Bacon heals all wounds

This morning I woke up cranky. That is pretty rare, but I did fall asleep a little cranky, and it has been raining since I turned 40. Okay, no, that's not true but it has been raining, or at least dark and cloudy, for about a week now, and not much relief in sight. As I stepped out of my car last night to see that the garbage-people had left most of our trash on the curb, unhappy with the bagging or something... and felt the tree hammer my head with giant drops combined from hundreds of other little drops, I couldn't help but whine. Everyone is complaining, and honestly, however much I prefer this to snow, it feels like a giant bait-and-switch.
I had convinced myself that once it got up to 50 degrees and stayed there, that all would be well. But it's a constant 52 or so, and dark, and foggy, and gloomy- and the tree here is dropping crap all over the place, which is sticking to everything, because it's wet.
I have nothing to complain about in this cushy life of mine, but really, this... sucks. All I can do is gaze longingly at my garden, perfectly placed so as to be viewable from the kitchen window... and sulk.
Soon, I'll feel better- lunch today with a favorite friend, and dinner with another tonight... a weekend without too many plans, and a crazy, happy Sunday ahead at the parish. We made it to payday without bouncing anything, and now we have enough money to buy bacon for the next two weeks. I'm in a good place, overall. Maybe I'll just a mantra to get me through the gloomy moments. "Baconnnnnnn. Fridge full of baaaaaaconnnnn..." Mmmm, I feel better.

Almosting

It's an almost time of year. I'm almost done with school (until the summer session starts in July) and it's almost warm enough to switch to capri pants full-time. We're almost finished with a great season of faith formation and I'm almost ready to start doing LEX again. My garden is almost planted and the yard is almost clean, which means it's almost Friday Fires time again. I love this time of year but it is racing by so quickly that I keep reminding myself to PAY ATTENTION. Maybe by paying close attention I can avoid getting to the end of spring and feeling like I've missed it.
And for crying out loud, Scott and I have been married almost ten years. How on earth? I haven't even sent out all my thank you cards for the bridal shower yet! (If you haven't gotten yours yet, don't give up hope. I still have them, and they're even stamped! I supposed I'll need to add some postage now, though... better put that whole thing on hold.)
Now it's almost time for bed, and I should get some studying in before I turn in. I'm almost ready for this Old Testament final.

I've got the fever!!

I suppose I blog about this every year at this time, but WOW I feel better, now that the Spring seems to (don't jinx it!) have arrived. I spent half the day Saturday raking up last Fall's gross wet and surprisingly deep leaf cover, and bagging it all up. It is super-fun to pull back the grossness and see shoots of green. SUPER-FUN! I totally mean that.
Meanwhile, I've assuaged some of the guilt of using K-cups by pulling the lids off after use (and we use each one twice) and dumping out the coffee, pulling out the filter, and then using them for seed starters.
In order of appearance, that's peas, morning glories, I think the morning glories again, and carrots. As each plant gets too tall for the plastic wrap that covers the tray of cups, I move them to a window sill and replace them with more seeded cups. We drink a lot of coffee around here!
Happy Spring everyone! (un-jinx!)

Simple..

