lenavaz

[lenavaz]

WHO: Lena & @jcksonfields

WHERE: The Festival, Pride Weekend

WHEN: June 9, 2024

So far, the weekend had been perfect. Lena had found herself staying out a little later than planned the night before, had walked in the parade with her friends, and now, all she wanted to do was eat! Which wasn't always the easiest decision to make in the world, when every event Merrock hosted seemed to have delicious food. At the moment, her eyes were scanning over a case of baked goods, when she noticed someone else standing nearby, looking up and instantly recognizing JD, breaking into a smile. "Food break for you, too?"

#writing with jackson #jackson 001 #;; i hope this is okay! <3

[lenavaz]

JUNE 2 - 8, 2024

Do you plan on attending pride weekend? What do you most look forward to each year, and what does the event mean to you?

I'll be there! I'm planning on going to the party, parade and festival, but I'm mostly looking forward to the festival, I think. Although I do love a good parade. I want to say that the party will be a great time, too, but I know that my grandma side will kick in, and I'll be at home and in bed before most people are even getting started. But I'm going to try! I just really love the festival, since it's something the whole town can get involved in.

Pride, to me, means an opportunity to be proud of who you are, of how far you've come. How far the community has come! I'm proud of who I am today, and who I get to be because of all of the people before me who fought for my right to be Elena, especially. And living in a town where people love you for who you are, and support you, it means everything.

#merrockfunspot #all about lena

[lenavaz]

"I know that there are deer trails that wander through the woods, since it's areas that deer have traveled over and over again… maybe we just eventually decided to turn those into hiking trails, too?" In which case, clearly the deer in Merrock had been pretty smart, and picked routes that were scenic, which had made the whole hiking hobby more fun in their little town. "Either way, I'm glad I wasn't put in charge of it," she grinned over at Jamie. "Pretty sure that I would have ended up creating trails that just go in circles." Which might not be… horrible, at least if people could get back to where they started, if nothing else. "It does! Just spawn back to the beginning?" As long as you made it to a safe space, that was what mattered. "I like it," she admitted with a smile, nodding her head. "There's something kind of fulfilling about spending your time with people who otherwise don't get a lot of company or attention, you know?"

“…good question.” Jamie nodded slowly. Trails were made by people wandering, getting lost, process of elimination? That would be his best guess. “Probably people trying to find their way like us. But with only a compass to help them. And probably the animals too,” he said. “They’re still the ones who know the land the best.” They hadn’t seen too many animals yet, except for some birds and squirrels running at the sound of their footprints. He grinned. “It sounds like something out of a Super Mario game. You know, like when you get to a point at the end of the land.” He smiled again. “Nice! That sounds really cool, though. It sounds like a pretty chill way to spend your day.”

#writing with jamie #jamie 001

[lenavaz]

"You're a good boss," she laughed as they gave in to the idea of some dancing, at least in terms of their employees having a good time. Which was much better than working for someone who was wholeheartedly against the idea of people dancing and enjoying their time in the shop. "But for what it's worth, I promise to keep my dancing to a minimum, unless it's during my lunch break. And then I can't really make any promises!" Because sometimes a girl just had to dance for joy, or do a happy wiggle while eating a sandwich. "Exactly, I think it's an added bonus of living in Maine, actually. You get that warm, unexpected summer." And it was nice -- enough people didn't know, they stayed away, and then they had a neat little hidden gem, away from the rest of the world, where they could enjoy themselves. "It has its plus sides now and then! And once you find your audience, you're in good hands."

"I'm not so sure about that," they said, raising a skeptical but kind brow. "My ideal dancing is none at work, usually. Though I'd rather you have fun in your own way, even if that involves dancing." A rock store was not the place for boring and bored employees, after all. "We deserve those few months of warmth and sand and sun after the cold of Maine most of the year." They nodded along, even as they unpacked a few more crystals, just to get ahead of weighing. "Wow, so social media really does work. It's worth it to have younger people around, I guess?"

