Maddie’s pic with accompanying Neruda poem so inspired me yesterday. I’m realizing that I’m hungry for poetry right now. Do any of you have a good verse to share with me?
:)
Author: Jana
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things I like
I’d totally give up beer for Wi-Fi. I have little patience for cafes, libraries, or university spaces that aren’t connected.
On a totally unrelated note, below is a pic of a wee bluebird sewn by the skilled artist of Purple Petunia. I met her while I was in Boston and became smitten with her work. She gave me some supplies and tips on getting CatGirl making her own tiny felted creatures. CG, of course, was ecstatic when I shared them with her. :)
(to get a sense of scale…this bird is smaller than a walnut) -
not afraid
“I’m not afraid of storms, for I’m learning how to sail my ship. “
~Louisa May Alcott -
Shhhh!!!
I love this pic of CatGirl goofing around in the parking lot area of the Huntington Library. She & John opted just to see the “free” part of the grounds when they dropped me off yesterday.
:)
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it’s about time….
I know it’s been awhile since I updated the blog…but I’ve just been too busy doing and not having much time for writing/reflecting (at least not on my personal life).
But just so you know, all is well ’round here: the trip to Boston exceeded all of my expectations, the dissertation is progressing well, I polished off an article for an academic publication a few days ago, I’ll be leading a Humanities-based technology workshop next week, the cats are all falling into a cozy-happy routine, SoCal is experiencing a wickedly hot late-summer spell, and my leg is looking nearly normal.
Oh, and John made a super tasty sticky toffee pudding a few days ago (lucky us!).
Whew…
:)
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firsts (the alone edition)
Having married while I was in college, and then had babies shortly thereafter, I’ve rarely done anything by myself. So this trip has been a big one for me—it’s the first time I’ve gone somewhere unfamiliar alone (Salt Lake City and Denver don’t count because I’ve lived both places). So here are some firsts from my first day of travel:
-First cross-country flight alone where I am sitting between two super-tall men who both have a “big stance.” You know what that means? They have like 3 ft each between their two knees and I had no space at all for mine, Everytime I fell asleep I woke up to find myself with the outside of my thighs resting on theirs—as if they were trying to squeeze me out of even more of my legroom. It was a long long night.
-First taxi ride alone (I was really scared, which is crazy because I know it’s a totally normal thing) but to be in a car alone with a strange man? Weird. I don’t think I tipped him enough, but it cost more than I thought and I didn’t want to dig back into my cash stash as we were standing on the street corner at 5:30am in a dodgy area of downtown Boston.
-First view of the Charles River alone (the taxi driver doesn’t count)
-First stay in a hostel alone (nice experience, though I did spring for the private room)
-First aborted attempt to buy a T ticket myself (someone had to bail me out because I was totally oblivious and didn’t know that I needed a Charlie card….). Oh, and along with this one goes “first aborted attempt to get through the T gate myself.” Had to be bailed out of that one, too.
-First ride on the subway alone. Grabbed myself a pole by the door (it was rushhour) and did just fine.
-First chichi Harvard tea & cakes reception(!) alone. When I checked into the Harvard Special Collections library this morning, they handed me an invitation to this event. I went, knowing that it would be something to blog about. Discovered that even though I walked in looking a bit like a drowned rat (having traversed Harvard yard just moments before in a pouring rain with a hole-y umbrella), people were nice to me anyways.
What are your recent “firsts”?
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let there be light
On my next trip I’ll be traveling light. I’m talking light as in everything fits into my backpack (and maybe some snacks in a shoulder bag). I’ve done it before–two weeks in Europe with a small daypack was no problem at all.
So I’m in the midst of packing for my next trip and thought I’d ask for your best light-traveling tips. How do you make sure you have everything you’ll need while still being able to easily tote your bags?
PS: Boston, here I come! (first leg of the pilgrimsteps world tour! Yeehaa!)
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this is freakin’ hilarious
Those million yard signs that were supposed to appear last week on the lawns of Mormons ’round the state? So what happened to them? Heh.
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detente
In the midst of new cat/old cat tensions at chez pilgrim, Bobette has occupied the favorite comfy chair, offering her a bird’s eye view of the hallway. But Toby has crept, low, and without letting her collar bell sound…and managed to slide by B’s watchful eye and then stealthily crept under the table, around the wall, and made it to the cat perch in front of the back door (which is just 2 feet behind said comfy chair). B is oblivious.
With the sweet taste of victory, TobyJoy jingles her bell loudly and then marches around the corner of the chair in full view of Bobette. Toby has claimed her territory and she is proud.
B rolls over to take a nap, but doesn’t quite close her eyes completely…still watching TobyJoy lingering in the entranceway to the hall.
