what I love....

Hardly an original idea, I've seen this done similarly several times in the last few weeks as "what I love" or "things to live for" but I was curious what my list would look like

The ocean, summer storms, great hugs (oh lets be honest - ANY hugs), pansies and gerber daisies, pirate ships, Newfoundlanders (on principal and in person), the boy and the girl, my family (both blood and chosen), Spanish movies, the Puerto Rico Professor, fresh from the oven chocolate chip cookies, big dogs, the quilt my mom made for me, someone singing to me, old photos, my prairie city, my coastal province, mandolins and upright bass, bare feet, my friends (they know who they are), 80s compilations, sci-fi, riding horses in the mountains, abstract art, coffee, basketball, rememberances of Summer '91, the Zoo, Celtic music, open mike nights, "a good bounce", red shoes, flannel PJs, non-black band t-shirts, musicals, sparklers, the beautiful bastard, the waterfront, St. Patrick's Day, discovering new places (sometimes in your own backyard), outdoor music festivals (especially in wild west ghost towns), the smell of bread baking, books, books, books, the teeter-totter behind Jess and Erika's place, a good kitchen party, slushy drinks, hot tubs, Buffy, my name in the liner notes, someone brushing my hair, crying at movies, Ponoka (or maybe just the mention of Ponoka), lammies on lanyards, road trips, green pens, turquoise toenail polish, big rocks to climb on that overlook the ocean.

(** the above may change without notice... it may be added to at anytime, though it will probably never be shorter)

Awakening

I feel like I've awakened after too long slumber. The process of waking was slow; I've been unaware for so long I'd almost forgotten. But I remember now.

And ( even with the clouds) it feels like the sun is shining; my eyes are open and it's going to be a beautiful day.

Cheers my friends!

Here's to a fine and fun-filled weekend culminating in a beyond lovely birthday party spent with most of my favorite people (with only one or two out of province MIA's)!
Thanks everybody - you rock!
*clink*
( I had written another version of this last evening upon returning home but I decided the "sloppy-over-affectionate drunk" version should be editted - anytime I use the expression "my peeps" is just wrong and "I love you guys" in a slurry voice just didn't cut it )

Silly me...

I forgot how much I love this!

In an unexpected turn of events, our heroine actually showed up at the bar, danced the night away, and was among the last to leave (reluctantly, even!) with plans to return soon (very soon) in much more appropriate (and fun) attire!

I love my friends and their crazy ideas!

Aural journey

Feeling stifled in my inactivity, my tenacious cold not giving an inch. I need to get out in the air, away from everything. My life feels stagnant today, like I haven't left the house in far too long. So I am, at the very least, taking advantage of my surroundings. And off I go....

Always it takes a few minutes to get over the feeling of unfamiliarity. The language is not mine. I don't comprehend what he is saying as he sings. But as I sit, immersed in reading and drinking my too-strong coffee, the unfamiliar words disappear, melding with the rhythm and the music until I forget my newspaper... I close my eyes with the barely conscious realization that I have begun to move. I have started swaying and moving with the rhythms. Unlike the language, this is not unfamiliar; somehow these rhythms are as basic and comfortable as a heartbeat. They have always felt this close to me, like the movement of air in and out of my lungs playing against the thump thump of my heartbeat. I am transported away with the musical strains filling the room, filling my head; transported away on my musical magic carpet.

As I listen I can almost feel the sun on my face, the almost oppressive dryness in the air. I can see the people in their brightly coloured clothes, dancing to these same rhythms until the sand under their feet creates dust clouds that obscure them from view. I have never really been there. Only in dreams and pictures have I seen the savannah as it becomes the desert. But these rhythms take me there. As I dance to these essential rhythms, eyes closed, listening to the voices in song that somehow now become clear in their meaning, even without comprehending the words. These voices take me there.

Someday I will go there and join in the songs and the dance. I will truly feel the sun on my face. Until then, I will listen often, and be transported.