7/31: multiple good things

Working backwards from evening to morning, here are some good things from today:

Going to a poetry reading in Little Rock in the evening, at which two friends of mine read, one of whom is Sandy, who co-edits Heron Tree with me and Chris.  I missed two of her readings this spring, so I was glad to get to see her in action this time.

Getting an email from a friend I was so happy to hear from.

Finishing some writing before going to Little Rock.

Meeting up with a student/advisee and coming up with a plan of action.

Participating in The Saturday PhotoHunt for the first time (with thanks to Una, who visits this blog, for telling me about it!).  I didn't quite meet the goal of participating on Saturday, but here's my photo for this week's theme, "wet":

Seeing those amazing waterdrops while walking down my driveway to the mailbox and, since it's summer, having time to run into the house to get my camera and snap away.

Playing with both Tilde and Emma.

Hearing Tilde play with her new cat-toy in the other room as Emma and I kept drowsing on the bed just around sunrise.

7/30: eye-related good things

I went to the eye doctor today to get an updated prescription.  I like my eye-doctor, and I like her staff.  One of the women was very patient and helpful (and then patient some more) as I chose new frames.

I was glad/relieved that my eyes haven't gotten much worse in the past two years.  I had been worried that too much sunset-photographing would have taken a toll.

I got a book of Hilma af Klint's art today.  I hadn't heard of her until last week when I read an article about her in an old issue of Artforum.  So glad to know about her, and so glad to be able to see more of her work.  Eye delight.

7/29: finally

Today I finished writing and editing a chunk of Classical commentary for Dr. Wortle's School.  This particular set of Trollope glosses, written by myself and two students, has had a number of setbacks, so it feels especially good for it to have finally reached this stage.

7/28: making hay

I'm trying to make the most of summer opportunities, and today's cool-for-Arkansas-in-late-July temperatures meant that I could really enjoy some lake time.

Once teaching begins, lake-time will be rare, so I'm indulging myself now.  And I'm laying in visual provisions for the school year:  today I got a big volume of Agnes Martin's work, and I'll look forward to paging through it when I'm more desk-and-chair-bound.

7/27: conversations with friends

One in person, one by phone.  I'm grateful for the friends and for today's conversations with them.

7/26: early morning message

My best friend from my childhood neighborhood is having a busy day today, but she remembered that today was going to be tough for me, so as she was heading out into her busy-ness, she called and left me a sweet phone message.

7/25: the summer of lentils

I decided to make lentils a theme of the summer by trying a bunch of different lentil dishes.  I like lentils but almost never eat them, and I thought that by declaring it "the summer of lentils" I'd remember to keep rotating them into my menu.  It's been a fun, low-pressure, and (I hope) healthful project.  Today's lentil recipe included feta cheese--nice.

7/24: four bases

It was a "do at least one thing in each of the four categories" kind of day, and it worked well.

House or self:  I ran errands in town and did laundry at home.  (One of the errands took me to the pet store where, in addition to practical necessities for the cats, I also bought them a new toy.  It was sweet to watch them with it when I got home.)

Work:  I edited students' Trollope glosses and wrote some of my own.  I made quicker progress than I had initially expected.

Exercise:  I walked at the indoor track.

Contact:  I talked on the phone with my sister.

7/23: walking company

I knew that I'd go to the indoor walking track today because it would be too rainy to kayak, and I invited one of my neighbors along.  We used to walk on the ridge together often a few years ago, when our schedules meshed well, but now we see one another less frequently.  It was good to chat and move together through the cool air in a clean, well-lighted place.

7/22: both early

I arrived at the coffee-shop early, which was okay since I had brought a magazine to read.  But my friend arrived just as I was about to walk in the door, so our conversation could start all the sooner.  It seemed like an auspicious way to begin our afternoon chat, a concrete symbol of being on the same wavelength.

7/21: kayaking company

One of our neighbors asked if he could kayak with me this evening with Chris' (mostly unused of late) kayak.  It was a good outing, with gentle water and gentle light.

7/20: timing

I happened to be coming up the hill with my kayak just as my next-door neighbors were leaving the ridge for the last time, getting on the road to set up a new life for themselves in Florida.  I was grateful that I had one more chance to wish them well and wave as they drove away.

7/19: unexpected overlap

Imagine a Venn diagram.  One circle is a found poetry project using Emily Dickinson's poems (something I'm working on this summer as a little lark).  The other circle is my ongoing research on Midas.  I wouldn't have thought those two circles would intersect, but today I found two poems by Dickinson which refer to Midas and the golden touch.  A happy discovery, interesting to think about (the poems are curious), and nice to come upon Midas connections by a different and unanticipated route.

7/18: gathering

Our wonderful next-door neighbors are moving away (oh no!), and tonight another one of our other neighbors hosted a farewell gathering for them.  It is sad to say goodbye to people who have been so wonderful to live next to, but it was also very nice to realize what a sweet neighborhood I live in, with so many great folks all around.

7/17: production underway

As one of my summer projects I've been designing little chapbooks to reprint some poems by a friend, and today my order of paper (right colors, right weights) arrived.  I couldn't resist beginning to print and fold.

7/16: solo

Chris has been taking flying lessons, and today was his first time going solo in the airplane.

7/15: good morning, afternoon, evening

Morning office on the porch in exceptionally cool (for Arkansas in July) weather.

Some afternoon work on Trollope and then time over tea finishing reading a novel.

A banner evening on the water.  I took advantage of the cool weather to kayak farther east on the lake than I've ever gone--I got basically to the point at which it isn't a lake anymore but a river.  And then on the way back:  an amazing sunset.

I cried a bit as I sat in my little boat watching the sunset on the water, sad that no one else was there to see it.  But when I got back to the dock Chris was there, so he had gotten to see some of it after all.

7/14: reaching 2000

This is my 2000th post!  Reaching this milestone and knowing that the process of getting here has changed me for the better are definitely good things.

7/13: sun & moon

Watching the sunset, solo in my kayak.

Watching the moonrise, with Chris and our neighbors in a boat belonging to one of those neighbors.

7/12: balanced out

While I was kayaking this evening some teenagers heckled me.  It was not pleasant, but--thankfully--this is the first time in 6 years of my going out on the lake that something like this has happened.  A little later I paddled past a father playing in the water with his two young girls; they said hello, and the older one remarked to me, "Awesome kayak!"  I was very grateful, and their kindness helped to restore my equilibrium.

7/11: up and running

I knew I'd need a new computer sooner rather than later, but I didn't think that "sooner" would be quite this soon.  I wasn't looking forward to copying files, downloading software, etc., but before kayaking time this evening the task of transferring folders and setting up my new laptop was pretty much done.

7/10: shortbread

My friend sent me home with some shortbread she had made, and it is amazing.

7/9: small window, but a window

I only had time to nip out onto the lake for 20 minutes this evening.  But I did have time to nip out onto the lake for 20 minutes this evening.

7/3-7/8: after too long, too much

I spent the past days visiting a long-time friend whom I hadn't seen for far too long.  Our days contained too much goodness to list!

7/2: extended morning office

I got up earlier than usual, and since it was cooler than usual, I spent the whole morning on the screened-in porch.  Eating breakfast, drinking coffee, finishing reading a book, writing about the book.  And Tilde kept me company.

7/1: hopping

Thunderstorms were in the air, so instead of kayaking I went walking at the indoor track.  A little girl was walking with her mother, who was on her mobile phone.  The little girl came up alongside me and started hopping, and kept hopping.  So I hopped with her too for a bit, and she, her mother, and I all smiled.