Welcome to 2017…The Year of The Pillow Fort.

in more than meets the eye, Random Crap

Hello, and welcome to 2017.  This year is going to be good.  Sometimes.  Sometimes it’s going to suck.  But I’m in a good place about it in that way where you’ve broken up with someone and you’re finally feeling okay until a sad song comes on and suddenly you’re doing the ugly cry and drinking too much and calling your girlfriends who later think maybe they should have an intervention but then don’t because your fucked-up life is a very entertaining thing to talk about and it’s keeping the gang all together.  Wait.  I forgot what I was talking about.

Oh!  Right.  2017.

So I am proclaiming this year The Year of The Pillow Fort because I am officially insulating myself from the pointless bullshit of life as much as possible.  And while I’m in the pillow fort I’m going to do some things to make life better.  Things like heroin.  Wait, no.  Not that.

Things like finishing the book that I’ve been staring at with anxious paralysis whenever I start to doubt myself.  Things like making one good decision a day.  Things like walking away when someone on the internet is wrong.  Things like waking up before noon and seeing the glorious, ridiculous and fantastic things that are happening all around.  Like yesterday I saw this kite stuck in a tree and I thought, “Wow.  That’s…really pretty.  And probably it super-sucked for someone but look at this lovely accidental art installation that was created from utter disaster.”  Then I decided to take a picture of it to remind me that fuck-ups can be beautiful and so I got out of my car to take a picture but while I was doing it this dog ran past me really fast and it scared me so I turned around and apparently he was being chased by this other dog and I accidentally kicked that dog in the face.  Then I felt really bad and I was like, “OH MY GOD.  I AM SO SORRY.  COME HERE AND LET ME PET YOU BETTER” but he just glared at me and kept chasing the other dog so I guess he was okay.  This story doesn’t wrap up well.  I should have stopped before the dog-kicking stuff.

bloggess-kite

Long story short, I’m still going to be a total fuck-up but I plan on being a slightly different version of fucked up and if things get scary I’m going to hide in my pillow fort.  The one in my mind.  And also in living room most of the time.  And you are invited too.  And when things get scary, and they will, you can come hide with me in the pillow fort of my mind.  It’s going to be messy and crowded and there are gonna be a lot of animals and books and leftover chinese food in there but there is always room for you.  Come on over.

Welcome to 2017 you beautiful, broken things.

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205 thoughts on “Welcome to 2017…The Year of The Pillow Fort.”

Read comments below or add one.

  1. I already cried this year, and it’s barely out of its birth canal. A pillow fort is exactly what the doctor ordered. Thanks Jenny!

  2. And now I want to watch the pillow/blanket fort episodes of Community. While being in a pillow fort. Binge watching Community in a pillow fort, who’s coming? 😀

  3. I need a pillow fort 24/7. Can I bring my cats?
    I got in touch with a therapist and spent the last couple of days at a retreat. Thank you.

  4. I think we can all agree that a much better version of the New Year’s resolution would be to take more pictures of beautiful, fucked up things, and stop our stories before they get to the bit where we kicked a dog. WAY better than “lose weight” and “run every morning” and other shit I won’t ever actually do.

  7. Excellent! I’ll join you there when necessary. I have a smooth rock that I carry all the time (thank goodness it’s perfectly acceptable to wear jeans as dress clothes in Texas because there’s always a pocket for my rock) and my travel gnome who accompanies everywhere so I can deal when I’m away from home. Also thanks for the autographed books! One for a gift and one for meeeeeeee! xoxo

  9. I am determined to be less fucked up in 2017, and I am 2 days in and hollered at my husband because of… well… nothing. But hopefully he will deserve it by the end of the day, so I can then have a 2-day record of less fucked-up-ness.

  10. I’m glad I’ve never ever ever been wrong on the internet before because I’d hate to think u had to resist walking away. (now I sound creepy. Not trying to. My wife says it comes naturally.)

    No pillow forts here, but I’m totally for hiding out in my cave whenever life gets too shitty. Lots more protection from all the bombshells that keep getting dropped on us from somewhere way off to the right.

    Hoping everyone, especially me, has a particularly handle-able new year this time around.

  11. Building pillow forts with my kids is one of the things I miss most since they both aged out of such things. There is no reason I can’t build my own now that they have left the nest. More room for me, and I don’t have to share my Cheez-its and root beer.

  12. happy new year! the thing it will definitely be is new. and i love that you are facing it with full knowledge that it will be a mixed bag – and that failure is a relative thing as your kite photo points out so beautifully! thanks for getting me to look life in the eyes and laugh. and pillows are the best, especially when shared. see you in the fort.

  14. I like that. “Fuckups 2017: Variations on a Theme.” Like Pachelbel’s Canon in D, but maybe not as inspiring. Depending on the circumstances. I’d it were in the iTunes Store, I’d download it, except I’m already living it so I’d just be mad I spent the money. Like, I could have saved that 99 cents for the cat’s college tuition, you know?

    Happy 2017. I’m glad you’re in it.

  15. Well, I’ve got the fucked up part covered – now here’s aiming for some accidental beauty! Thanks for the invite; I hope it doesn’t bother you when I have to rearrange a few of the pillows in your mind-fort, but I can’t deal with clashing patterns on certain days of the week.

