Running, rainy, relaxing Saturday

Baking, chai drinking, clothes washing, car cleaning.

Getting pooped on by the beautiful Amelia Bright Shelton. I feel so honored. :)

Ah, nothing to do (except study) until Monday. Lovely.

Spring "Break"

Well, I am technically on Spring Break. But, it doesn't quite feel the same when you work full time. I have been able to do a few things this week that I can't normally fit in this semester, like Supper Club. I finally remedied the No-wine-in-my-house problem. Excellent!

Yes, I'm going to complain about the 5 hours of my life that were wasted at the dealership service center today. I could metaphorically feel the dollars of unearned salary leaving my wallet as one hour became... five - and all because of poor communication, a little bit my fault, but mostly theirs. Erf. I'm now driving a rental bucket, er, I mean rental car, hopefully only until tomorrow.

Nice 2 mile run. Flat, breezy, good.

Currently reading: Still Alice by Lisa Genova. It almost brought me to tears today.

Thoughts from Shambhala Sun

I periodically pick up this magazine from IY... and often I find something in it that seems to resonate. If you'll indulge me, this is what I've been thinking about for the last few days, an article titled "The place beyond hope and fear" by Margaret Wheatley, Ed.D.:

Hope is not related to accomplishments. It is, quite simply, a dimension of being human. To feel hope, we don't have to accomplish anything. Hope is always right there, in our very being, our human spirits, our fundamental human goodness.

If we know that we are hope, it becomes much easier to stop being blinded or seduced by hopeful prospects. Instead of grasping onto activities that we want so desperately to succeed, we can see clearly and simply what to do. Grounded only in who we are, we discover those actions that feel right, rather than those that might or might not be effective. We may not succeed in changing things, but we choose to act from the clarity that this is right action for us. People who endure and persevere for their cause describe clarity as a force arising within them that compels them to act. They express this by saying, "I couldn't not do it."

...

It isn't outcomes that matter. It's people, our relationships, that give meaning to our struggles. If we free ourselves from hope and fear, from having to succeed, we discover that it becomes easier to love...We realise that we are truly in this together, and that's all that matters.

3 x 3 = 9

Snow day bus adventures + comp time.

Connecting with elder niece on email! Yippee!

Blog updates and new pictures from SMHK.

Patience with ringing/deafness in the ear, day 3.

Snowy March

Happy Birthday, Sarah! One of the first memories I have of my now 17 year old niece is of her falling asleep on my chest when she was an itty-bitty baby.

You know how, with family, you don't mind when your family members invade your personal space and sometimes lean into you and get just a little bit in your way, and it feels so natural, like the other person is a part of you? I like that about family. My cats do that to me too; I guess that means they're family.

Snowy Virginia. Snowy Atlanta. Thunderstormy Charleston.

I should buy stock in Weehah! cards.

Patience with stuffy deafness in my left ear all day.

February Saturday

Happy birthday, Cindi!

Good friday night.

Sleeping long and sleeping in, but not too late. Morning La Taza walk.

Painting project with non-toxic paint. More unpacking and settling in.

Snowy and girly evening at home.

Wednesday Thoughts

Have you ever received something that you didn't know you needed until after you'd received it? I kinda feel like that's what we (I) have found in President Obama. Not that we didn't know we needed something new - that's without a doubt - but it's that the particular brand of new that we got seems to be just the right kind of remedy. I'm thinking specifically about his emphasis on personal responsibility, parental responsibility, and service to community.

Garrett, I'm sure, secretly wishes that I'd sit on my couch more often because he gets the best snuggling lap from me then.

Facebook. I'm not sure it does anyone any good. Too much sand, not enough rocks, as they say. But, in lieu of canceling my account all together, I am going to use the "Delete friend" button more often. Because I can.

In touch with all of my nieces this week. Kallie was eating oatmeal with berries (just like her Aunt Cat); 19 year old Adrienne is thinking of buying a house (WTF!?); Sarah and her boy have been dating for nearly 11 months (huge for a 16 year old!).

Fingerscrossed for SMH. And, feel better soon CEH.

Be kind

One of my favorite hang-outs has a quote above the bathroom door of the woman's restroom:

"Be kind, for everyone you meet is fighting a hard battle." - Plato

This seems to be an especially relevant reminder these days.

::Sigh::

I was grumpy and negative and not fun to be around today - I didn't even want to be around me today.

Running up the long, steep hill of Druid Avenue can make all your troubles seem far, far away.

I have a piano in my house right now. And, there are two things I know for sure about pianos: 1) it seems creepy to sleep in the same room as a piano. I've probably done it before; every house I lived in for the first 20 years of my life had at least one piano in it. But, for some reason, that was the first thing that popped into my mind when my landlord asked if it was OK to leave this one in my house for a little while. 2) I will always always always be able to play Heart and Soul and Chopsticks on the piano. My fingers will never forget. And, it will always always always be more fun to play those tunes with Susan playing along beside me.

Ravioli, talk with Mom, and Thin Mints at dinner time.

Remembering that sugar helps.

On Soul Mates

People think a soul mate is your perfect fit, and that's what everyone wants. But a true soul mate is a mirror, the person who shows you everything that is holding you back, the person who brings you to your own attention so you can change your life.

A true soul mate is probably the most important person you'll ever meet, because they tear down your walls and smack you awake. But to live with a soul mate forever? Nah. Too painful. Soul mates, they come into your life just to reveal another layer of yourself to you, and then leave.

A soul mate's purpose is to shake you up, tear apart your ego a little bit, show you your obstacles and addictions, break your heart open so new light can get in, make you so desperate and out of control that you have to transform your life...

— Elizabeth Gilbert (Eat, Pray, Love: One Woman's Search for Everything Across Italy, India and Indonesia)