Compelling

My new thing is books on cd. I started out with David Sedaris (hilarious), moved on to Mitch Albom (soso) and now Khaled Hosseini's Kite Runner. Talk about a shift. This past week, I have actually been looking forward to my once dreaded commute. Today I actually took a longer route to the office because I couldn't be left hanging where I was in the story.

The story follows two boys living in Afghanistan in the early 70's - before the extreme political/social/cultural unrest began. The author does an amazing job of illustrating the tension between the Sunni Muslim/Pashtun people and the Sh'ia Muslim/Hazara people. I have seven (out of ten) cds ahead of me, but I can tell that this is going to be a complicated, multidimensional story that will be personally transformative.

For anyone who is a fan of this story, here is a treat: I found out that this novel is now a movie "in production" scheduled for release November 2007!

Here is a lovely picture of the author:


A man with an incredible gift.

Are Pigs the New Ladybug?

Last week this arrived on my doorstep:


Makes me wonder if in this Year O' the Golden Pig - the Ladybug will be replaced by a pink, fluffy Boar??

Now, I am not too sure who to thank on this one...but I think her name starts with Connie???

If so, thanks, Connie! If not, will the sneaky-pig-sender please oink at me.

San Francisco Chinese New Year Parade

My well-connected sister got us super VIP tickets to watch the SFCNY parade this year. We got front row seats, free pre-party invites, a chance to meet last season's Survivor winner (Yul) and very cool goodie bags to boot! Sure feels like a great start to this Golden Pig Year!!


Definitely beats sitting at the end of the parade route when all the bands are tired of performing and all the kiddos are ready for potty breaks. Nice to be at the Head O' tha Parade.

Here is the view from the pre-party shindig. Beautiful Day...couldn't have been prettier.


Here are the lovely treats that they offered. Mega dimsum, including an amazing green spicy veggie dumpling that I long for to this day...and ice cold Chardonnay. Niiiiice.


View from the parade site.


Lucky boots.


And, sunset comes.



Dragons!


Lions!


And, Piggies! Oh My!



Serious Warriors....swinging lumbering arms as they walk over mounds of firecrackering explosions.



Beautiful dancers.....fluttering colorful fans.



But, what is up with these freaky heads????



Good times.

More Hearts

A dear, dear friend came over for a sewing date this past Sunday. While she cut, I stitched. We chatted. We ate. We jammed to Missy Elliot and Lil' Kim. Hootie Hoo! It was a modern day quilting bee. Not only was it fun, but it was productive!

Take a look:


With this second batch o' squares, I've got 25 in total. I can hardly believe it. There are some famous swatches here (click on the pic for a closer view) - anyone notice anything familiar? Stacy? Connie? Nicole? Ally? Debi? Barb? There are also special bits and pieces from my cousin, some local pals and my sewing buddy...she and her hubby both gave me a wish. Their heart is in the bottom left corner - they make a cute couple, don't you think?

This weekend I'll take some time to match up some more fabric and start the assembly line again. I'm going to keep on making these hearts until I grow weary of the project - it calls for 77, but I might just make it to 177 at the rate I'm going. I wanted it to be bigger than the original pattern anyway.

Nothing like a fresh batch o' hearts to lift the spirit.


PS - BTW, it has been 10 months since our LID was issued. We've hit the double-digits...and I think that we finally qualify for veteran status at this point.

Rubber Spoons vs. Rubber Rooms

I have been soo good. I have resisted many, many fun little purchases here and there. I've all but stopped even looking in the baby department for cute little thing-a-me-bobs that BabyZ can't live without. I've saved my pennies and it has felt great. It has payed off, even.

Something snapped a little last week, though. I broke down. I hit my fave Impulse Shopping Store that just happens to be walking distance from my office. Perfect lunchtime activity for a day that was a little rough going.

It all started with this unidentified, yet slowly building tension I've been feeling recently...timeline on that is sketchy. Then, there was a little bit of snappish domestic quarreling pre-dinner Monday that was completely unnecessary. And then there were the notices about this months meager allotment of referrals. 11 days! Three months to get through October 05! Damn! Crap!

Tuesday brought an annoying email from someone who has no idea how her words get to me sometimes. And, just before lunch same day - a crappy, crappy, annoying meeting that I could not escape. Torture, I tell you...agonizing. Too much for so early in the week.

This perfect storm of annoyances is what lured me to the aforementioned fave Impulse Shopping Store for a little lunchtime retail therapy. Originally I was only after some new music (read: Arcade Fire's new album) and wound up in the baby aisle.

Of course.

I walked out of the place, about $30 lighter and 10 times happier because I got myself some very cool new red sunglasses, the new tunes, fun summer socks, an US magazine, a Diet Dr. Pepper....and these:


Pretty little baby chewy spoons. My fave colors - kelly green, light purple, fuschia.

Happy. Spoons. Mine.

Baby girl may be a long ways away from joining our family - but we are going to be so ready for her. In our hearts and in our spoon drawer.

Happy colors + rubber chewiness x nesting over the long haul = tenacious love.

Very Good Intentions

A little while back I posted a list here with eight things that I wanted to accomplish within the next eight months. I am very surprised by how powerful doing that was. I'm actually ticking things off of the list! And, it has only been a month and a half!!!

Wow.

I've tried hard to be intentional in my life. Usually my intentions are conversations and plans that I have with myself. Stuff that I know that I'm doing but nobody else necessarily does. A groovy friend of mine suggests that when you put your intentions out "to the universe" - you will see results. I suppose that is what I did back in January when published that list for all of blog-land to see.

Perhaps shouting out intentions is more effective than whispering them?

So far: I've started learning the Red Velvet Cake, I've begun sewing up the Bai Jia Bei, we've been totally on save-mode and managed to put one whole paycheck into savings last month, baby's room is getting prepped....

And, I've been reconnecting with my garden!

Look at my happy plants:

Tulips poking out


Sedum raring to go


Rosebushes thank me for pruning them with lovely buds



The Snowdrops are a reminder that Spring is coming!


I think that Martha would be proud of my Hellebore


Foxgloves waking up


And beautiful fiddleheads ready to stretch


Still need to work on a few things such as getting back in the damn gym.

There, I said it. Actually, I shouted it. Now I really gotta do it.