  16. Love love love you and CANNOT WAIT to build my own pillow fort, which I shall name after you.

  23. In the words of Kirsten Dunst: Bring. It. On. I hope I don’t get sued now. Pillow forts rock when they are made of slightly overweight (ok, obese) cats and obliging dogs. I prefer my bed to the living room, but everyone has a preference.

    Cheers to a 2017 that so far doesn’t suck too much!!

  24. I need this for 2017. Things are really, really hard right now with my depression being as bad as when I went into a psych ward. So I’m gonna hide in the pillow fort to preserve what sanity and self-control I have left.

  25. I don’t make resolutions but I think taking pictures of beautiful fuckups is a good one. I was about to say 2017 couldn’t be worse than 2016 but I am afraid it would see that as a challenge.

  26. Sorry, I’m not driving to Texas, so I guess I’ll have to buy myself some pillows and get my cats and dog inside my fort. I think it’s a much healthier thing to do than scream at the news. Thanks for your blog, Jenny!

  27. Can we make the walls out of our favorite books? Because thats more my kind of fort.

  28. 2017: The Year of the Pillow Fort sounds SO much better than 2017: Continuation of 2016 and the End of All the Things. Yeah, I like your title better.

    Happy New Year, Jenny. I’ll see you in the fort.

  30. I am hoping for a better and more cope-able 2017 than the year 2016 was, at least on a personal basis. Things got so bad that by GP actually offered to write me a “mental health day” excuse note for work. Next time I see her, I’m going to tell her she needs to call that the pillow fort absentee note. Because crawling in there with my new David Bowie coloring book and making beautiful starmen come alive sounds like a fantastic coping mechanism when things go awry.

  31. Thank you sweet Jenny. I have every intention of taking you up on your offer!

    Also, you should send Hailey up the tree to rescue that kite.

  33. I totally want to share your pillow fort. I resolved to do the same thing: try to separate myself from the bullshit because let’s face it; the bullshit isn’t going to change simply because we’re fretting over it. So I’m going to try and preserve what little sanity I have left and just go about the business of being me without any outside interference. Happy new year gang.

  34. I’ve decided my theme word for the year is going to be SUCCESS. And I’ve told all of my friends that “failure” will not be spoken because everything can be seen as some kind of success if you look at the right way. Unless 2017 is a complete mess, and then my word for 2018 will be FAILURE because things can only get better from that. Works either way.

  35. Pillow fort with my daughter sounds awesome. Shes 16 and has just started treatment for depression/anxiety/self harm. Have talked to her about your books. Hoping she reads them soon. Thank you for being you and helping people by sharing yourself and your struggles. As the person holding the hand of a person struggling I aplaud you.

  36. Thank you Jenny! I will be there for the much needed relax and animals and books and Chinese food. If only it were real and I could do that in real life. But hearing you say you are going to continue to be a different fuck up, and knowing I am, that makes me feel good. Thank you.

  37. Thank you Jenny! A pillow fort sounds just like the bestest idea ever! Bring it on 2017, we have pillow power!

  40. I LOVE pillow forts. And animals. And food. If there is wine there I’m moving in with you! I’ve been in the pillow fort with my son for the last 2 days. Party because he’s been sick and just wants to lay on us and sleep all day. Party because 2016 was rough and I just need to recover so I can start over with the new year.

  41. The first day of 2017 brought the death of the best and only dog I ever loved. All spaces seem too big and barren right now…I will happily crawl into your pillow fort. I’ll share my boxes of puffs plus and fuzzy blanket with any in need.

  43. This year actually seems more hopeful than ever because I checked my horoscope for the year and apparently I have to go out and flirt/meet new people and I also need to go find a therapist (Which is totally true. I need one aha.) But this year I want to be my crazy broken self and not be sorry for it. But I will take you up on the offer for your pillow fort ’cause I know there will be days I’ll need that. 🙂

  44. Well, pillow forts for everyone. I spent the first evening of the year falling apart and crying while washing my dog, which meant I wasn’t paying enough attention to put his halter up out of reach, did not leave him enough blankets to sleep on in his drafty inside porch bedroom so he was cold when my husband got up at five am to a shivering dog who had destroyed his halter. Hubby snuggled with him and retrieved extra blankets so he is okay now. The dog bed I finished for him this week is already too small for his still growing self so he rolled off of it when he fell asleep, which offended his dignity. I am in the midst of sewing dog bed 2.0 which I think I can get through without crying and should still fit by the end of today. If not then my pillow fort will be mostly done out of dog beds. Oh my god, it is still 2016 in my world…….

  45. that kite reminds me of my parrot, whom 2016 took from me. Actually that tree seems a lot like me and him now. he’s trying to fly home and i just cant let him go. hes just motionless there, caught in the offshooting branches of my mind. waiting until a big enough gust of bullshit shakes him loose. a beautiful green feathered blot on my thoughts. i miss you maxxie.

  47. It’s all about intentions, isn’t it? I love that you see beauty in brokenness. That’s beautiful in and of itself. Happy 2017!

