full days and laughter

Mondays are ... well, Mondays around here. The scurrying to get out the door in the morning, trying to make sure that I have everything I might need for the day in my bag (gym clothes, work appropriate attire if I'm wearing bicycle-commuting clothes, shoes, lunch, snacks, warm sweater, keys, wallet, phone, id card). Breakfast. Rushing.

Which isn't to say Mondays are bad days, just that it's easy to get into the weekend flow.

Today was very full. Busy at work, a lunchtime pilates workout that boosted my mood immensely, and the afternoon flew by until it was time to run home, feed the beasts and meet El Bandito to attend an astronomy lecture at the science museum.

And then pizza, salad, discussion of dark matter and lots of laughter with good friends.

Now, it's time to do ankle exercises and the nightly cleanup before starting another jam-packed day tomorrow. But first, a moment to appreciate that my days are packed with fun, interesting things.

gratitude, day 5

As I stretched lazily this morning, I thought "today's gratitude post will be clean sheets". A small thing, but somehow a joy nonetheless.

I promptly followed that thought by dumping half my coffee on the bedding.
I had to laugh at the timing. And another load of laundry gets added to the day.

It has been a lovely, lazy rainy Sunday despite that abrupt beginning.

Today I am grateful for ...
clean sheets (and being able to do laundry whenever I want).
the promise of soup for dinner (and the fact that El Bandito is a fabulous cook).
getting some freelance projects finished ahead of deadline.

But more than any of those, nice as they are?

the walk I had with El Bandito this afternoon, strolling in the drizzle (and then the rain), watching the waves and the birds and dogs frolicking in the surf. My shoes are wet and the damn ankle brace is a little muddy, but it was a wonderful way to spend an hour of my lazy Sunday.

Autumn leaves

I live in a city of great beauty, but it doesn't really have the same seasons I grew up with. For example, the days are shortened and the nights are colder now, and one could call it winter. El Bandito and I often say "Spring comes early and often."

However, this place doesn't really do autumn. Summer visits in October. Oh, some leaves turn brown, the grass gets greener with the rainy season starting, and the light changes. "Autumn" light is truly beautiful here, but I miss those crisp fall days of my childhood and college years.

My mother brought me a small ziploc bag of beautifully colored pressed autumn leaves, and they make me smile (albeit a little wistfully) every time I look at them.

there's a book...

waiting for me to put down my computer.
not a particularly special book - in fact, it could be any of several.

I have always been a reader, though not quite to the extent my sister was (and is). She's the type of reader who can immerse herself in a book so thoroughly that she can tune out most of the outside world.

I'm a little bit more easily distracted.
However, I'm also an absurdly fast reader, and even a good novel may only last me an hour. A friend of mine once commented "you've probably read more really good books and more lousy books than anyone I know" because I have a hard time giving up on a book once I start it.

And I know that this Christmas, just like every Christmas I can recall, there will be a box of library books under the tree to be devoured over the holidays.

So today's gratitude? Public libraries. For feeding my addiction to the written word. For not making me pay for the privilege. For making information available for people who need it. For giving free internet, for having rooms full of children's books and storytimes, for their programs and lectures and all those good things.

sometimes he probably thinks I don't like it...

... But El Bandito is noodling around on his guitar (before turning back to work on his computer).

I like the sound of live music in my house, especially since I lack any musical talent whatsoever.

More than that, however, is the joy it brings me to remember those days oh so long ago when we'd first met and he'd play me to sleep. Sometimes over the phone, sometimes in person.

Small things, random moments. Still special.

cold, crisp air. or, gratitude: my commute

I don't think I've made a secret of the fact I commute by bicycle. I could say that I do so for environmental reasons, and it's true that I am glad my lifestyle doesn't require me to drive to work.

I used to walk to work, and someday, when I have two fully functional ankles again, I probably will intermittently do so again.

Even walking is more efficient than taking transit, thanks to the geography and transit routing in my vicinity.

Seriously, the primary reason behind my bike commute is my complete lack of patience. I'd rather be moving than not.

However, I have an awesome commute, by bicycle or walking. I go through one of this country's great urban park, passing museums, fountains, people doing tai-chi. Dogs chasing balls. Hawks screaming in the trees above me.

This morning, I biked a little extra to fully take it in again. I could be stuck in stop-and-go traffic. I could be in a sardine-can of a train, breathing other people's perfume. I could be in a bus, jerking slowly to my destination.

Instead, I get to start my workday with fresh, crisp autumn air and beautiful sights.

30 days of gratitude

Last December, I stumbled on the blog of a college friend. She was doing a daily gratitude post for the month of December, and it was delightful to get glimpses into her life.

She's doing it again this year.

She's invited (challenged?) her readers and friends to do the same.

I may not hit every day, and I probably won't have the beautiful photos illustrating the many little (and large) things I'm thankful for in this life.

My parents visited for Thanksgiving this year. We had a lovely visit, with walks, sight-seeing, eating too much tasty Asian food (Burmese, dim sum, Vietnamese). Too short in some ways, although it will also be wonderful to have our house back to ourselves.

So, for the first day... I am incredibly lucky to enjoy my family, to consider them friends as well as relatives. They may drive me crazy at times, but they're also wonderful company, fun to argue with, and I know they love me, as I am. That makes me thankful.