#writing with amina #amina 001

[lenavaz]

"Visual proof that you have moved to Maine and thrived!" she laughed, nodding her head. "That way you can put all of their doubts and worries and concerns aside and just show them how far you've come." She could understand it to an extent, she supposed -- parents, family, friends, they wanted to know that their loved ones were safe and sound, after all. Able to take care of themselves, wherever they had ended up in the world. "Horns! They were like, mythical forest beasts, I think. I dressed up as a princess, so I didn't go quite that far," since a dress and flower crown had been easy enough to pull together. But it was amazing how creative people could get when it came to coming up with fashionable looks. Which did make her a little excited to hear about what the next one in town would be. But until then, there was the idea of Sam showing up in his uniform to a beach party, letting out a warm laugh, "I can imagine it now! On the plus side, if there are any emergencies, at least you'll be there to save the day, though, right?" And that would be a huge help, not that she was hoping for anything to go wrong. "Fingers crossed," Lena held up one hand, her fingers crossed together with a soft laugh, "and if not, then there are lots of allergy medicines to choose from, right?"

Sam let out a laugh when Lena suggested to send photos of him sitting here as proof that he was being incredibly strong because he survived Merrock's winter and still stuck around. "That's...not bad of an idea actually," he said, changing tone somewhat midway. He was just joking initially. While his sister was teasing him about the winter, his parents still kind of kept asking if he was okay whenever he gave them a call. He then looked a bit amused at what she told him about the summer events from last year. "Uh, horns...?" he repeated, just to make sure he heard correctly. But if it was an enchanted forest theme, that wouldn't be too out there. "That sounds fun actually," he added before letting out a chuckle, shaking his head as he imagined having to show up at a beach party in a suit. "I'll just wear my uniform if a three piece suit is the dress code for a beach party," he joked. It could also mean that he was on duty if he showed up in uniform for any event but they technically couldn't argue that he didn't follow the dress code. "Yeah. Both sucks but I've dealt with allergies before. I should be okay, hopefully I didn't just jinx myself there. But icy roads, not so much."

#writing with samuel #samuel 001

[lenavaz]

"It's a nice service, they don't just transport to the hospital or medical offices, either. I know that you can call them to help if you're handicapped or disabled and need a ride to the store, or to the bank or something," which might not be quite the same as a bus route, but it was at least something that helped people out in a small town. Which was the emphasis in Lena's mind -- small town. It wasn't like they lived in a suburb of Washington D.C. or New York City or Philadelphia, where there were miles and miles and miles of city streets to walk through; the downtown was small and compact. "I think that's a major difference. We learned in history class about how little towns like this were built, where everything you need is central to downtown, you can walk from one end to the other without breaking a sweat, really, so that helps." But then, as he mentioned compassion, as though throwing what she said back in her face, her brows shot up, expression somewhere between annoyed and amused. "Yes, let's call my compassion into question while you're admitting that you don't actually care enough to even sit through a," she lifted her hands to make air quotes, "boring as shit meeting where you could do something, instead of just complaining. That makes sense."

"Okay, but I am telling you as someone who grew up here: I always thought it sucked worse to lose power in the winter than it did in the summertime," food loss, lack of ventilators, it was going to happen whether you were experiencing no electricity in January or August, but it really wasn't worth arguing with him any longer, not when it was only going to end in a headache, she had a feeling. "No, I wouldn't. I could, but I'm not that kind of person. Besides, you'd probably just track me down and want to argue with me about how wrong I was for my opinions on flowers, and I wouldn't want to risk that happening. They're good, I promise."

As the brunette closed up her container of fruit, Chandler thought she was definitely about to leave. Even though he was enjoying their conversation, he didn't get the feeling that it was mutual. So as she relaxed into the bench, he was pleasantly surprised but made no mention of it to her.

"I didn't know that, but that's good." Chandler had a strange dynamic with hospitals. They didn't bother him, as he regularly visited the one his mom worked at. It was more peaceful than hanging out at home most of the time, and he was happy so long as he had a GameBoy. But he was no longer on his parents' medical insurance, so it had been quite some time since he had seen a doctor. He had no idea what any of that looked like in Merrock. "My mom works at a big hospital in Minnesota. They didn't have that - you had to take a bus or an uber to get to appointments there. From where we lived it was an hour and a half one way, but I rode the route a lot before I got my license." He thought back to his trips into the city by himself with a small smile. Honestly, he was too young to be traveling alone in a major city when he lived in the suburbs. But he was pretty sure his parents never really noticed -- and if they did, they never explained to him why he shouldn't be doing it. "We did have a bus line in and out of town, but it wasn't really useful for getting anywhere in town. I just think there's no reason America has to double down on cars as hard as we do. You talk about people not being able to afford generators but a reliable car is just as expensive and then you have to put gas in it and get insurance....Surely you have the compassion to want people to have a more affordable option." He threw in the last part to both show that he was capable of caring about other people, and to remind her of what she'd previously said to him. But as she suggested he fight for it at town hall, he scrunched his nose. "Not gonna lie, a town hall meeting sounds boring as shit."