  49. This is sounding more and more appealing, except that I’m going to have to get up periodically to do things like work and finish grad school and scoop the litter box (because I don’t think I can train Romeo to poop in the toilet at his age.
    Speaking of toilets, Victor probably already explained all this to you, but thanks to the Interwebs I now know what all the buttons on that Japanese toilet in Furiously Happy stand for! You see, one of my friends in Toronto just got a bidet attached for his toilet that sprays his butt with ice-cold water, which has now led to a 90+-post FB thread that had me laughing so hard I couldn’t breathe; by the time “Alexa, wash my ass” became part of the conversation, I was afraid I was going to suffocate, and so decided to look up Japanese toilets online to save my own life.
    (For those who don’t have a Victor or haven’t already done a search: the top 2 buttons are for flushing, with the Blair Witch being for, um, strong flushing and the “poop won’t go down, use foot” for lighter flushing, so basically it’s the reverse of what you’d expect. The orange button on the left turns the bidet-esque functions off. Boob-washing #1 is the regular strength butt-rinse; boob-washing #2 is the gentler butt-rinse; the woman riding the fountain is for washing your lady garden; and the bacon is for blowdrying your bits with nice warm air. Also, supposedly the reason the toilet plays music is to (a) relax your sphincter so it’s easier to poop–really, I couldn’t make this up–and (b) to cover up all the various noises that occur when relieving oneself of bodily waste, whether solid or liquid; some toilets will even let you hook up an MP3 player, which is giving me some appropriately fiendish ideas…Anyway, there you have it.)

  50. Building my mental pillow fort with you Jenny. Youre work is life saving. Please remember this <3

  51. Building a mental pillow fort with ya! 😉 youre work is life saving Jenny. Please remember this <3

  52. Sandra Boynton already posted a drawing of a bed with a party hat and a 2017 sash lying on it and the previous wearer of said finery hiding under the bed with a very small teddy bear.

    I think that’s kind of where we all are right now

  53. seeing a kite that LOOKS EXACTLY LIKE MY BIRD stuck in a tree does not a good 2017 start, Jenny.
    but i love you anyways
    Onward ho!

  54. I just finished reading Furiously Happy about 5 minutes ago and have not stopped smiling since. I adore the absolute hell out of you, Jenny! Your honesty and courage continually inspire me, and I am so grateful for every word you write. Thank you so much for sharing your journey with us and bringing so much light to this crazy fucked up world!

  55. Thanks for the offer of refuge in your pillow fort. I SO hope 2017 is better than 2016 but at least I have an offer to hunker down in the pillow fort. And thank you for the signed book – something I can also use on those need to go to the pillow fort days.

  56. i feel the same way about approaching the upcoming year. a good part of this will be not paying so much attention to social media while finishing up my book of essays and using social media for that rather than self affirmation. although i guess using it for my book will also be using it for affirmation. to-may-toe, to-mat-toe.

    best to you, jenny!

  57. Looking forward to “Reports From the Pillow Fort” here and on twitter or instagram. I very much need this in my life.

  58. Thank you for giving us a safe place to be ourselves. Save a spot for me in the pillow fort, please. I can contribute M&Ms. Lots of M&Ms. I don’t know why I bought so many Christmas ones, but I did. 🙂

  59. Excellent! It will be like Sherlock’s Mind Palace only safer and less taxing!
    You’re the best!

  60. Jenny, my beloved Dad died just before Christmas. This holiday sucked, so i so need this new year to be one of beauty and hope and renewal. That kite picture pictures exactly that – things not going as you planned but the result being beautiful. My new years resolution is to not let anxiety or sadness blind me to the wonders of every new day. Find beauty and hope in simple things and, if i need to build a pillow fort— then I will use really soft pillows with my kid’s old lion king and little mermaid pillowcases and take joy in that.

  61. My personal “pillow fort” is a place where I am forbidden to read the comments on pretty much any social media post, because I can’t deal with people’s willful ignorance and negativity anymore. I saw a video the other day of a man washing down a garage or something, and jumping over the hose in a little happy dance, and people were slamming him for wasting water, then slamming each other for pretty much existing and it got ugly fast. Nope. Not any more. Pillows….

  62. Thank you!!! I cried when I read it, but it was a good cry. I’m so thankful for you, and your amazing bravery.

  63. A pillow fort is perfect for 2017! I haven’t made a RL pillow fort in so long. Maybe that needs to be a thing in this house. As long as I can bring my current book (Let’s Pretend This Never Happened) and some snacks I’m totally in.

  64. Oh Pillow Fort! Just what we need! Im calling my daughters
    And telling them to bring movies and popcorn!
    I love how you deal with life. Thank you for the inspiration
    And welcome to a better year. It just has to be lol😍

  67. I have a fabulous pillow fort I will share with you too. But my greyhound Miss Irish kind of gets first pick on where she lays!

  69. Please make room for one more. I’d consider myself lucky to be in your company.

  71. “Things like walking away when someone on the internet is wrong.”

    I started doing this last year, but instead of just the internet, it’s my whole existence. Below is the quote that inspired me to do so, from one of my favourite authors/bloggers/podcasters.

    Argumentation is wasted on enemies and strangers. Arguing is something you should do with people whom you know and respect, because you want what is best for them and for you, and because their opinion matters to you. Argue within your circle. Fuck everyone else. – Jack Donovan

  72. Please also accept my umbrella from the impending shitstorm of 2017. 😬😁 We can do this. My goal for the year involves petty fluffy beings, surviving, and trying to be a better human. Pillow fortifications are on the list now too.

  73. 2017 has been sucky for me so far too. I have strep throat and a sinus infection. I’ve managed to get through the days with crochet when possible.
    I love pillow forts. We need to add a ball pit in there too. I’m a sucker for ball pits.

