some things that have been happening lately:

1.  yesterday was zack pangborn's birthday, as well as dylan coelho and my first boyfriend jon james who i haven't seen in about fourteen years.  i think a lot of good people are sagittarius but it seems they are all men.  for example, seth's birthday was the day before yesterday and scott sowa's is, i believe, thursday.  all very creative and strange men as well.  i mean that in SUCH a good way. 

2.  has lorene had her baby yet?  i don't know since i am really bad at calling people.  does anyone know? 

3.  finals week next week. i am embarrassingly excited to study for my finals.  because it means going back through my notes and books and rediscovering all the brilliant things i thought about this semester.  i love being a student. i especially love being an english student.

4.  i saw mikie's play, cinderella, a pantomime.  my little baby nephew and niece came with us and sat attentively through the entire show.  except when bella fell face-forward into the chair in front of her and screamed for about forty seconds.  brutal but over quickly, especially due to the appearance of buttons, the magical kid-pleaser of the show.  but i am so proud to have a three year old and one year old nephew and niece who are so smart, so brilliant and creative and good and enlightened, that they can actually enjoy theater at such tender ages.

5.  darin and i got a christmas tree.  we gave in.  i feel bad because it is going to turn into dead wood but it was already cut down anyway and standing sadly and sweetly outside rite-aid just waiting for a good home.  i rationalize by pretending it's an orphanage. 

6.  we decorated said tree and our house is lovely and colorful and cozy.  seriously.  it feels good to be here.  it feels heavenly to walk in the door and be greeted by such comforts.  i feel strange to be so addicted to hearth and home.  i want to be comfortable sleeping in the woods or something but i seem to be pretty unarguably domestic. 

7.  tomorrow i register for spring semester. 

8.  i am going to go read now. 

i hope everyone is as cuddly as i am on this cold wintery night.  thank the sweet earth for cold weather, warm old slippers and twinkly christmas lights.  also for dads who come out to help adjust the water heater for hot showers....i'm talking HOT as opposed to mildly lukewarm which just does not cut it on cold nights.  thank the elements and four directions for inspiration and source and flowing energy.  that's it.  good night folks i love you all. 

hey lovelies of the world.  i just want to say i am thankful for rain, yellow, cats, squash, tom waits, darin and his beautiful hair, doniella, beer, momma, jarom and bella, william blake, leslie marmon silko, deserts, jungle, and many other myriad things.  i miss carolann for some reason galavanting around in the land of blossoms and ruins and i am thinking of her on this day.  i am thinking of my darling friend kaitlyn and the way she tells stories with a great deal of detail which i love.  i am thankful, too for our postal service here in the united states.  and for thrift stores.  my sister adrienne is glowing today in a 1983 carribean-blue gown with roses prancing about.  we have had three or four dance parties in this home today already.  mikie just said this tofurkey beats the WILLY out of the one at the school.  we are a very silly willy willy nilly family and the little children are back from their excursions and we are still going to eat a lot more and we've been eating all day which i am thankful for but seem to usually even today take for granted.  joey is here with black hair and a downtrodden sad eyed gorgeous guitar which everyone is playing.  it's a regular fiesta and we love each other and i am happy.  lucky me, princess of this world. 

okay so thousands of people are dead in the beautiful-no-more city of new orleans and there is mad chaos in the flooded streets, no power, no water, no food, no toilets, it is like hell in a city that was heaven. 

and then, in iraq 800 people are dead because of a stampede during a religious procession - all because of rumours of suicide bombers amongst the crowd - what the fuck?  plunging off bridges and getting trampled, what is this insanity, i want to cry, i cannot believe this world.  all i keep thinking is the book the god of small things by arundhati roy and the fear the family feels driving through the barricade and they are each so sweet and so full of magical words and songs and brain waves.  and you never know what fear might turn into disaster, and more disaster, and more sadness in this cruel mushpile of an earth.

but there is beauty too and i know it and i'm beyond grateful to be able to drive with my windows down home from the river on shady forest roads with wind coming through my wet hair and the feeling of the sun and rocks still on my skin.  i know, i know.  but i can't enjoy this lovely life fully when there is so much suffering and the more i grow the more i feel like they are all my brothers and sisters and even the grumpy ones.  i guess i should help somehow.  i guess i need to find something i can do to help.  i guess i can never ever complain about dumb little things again. that's it.