She continued to argue about winter being more dangerous, but he had a few counterpoints. "I mean...if your power goes out in the winter then your food can stay good for a little while. Summer's where that's a bigger problem. Besides, summer power outages are way more common and there's people who rely on electricity to power ventilators or other super important medical shit. As she teased him about not having enough compassion, he shrugged but smiled back at the snark from her. He then edited the note on his phone to fix the two flowers he got wrong. "You're not fucking with me and telling me some super hard to take care of shit, right? As revenge for me not feeling bad for slow drivers?"

#writing with chandler #chandler 001

[lenavaz]

"I still remember grabbing my phone every morning when we'd have a big snow to see if there was going to be school that day," no one wanted to spend the entire day in a classroom when there were fields of snow to run through, or hills to slide down. Snowmen to build and snowball fights to get into. "Hurts your eyes, right?" she asked, squinting as though she could see the snow right then and there, feel the glare of the sun's rays as it bounced off of the hills and clumps on the trees. "That's why I always have sunglasses with me, even in the winter time. Driving with that glare after a freshly fallen snow? No thank you!" No matter how strange it might be to admit that the sun was blinding while driving in the middle of January, it was just not a risk that Elena was willing to take! "The only thing that worms are good for is fishing," not that she spent a ton of time doing that. She could! And had, and she enjoyed it, and had always learned that the live bait was better than anything else, but she couldn't say that she spent a ton of her free time digging for worms to take out on the lake with her. "Sometimes summer ends up being long, if you have one of those really short springs because it gets hot early, and then takes forever to get cold… but by the end of those summers, we're all miserable," it was a little bit of sunshine overkill at that point. "See, that is good. The last thing that you want is to feel like your siblings don't even like you," she laughed. "My sister went through a phase like that, but she got over it pretty quick, thankfully!"

"Yes exactly!" She said enthusiastically as she nodded along. She remembers as a child being on vacation and seeing snow for the first time. It was magical, and everytime after that, the first morning after a big stone shed always get that same fuzzy feeling inside. Though by the next day it would usually be gone, at least as an adult anyway since she'd have to travel in it to work. "Sometimes I feel like the sun is brighter on the morning after a big snow storm than it could be during the summer. Something about it reflecting off the snow." She said, shielding her eyes from the sun now which was high and bright. Shuddering as they spoke about bugs, Tasha nodded. "Right! Even the ones that do serve a purpose I don't like. Especially spiders. And slugs. And worms," she shuddered again and stopped listed a bunch of insects. She wasn't a fan but loved being outdoors so she tried to tolerate them as much as she could. Thankful to switch up the conversation, Tasha agreed, "same here. I feel like winter is definitely the longest and I wish it wasn't. Honestly I wish the summer or the fall was the longest." She enjoyed both equally, definitely more so than even the spring. "That's exactly how I think it is for them. I can't even remember a time that they ever fought to be honest! Though thankfully they're not like those weird twins who only talk to each other or communicate only in a strange way."

#writing with natasha #natasha 001

[lenavaz]

"Which is why you're so good at what you do," she grinned. And they really were; Lena had always loved the work that Arturo did, often begging to see new designs, wanting to be the first in line for something new and exciting. Or at least hav the insider knowledge. "Exactly, it would be awful to be the one that ends up having to compromise and wearing something that you don't want to. Especially since you only have one prom! Well, one or two," she scrunched up her face thoughtfully, "or I guess more if you're really lucky and get asked to attend other ones, but that's not the norm!"

"That's right, the gender and everything else is just secondary to looking good in a dress." And wasn't that just the crux of how Arturo approached fashion design? It was part of the fun of it. "I think it's cute when the group or the dates have some sort of theme tying them together, as long as everyone is on board and can mostly do what they like. You don't want to be the one stuck with the ugly dress, after all." He smiled. "What would she want on her flag? A picture of you?"

#writing with arturo #arturo 001

[lenavaz]

Zión Moreno photographed by director duo tomboy ( x )

#these beautiful things that i've got | elena #;; my eye is really bothering me tonight :((( #but i'm gonna change into pajamas and get all tucked in for the night and try to write a bit before sleep <3 #just be patient with me over the next few days while this stye heals!