  74. Hi! -waves tentatively- Can I bring my dog with me to the pillow fort of your mind or would Ferris Mewler react badly to him? I am actaully hiding in a literal pillow fort as I type this because social anxiety… BUT that’s not important; hiding in the pillow fort of your mind and having some other people strange, awesome to hide with sounds rather fun, my best friend aside, as she doesn’t count, as she is basically my twin but not?? Oh well. Popcorn and snacks all around! And I’ll finally have somewhere for my stacks of books! I really needed to read this. Thank you for everything you’ve written.

  75. I’ll be there with you, probably sooner rather than later…thanks, Jenny!

  76. I am reserving my spot. 2017 is two days old and she has already dished me out a diagnosis of pneumonia and a brother in the hospital. I need a pillow fort. And mashed potatoes, which seemed like the only thing that sounded good so I made some.

  77. I was totally with you in the library in 2013 (ALL YEAR). I am totally behind a pillow fort! I’ll bring bacon and hot chocolate and my velveteen rabbit. And my pillow. <3

  79. I heard something that makes me look forward for this new year: “make new mistakes”. This year I will not chase for being right, I will do lot’s of mistakes, but I will not do same mistakes. That’s a relief. Be kind to myself.

  80. Beauty does occur in the unexpected, and maybe does evolve from misfortune. I really like your 2017 kick-off. Save me a seat in the fort when I need one?

  81. Sounds AMAZEBALLS!!! ( Seems like the dog kickin was needed to Give the other guy a head start) I find myself laughin like a fool reading some of your posts while others I can’t seem to see for the tears welling up PLEASE know from a wierdo in Canada that YOU MAKE A DIIFFERENCE !!!!! THANK UUUU

  82. Mental Pillow Fort is the new name for my garage band.
    My goal this year is to try to be more forgiving of myself for being extremely imperfect. So far, I’ve been imperfect at that, but I did finally clean the stove.

  83. Jenny, I love your “kick-off” to the new year. I also love the idea of a pillow fort in my mind. I’m building one now, and then I’m going to decorate it. Your books mean so much to me, and as soon as I get paid I’m going to pre-order your newest!

  85. For me this is the year of the cosplay. I’m hiding from the bad by making an 18th century outfit because I’ve always wanted to so there. I’ll find an excuse to wear it someday. I may even wear it in a pillow fort.

  86. You, my friend, have a massive case of serendipity. It’s actually a blessing- not a curse! It is the lucky tendency to find interesting or valuable things by chance. Happy “gnu” Year- ’cause a gnu is majestical, like a unicorn, only ugly.

  91. I seriously hope you know how much you are loved and appreciated by even those of us who don’t suffer from mental illness. You help us understand. You help us empathize. You make us laugh which we all need and you help us cry which we also need. God bless you Jenny. I want you to live next door.

  92. Have you watched Dirk Gently? This year I’m going to be like Todd’s sister Amanda in episode 3.

  93. This sounds good to me and makes a lot of sense. I’ll bring pizza. Did you know that pizza and cheese doodles are extremely addictive? And legal? Life is good.

  95. I don’t make resolutions because I just break them and disappoint myself and I already disappoint enough people without disappointing myself. However, this year I did make one. I vowed to be brave. Because I’ve spent the last 53 years being afraid of everything and 53 years is long enough. Towanda!

  96. I loved this post and I concur. We should insulate ourselves from bullshit because it will help us in the long run to spend more time doing what we love and being open and kind to the people who are important to us.

  98. Your invitation has perfect timing. Anxiety and depression are battling for supremacy over PTSD, ADHD has thrown its hands in the air to say ohfuckwithitall, the newest meds have added palpitations to the stew, and the shrink asked me what I’d like to try next. W.T.A.F. More pullows, please.

  99. “I should have stopped before the dog-kicking stuff.”

    This sentence made me laugh maybe more than it should have. Never stop before the dog kicking stuff – that’s what people love about you. The fact that you don’t!

  100. I totally want to build a pillow fort. A real one, out of actual pillows. Jenny, you are a genius. ❤

  101. All I have to add is we need booze! Also, I hope accidentally kicking a dog in the face is not a prerequisite. ❤️️

  102. Good! Make this gigantic pillow fort and herd everybody in there so I can be alone! Greta Garbo had it right!

  103. Super-YES! to giant mental pillow forts. Have you seen Stephen Colbert’s blanket fort segments on his show? They’re precious.

    I don’t know how to do make it myself, but I think the kite picture needs to become a coloring page somehow. It would be super awesome if someone in The Tribe could make it happen & share it with us. Please? Thank you, lovelies.

  104. Your book is going to be awesome. Even if it was just a stapled together set of the drawings you have already posted I would still buy it because they have helped me so much when I really needed them. Also I accidentally punched my cat in the face when putting on my shirt (he was fine!) so your dog story made me feel better too. Thank you for being you, and sharing yourself with all of us 🙂

  105. I’m in. Getting the rest of my friends to build a pillow fort with me in the library. We will stock it with cookies and coloring books, including yours when it comes out. Should be handy for midterms.

  108. I love you, Jenny. You always seem to say the right things in the craziest ways and for that I am grateful. I am also very grateful for Beyonce because it was that post that introduced me to you and pretty much you’ve been a rock in my life ever since. You are amazing and I’d be proud to bring some Chinese take-out to your pillow fort.

