Into the Wild Wood and Home Again

Twenty-five years ago, our world changed. Moreso here in the United States, but globally as well. The terrorists targeted two symbols of American "strength"-- financial and military-- and struck at the heart of what the nation seemed to hold nearest and dearest. Some would say that they hit at symbols of hubris; and in some ways, that makes sense. Western civilization has always trended toward patterns of domination, and other cultures and the earth itself has paid the price, over and over again. That corrective, if we want to call it that for sake of argument, worked to bring people together, to unite in ways that hadn't been experienced in ages. But it also served as a means of division; this new-found cultural unity, if it was that at all, left out whole segments of society, and anti-Muslim hate has continued to flourish and even be applauded by people in the highest elected places of our society. But yet, a nation that supported the terrorists is now a "most favo...

After a wet and chilly day yesterday, it's kind of odd (and welcome) to wake up to 65 degrees-- it warmed up overnight. These are the days when you just are not sure what to wear to work.  Disappointing evening of Boston sports, eh? ugh. Still, the Sox are not dead yet, and the football season just started. Hope is a hard commodity to come by, but hey, what else do we have? School is trundling along-- a lot of kids out sick, field trips galore over the next couple of weeks, and I am grateful I do my planbook in pencil. We'll manage. It's just a bit upending. Kind of daily.  And so it goes, eh?  Holly has a book order for us to fill out! I miss the days of coming home with the flimsy paper form from Scholastic. So what did I do? Went online to the site to order books, and let's just say, I shopped. The prices are crazy good, and there was a deal for an extra book for free if you spent 35.00. So, I did. I ordered a lot of level one readers. She's ready to read, and fr...

Wednesday.  It's going to be a long, long day-- I will be staying at work til 3 (staff meeting), then home to race around and see if there's any practical anything I can get done. Patriots start the season tonight-- why a Wednesday? Who knows?-- at 8:20. I suspect I'll maybe manage the first half. Rude. It's a work night. Don't the programmers know that? Sigh.  OK, enough whining. That webinar last night was atrocious--promised a lot, delivered very little, and was a full hour infomercial about their training program. Damn. I will not be wasting any further time on that nonsense tonight or Thursday.  Holly's first day went well, other than her tripping over the thresh-hold into the school. Whups. She's fine, had a super experience, and today will go easier, I believe. It's awesome Meg was home to oversee day one and two. Tomorrow, Tim will have to solo shot the morning, and I'll pick her up. We'll get this routine down soon enough.  So, you might...

Yesterday was pretty great, and I got a lot of small chores done. I got to hang out with Meg and Holly for a lot of the day, too. I did not get out to the garden boxes, though, and I really need to. Maybe this afternoon after work? I hope so.  In the meantime, today is: the day we celebrate the Virgin Mary's birthday the day we vote in NH primaries the day Holly starts her new school We'll need your prayers, good thoughts, blessings, and whatever else you can throw at us for all of these things.  O yeah, it's picture day at school, too. Ugh.  And I have an online webinar tonight. Maybe ugh? I hope your day is a treasure box of good things. Hugs all around, C

Up early, even though it's a day off-- I have fed the sourdough starter (bread later!), and banana nut muffins are in the oven. It was 43 degrees when I got up, and it's going to be a lovely late-summer day. Temps should rise to mid-70s. I have a few projects to get into (cleaning Holly's den corner, baking cinnamon bread), but other than that, I'm going to coast as much as possible.  I stayed up way too late last night chatting with Meg and watching Notre Dame football. They won. Handily. And earlier in the day, the Sox swept the Orioles, and it was another good game. G is back to work today, so the housework will be a little less. I know, that sounds mean, but dude wears his "don't worry, they're clean" shoes everywhere in the house. And thus, sand. I will sweep today, and it'll stay swept for a bit. That is a small win.  I have a full week ahead, even though it's a four-day work week. Tomorrow, we vote in the primary. And it's picture da...

Song: Simple Gifts (ft. Yo-Yo Ma and Allison Krauss) Rainy/damp start to this Sunday. I'm glad we don't have plans to go to the fair or any other outdoor-specific stuff. It's supposed to be nice later on, though, so G can likely finish the woodshed and put the first ton of pellets under cover. We'll be getting two more, but not until November-- they are backordered. But we are on the list, so we'll get 'em. The price on pellets is relatively stable, but omg the price of heating oil is horrid. We got the tank topped off the other day, and it was 5.65.9 (why can't they just say 5.66?) a gallon. Ugh. To hear over and over again that the "conflict" (war) in the Middle East is "small potatoes" and to be told that someone in a high place just won't believe that all of this upheaval is disrupting people's lives/ wallets is so irritating.  Nothing is safe, eh? Food, medicines, transportation, costs of basic needs... it goes on and on and...

I seem to be picking up the serious, melancholy, and thought-provoking in everything lately. G and I went to see an amazing production of Putting It Together , which strings together Sondheim lyrics (no spoken dialogue the entire show), and traces the inner workings of two couples' relationships set in a somewhat fraught "party." The voices at Weathervane are amazing, and Sondheim's lyrics and the score are always a little tinged with danger, sadness, and what I'd rather call the sound of the human condition. That said, if you are local and without something to do right away, go see it. They are only doing four shows.  What was particularly show-stopping, for me, was when Marisa Kirby (she's a powerhouse) nailed " Could I Leave You" from Follies. Breathtaking. And thought-provoking; relationships, especially long-standing ones, are never all hearts and flowers. There's a lot of incidental, accidental damage that happens, too. Where you go from t...