...birthday suit...
Happy Birthday to my wonderful husband Jeremy! Like a fine wine, he gets better every year (and he was definitely not bad at all to begin with!) Jeremy brings much happiness into my life, and others as well. I don't know what I would do without you sweet potato! I love you!
Last Saturday we paused for lunch at the New York Deli and Bakery, then continued on our walk to Forest Hill Cemetary. This is all only a few blocks from our house, and happens to be the final resting spot of my Mama (Mom's mom), her parents Tola and Herbert, Herbert's parents, his sister and her husband, and Tola's brother and his wife, as well as a future plot for my Daddad...which is a little creepy to look at as he is still very much alive. Anyway, on Sunday was the 15 year anniversary of Mama's passing, so we went to say hello. We ended up walking around the cemetary (which is huge) for over an hour...checking out crazy mausoleums, and interesting tombstones. As we headed for the gates, we noticed that the crows had formed a barrier that we must cross. I got a little nervous, and prepared to offer them something shiny, but they were distracted and took off for some nearby trees. Silly crows.
Saturday night we got to hang out at Scot and Marla's place. It was Scot's birthday, but he failed to tell us that! So...Scot...I'm outing you publically...happy birthday again...late... Anyway, we had a good time, and were the first to arrive and the last to leave. Why, do you ask? Because we are those people.
Sunday was Mary's flute performance. She is getting her PhD in flute, so this was no ordinary, 4th grade concert. It let me see a whole new side of Mary. We enjoyed it a lot.
Today the temperature is in the 70s. Why am I in here typing? Oh yeah...Jer is in the shower, then we are going out. I'm looking forward to these upcoming days as there are many things I get to cook for our two Thanksgiving feast we get to attend...fruit salad, nutloaf, chocolate raspberry birthday cake, Fafa's (my great grandpa Herbert) caramels, Birdie's (my Dad's Mom's mom) swedish pecans, cheddar cheese buttermilk biscuits...drool...plus, soon I will start printing various cards - some to sell and some to send out for the holidays! Yay! I love having things to do. The more I have to do, the better I use my time.
Happy Birthday again, Jer.
Wednesday, November 19
...just like josh...
You are the Low-Fidelity All-Star. You were born
with your cool, and it's totally natural. You
run the gamut from Hipster Supreme (only they
can ingest as much coffee as you) to the geeky
hipster (Mario Kart, anyone?).
What Kind of Hipster Are You?
brought to you by Quizilla
You are the Low-Fidelity All-Star. You were born
with your cool, and it's totally natural. You
run the gamut from Hipster Supreme (only they
can ingest as much coffee as you) to the geeky
hipster (Mario Kart, anyone?).
What Kind of Hipster Are You?
brought to you by Quizilla
Monday, November 10
...much more relaxed...
On Friday, since Jeremy didn't have to work, we had a nice little date of slices of Joe's pizza, and seeing Lost In Translation at the Tivoli. It was a very sweet movie, and shot nicely. When we returned home, I treated myself to a nice, warm bath with my new bath salts and the rest of a bottle of white wine to sip. Ahhhh. I feel much better than earlier in the week.
Saturday we not only got the pleasure of hanging out with Kris and Joanna, but we got to babysit 1 1/2 year old Nora for a couple of hours. I just want to make her laugh all the time! She was so much fun to play with, and she talks a lot.
Besides all of this, I have been fairly non-stop working on my easy-cut print blocks for my alphabet cards. I got the material on Thursday, and I haven't been able to keep my hands off of it.
Well, it's just past one a.m. and my hands are chilly...I spy Frank on the futon, so I think I am going to go steal some of his body heat.
On Friday, since Jeremy didn't have to work, we had a nice little date of slices of Joe's pizza, and seeing Lost In Translation at the Tivoli. It was a very sweet movie, and shot nicely. When we returned home, I treated myself to a nice, warm bath with my new bath salts and the rest of a bottle of white wine to sip. Ahhhh. I feel much better than earlier in the week.
Saturday we not only got the pleasure of hanging out with Kris and Joanna, but we got to babysit 1 1/2 year old Nora for a couple of hours. I just want to make her laugh all the time! She was so much fun to play with, and she talks a lot.
Besides all of this, I have been fairly non-stop working on my easy-cut print blocks for my alphabet cards. I got the material on Thursday, and I haven't been able to keep my hands off of it.
Well, it's just past one a.m. and my hands are chilly...I spy Frank on the futon, so I think I am going to go steal some of his body heat.
Monday, November 3
...one toe over the edge...
I screamed at a man on the phone this morning...he's with the Mayflower moving company. We got a letter in the mail today that just made a rage brew in me. I wish my screaming could have penetrated the heart of the corporate beast like a sword...be felt throughout the whole body...make it quake and question. Instead I was yelling at an outer scale. I don't feel fully sorry for doing it, though I always feel pretty bad for yelling at anyone.