  110. YES! I actually brought in 2017 in a blanket fort that faced our projector screen while I watched Penny Dreadful and drank sparkling grape juice. It set the same tone for me. This year, I want to live intentionally. I want to question myself to make sure my decisions and actions are serving me in some way, even if my chosen action is to hide in bed and stare at the wall. No more mindless drifting through life. More self-care, self-love, and literal blanket forts at least once a month. Maybe I’ll even let my husband join me once in awhile.

  112. My. 2017 is starting with a double surgery tomorrow: rhinoplasty and tonsillectomy. Totally blows, but my mom (retired nurse) is coming to stay with me for a week to help me, so that’s rad. My 2016 also ended AMAZINGLY with the James Garfield Miracle giving my son the most amazing and Hamilton-filled Xmas of his dreams, and for that I am so grateful.

    So I’m just taking 2017 day by day, hour by hour even if I need to. Sometimes the smallest bits of beauty like your tree kite, a pillow fort, or my current mounds of blankets and cats are what gets you through the day. ❤❤️

  114. Need to find a way to have a mesh floor, like cages in pet stores, so that when I drop popcorn and stuff it doesn’t mess up the pillow fort. Possibly padded mesh. I will investigate this. Can I bring dogs & cats? Also books and notebooks and pencils and this sounds like heaven. Note to self: do not quit your job and begin living in a pillow fort full time. The children need you even when they say they don’t.

  116. I’m lying here in hospital with no idea at this stage when they’ll release me. Bright side, I got a great view of the city’s New Year’s fireworks. Dark side … I’m in hospital with no privacy and crap food.

    I need someone to come and build a pillow for around my bed. Failing that, can I move into tight mind, Jenny?

  117. Second day in and I am already having a crying headache. Pillow fort may just be the answer. That, and kicking all the holiday visitors out of my house.

  119. I think we are all going to need more than a pillow fort…but it can still be awesome…we just need to do our own thing and let others do theirs..

  121. Ok so I was two hours in to the new year and had a nervous breakdown but in the end realized I was really lucky. It all started over my expensive dress form that I haven’t had long and bearly used falling apart. Well that’s not were it started but the last straw and as I’m breaking down my friends mom is trying to help me fix it when all she wanted to do was go to bed. When we finally got it fixed after two hours she looked at me and says “I’m really impressed I would have started throwing shit.” I told her I really wanted to. In the end I was really happy because it showed me there are people that will stay up with you in the middle of the night and not judge you when you freak the f*** out. That was the beauty in my disaster.

  122. Does your pillow fort include a special room where one is allowed to curl up in a fetal position, be periodically nuzzled by small puppies and kitties and served regular portions of yummy alcohol? If so, boy howdy, I need to reserve that space through 2018.

  123. I have given myself permission to take a break from the garbage whenever I need to. If that means turning off the car radio every time Trumpertantrum’s name is mentioned, so be it. If it means less time on social media, I guess so be that, too. More reading and writing and doing good things for myself and others.

    I think it’s important that we are kind to ourselves because we can’t guarantee on a given day that other people WILL be.

    Happy New Year, and may the words flow on to the page for you.

  125. Mine’s a quilt fort, cause I’m a quilter. Everybody gets quilts. And also pillows. Next up, quilted pillows.

  128. I think it’s key to get outside. That kite is Beautiful!!!
    I worked waaaay too hard in 2016, so this is the year of The Big Chill for me. Work hard, play harder! Here’s to more Playtime. clink

  129. My resolution for 2017 is CHOOSE TO BE HAPPY, but I will need a pillow fort as a backup plan

  130. You are beautiful. I’m with you all the way. Can I bring snacks?
    Dorothy (not Barker)

  132. Love the idea, but I think I need pillows made of flak jackets and kevlar for my fort~

  134. So … I ran across this video on Facebook last night and felt that I had to share it with you since you love taxidermy and all that. I shared it on my Facebook page and most of my friends think it’s disturbing. I thought it was pretty hilarious. My son thinks it’s funny. My husband thinks it’s weird. (Just one more example of how my son takes after me.) I’d like to know what YOU think.

    Happy new year!

    https://www.facebook.com/ajplusenglish/videos/868620876612754/

  135. Pillow Fort. Why didn’t I think k of that. I just went back into hermit status.

  136. The kite in the tree reminded me…

    There’s a house on the corner that got toilet-papered about two weeks ago. There’s toilet paper streamers hanging in the dead branches of all the trees, toilet paper covering the lawn, in short, it was either someones creative idea to make it look like snow, or it was a teenage prank. The people who live in the house are choosing to ignore it. They’re home, they come and go, but they couldn’t give a F— about the toilet paper. Now great swaths of TP are blowing into the neighbors’ yards. The street is clotted with TP. The gutters are full of it. And these people still don’t give a
    F—. There are times I wish I had that ability.

  139. Things going well until husband broke my favorite and most monetarily valuable Christmas ornament that I have so much longer than I have had him. Flew into one of my rages. Retreated to the pillow fort. Sick to my stomach. The chicken fingers I was looking forward to will have to wait. Sigh.

  140. My version of a pillow fort is usually a long soak in a hot bath, but I like the idea of it, what with all the necessity of it, these days. To be honest, I didn’t come to read this until just stepping out of my “pillow fort” ( ^ )

  141. This year I need your pillow fort. I’m more broken than I’ve ever been, in ways I can’t yet identify, so a pillow fort is exactly what I need. Thank you for sharing yours!

