Opinion

I don't like your dog.

No matter what.

Lip Lip

Her explanation: "I made a sssnake!"

Knock Knock

Another Nora knock knock joke:

Knock knock
Who's there?
Relax
Relax who?
Relax a little and go potty.

Also, I may have told two children with a new fascination with volcanoes that if I get *really* angry,  I can stomp on the ground so hard it cracks the earth and a volcano forms.   But only if I'm reeeeeally angry. 

This conversation has been going on for over twenty minutes now. 

Value of Daily Writing

Thanks to Austin for sharing this in his newsletter:

The point of the daily diary exercise is not to record what you already know about what happened to you in the last 24 hours. Instead, it’s an invitation to the back of your mind to come forward and reveal to you the perishable images about the day you didn’t notice you noticed at all.

— Lynda Barry

I like when people put to words something I believe.  Because I'm lazy.  And now I don't have to do it myself.  Hot dang, I want a milkshake!

Mornings

My favorite time of day with three of my favorite people.

Good

Morning

And then salvia and echinacea (at least two colors, I mean, it's only right), and agastache at long last.  Replacing some of the echinacea and coreopsis that perished in last winter's cold.  I'm wondering what will die out this year.  Oh and I have to move the red achillea but I think I know where it belongs now (with the ox eye daisies, in case you were wondering).  The side garden, I've decided, ought to be devoted to attracting butterflies and hummingbirds since that's the garden we'll see the most and walk the most and spend so much time chalking nearby.  And anyone who visits will walk past it too.  

Man.  

Oh, and I had another dream about leeks last night.  Which makes two this week.  Which means all the dreams I remember were about leeks.  Chris pointed out that they may be a phallic dream symbol (I keep finding myself surprised at the quality of the leeks and the availability of them.  Once in a grocery store and once in my own garden.  Unexpected leeks.  Wonderful leeks).  I'm not sure if I buy that, but they are rather phallic, aren't they?  I thought it just meant garden time was coming up.

Gaaaaaarden.  Snoooooooowing out.  

Update:  according to the interwebs, leeks in dreams can mean victory or protection.  There were some Islamic interpretations that had to do with making bad investments for the sake of a new job or money seeking venture.  And finally, in some Asian interpretations:
 To see leek in bazaar or grocery in your dream signifies that you will get rid of a bad thing and keep yourself and people you love out of this trouble.

Cards

I got the birthday card jokes today.  Ha.

It feels so good to organize a little and create a little. 

The concept of this year's valentine is great because it's old overheads laid on top of posters of the old content standards.  The idea is that so much in our job changes but my love for my pals there doesn't.  Big fan of symbolism right here.  I don't know if I'll write anything like that on the cards; it doesn't roll off the tongue nicely.  But.  I really like knowing that's at the heart of the design,  in addition to the tactile experience of two textures on the cards (because touching things is nice). 

Making stuff lights me up.  :)

Soil

The garden is in my blood.  Cold temps and snow today but I can feel the earth under that snow starting to awaken.

And the words start scrolling through my mind.  A marquee:

Polygonatum, Gypsophilia, Achillea, Galium Odoratum (which is already getting ready!), Brunera, and so on til full bloomage and overflowing vases.

I'm hungry for hands in the dirt and the senselessness of nail polish.  I'm on flowers now, but soon it will be the edibles and the daydreams, again, to build containers that will probably never materialize.  And wondering exactly how many cubic yards of dirt I ought to order this time around.  Mmmdirt.  Oh man and peas-- planting them on time this year!  And the carrots, too.  In a better place.  And more clever radishes.  Oh and this year the ox eye daisies will bloom!!!!!!  They've taken well to the side of the house.

Ah, the ranunculus dreams... foolish ranunculus dreams.  But I still want to try again.  That last attempt was only so half hearted.

Mmmmsoil.  I can't wait to retire and let this take up more of my life.  And I'm excited to teach my children about it in the mean time.

Church

In the middle of mass today, Jonah grabbed my face and said,  "Mommy,  I want to know all the secrets of the world."  

I told him he'd have to ask God for that answer.  Man,  the big thoughts of children are AWEsome.

Nora's face!

 

Scaring the choir members as they came down from the Choir loft.  

That baby!  These kids!  Such LOVE!

So We Grabbed an Alligator and We Fought Another Round.

This has been in my head since Tuesday.

Last week, one of my students wrote that they were grateful for Tuesdays, but they wrote it on a Thursday.  So today I take a moment to be grateful for Tuesdays on a Thursday as well.

I like in movies when people have fallen in love but don't realize it.  Then the scenes when they start to understand.  I like those best.

Coffee

Hypernicum berries in the flowers set the tone for a great afternoon at Phoenix.

Then I planted myself on some excellent graffiti.  And poured espresso into my belly and my heart into a friend and drank in the beauty of connection to a shining, pulsing heart and the beauty of a snowstorm.

Then I had some time to process and write and ask and receive.  I got answers to some of my heart's questions.  I found the bathroom.  I heard the sound of single flakes of snow falling.  I heard other sounds.  There were milky faces in windows and cheeks flushed with cold.  There were overheard conversations with Texas drivers and Neil Young (shudder, but comforting for the associations) and reggae, and funk and static when the records ran out.  

I like when the fullness of an afternoon like that feels mellow and healing.

High energy is good, but the calm is so soothing.