[lenavaz]

"And they start dancing to all of the songs, too!" she laughed, doing a quick move that she thought might make it onto a TikTok, although she couldn't say that she was ever going to be internet famous, "you can at least trust me to keep the dancing to a minimum." That was the goal, anyway, not humiliate everyone around her whenever possible. "Exactly, they just want sunshine and beach days, and not… well, all the other beautiful but slightly cold things about the town we live in," and she couldn't blame them for that. "Yeah!" she laughed, nodding her head at their uncertainty. "They post about the cool rocks that they got, and then tag you in it, or people ask where it's from, then they say here, and boom. People come to buy their own rocks."

"That's true, and with each employee they get younger and the songs get stranger and stranger," Amina said with a laugh. Getting older wasn't bad and 40 was treating them well, but they did miss when the cultural references made any sort of sense to them. "That's the thing at Merrock is it's a beautiful beach but it's cold for so long everyone is chomping at the bit. Plus, we can get some people taking instagram pics of everything and then that'll probably get traffic in." They hesitated. "Right? That's how social media does it?"

#writing with amina #amina 001

[lenavaz]

"The lack of bugs, and the first big snow," she offered, "because there's something magical about pushing aside the curtain in the morning and seeing all the snow on the tree branches and noticing how much it glitters and sparkles when the sun hits it, you know?" That was something that she had always loved, ever since she was little, growing up in a winter wonderland. "But I get it, they're gross. Especially the bugs that really don't have a purpose other than being annoyed -- like stink bugs, why are they even on the planet?" other than to drive them crazy, obviously, which they did a great job of… unfortunately. Natasha was completely right about the northeast and the pretty colors, smiling brightly as she nodded, "I just wish peak season for tree colors lasted a little longer, you know? They're so pretty, then all the leaves drop," and that was just a little bit depressing. But at least they had those few weeks. "Sort of like a built-in best friend, you against the world. I bet that would be fun, though. Maybe make you a little jealous, if you had no idea what was going on in their heads!"

"It's probably the only good thing about winter," Tasha said with a chuckle, rolling her eyes. She didn't mind the winter as much as she used to, but she still had a hard time with it. "I just don't like bugs in general, whether outside or inside!" She shivered as she spoke, though she didn't mind butterflies. everything else was gross. "That we do! I just love how the colors change here. Can't get that anywhere else except the Northeast." Shaking her head, she had traveled a bunch and no where else came close to the foliage she witnessed here. Fanning herself from the warmth of the sun, she turned to Lena, "ooh definitely. They're not identical but they still had their own weird language as kids. Now, they're still pretty close even as adults."

#writing with natasha #natasha 001

[lenavaz]

"Of course," she let out a laugh, nodding her head, "as long as they're willing to wear the dress, that's truly all that matters, right?" They didn't need to be a woman, they just needed to look fabulous in something white and poofy. Or, well, it didn't have to be white and poofy. It was the thought that counted in that situation. "That's fun! Coordinating prom outfits… I remember going to prom with a bunch of my girlfriends, and we all chose dresses that were on a certain color theme, but different enough that you could tell us apart." And that had made them look that much better when they showed up, in her opinion. "Oh, she would love that! It would be her favorite flag ever."

"You know I'm not picky about the gender, Lena, it's about my vision," they teased. They'd be happy for anything, honestly, but that would be a dream. "No, I have done coordinating prom outfits, though, or had to make an accessory to match, but never a full set." They nodded and smiled at the mention of sewing in the garden. "I could make her a beautiful little garden flag."

#writing with arturo #arturo 001

[lenavaz]

Grinning, Lena shot Harley a look, "you'll only sleep through it until I start shoving you and make you get up to fix it." Alright, she wasn't quite that meant, to wake up someone up from their heavy slumber, and besides, what was she if not resourceful and capable of taking on any challenge that someone threw at her? Even if the challenger in this particular scenario happened to be mother nature. But if they were going to get the tent up and secure all in one go… that was one less thing to worry about! "Good deal," she laughed, nodding her head. "My niece has told me that I do snore sometimes, but only "little, cute snores," she used air quotes around the words, unsure if there was such a thing when it came to the noises that someone made when they were dreaming. "How long has it been since you last went camping?" she asked, as she began to lay everything out where it needed to be for the tent, scouting the base for rocks.