  143. My daughter asked me to turn her into a burrito with her blanket. Then she lay there and said “can I just stay like this until summer mommy?” I might join her.

  146. That cat copter is kinda sick, but I like the rat copter. It seems more stealthy. How did the ostrich become road kill? I would think you could see it coming and avoid destroying your car. Anyway, thanks for the pillow fort invite Jenny. I’m going to have to modify that and attach a pillow barn for the horses. They’re really good at deflecting BS and other people’s drama. I accidently kicked (more of a tap really) one of my minis tonight while climbing over the stall guard, but she forgave me and still gave me my goodnight kiss.

  147. I love when I’m recommending your stuff to people and then you prove me right and take it up a notch.
    I LOVE being right!
    And we were talking about a bunk bed fort!! With crayons and cookies 🙂

  149. I have made my self a ‘bedwomb” in my basement and made the decision to stop sleeping in the same bedroom as my husband (I made the decision to stop being in the same bed two years ago as he is all legs and arms and I have fibro and everytime he would bump me, I felt like killing him). Best decision ever! I got myself a pink tent bed (check them out on Amazon) as there can be mice and spiders of unusual size and centipedes in the basement and I would never sleep if I had to always worry about something being in the bed with me other than a Hemsworth brother…and I painted half the room in three different pinks (got too cold down there to finish the other walls) and got a pink Flokai (?) rug and put my lazy arse recliner and a small desk and a fake woodstove and some pink and glittery spotted sheers to separate the two parts of the “womb”. And here I sit, swathed in a giant pink robe under a dreamy pink super soft blanket and I can just feel my blood pressure dropping. There is something about being surrounded by pink that is so calming and relaxing, oh and the nightly Ativan I take for sleep helps too! I highly recommend a room of one’s own and a great set of ear plugs or headphones to block out all noise. I hope when the Grim Reaper comes for me, I will be reading a good book with a cup of great coffee in my womb. 2017 could either be a great year for me or one of tremendous stress and I will ride it out no matter what tucked safely in my “Pink Place of Peace”!

  150. Once upon a time I saw a pirate kite stuck in a tree and the tail was hanging down so I tugged on it and it came loose so I tugged a bunch more times and THE KITE CAME FREE. Right down into my arms! I rescued a pirate kite from a horrible fate. Your kite is very pretty and thanks for sharing all this with us. Happy 2017, the year of the kite!

  151. Well I am now changing my address to Pillow Fort Worth Texas! Lets see if the post office has a sense of humor. Thank you for you! jg

  152. I made it to Day 2 before bad news descended. Still 24 hours or so wasn’t bad. Baby steps. But bright side…eating better and being more environmentally proactive. So there’s that.

  153. I walk to keep the darkness at bay – -sometimes it works, sometimes not so much. But there is a place I walk past where the ground dives off into a ditch of blackberry brambles that no fairytale prince could ever get thru where a single metallic festive balloon lies…lays…fuck, I can never remember which – stuck and forgotten – sinking and collapsing lower every time I pass by and it’s so beautiful to me. And I think no one knows it’s there but me. …,But it matters. So much.

  154. Does Charlie Brown live in your neighbourhood Jenny? I think you accidentally kicking the dog in the face was karma for it being a bully and chasing another dog, I wouldn’t feel bad about kicking it.

    The pillow fort sounds awesome, I’m in, you had me at animals and books.

  155. If any year needs a pillow fort, it’s this one. I’ll bing chocolate. And wine.

  156. Every evening when I log out of Facebook I post either a photo of a comforting bed/bedroom or an awesome pillow fort and place myself in it in my imagination; sharing your pillow fort during the tough times will be a bonus. (Although, since it will also have blankets, maybe we should call it a pillket fort or a blankow fort. Or not.) All the best in 2017, Jenny. We’ll be here for you during all its days.

  158. This made me smile. My almost four year old had an enormous melt-down today after another child pretended to be a spider in the playpark. Fun. Fun. Fun. Not fun. Not fun. Stop. Don’t bite me. Meltdown. Carried her home like a squirming plank. Nothing would calm her. So I stopped trying to…and just built a pillow ‘nest’ on the bed. She climbed inside. We pulled the covers up over the top, and I held my arms up in a circle to hold it up. She called it a ‘huggle cave’. Couldn’t put it better myself. Sometimes you have to stop trying to help and just make some shelter for the ones you love, make sure it’s ready when they want it. xxx

  161. Apparently I’m not the web genius I thought I was and don’t know how to put a picture on here. But you can Google it. I’m a grown-ass woman but I want one of those bed tents. Is that so wrong?

  162. Nothing wrong with bed tents. When I was very small I used to open the windows in my mother’s bedroom on good summer days and let the wind in, then anchor the corners of the sheet, and catch the wind underneath it. And Crawl Inside. Incredibly soothing.

    When this so called election happened, I shut down. Politics does not exist. What that idiot man does has nothing to do with me, in any way, unless he comes banging on the door. News does not exist if it involves political anything. I don’t follow it on the computer, or on TV or the radio. It’s only four years, and I won’t have missed much. Make it a rule to yourself to stay away from the gee whiz commentators, turn em off, shut em down, leave the room.