Simple Woman's Day Book
FOR TODAY 2/12/11...
I know, I know, it's so cheap to blog using a fill-in-the-blanks structure like this, and I oughta just buck up and blog like a big girl, but for some reason the thought of cold-writing is just too much for me right now. So, you'll take the Daybook and you'll like it.
Outside My Window... it's almost hard to believe, and feels like I'm jinxing it just to even mention it, but Spring seems to be... springing. A LOT of the snow has melted, and the yard is a mess. Today I cleaned up the largest of the branches that were littering the lawn, and Scott couldn't resist doing a little sweeping out there too- the nice rocks that our landlord put down in the parking spaces last year are ALL OVER THE PLACE. It's going to take a serious amount of raking to get them back where they are supposed to go, but we're in that giddy, early-spring mood that makes us anxious to don our work gloves and have at it.
I am thinking... about my Dad, and a friend, who both are scheduled for the same cardiac procedure this week. As we get ready for Dad's, my siblings and I are maneuvering the visiting and worrying and whatnot. It's new territory for us, and there are so many of us, and we're all being careful not to be too pushy or too lax, or too impatient or too assuming, or... well, it's tricky stuff, made trickier maybe because we like each other and don't want to let this stress cause any damage to our relationships.
This weekend for Generations of Faith, we did a program that had a TON of moving parts- several speakers and locations and props and transitions, and we handled it as a team- but all evening as people ran up to me to ask last-minute questions about details unanticipated, I wished there was one central director who was in charge.
In both settings, my family and at GOF, it's harder to work as a team, but at the end of the day (night) it feels good to do high-fives all around (we actually don't high-five, but you see what I'm saying) and know we've really worked well together.
I am thankful for... my job! (Do I say that every time?) In our Archdicoese, we're looking at a reorganization, whatever that might mean... and, we really have no idea- there's no real information forthcoming from the Powers That Be, which leaves us with nothing to do but imagine outcomes, best- and worst-case. I'm so fortunate to be where I am, and it is scary to think things might change...
From the kitchen... NOTHING! I missed my weekly visit with my favorite baked-goods consumer this week, which left me with no excuse to bake, especially since Lent is here. Today's errands turned into kind of a long process, and we ended up having dinner at a great local restaurant, and I broke all my Lenten rules. Sorry, God. I'll do better tomorrow, or at least Monday.
I am wearing... I totally got dressed today. But now I'm back in my pajamas.
I am creating... a retreat, for women! I'm doing a day retreat for a parish nearby, at a lovely retreat center, and I'm so excited for it. I think it's going to be a really lovely day.
I am going... to bed soon. MY lovely doctor has given me a lovely prescription for lovely sleep medicine!! I never thought I'd need help sleeping, but I was waking up a LOT at night, just about every time I would turn over. It is heavenly to sleep through the night, and not feel drugged out- I still wake up if I need to, and wake up in the morning fresh as a daisy. I love going to bed!!
I am reading... Not much this week, as I have been on Spring Break. Woo! But I have been reading the news accounts about the earthquake in Japan and the Tsunami, and all the other bad news in the world.
I am hoping... for a little good news this week. For Japan, for my friends and family with their various medical issues, for warm weather, for lower gas prices. Whatever- I'll take any good news I can get!
I am hearing... Some silly movie that Scott is watching, and otherwise peaceful silence.
Around the house... the cats are still in hate with each other, but mostly just hissing and growling rather than the old fighting. So, I guess that's an improvement.
One of my favorite things... oh, I don't know, I'm tired. I'd better head to bed- daylight savings, you know, tonight. Oh! Daylight Savings is one of my favorite things, I guess.
A Few Plans For The Rest Of The Week: crazy work week, back to class, and up to Maine to be part of the parent-care. Don't let me forget to write that paper that's due Friday!
Here is picture thought I am sharing.
It's Pip! She loves to get into our bedroom closet, although she needs a boost up to the higher shelves nowadays. But when she's done in there, she still leaps out of the closet onto the bed, and I got a great shot of her this time!

What a Difference a Day Makes

Yesterday was discontent of my Winter. I was driving along with the sun in my eyes and the wind blowing my car around- my windshield washer fluid tank was empty, and the new bottle of fluid I'd bought, but had neglected to put in, was rolling around the back of my car, smashing against things whenever I took turns. Still, it was too cold to get out and fill the damned thing up.

Plus, I was trying to drive with the sun in my eyes AND read directions- so I was switching between sunglasses, no glasses, reading glasses... all while squinting through a dirty windshield looking for street signs.

I think the world would be infinitely better if there were clear street signs at every intersection.

On top of that I was wearing jeans that were just a smidge too small, and needed to hunt down a low-carb dinner before class, which runs cruelly from 6:30-9:00PM.

As I was driving I thought to myself, "why do I feel so unhinged today???" I even felt completely dumb about my Old Testament class. But now I know I was just... reaching the peak of Winter despair.

Today I awoke to (low) 40's temps and sun high in the sky. My glasses (which were apparently sent off to NASA to be ground, that's how intricate my prescription is) are due in about a week, so I will soon be able to SEE. I bought myself some new jeans that fit just fine, and didn't have to go up a size. I filled my windshield washer fluid and cleaned out some of the muck in my back seat, and now I'm off to lunch with a friend.

I feel different today than I did yesterday- maybe it's hormone levels, or maybe it's just a new hope born of that change in temperature that helps me realize suddenly that there's lots to look forward to- even warmer warmth, garden plans, flip flops, summer plans. On my way out of the house I crunched some ice under which a tiny river of melt-off was flowing and felt real joy.

Bring on the Spring, I'm ready- ahhhhhhhhh!!!!

Nothing of Substance

A thousand apologies to my loyal readers (both of you!) for my seriously lax blogging habits. Lent flew by in a crazy flash and then Holy Week, well... I'm still catching my breath from it. Plus, I was trying to be a daily-ish blogger for the parish, and with all that, you poor readers had to suffer the loss. I am sorry.
But now it's Monday and still Easter, and my classes are nearing their end, and there's only one more GOF session (and it's going to be AWESOME) and a week from now I'll be in (hopefully) sunny Las Vegas at the NCCL conference. My papers, due this week, are done, and I'm even practically caught up on my reading. Life is indeed good.
This weekend we went to a small graveside funeral in a city-cemetery, and marveled at the non-Catholicity of it all. The graves there lacked the big crazy gothic statues and crosses seen at Catholic cemeteries, and instead were all engraved with personal symbols like... shamrocks and boats. One gravestone had a Betty Boop figure engraved in it. What's that about? The graves all had stuff on them, too- plastic toys and little statues and stuff. The funeral was nice enough, with scripture readings and such, and the protestant minister who did it was lovely. He wore a stole with a pointy back which, when the wind blew, would pop up behind his head and make him look like something out of Star Wars.
We took advantage of the beautiful weather and ran home to plant pansies and do some yard cleanup and then sacked out on the couch for the rest of the night, in preparation for the crazy Sunday ahead.
See, I have nothing of substance to write about, but this is what you get I guess. I have to admit I am looking forward to a week of nothing of substance to write about! Ahhhh Easter/Spring!!!