Harley simply liked to go on adventures and get away from the hustle of his life sometimes. Although Merrock was nowhere near as populated as New York City had been, he still preferred to live downtown. The downside to that was a lack of space, especially of the outdoor variety. "Well, just remember, if something does go wrong in the middle of the night, there's a very good chance I'll sleep through it. So we'll make sure that everything's set up correctly the first time." He half-joked, although there was some truth to it. "But on the other end of things, you can snore or loudly get up in the middle of the night and I'll never know."

#writing with harley #harley 001

[lenavaz]

"Yes, of course!" Lena let out a loud laugh, nodding her head, "I should send her a photo of you sitting here, letting her know that you are incredibly strong -- strong enough to have made it through a Merrock winter!" That was something to brag about, considering not everyone could cut it. Lena had made friends with plenty of people who moved to the little town only to head back to warmer, sunnier pastures at some point in their life. But if they really stuck it out, they'd find the good, she was sure of that. Feeling herself smile at Sam's decision to enjoy everything that went on in town, knowing that it was a good way to really get involved in the little town. "The summer formal event is normally a little more…" she pinched her face, trying to think of the word, "fun-themed? Last year was enchanted forest, there were people with horns, even!" Sometimes they went all out, above and beyond what was expected, and it definitely made for an interesting experience. "But I get it. At least there are plenty of non-formal things! Like no one will expect you to wear a three piece suit to a carnival or beach party." Thankfully, they were much more lowkey and casual. "Yeah… that's one of those trade-offs. Sure, there's no icy roads. Bu you might be sneezing. I guess it depends on which is more of a pain!"

"Can you say that to my sister, please? Because she's telling me that living in Maine is a piece of cake and she can't understand why I complain so much about the cold," Sam said with a laugh. He always wondered how it was possible that despite also growing up and spend most of her life in San Francisco, she had no problem adjusting to Maine's weather. Her being a little over ten years younger than him probably helped. "No specific plans. Just gonna try to have fun and enjoy whatever events that happen in town. And I'm not that big of a fan of formal events, no. Need to give me a very good reason to get me to go," he gave a shrug and a small grin as he said the last bit. Would that mean he'd avoid going to every single formal events, probably not. But he'd most likely pick and choose. "That's what I'm hoping for. I think I have enough icy roads for the time being. Oh, right, that. Should get prepared for that too," he let out a small grimace, getting reminded of what would be coming along with the increase of temperature.

#writing with samuel #samuel 001

[lenavaz]

"I don't know if you want to do that," Lena chided them, doing her best to hide the smile that threatened to creep up on her lips, "then you might end up learning a completely different song against your will that's even worse!" Unless Amina had a secret affinity for TikTok classics or the songs that were playing on the top ten radio every time they tuned the dial to find something to listen to. Smiling when Amina talked about their father, she turned one of the pieces over in her hand, admiring it, before breaking into an even brighter smile. "Oh, I love that! I bet that it would draw a lot of attention in, get them asking questions, too! Everyone's in such a beachy mood lately, wanting summer to be here."

"Hmm, if I do I might have to hire a whole new employee," they joked, but there was no malice in the statement. Lena was one of the most reliable and friendly people Amina had ever hired, so they'd be a fool to let her go. "Hey, calling your dad is a valid solution to a lot of life problems. I still do it and mine is old and in France." They laughed. "We could lay the table out to look like the beach?" They offered. "Yellows and oranges ebbing into blues and aquamarines. Plus, there's a big shipment of juicy blue fluorites that are perfect for the ocean."

#writing with amina #amina 001

[lenavaz]

MAY 26 - JUNE 1

What are your plans for Memorial Day this year?

My entire day was centered around spending time with Marisol and my grandmother! We started with a picnic lunch in the back yard, and then went down to the park to play for a while. Got some ice cream on the way back, and dropped her off at home just in time for a nap. Then up to the retirement home to spend some time with my abuela, where a lot of the older men were watching war movies, which we sat in on for a little bit, until it was time for dinner. Kissed her goodbye, and now I'm at home with Pepper and a red, white and blue refresher and a quiet night ahead.

#merrockfunspot #all about lena

[lenavaz]

Happy birthday my dear @lenavaz! I coudkt decide which terranium kit to get you so I got you both. Plus one of them is beach themed and you're my LA sister-friend! Hope you have a great day.

Xoxo,

Tasha

#a gift for lena #;; now i want a terrarium kit!!! #these are both perfect ty! <333