It brought up lots of issues. I'm partly feeling the sting of realizing my own naivete and stupidity regarding the move, and it sucks having to admit it's not all on somebody else. It also just transported me back to those days of summer, when everything was so right for awhile, and then just got dashed into the ground. I guess I've been suppressing a lot of sadness towards what happened with my dad. I just released it all on Jeremy...poor guy. Then I felt the sudden need to blindly write something down here. I don't really need to talk to anyone specifically, I guess I just need to have something concrete come out of me...something I can look at. Things aren't that bad. I love my husband, myself, our life, our cats, friends, family, our house. Sometimes I need to realize it's okay to embrace sadness, and that it doesn't have to be put in a spot where no one can see it.
So...now I'm realizing other people besides me look at this. Uh...hi...please don't think I'm crazy or depressed. I'm normal...yeah...normal... :)
I screamed at a man on the phone this morning...he's with the Mayflower moving company. We got a letter in the mail today that just made a rage brew in me. I wish my screaming could have penetrated the heart of the corporate beast like a sword...be felt throughout the whole body...make it quake and question. Instead I was yelling at an outer scale. I don't feel fully sorry for doing it, though I always feel pretty bad for yelling at anyone.
It brought up lots of issues. I'm partly feeling the sting of realizing my own naivete and stupidity regarding the move, and it sucks having to admit it's not all on somebody else. It also just transported me back to those days of summer, when everything was so right for awhile, and then just got dashed into the ground. I guess I've been suppressing a lot of sadness towards what happened with my dad. I just released it all on Jeremy...poor guy. Then I felt the sudden need to blindly write something down here. I don't really need to talk to anyone specifically, I guess I just need to have something concrete come out of me...something I can look at. Things aren't that bad. I love my husband, myself, our life, our cats, friends, family, our house. Sometimes I need to realize it's okay to embrace sadness, and that it doesn't have to be put in a spot where no one can see it.
So...now I'm realizing other people besides me look at this. Uh...hi...please don't think I'm crazy or depressed. I'm normal...yeah...normal... :)
Sunday, November 2
...just thinking...
My mind today keeps wandering to the painting that presides over my Daddad's living room. I'm scanning over the seaweed covered rocks that shine in the moonlight. The ships look so weathered, like the small town behind them in the distance, but not unhappy. I'm trying to imagine myself on that beach. You would need a thick, wool sweater I think. Everything is moist with salt water...can't escape the smell. A foghorn sounds...there are still some lights on in the town, though it must be past midnight. I can see the moonlight playing on the surface of the water, trying to illuminate further than the first few inches. I'll have to be content with not getting in the water, though I want it to cover me. Too chilly.
I think about how in her last years, Mama must have spent a lot of time looking at this painting. I wonder if she pictured herself wherever it is supposed to be. She saw beauty in that scene...she was the one who picked it out. That painting is like a long, deep sigh.
This whole weekend has been trapped in the painting. It's been days of garlic soup, hearty sweaters, perfectly cured cast-iron pans, fat ceramic mugs of coffee, thick ecru-colored cream, grey, chilly skies, fine mists, sewing by hand, warm cat cuddles, crunchy leaves, seeing your breath, drafty houses...
My mind today keeps wandering to the painting that presides over my Daddad's living room. I'm scanning over the seaweed covered rocks that shine in the moonlight. The ships look so weathered, like the small town behind them in the distance, but not unhappy. I'm trying to imagine myself on that beach. You would need a thick, wool sweater I think. Everything is moist with salt water...can't escape the smell. A foghorn sounds...there are still some lights on in the town, though it must be past midnight. I can see the moonlight playing on the surface of the water, trying to illuminate further than the first few inches. I'll have to be content with not getting in the water, though I want it to cover me. Too chilly.
I think about how in her last years, Mama must have spent a lot of time looking at this painting. I wonder if she pictured herself wherever it is supposed to be. She saw beauty in that scene...she was the one who picked it out. That painting is like a long, deep sigh.
This whole weekend has been trapped in the painting. It's been days of garlic soup, hearty sweaters, perfectly cured cast-iron pans, fat ceramic mugs of coffee, thick ecru-colored cream, grey, chilly skies, fine mists, sewing by hand, warm cat cuddles, crunchy leaves, seeing your breath, drafty houses...
...grey days...
At first we thought Halloween was going to be a bust. It was already 7:00, and we had yet to have any children come knocking. The door was wide open, I was reading a book on the couch to take my mind off of my excitement. Is there no such thing anymore as kids going around to houses? Do they just go to shops for candy now? What is wrong with the world today - isn't anything sacred? Finally...two kids came! Between 7:30 and 8:00 we had a good rush, and we got rid of all of our candy (thankfully...Jeremy and I still ended up with major sugar hangovers the next day) Witches, a vampire, football player, racecar driver, carebear, princesses, ghosts, and many unidentifiable things graced our porch that night. Woo-hoo...boo!
At first we thought Halloween was going to be a bust. It was already 7:00, and we had yet to have any children come knocking. The door was wide open, I was reading a book on the couch to take my mind off of my excitement. Is there no such thing anymore as kids going around to houses? Do they just go to shops for candy now? What is wrong with the world today - isn't anything sacred? Finally...two kids came! Between 7:30 and 8:00 we had a good rush, and we got rid of all of our candy (thankfully...Jeremy and I still ended up with major sugar hangovers the next day) Witches, a vampire, football player, racecar driver, carebear, princesses, ghosts, and many unidentifiable things graced our porch that night. Woo-hoo...boo!