every day, one good thing: April 2018

4/30: a new recipe

Last night a TV show I was watching mentioned mujadara, so I looked it up and it sounded like something we'd like. This evening when I came home from work I made it according to this recipe (click), and it was great.

4/29: better

A pinched nerve, general exhaustion, anxiety, and low spirits were very much shaping my mood on Saturday. The nerve trouble is still around today, but the edge of the other things has been softened somewhat. I graded and talked with my mother in the morning; went out to lunch with Chris then grocered; made some 1 x 1 collages on the porch while drinking tea; did some Heron Tree editor work with Chris; took a walk; photographed an errant iris (an escapee from a neighbor's yard); heard whippoorwills and coyotes.

4/28: ordered

...some new postcards of photos I've taken between the end of January and now.

4/27: library labyrinth

I was in the library for Quiet Writing today and noticed that there was blue tape on the carpet on the second floor marking the path of a meditation labyrinth through the stacks. I walked it, and it was wonderful. It was also nice to be able to tell one of the librarians on my way out how brilliant I thought it was; she told me that some of their student workers thought of the idea and worked it out. What a fantastic way to end a difficult week.

4/26: thinking

...about Ovid's story of Ceyx and Alcyone in relation to Homer's Odyssey. I don't usually include Ceyx and Alcyone in my Myth class, but I added it this semester and am glad I did.

4/25: returns

Finding the new and not-so-inexpensive flash drive I thought I had lost. And even when I thought I had lost it I didn't get as frustrated with myself as I might have.

Pulling out my little pop-up studio and photographing some figurines, something I haven't done in awhile.

4/24: walking out

...of my office mid-morning and into bird-song.

4/23: gathering

...all the possible questions for the Myth test that I had jotted down or recorded as voice memos for myself over the past ten days and realizing that, though they came to me in fits and starts, they made a complete test once corralled. Having the test set relatively easily also made coming up with alternative questions for a make-up test smoother and less stressful.

4/22: many things

Buying my plane ticket to go to Pennsylvania in May.

Resuming a collaboration after a week-long pause.

Having a quick bookbinding session with two students and another professor.

Making good hot sandwiches with Chris for dinner.

Finishing The Lost Books of the Odyssey by Zachary Mason.

Sitting with Phineas aggressively cuddled into my arms.

4/21: sleeping in

Quite late! Not planned, but obviously needed.

4/20: stopping

...at the pier and bridge on the way to work. I haven't been doing it much lately, but I'm glad I did today.

4/19: tea

...from Korea, a gift from a former student.

4/18: gathering

...myself after a sleepless night. And rallying enough in the evening to get some grading done.

I'm also grateful that my sister understood my postponing a phone call we had planned and sent a sweet text message instead.

4/17: making plans

...to head up to Loretto at the end of May.

4/16: another round

...of narcissus in our yard.

4/15: two stops

...before leaving Albuquerque this morning: Rebel Donuts and the San José Cemetery.

4/14: Acoma

Morning at the Acoma Pueblo.

4/13: presentation

...given. Kind of un-climactically, but I'm going to call it a win.

4/12: morning, afternoon, evening

Morning: seeing a former student, now a graduate student, give a conference paper. The paper was very good and so was her presenting style!

Afternoon: high winds in the desert while visiting a pueblo site in Bernalillo and walking along the cottonwood-lined Rio Grande.

Evening: me with my mind, preparing slides for a presentation tomorrow. I've never left presentation preparation to the last minute before, but at least I had a leisurely evening to put things together.

4/11: indian fry bread

...hot and with honey.

4/10: sharing

I brought little ice creams for my Myth class, and I had a few left over at the end of the afternoon. As I was putting them in the building refrigerator one of the administrators (and one whom I really like) was coming in to buy a snack from the vending machine. I offered him an ice cream instead. He seemed so tickled to be offered one, and I was so pleased that he said yes.

4/9: bluebells

...a bouquet of them, left by a friend outside my office door! I have fond memories of seeing them growing on the monastery grounds next to my childhood home. My mother would be especially happy when they appeared each year.

4/8: reading with Tilde

Still feeling under the weather this morning, I started reading a new novel and Tilde the Cat kept me company.

4/7: morning

I woke up less sick than I was when I went to bed, and I indulged myself with a warm cinnamon roll at the hotel's breakfast. Those were good things. Also good: judging some high school students' Latin recitation pieces at a state language festival this morning. I don't love competitions in general, but it was sweet to meet the students and hear them. I brought my miniature Pegasuses along so I could give one to each student when they finished, and that felt really nice.

4/6: driving

I learned to drive later in life than most people who drive, and I've never naturalized it as an activity. But the upside of that is that I'm always delighted when I manage a trip into less familiar territory on my own--in this case, a jaunt up to Searcy.

4/5: Euripides' Ion

It's been many years since I taught this particular play, and I'm glad I rotated it back in for this semester at least. I had fun this morning preparing my class notes for the afternoon and working out my thoughts about the play's meditations on identity and language.

every day, one good thing