Spring spring sprinnnnnggggg

It's been raining a lot here. For... well, forever. Okay, not really- but long enough for people to start making Ark jokes, for people near rivers to watch them nervously, for anyone with a basement to put on waterproof boots and think about buying a sump pump.
It's been nasty, driving, whipping rain and wind. The kind that soaks you, even if you're only out in it to get from the house to the car, or the car to the house. A girl in one of my classes said "where I come from the rain just comes down, none of these left- and right- and up directions!!"
The other day when I was driving home through this rain, I drove under an overpass and suddenly, maybe for two seconds, it was silent. I hadn't even noticed, really, the sound of the rain hammering on the roof of my car, until it was suddenly... gone. And then back again. That silence was so surprising and thrilling that I wanted to turn back and park under that overpass until the rain stopped, until the rest of the world was that dry and quiet.
And today, it was sunny and warm- and dry. I can feel my body relax and respond to the feel of warm sun, to the no-longer need to curl up into myself and wrap myself against the cold. This time of year, as I get to shed each layer of winter clothing, I'm like a caterpillar coming out of my cocoon. I want to notice and appreciate every degree of warmth, every new bit of green. I love Spring.

Looky!!!! Loooooookyyyyy!!!

cheery cheery cheery

Today it was around 60 degrees, and sunny. I saw green points poking out of the ground, and went for a walk without a proper coat, without gloves, without snow-proof shoes. I've been getting emails from a seed catalog company and it's full of temptations. I think we've planted mostly perennials in our little garden at this point, but I seem to recall a few empty spots.
I can feel a difference, physically, when it starts to warm up like this. This morning I cleaned the whole kitchen and part of the bathroom, made myself breakfast and lunch, and got it all done before going to work!
I always think about how brilliant it is that Lent happens in the Spring. I know, I know it's no coincidence but I really love how we start in darkness and each day as we grow closer and closer to the glory of Easter, the days become brighter and warmer and all around are signs of new and renewed life. It really is a hope-filled time and I can feel my heart warming along with my fingers.
Right after Easter we leave for California for a religious education conference, and I can't wait! I love having something to look forward to. I feel happy and lucky to have the life I have!

stirrings

I felt it!!! I have been noticing the subtle signs of spring... the other day I saw a few little shoots of green coming up between the muck and garbage at the Dunkin' Donuts drivethrough. And recently we saw Robins! (I never seem to notice that robins are gone, until they show up again... where do they go?)
But the most important thing is, I felt it... I felt that little stirring of energy that tells me that Spring is on its way. It's no mistake that Lent happens at this time of year, beginning in darkness and cold and muckyness, and then, as we get closer to the time of new life in Christ, the world around us joins in the celebration. It feels like the whole world is readying itself for Easter.
I feel physically better when it gets warmer and brighter out. I feel inspired to grow and change and move more. It's a powerful feeling and I love to feel the first stirrings of it every year.
I can't eat another bowl of oatmeal. I made it for four whole weeks but I just can NOT go on. I had a hard time getting into suffering this Lent- I am too happy, I know the ending of the story too well, I have heard the Good News and can't pretend that I haven't. "Jesus said to them, "While the bridegroom is with them, the attendants of the bridegroom cannot fast, can they? So long as they have the bridegroom with them, they cannot fast." (Mark 2:19)
Bring on Spring, bring on Easter!!!!

snow hair

We're snowed in yet again... I love snow days but I must admit that I am starting to really yearn for Spring. Tonight was supposed to be a Soup supper and Stations of the cross at the church, so to me the day was win-win: if it didn't snow I was looking forward to the night at work, and with snow came a nice snow day, which I always appreciate.
So, snow day it is, and if it's the last one before the crocuses bloom, I'll be happy.
I did get out long enough to get my hair done. I asked for a "loose wave" and got something like this:



(not so much the rage, but note the hairstyle)

aw shucks.

Here, HV, does this make you feel any better?

the first blooms

They're here! Our first Iris blossoms. Apparently they couldn't wait to get tall before displaying their gorgeous blooms. That's okay with me!

Spring is come!