    A good read, if you’ve never run across her before, is Elizabeth Berg. She’s sassy, and funny, and her flawed characters always sound like women I know. Or am.

  163. addendum: in my mother’s bedroom, too, there was a long narrow closet and I sometimes would trek all the way to the back of it, where the old army quilts were kept. There were probably three or four of them, and I would curl up in there, in the soft dark, and fall asleep. I miss those quilts, and that closet, but I do carry the memory of it with me.

  165. The plushie squid will be in the pillow fort too? Also, I totally bought one of those Niffler models a week ago! How much do we all love the Niffler? They really missed the boat on merchandising him. I would buy a plushie, a jewellery stand, a hoodie with a pouch…the list goes on. (P.S. 2017 has to be ok because, horcruxes aside, 7 is the number of power, as established in Harry Potter book 6.)

  166. “Things like walking away when someone on the internet is wrong.”
    This may be the best exercise program ever. Make sure you have good, comfy shoes. 🙂

  167. I pillow-forted at Ikea two days out of three, with the in-between day consisting of my husband putting together two Alexes for me, and me tossing mesh metal pieces of Lennart that I couldn’t put together onto the floor, and my husband asking me if I was six.

    Ikea is an alternative universe with lots of bright colors, and we go early so there aren’t that many people, even though I hate mornings. But yesterday they ran out of breakfast, the main reason my husband will go with me. So we had to move to the lunch line, and very nice people let us in although they were ahead of us, since they saw the breakfast line people were suddenly foodless.

    We also met a nice Ikea person who I told should have a “BRAIN” sign on her forehead, since she helped us figure out a little hack to make one of the Alexes work for us better. By the time we left there were way too many people, and it was hard fighting our way through the kids’ section but you have to follow the arrows to escape, and we finally did it.

  168. You mean it is really, truly, OK if all I want to do some days (um…..maybe many days…..) is hide in my pillow fort with my dogs and cat? You mean that it is possible to be fucked-up, broken, maimed, and haunted (yes, I’m very much all those things) and still be…..beautiful?? Or, at least, worthwhile?
    It is hard for me to believe that.
    But thank you so very much for saying so.
    Love to you, Jenny.

  169. I definitely feel you. I kept my husband up until 6am expressing my insecurities and crying. I have hope, but my inner critic is so incredibly nasty it is hard to cope sometimes. I want to join the pillow fort in your mind and leave her outside.

  170. My friend sent me a Christmas gift of a David-Bowie-in-“Labyrinth”, which made me cry, because I still miss him. So if I come to the pillow fort party, am I allowed to bring this pillow, even if it’s going to make me cry? Or is that defeating the whole point of Pillow Fort Club. Or is the first rule of Pillow Fort Club that there is no Pillow Fort Club? Nobody sends me newsletters anymore. I don’t know what the protocol is. But I really need to find a good spot for this pillow.

    Jareth is just staring at me. Smirking. Like he’s judging my struggles.

    Forget about the baby.

  172. You spoke to my soul. … you and your followers. I need to make a pillow fort coat that I can wear 24/7 to cushion myself from all the owies that keep piercing my heart. Thought I was out of tears; apparently not.

  173. I am SO going to try that “walk away from the internet when someone is wrong” thing…because I mostly just can’t help myself (especially when I’M right) and always am putting my two cents (or twelve dollars and thirty-five cents…because I tend toward verbosity) in when no one really cares (even if I think it’s insightful and precise and correct, and mostly funny). But I always end up flagellating myself because it only creates contention and then I get huffy and have to respond again, which escalates things and then I realize that all I’m doing is scattering negativity instead of sunshine (which is hard when you’re mostly depressed all the time). So I need to do this!! Thank you for suggesting it.

  175. Ok, so made it to day 3 without entering your pillow fort. It is really roomy in here and not at all fucked up. Wait…it could just be me that thinks that because the reason I’m in here is because I’m fucked up and completely torpedoed my first day back at work by forgetting my disk drive password…colossal fuck up. Help desk Diego was really worth waiting the 78 minutes and even told me that I’m not an idiot…what a great guy. Though he did make it so I have to actually work…hmmmm. Sure hoping that during what I hope will be a short sojourn in the fort, that I don’t get a kick to the face. It would be accidental (see the dog post) of course, but even so. Thanks for sharing your much needed mind pillow fort , I totally can’t wait to tell me shrink Jodi about it tomorrow! This is genius! Much love to you oh beautiful Blogess… xxxooo

  176. OK I misread the title as Year of the Pillow Fart. Your way is friendlier… Although I guess that depends on your friends….

  177. I read your blog and I metaphorically just asked you to marry me. I am so 50 shades of blue and I have a very good reason to be happy blue and sad blue. I will bring balloons and bubbles and even some bubble wrap to get things popping. I love the way you literally just made me feel free from the same old shit and I have a greater appreciation for all things fucked up. I have been working on this exact concept for a few weeks and I have seen a tremendous amount of possibilities arise from the proverbial ashes of my torched world. You my dear, are an inspiration and I will be waiting for you to sign my own copy of your book some day. Insist on having a spot for a scratch and sniff of book smells and I have many a pillow or something like that to share with us fortunate hermits. I will be busy with my tree house but I invite you all to see the progress. I have to find a strong tree and it will have tea service and goodies. Happy birthday to life! L’chaim!

