Ten.Two Thousand, One Hundred & Seventy-Seven
I know I must get up when the birds are at their loudest.
A full pot.
What do we do now?
I forgot to eat my avocado, and I’m feeling it.
It’s closer than I think it is.
I leave the main lights off and tell her that my old office mate and I used to sit in the dark all the time. Sensitive? No. I don’t like artificial light, is all.
They say they have no time for any more appointments today. I tell her it looks like we’re going to Smith’s Pharmacy. She explains to me how to select the right press-on nails.
I don’t think you can write it this way.
She flips her phone camera to show one of the girls my nails.
I tell them that they are not a disappointment. They make disappointing decisions.
“Where there is no vision, the people perish…”
Ten.Two Thousand, One Hundred & Seventy-Six
Peonies opening.
Short pours of coffee.
South to go north, just to go south again.
We all want it to be easier than it actually is.
It is not until we start to cross the bridge when I remember that I forgot to turn off the oven this morning. “Well, at least I know the house isn’t on fire. The neighbors would have called me by now.”
The house smells of burned sugar. I tell him not to open the oven.
Hot.
I make there just in time to give them hugs and to see their at bats. “You look so much happier.” “I am.
This smell is never going to go away.
All clear.
Ten.Two Thousand, One Hundred & Seventy-Five
Monday, Monday, Monday.
The time will pass anyway.
It could be me, but I don’t think it is as hard as they think it needs to be.
Uh-oh.
I find a chair in the sun on the other side of the building. On the other side of the railing is a tiny block of vines. The sound of cars making their way up and down Highway 29.
“I don’t forget who I am.”
My last one as president.
I tell him that I miss my daily phone calls with Julie. My mornings are just not the same.
Be collaborative.
Almost.
Ten.Two Thousand, One Hundred & Seventy-Four
Double-header kind of morning.
Not enough coffee in the pot.
I should.
I slice the tomatoes and lettuce and bacon and stack them between two slices of baguette.
Too cold in the shade.
Thank goodness for that backup camera; otherwise, I would have hit the hydrant.
The constant reexamination of self this will require.
Two games. Two wins.
“…to a very large extent, an individual’s current life is the result of earlier choices; life has continuity.”
Ten.Two Thousand, One Hundred & Seventy-Two
What if I’m remembering it wrong?
The last avocado.
Misunderstandings.
Sometimes, keeping your expectations low is a good thing. Low expectations + detachment from the outcome.
Should I or shouldn’t I? I’m running out of time to decide.
Emerging from the cellar into the bright afternoon light. I pick a bench bathed in sunlight. We take in the views as we eat our lunches.
This is a good team.
This left-hand turn off of Oakville Grade, though.
“The fit is fitting.”
Sometimes, it’s nice to have an extra voice at the table.
Ten.Two Thousand, One Hundred & Seventy-One
It feels like the morning mist is creeping through the windows.
All black everything.
Now, all white. Don’t spill the coffee.
Peonies and pea tendrils and little white flowers.
A quick lunch at Gott’s before the second session of meetings. A group of older ladies asking questions at the window. The line is beginning to snake out into the parking lot.
That’s a lot of work.
The thing about these reunions is that it’s one of the few times a year I get to see some friends. A manufactured reason outside of ourselves. But I’ll take it.
He says that sitting there, he thought to himself, “This is not a bad life.”
Pizza at the high top and wondering if this is the night they will be tucked into the corner of the bar.
When am I going to get the cleaning done?
Ten.Two Thousand, One Hundred & Seventy
Keeping with the tan and black and white theme.
Avocado, olive oil, Maldon salt, and flakes of seaweed.
Only music this time.
I let the beauty of it all envelope me. I think I could be happy here.
I ask for the name of the ceramicist. “TBD,” she says. “Are you a potter?” “In my dreams,” I say. “I will be old and gray and in a cabin by the ocean.” “Manifest that.” “I will.”
All this and a Bic pen.
I could eat chips and salsa all day.
I watch the temperature climb as I head north. 70 degrees in the parking garage. 75. Then 78. 81. 85.
Of course, I am doing walk-up music.
