I've been fiddling with another blog entry, but work has been busy and I have another project as well, so I’m finding the inspiration for great ideas a bit lean. I have had a few thoughts--insubstantial little trickles which could very well be left unsaid, given the fact that there is no one breathlessly waiting for these words.
Still and yet, yet and still.
Which brings me to point #1. The above phrase is from a book I read maybe 20 years ago with a book club comprised of terrifically smart women. I had about a million kids at the time and three hours at book group was like going to Stanford for a semester. In fact, given how many children we all had, it’s a wonder we didn’t open meetings dancing around the room shouting, “We’re free!”
Anyway.
The book was Run with the Horsemen by Ferrol Sams and the phrase, spoken by two sisters on a semi-regular basis, eventually made its way into our family lexicon. The Brothers K gave us, “Hay, grate!” and this summer Mary Karr’s remarkable memoir, Lit, offered up, “Build a wall around the day and don’t look over it,” a thought I just texted to my sister today.
The joys of reading are incalculable and recited by far more auspicious observers than I, but one of the best is the way a book makes its way into shared consciousness--one more bridge across the rivers of relationship. These phrases are touchstones, ritual mezuzahs we tap as we pass back and forth into each others lives.
I went to Philadelphia last week to see Daniel in The Merchant of Venice and The Venetian Twins, which got fantastic reviews from the Inquirer. He and I spent four days talk talk talking and I got to see a life I'd only been able to imagine since last January. Ghana came down from NYC and spent the night in the garret with me. I ran every day and got to eat at my colleague Casey’s favorite restaurant in the whole entire world (Alma de Cuba--Best Mojito Ever). I cooked for a crowd and saw the WORST MOVIE I HAVE EVER SEEN*, made bearable by the Rocky Horror-like attitude of the people I was with, and came home with clear eyes and a full heart. My gratitude runneth over.
Tony La Russa is a smart guy and a manager who will go down in history. But really, someone should talk to him about his hair.
I am listening to music again, another glad development. Matt Nathanson and Mat Kearney are currently on replay and I am wondering when I will tire of them. I’m not going to say this reminds me of my Archie’s, Sugar Sugar phase, but writing that just made me feel some anxiety. That said, If I Left the Zoo is playing now and 12 years later, Jars of Clay can still be the cure for what ails me.
Mary Glen lost her room key awhile ago. She was going to have to pay $107 to have a new one made, but didn’t get to the office in time because of a busy day....which included class, allergy shot, and an email letting her know that someone found her key. Dude I love when that happens.
I can make just about any dessert there is. But seriously, what is better than a s’more?
My friend Elizabeth has a big time job with a big time company, a husband, two kids and a very busy life. Last week I got hung up at Midway Airport and called because I thought she might have insider information, which was a little like calling the mayor's office to ask about road construction on I-70 (I realized this after the fact, of course. At the time it seemed a perfectly fine thing to do.) Not only did she call back, but she kept me updated until things were moving again, all while doing her actual job. That woman is a keeper.
Rayner Fredrick, look at you playing college basketball five years after a coach said you didn’t have what it takes. Haters gonna hate. Ballers gonna ball.
It’s a gorgeous day outside. I’m done taking those for granted.
Still and yet, yet and still.
Which brings me to point #1. The above phrase is from a book I read maybe 20 years ago with a book club comprised of terrifically smart women. I had about a million kids at the time and three hours at book group was like going to Stanford for a semester. In fact, given how many children we all had, it’s a wonder we didn’t open meetings dancing around the room shouting, “We’re free!”
Anyway.
The book was Run with the Horsemen by Ferrol Sams and the phrase, spoken by two sisters on a semi-regular basis, eventually made its way into our family lexicon. The Brothers K gave us, “Hay, grate!” and this summer Mary Karr’s remarkable memoir, Lit, offered up, “Build a wall around the day and don’t look over it,” a thought I just texted to my sister today.
The joys of reading are incalculable and recited by far more auspicious observers than I, but one of the best is the way a book makes its way into shared consciousness--one more bridge across the rivers of relationship. These phrases are touchstones, ritual mezuzahs we tap as we pass back and forth into each others lives.
I went to Philadelphia last week to see Daniel in The Merchant of Venice and The Venetian Twins, which got fantastic reviews from the Inquirer. He and I spent four days talk talk talking and I got to see a life I'd only been able to imagine since last January. Ghana came down from NYC and spent the night in the garret with me. I ran every day and got to eat at my colleague Casey’s favorite restaurant in the whole entire world (Alma de Cuba--Best Mojito Ever). I cooked for a crowd and saw the WORST MOVIE I HAVE EVER SEEN*, made bearable by the Rocky Horror-like attitude of the people I was with, and came home with clear eyes and a full heart. My gratitude runneth over.
Tony La Russa is a smart guy and a manager who will go down in history. But really, someone should talk to him about his hair.
I am listening to music again, another glad development. Matt Nathanson and Mat Kearney are currently on replay and I am wondering when I will tire of them. I’m not going to say this reminds me of my Archie’s, Sugar Sugar phase, but writing that just made me feel some anxiety. That said, If I Left the Zoo is playing now and 12 years later, Jars of Clay can still be the cure for what ails me.
Mary Glen lost her room key awhile ago. She was going to have to pay $107 to have a new one made, but didn’t get to the office in time because of a busy day....which included class, allergy shot, and an email letting her know that someone found her key. Dude I love when that happens.
I can make just about any dessert there is. But seriously, what is better than a s’more?
My friend Elizabeth has a big time job with a big time company, a husband, two kids and a very busy life. Last week I got hung up at Midway Airport and called because I thought she might have insider information, which was a little like calling the mayor's office to ask about road construction on I-70 (I realized this after the fact, of course. At the time it seemed a perfectly fine thing to do.) Not only did she call back, but she kept me updated until things were moving again, all while doing her actual job. That woman is a keeper.
Rayner Fredrick, look at you playing college basketball five years after a coach said you didn’t have what it takes. Haters gonna hate. Ballers gonna ball.
It’s a gorgeous day outside. I’m done taking those for granted.
* The Three Musketeers. It’s still too painful to discuss.
Good one! You are funny.
ReplyDelete