Settling in...

We're not completely moved yet, but we're settling in. Last weekend we bought flowers for the yard (and my tomato plant!). I thought I'd share the fun - we're just so pleased to have a home where we can plant flowers. I'm including a picture of Dr. M's ancient geraniums - he brings them inside each year before the first frost & babies them through the winter. And every year they reward us with their blooms. I think they'll like their new home too!

Delusions of Being Reya

Yesterday I was trying to take a picture of the mosquito hawk on our front door and this extremely Reya picture was the result. I think it's pretty cool - there I am behind the camera. The critter is barely visable just above my pinky finger. There's the reflection of the Red Sox catcher in the corner (they were playing the Braves, in case my family thinks I've defected to the American League). And then there is that glorious sky from yesterday. Wow!

Hail to the Ham!

I’m jumping on the bandwagon & writing an ode to my Dad today (mostly because he reads my blog – ha!).

My brother & I
huddled together in his bed
(“the dark” was our common enemy –
we could be civil to each other against it).
Daddy telling us a story:
This is the story of the Pee Little Thrigs:
Flopsy, Mopsy, Peter & Cottontail.

Daaadddeee – that’s not how it goes!

Walking in the mall several yards away
from “that man.”
It’s no use – he comes up behind my teenage self
whistling.

Daaadddeee – you’re humiliating me!

I always thought of my father as a
quiet man.
Slow to talk (although in retrospect that
was probably just in contrast to my Mom).
Sensible.
Now reviewing my memories I see just
how deluded I was.

Here’s to the man in the Barbershop chorus!
Here’s to the man doing karaoke on the cruise!
Here’s to the man taking the gold in Performance at the Senior Games!

Here’s to my Dad:
The ham!

Love you Daddy!

Cake Walk

We lived in the mountains. And they sure were beautiful – but for reasons unknown to me I wasn’t able to make walking a habit there. Too much up & too much down. No sidewalks. I just knew that if I lived by a sidewalk I would practically be an athlete!

Then we lived in a city. The terrain was pretty flat. There was a sidewalk just outside my door – at the bottom of two flights of stairs. Getting to the sidewalk wasn’t a problem, and walking wasn’t a problem (except for the cars whizzing past & ruining my reverie). Getting back up to the 3rd floor was the problem – dragging myself up & thinking that this IS NOT fun! Forget being an athlete – I’ll be a master Spider Solitaire player!

Now I live in a small town. In a neighborhood built in the 1950s. In a box made of ticky tacky. And my sidewalk is just THERE. And when I get back from my walk I sidle in the front door like it was a piece of cake. And it WAS a piece of cake. I’ll be an athlete yet!

But only if there’s cake.

Okay okay...

After a few requests for hair pics, here they are. I took them myself in the bathroom, so they're not great - & in fact I just couldn't get a good one of the back of my head - my arms aren't long enough! I'm wearing an ancient shirt of Dr. M's - one of my very favorite Saturday (er, Sunday - make that weekend!) shirts. I've included one picture of me with more radical hair - circa 1988. I was just back from the wilds of Africa & was having an article published about my exploits so I needed a picture. Makes me cringe, a little, just now.

P.S. I'm discovering that I really don't know what I'm doing regarding formatting my posts - so the pictures are in one of the three positions that are the default.

Miscellanea (or the Bug is a bit giddy)...

I got my hair cut today (I know – news flash!). I did not go for the Katie Holmes pixie cut – I’ll probably save that for August. I got the Katie Holmes bob. No, I do not look like Katie Holmes (I wish!) – we just both have dark straight hair. In fact, this cut looks remarkably similar to the last one I had. Sigh. I used to be such a hair maverick! Now I’m a middle-aged wuss. That does it – I’m scheduling that pixie for the end of July!

In other news, we are betwixt & between our apartment & our house. We’ve moved the futon, a TV, our dining room table, our winter clothes and about a gajillion books (married to a historian here!). When I say we, I mean Dr. M mostly. Hey – I have to be at work while he’s having all this fun moving things! I’m sure that there will be retaliation for that last statement. It’s not like having to teach last week, give exams this week (one was at 7:30 Monday morning!) & then grade them is a piece of cake sister!

Anyway, if we can get the refrigerator delivered soon then we can mostly live at the house & make forays to the apartment to get more stuff. I had no idea how married to my refrigerator I am – but it was pretty hard to be without it this weekend when we stayed at the house. I had to drink tepid water straight out of the tap! Imagine!

I may or may not do a post about my adventures in hair later this week. Something for you to look forward to! Or, really, something to which you may look forward. Something like that.

I'm not.

I’m not talking about how much my arm hurts
Or how sitting in the car for a long time
Is a pain in my injured patooty.

I’m not.

I’m not talking about the overwhelm
The obvious and the layered
The things of which we cannot speak.

I’m not.

I’m not talking about unfulfilled commitments
The grief and yes the relief
The longing for simple.

I’m not.

There is sun glinting off of water
And the promise of grass
And blessed autonomy.

Get a move on little girl!