VD 2012

Aside

I’m freaking out a little, all because of a poem.  This was my bright idea, stealing a page from my Uncle Jim’s play book.  Each year, he writes his Valentine, my Aunt Nancy, a poem.  How romantic!  How lovely!  I wanted in!

People say, “Every day should be Valentine’s Day,” and while I can get behind the sentiment, it’s usually not.  When was the last time you got flowers, just because it was Monday.  Or bought a great gift because it was February 1st.  If that’s a normal part of your routine, good for you.  I’m proud of you!  While I wish we skewed toward romantic and lovey-dovey all the time, in my mind, Valentine’s Day still gets to be extra-special.

To be really honest, I’ve always loved the day- whether single or taken- and have good memories.  My mom always gave really cute gifts to her kids.  In Vegas, my first boyfriend gave me a Snoopy mirror and comb set.  In 3rd grade, Comninos Zachary gave me a beautiful, handmade declaration of lacy love.  (I don’t think we ever talked after that.)  In the past, I loved going out drinking and enjoying singledom with my girlfriends, and now, I spend the day thinking about how much my husband loves me.  It’s a lot, in case you haven’t met him.  It’s never been about the gifts, because (aside from the ones I already mentioned) I actually can’t remember anything that I’ve ever been given.  Oops!

Since I was working and Chris and I decided no gifts or cards this year, Valentine’s Day was shaping up to be pretty boring day. After reading about Jim and Nancy’s tradition, I asked Chris if it was something that he would like to do.  His response was “I’m on it.”  The man loves a haiku, what can I say?

Finally, mine is written!  We exchanged poems, and his is just beautiful.  He really has a sweet heart.  My was the first love poem I’ve ever written.  Enough said.

Honey’s to Chris topped everything off, though:

Honey Hearts Chris

Happy Valentine’s Day!

Dog Tunnel

Tonight, instead of blogging, Chris and I made a dog tunnel.

Honey's head in tunnel

Using the IKEA box that we had just emptied, we coerced a very skiddish dog into crawling all the way through.  This was hysterical, joyous, and really talented!  We totally high-fived when we did it!

On one hand, we had success in teasing Honey through the tunnel.  On the other, it made me sad that Wholesome Hounds didn’t really make it, since the Just Liver Treats were what convinced her to go all the way through.

Honey's butt in tunnel

Either way, Chris and I had an awesome time rearranging our house and getting the dog to belly crawl through a box.  Very successful night.  I’ll let you know tomorrow all about the changes to the house.

Tonight, I’ll remind you that we got our dog to walk through a cardboard tunnel.  We’re (read “Chris is”) that good.  He’s got a knack for this dog!

It’s Sunday Night

Reasons I am not posting a thoughtful, contemplative note this evening:

1.  I had an extremely busy and fun day, and I’m spent.  We went soaring through the redwoods while ziplining this morning at Sonoma Canopy Tours (my first time ever!) and had an awesome and humungous lunch at Howard’s Station in Occidental.  Then I drove all the way home and tutored.  Plus, after all that, Chris and I spent 1.5 hours cursing IKEA and saying WTF as we put together our new bed.

But look!  We did it!  It is great in our room, and even though it doesn’t match any of the rest of the furniture, it somehow pulled it all together.  The room feels proportioned; the bed is the right height; and we even get some under-the-bed storage.  It sure makes me thrilled about my new plan to get our house in order…  Except the vacuum broke again.  Damn you, Hoover!

Honey and Chris enjoying the bed

2.  I keep forgetting that tomorrow morning starts a 9 day cleanse with my friend, Chandra, who lives in New Jersey.  Since I just remembered (for the zillionth time in the last 3 days) that it begins so soon, I am spending some time planning and steeling my mind to the challenge ahead, i.e. no coffee, which she just reminded me of.  It’s a good thing that I (actually remembered for a brief moment on Friday and) ordered extra veggies and fruits from the CSA for the upcoming week.

This is the plan:  2 days eating raw foods, 5 days juicing, and 2 final days eating raw foods.  It’s an interesting way to end year 32 and begin 33!

3.  See numbers 1 and 2 above.  Nighty-night!

Why Do Birds Suddenly Appear?

Each morning, pouring rain or sun shiny day, Honey and I go for a walk.  It’s usually a half hour, sometimes more but never less.

I try to use these times to do something productive, like pray or just be quiet.

That rarely happens, though.  Sometimes, I talk on the phone to my mom in Vermont or my sister in Turkey.  That’s nice, but most often, I spend my walks just running through all the things I have to do in a day or trying to find an answer to something that is just unsolvable at the moment.  The end result is that I wind up at home frustrated, unthankful, or unhappy.  What a horrible way to start the day!  What a waste of a beautiful walk!

I noticed myself doing this the other day.  My mind was going at a hundred miles a minute as I worried about my job hunt, my resume, and money.  It was exhausting.  Instead of letting myself go down the rabbit hole, I decided to stop.  Someone recently told me that your thoughts are just that; they aren’t necessarily based in reality.  Instead of getting bogged down in what goes on up there, we can change our focus to what is real- that is, what is around you and happening at that moment.

I know, I know.  That sounds REALLY Californian-y.  And while I don’t really understand it all or even necessarily agree with it all, I don’t need to keep listening to the noise going on in my brain.  Especially when God says, “Be still, and know that I am God.”  (Psalm 46:10a)

So I just stopped the whirling, and I got quiet.  And I heard birds singing.  Lots of birds.  I am not joking or exaggerating when I say this, I promise!  Beautiful songs came from the trees on each side of the street.  It had been going on all around me, and I had been so absorbed in my own self that I was missing a wonderful, joyous occurrence.  I continued on my walk, watching the depth of the sunlight, enjoying Honey as she engaged in the scents and sights of the neighborhood (meaning peeing on and chasing everything she could), and experiencing what was happening in the real world.

It’s amazing what I saw when I finally decided to look.