All I can think about is how much fun it could be if this was happening for basketball too.
Ten.Two Thousand, One Hundred & Sixty-Nine
Just a little bit colder.
No appetite.
Too many bags.
I realize that the end of the invasion says, “Vineyard tours.” Oh, I did not wear the right shoes for this.
Crows and a hawk. Soil talk. Vistas blanked out by the morning’s fog.
No baseball caps; cowboy hats are acceptable.
Everyone wants a plan.
A perfect pink peony.
Numinosity.
“To be an adult is not just to have a big body; it’s to know that I’m accountable for what’s spilling into the world through me.”
Ten.Two Thousand, One Hundred & Sixty-Eight
Monday.
No tire pressure.
When I get into her car, I hear the voice of Ashley Flowers.
Dirty boots.
It is still foggy in the Russian River Valley. We talk about how sad it is that they removed the Syrah, coastal influence, slow ripening, and the way the vineyard cradles the cold air and fog. There are worse ways to spend a Monday morning.
Everyone wants a plan.
1967-ish Turquoise blue Mustang convertible with a cream top and cream leather interior.
Pit in stomach, which means several days of eating something the body no longer can handle.
What is and is not a reflection of oneself? There is no such thing as control.
Habits.
Ten.Two Thousand, One Hundred & Sixty-Seven
I needed the extra time and space.
Stack logs. Search for lighter. Start a fire.
How, after a rain, everything glimmers. Everything is sharper, clearer, more defined.
Almost there.
I start to think about worst-case scenario and then walk myself back to reality.
Two weeks down. 4 more to go.
More tri-tip. No one is complaining.
Do you root for the local team or for the upset?
They are asking questions that surprise me and delight me. I try to hide my excitement.
Decisions to be made.
Ten.Two Thousand, One Hundred & Sixty-Six
Rain and more rain.
I beat the crowd. A box of assorted pastries. A few English muffins for good measure.
Coffee on the sofa thinking about all of the reading I need to get done. Thank goodness I finished my paper.
Why?
Rain and sun and rain and sun. People who don’t know where they’re going.
Not at all what I was expecting.
Firewood fairy.
The quiet in the center of the storm.
Races in the rain.
I won the raffle!
Ten.Two Thousand, One Hundred & Sixty-Five
This morning is better than yesterday.
I have to take a break helping him to make sure everyone else is awake.
Preparation.
New plans need to be made.
Here comes the rain again.
Candles lit. Clouds gray. House quiet.
This weekend: switch their rooms so that he is on the main level and won’t be tempted to use the stairs on his own.
More water.
Off-menu-local-type things.
“But I feel primed for success.”
Ten.Two Thousand, One Hundred & Sixty-Four
Is it the coffee? I already know the answer.
I rub my eyes and say that it’s just early. I am being patient.
They point to two trees that will need to come down. They are tall, maybe 30 or 40 feet and so big there is no way I can wrap my arms around them.
I wonder what got that bird. I follow the trail of feathers.
A butterfly. And another. Three butterflies. One butterfly smushed against the asphalt.
I sit in the car and watch a handful of them throwing a ball around in the field. I’d rather he be here than at home sitting. The fresh air does everybody some good.
A good day to take a walk.
I’m a fast writer, but I need to be faster today.
I want a good meal, so I decide we’ll have risotto with salmon. More creamed spinach since it’s the only way to get them to eat it. It is worth the 30 minutes of stirring. And I timed it perfectly so that everything on the plate is still warm. It’s the little things on days like these.
Just a little more time. Please.
Ten.One Thousand, One Hundred & Sixty-Three
Forgot to meditate.
Thick fog. Thicker than yesterday. Loud birds. Louder than yesterday.
Finally got the oat milk to foam.
She’s wearing my jeans again.
I didn’t even see her, but she apologizes to me. She thought it was her car. She looks confused. I am just listening to everyone else on the call, wishing I had picked a different part of the parking lot to sit in because I am covered in sunlight and starting to sweat.
He shows me a picture of the image, and you can see a chunk of bone that’s separated from the head of the humerus. No driving. No traveling. No using the hand on that arm at all, they say.
I eat my lunch and think that I should be more stressed out about this than I am.
