

24:16

of us knew then

24:19

what ride or die

24:21

fanatics the

24:23

animals would become. But

24:28

once we realized how

24:30

much they enjoyed it, he

24:33

ordered us a second one so

24:38

we could all bike together. Marmee

24:43

and Crumb shared

24:46

one of the trailers. They

24:50

were about the same size, though

24:54

her fluffy orange fur made

24:57

her seem a bit bigger. They

25:03

were snuggle bugs anyway and

25:07

always had their paws looped together

25:11

or a chin resting

25:13

on the other's back. So

25:17

they were happy to ride together. Birdie

25:24

was so big, so

25:27

long and lanky, with

25:31

those thin stick legs

25:33

that went for miles. His

25:40

long back and

25:42

knobbly knees. He

25:44

rode better on his own and

25:49

we put an extra blanket in

25:52

the cushions seat for him. Gray

25:56

hounds can get

25:58

cold easily. And

26:01

he regularly wore sweaters, even

26:05

in the late spring. For

26:11

them, we'd packed

26:13

their travel water bowls and

26:16

water, treats

26:20

and toys. For

26:24

us, we packed lemonade made

26:27

with lavender syrup, little

26:31

savory pastries from

26:34

the bakery, which

26:37

were filled with juicy sun-dried

26:40

tomatoes and toasted

26:42

pine nuts. Then

26:47

we had some fruit, a

26:50

little container of the first strawberries

26:52

of the season, and

26:56

pears from the

26:58

corner store. There

27:04

were crackers and hummus, some

27:07

quick pickles and

27:10

smoked almonds, and

27:13

a big chocolate bar to share. I'd

27:18

heard the concept of

27:21

a picky tea recently,

27:24

and it had inspired me. It

27:30

was a meal made of little

27:32

bits and bites, some

27:35

of it from leftovers in the back

27:37

of the fridge, but

27:40

perfect for a picnic. I

27:46

took a minute to load the bikes to

27:50

get the pets in their harnesses, buckled

27:54

into their trailers. But

27:58

the sun was still hot. in the

28:02

afternoon sky when

28:04

we set out. I

28:09

had the map stretched

28:11

across the top of my bike

28:13

basket, held

28:16

in place with binder clips.

28:21

And I directed us through the

28:24

neighborhoods and downtown.

28:28

Then down a long dirt

28:31

road, we

28:35

went slow. The

28:37

ride was half the point.

28:41

And I always found that being

28:45

on a bike made

28:47

me smiley, giggly.

28:52

And if we rolled down a

28:54

gentle hill, I

28:57

still thrilled at it, like

29:00

I had when I was 10 years old.

29:06

We followed a curve, and

29:11

where I expected to

29:13

find a dead end, the

29:17

scenery instead opened

29:20

up on a beautiful view. A

29:26

lake that came

29:28

right up to the road with

29:32

pretty houses lining the far

29:34

shore and

29:36

a few picnic tables and

29:39

benches, shady

29:43

trees and soft grass to rest

29:45

on. We

29:50

turned our handlebars and

29:54

slowed on the grass, pulled

29:58

the bikes up beside us, a table.

30:03

You could smell the lake, that

30:07

good, sweet water

30:10

scent. And

30:13

we paused, still

30:15

sitting astride the bikes with

30:19

our toes on the ground, just

30:23

sighing contentedly at the vista.

30:27

Ben Crumb sneezed, and

30:30

we both laughed. Sometimes

30:35

dogs sneeze for

30:37

the same reasons we

30:39

do, but

30:43

they also do it when they are playing

30:46

or excited. I

30:51

often noticed that Crumb sneezed

30:55

when a wrestling match with Birdie

30:57

or Marm was

31:00

starting to feel a little

31:02

too serious. It

31:05

broke the tension. We

31:09

got off our bikes and

31:13

started to unzip the trailers. Now

31:18

Marmee did not walk

31:21

on a leash. No

31:23

way. She

31:25

was not that kind of cat.

31:30

She might have let me

31:33

carry her around in

31:35

a basket, but

31:38

the bikes were parked in the shade

31:42

and she seemed happy to

31:45

stay buckled in and

31:47

listen to the birds. I

31:52

gave her a few treats and

31:55

balanced a water bowl beside her.

32:00

and rezipped the flap after

32:04

I snuck Crumb out. Birdie

32:10

climbed out, taking

32:12

long, slow down

32:14

dogs and up dogs.

32:20

We walked them up to the water

32:23

and I kept Crumb close.

32:28

He was a muddle of many breeds. And

32:34

while I was pretty sure

32:36

none of them were a

32:39

retriever, I

32:41

didn't want to risk finding out

32:44

I was wrong and having to

32:46

wade in to fetch

32:49

him back out. Right

32:53

in the shallows, beside

32:56

the grassy edge, we

32:59

peered down together and

33:03

spotted tadpoles swimming

33:06

awkwardly, tiny

33:09

minnows drifting in schools.

33:15

At the table, we

33:17

unpacked our picky tea, poured

33:21

the lemonade, and

33:24

toasted each other. This

33:30

love felt

33:33

so natural to me from

33:36

the very beginning, like

33:41

something that was obvious and

33:44

inevitable and

33:47

instantly comfortable. But

33:52

still, when

33:54

our eyes locked, when

33:58

we held hands, When

34:01

I heard his step on the stairs,

34:04

coming to bed at night. A

34:08

tiny flutter of butterflies

34:12

bounded around inside me. Crumb

34:18

tangled his leash around my ankle.

34:23

We let out a

34:25

humming little wine, begging

34:28

for a bite of our meal. And

34:33

still we held each other's gaze, smiled,

34:39

and touched our glasses together. Here's

34:45

to us. Sweet

34:50

dreams.