  178. My daughter has decided 2017 is the Year of the Bundt Cake. So you guys can hang out in your pillow fort eating Bundt Cake and all will be well.

  179. I’m hopefully optimistic……. my husband can’t have any less of a job than he does right now, right?

    Send motivational thoughts his way, people!! (anyone in SoCal know anywhere that wants to hire a ridiculously smart guy? Telecommunications/network engineering background, but the dude can seriously do anything….

  180. Also… can I just say that I just read the title of the post right there as “Year of the Pillow Fart” and then giggled non-stop for a while? Because that totally happened. And I feel a little lighter for it….

  181. Funny enough I also read the title as “Pillow Fart” and the best part about that? On this blog, it would haven’t surprised me in the least if that would have been the actual name. And that’s exactly why I keep reading 🙂

  183. I’m sorry, Jenny, to hear about your marriage ending. I’m sorry for all concerned. But you can do it. You can be there for yourself and Hailey, and, someday, for Victor because everyone is hurting. Don’t feel ashamed. It happens to most people. But try to think funny–you can be the Carrie Fisher of divorce.

  185. I love your posts. Almost as much as I love your posts? I love the comments on your posts. Some of these people are so fucking funny and just amazing!

  186. And this is why I love you! You are so generous and wonderful and you just get it! I want to come in to your pillow fort and just escape the rest of the world with you! The drive from NY to Texas isn’t even an issue. You are my hero Jenny!

  187. I’m going to hide in that pillow fort cause 2017 is shaping up to suck bad too. My daughter got fired from her job because she had a manic episode at work and even though it’s her first and she didn’t do anything wrong they fired her. She also got friend zoned from this guy she was seeing all because she was hospitalized for a manic episode. Plus the gift I gave her for Christmas while she was in the hospital is missing a part so she can’t use it to make smoothies. I’m in the fort with my daughter until all this crap is over.

  189. Oh Jenny I hope you read this cause I got the perfect thing you need to tell Victor will help you get your kite and save the world… cause anyone with a flying cat can save the world.

  190. To Pam at 183, I think you should read the post again, cause Jenny isn’t getting a divorce.

  191. I’m in. I’m a nurse and quite literally hours into my first shift of the new year (on January 1st) I had to get tested for all sorts of fun bloodhound diseases because I got stuck by a dirty needle. I’m fine, but 2017 is not starting off great.

  192. “in that way where you’ve broken up with someone and you’re finally feeling okay until a sad song comes on and suddenly you’re doing the ugly cry and drinking too much and calling your girlfriends who later think maybe they should have an intervention but then don’t because your fucked-up life is a very entertaining thing to talk about and it’s keeping the gang all together. Wait. I forgot what I was talking about.” Sorry, my bad. It sounded like divorce to me and a lot of bitter anger.

  194. Love the pillow fort. Certainly going to join you sounds cozy💕 will bring books I keep intending to read but get too distracted by nonsense😄

  195. PILLOW FORT. That is exactly what I need to deal with 2017. I need to stock up on more pillows.

  198. If every pork chop were perfect we’d never have hot dogs.
    It’s my new motto.

  200. Dear Jenny,

    2017 has started in about as bad a way as the year can start. On Wednesday the 3rd, I was admitted to the local hospital for congestive heart failure and as a result I have had quadruple coronary bypass surgery.

    Now I know there are lots of who have suffered worse than I have in terms of losing loved ones or things like this, but this is actually a symptom of a larger and far worse killer.

    In short, I don’t have a support network in place to help me. While my younger daughter is coming to help for a month, it’s barely a scratch on the surface for what I need. As I have been on disability for years for depression I have seen the social network that one needs to survive shrink until it’s almost non-existent for me. i have no reliable forms of transportation to get to my follow-up appointments, I can barely get down the stairs of my apartment to get anywhere, much less to the closest bus stop. I have no friends here upon whom I can rely with any sense of reliability to help me out in this endeavor. Not only that, but after my daughter leaves to go back home, most of my after-hospital care still remains to be completed.

    I’m not a bad person and I don’t beat up kitties (especially the two who live with me) but without the kind of care and support that is needed, my life is only going to go downhill from here.

    Frankly, I’m at a loss as to what to do. I’m tired of mindless platitudes on social media which offer a faux pat on the back for surviving this long. A person needs people to provide physical support (and I’m not talking about money) and to be there when needed. i have none of that.

    I guess what I’m hoping is that your network will have enough compassion on somebody like me to get me through this, the roughest patch of my life.

    (That sounds like a world of hassle and I’m so sorry that you’re having to deal with this alone. If you want to leave another comment with your city maybe there is someone here who lives there and can help. Also, churches often have help for this sort of thing and often there are social services that can help. It depends on the city but there are often options. Call your local churches and ask them for suggestions. Call your hospital and ask the same. Leave a comment with specifics and maybe someone local that’s here can help. I’m sending you love. ~ Jenny)

  203. Pingback: The Blah Grays | wanderinglynn

  205. thank you for your welcoming pillow fort

    I am struggling with sadness and having a really hard time with a ‘breakup’, though not sure it’s really a breakup if it only was, well, complicated. Hard to let go of something that isn’t good for you most of the time when it has moments of being really good for you. If that makes sense. Probably doesn’t. anyway, been reading through old blog messages and it’s really nice how they make me smile

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