I had forgotten how good some of the lines are in the song: “Cause it's a hindrance to my health / if I'm a stranger to myself.”
I might need that month off after all.
I should have taken my walk today.
Ten.One Thousand, One Hundred & Sixty-Two
Thick fog and bird chirps.
Bacon and potatoes. He makes toast instead.
The Spotify DJ says it’s going to play a mix of what I usually listen to on Tuesdays. He turns down the Britney Spears as we pull into the school parking lot.
I look down at my text messages during the meeting. He says he’s in the ER. Fell at the gas station. I know exactly what happened. I think back to my high school science teacher and her two broken arms.
Today’s lunchtime walk is less bitter than yesterday's.
A cluster of poppies, open and bright and alive.
Not enough time today.
Can I hop the fence? I can’t hop the fence. She laughs at me. I hop the fence.
I’ll figure it out.
“Have an ambition.”
Ten.One Thousand, One Hundred & Sixty-One
5:30 he said. He will be up soon, too.
Why is everyone always eating their breakfast in the car?
“I did learn something,” he says. “What’s that?”
Poppies.
I tell her that it’s very bitter today.
Black-eyed Peas. I am transported back to the Express in the Overland Park Mall. The store manager is of below-average height for a man with short blond hair, glasses, and braces. He asks me why I didn’t have any credit card sales that day. I tell him I don’t believe in pushing debt onto people. I laugh. I guess I’ve always been a bit defiant. Random memories.
3:30 p.m. - 6:30 p.m. 3:45 p.m. - 5:15 p.m. 5:15 p.m. - 7:15 p.m. Somewhere in between all of this I will make dinner.
So. many. words.
“Phenomenological.” I count the syllables on my hand.
Just a few bites.
Ten.One Thousand, One Hundred & Sixty
Slow beginnings.
Each time I look at the clock, I am surprised by how much time has passed.
It’s going to be one of those games, I see.
I tell him that I like reading, that I find it interesting. He looks at his friend and tells him I’m crazy.
I drag the chair into the sun and settle in, rolling up my pant legs to feel the heat on my skin.
I am going to finish this before the family call. I will. I will.
Headache. Dehydrated? Allergies? Too much reading on the screen? All of the above?
Learn something new every day.
Chicken pot pie.
I did it.
Ten.One Thousand, One Hundred & Fifty-Nine
Is it already time?
Hotel room coffee while waiting for them to finish getting ready.
We drive to the grocery store. The roads have many lanes. In the distance are green rolling hills and a hazy morning sky. It makes me miss East Bay living for just a moment. Quiet, suburban, clean, and almost sterile feel familiar and easy.
Glorious sun.
Keep your expectations low and be open to being surprised.
A bit of a reality check that many of these kids probably needed to hear.
The thing is that we still have time. There is still plenty of time.
I will retreat this meal.
Forgot how much I love “Hopelessly Devoted.”
Two glasses of Massican Annia, fried cauliflower, french fries with black truffle, and thinking about neutrons.
Ten.One Thousand, One Hundred & Fifty-Eight
The wind.
Still not over this little flower arrangement and the way it glows in the morning light.
I make the bacon but forget to make the potatoes. He says something about the texture of the smoothie again. “Raspberry seeds and protein powder, this time,” I say.
There is just a lot that needs to get done today.
Almost laughable.
He says he doesn’t like it, but he’s always smiling as he walks off the field.
Just the four of us and a lot of red meat and a lot of laughter.
Portugal?
I think this is the right thing to do.
I’ll survive.
Ten.One Thousand, One Hundred & Fifty-Seven
The darkness.
Sweaterdress. Spring is almost here.
An avocado before the first sip of coffee.
The way the wind is blowing through the trees makes me think of fire.
I see the feather and think about stopping to collect it, but I change my mind. And then there is another. And another. Am I on the right path?
I ask him about the rattlesnakes. He hesitates.
“If you don’t believe in yourself, how will somebody else believe in you?”
Week 1 - done.
Sun. More and more questions float in on the winds. Noticing that I am not fully present. Timelines and deadlines are stacked on one another. Something will suffer.
Logistics.