Today is Monday, August 31, 2026
Issue #327 ~ By Rachel Brandes
“I live for my sons. I would be lost without them.”
– Princess Diana
27 Years Ago Today
On this very morning, August 31st, 27 years ago, a beautiful baby entered this world in an expedited fashion. It was approximately two hours from water breaking, rushing to the hospital, getting the on-call doctor in the room and there he was, Alec Michael Brandes. He was two weeks early weighing 8lbs 3oz. Impatience continues to be one of his character traits to this day. Alec has grown into an incredible young man with a caring heart. Rachel couldn’t be prouder of him. Happy Birthday, Alec!
Feline Tomfoolery
By Brady Wilfork Snugglebum & Belichick McDaniels Runtzilla
Here I am trying to get the human’s attention for a little game of hide and seek but that darn brother of mine has her wrapped around his little finger. Why does he always have dandruff?
– Brady
I sure do. She loves when I lay on her lap during work and especially when I help her type. I have dandruff because I prefer to live the life of a unkempt feline. The human loves me either way.
– Belichick
Moments by Mira
www.everafterphotograpypnw.com
Located in Gig Harbor, Washington, Ever After Photography PNW is owned and operated by Mira Nachtigall, a long-time friend of Rachel.
Mental Health Minute
Image shared from Instagram account myselflovesupply.
Namastadium
Will they, or won’t they?
When she woke on Saturday morning, Rachel was excited for the day. She would get to talk with her dear friend, Michelle, and then head to Rice-Eccles Stadium in Salt Lake City, Utah (home of the University of Utah Utes) to attend Namastadium. This would be her second year attending the event. Picture this… a football stadium void of spectators but a field full of yoga mats. It is a sight to behold.
She figured she would get in a walk while she chatted with Michelle. She got as far as the sidewalk when the downpour came. She headed for her car and drove to a parking lot to watch the show. The forecast certainly didn’t look promising for yoga at 10 AM on a football field.
The bonus was that she got to enjoy rain and the sounds of thunder rumbling overhead. Being a pluviophile, she was in a wonderful mood. She eventually headed towards the stadium and finished her call. A crowd was already forming inside. It turned out that due to the lightening, participants had to wait to enter the field.
She learned that there was an 8-mile radius in which was being watched. If there was a lightning strike within that 8-mile radius, the field had to be cleared, and a countdown of 30 minutes would start before anyone was allowed on the field. When the go ahead was given, the field was flooded with eager participants.
When Rachel ran into Tyler (yoga instructor from last week’s Good Intentions Club), they chatted for moment and then he introduced her to a gal by the name of Tracy. Tracy was a first timer and neighbor of Tyler. Rachel and Tracy had a great getting to know you conversation while they waited for the event to begin.
When they spotted Denise Druce, the event coordinator, take center stage, they were ready. Denise welcomed the participants and received a heartfelt round of applause. Then… a stadium official approached her. Lightening within the 8-mile radius. Everyone off the field for at least 30 minutes.
Some people gathered all of their belongings, like Rachel, and others left their mats in anticipation of returning to the field. Now, imagine this if you will, 1700 tickets were sold for this event. Plenty of people likely stayed home due to the forecast. If you imagine half of the ticket holders attended, you are still looking at 850 people walking off the field and into a banquet room.
It took about 60 seconds before Rachel felt a panic attack coming as her 5’4″ body was surrounded in a crowd of people towering her. Then the announcement came overhead advising of the 600-person limit for the room and requesting people move to other areas of the building. As she frantically made her way through the crowd to escape, she ran into Tyler. She told him she needed to get out. He could likely tell by her demeanor that she was in a panic. Tyler, well over 6-feet tall, navigated her out of the room and up the stairwell to safety.
When she reached the door, she came upon others trying to leave. It turned out that a massive downpour had begun as she made her way to the door. As that small space filled up with everyone waiting for a break in the downpour, she got more and more uncomfortable and headed outside.
As her brain was in panic mode, she wasn’t able to focus well and couldn’t find her car. She finally stopped (she was soaked anyway) and stood still in the rain, she took a deep breath, pulled out her phone and used her Subaru app to locate her car. Ah, the calm finally set in and she could focus.
Through social media, she learned that the lightening kept the event from the field but there was a bit of yoga done inside the building. She was glad she went, despite the forecast, and glad she got to see Tyler and meet Tracy. She is already looking forward to next year’s event and hopes for warmer weather.
One last thing. Tyler. Tyler was Rachel’s hero on Saturday. If you have ever suffered from a panic disorder, you will get it. If not, you will just have to take her word for it that it was a huge deal that he was there at the right time. Enjoy Tyler in all his glory when Rachel videoed him skipping through the crowd and spreading joy.
Saturday certainly didn’t turn out the way Rachel had expected but she was able to pull all of the positives from the experience. Enjoy your week ahead, and until next, be well.
Feel free to stick around (below) and like, rate, share and comment (direct to Rachel). She is always looking for content ideas and would love input.