Ten.Nine Hundred & Twenty-Three

1. Good rest.

2. I remember that I promised scones so I ought to get up now and make those.

3. Too much moisture? Too many blueberries?

4. What time is it? Is he still sleeping? It’s almost 10.

5. “…amazing people are attracted by a great culture. Whether we plan it or not, culture will happen. Why not create the culture we want?”

6. ”You cannot inspire unless you’re inspired yourself.”

7. The three of us out here together. He’s surprisingly receptive. We show him how to defend down on the block, how to take one dribble and shoot, how to roll toward the basket in a pick-and-roll, a simple lay-up drill.

8. He’s still out there.

9. “Who ate the muffin?! Who ate the muffin?! WHO ATE THE MUFFIN?!“

10. I could maybe eat the rest of these.

Ten.Seven Hundred and Ninety-Nine

1. Just a little longer.

2. Grateful for a non red-eye flight which means I can take my time getting ready. I wash and dry the dishes and brew the coffee without rushing. I stick a load of clothes in the laundry. I have time to make everyone do everything they need to do for themselves.

3. I am missing them and I have t even left yet.

4. I take a few deep breaths. He thinks it odd that I still feel this way each time I travel even though I’ve flown so many times.

5. I can feel tears welling up in my eyes; involuntary reaction due to anxiety.

6. I kill time by downloading movies, writing emails, and drinking a milkshake.

7. No one in the middle.

8. No. I definitely have never seen all of this movie.

9. I had forgotten just how dark the highways are here. I can’t tell if I have my high beams on or if the Jeep’s lights are just so bright because the air around us is so overwhelmingly black.

10. So good to be here.

Ten.Seven Hundred and Ninety-Nine

1. Just a little longer.

2. Grateful for a non red-eye flight which means I can take my time getting ready. I wash and dry the dishes and brew the coffee without rushing. I stick a load of clothes in the laundry. I have time to make everyone do everything they need to do for themselves.

3. I am missing them and I have t even left yet.

4. I take a few deep breaths. He thinks it odd that I still feel this way each time I travel even though I’ve flown so many times.

5. I can feel tears welling up in my eyes; involuntary reaction due to anxiety.

6. I kill time by downloading movies, writing emails, and drinking a milkshake.

7. No one in the middle.

8. No. I definitely have never seen all of this movie.

9. I had forgotten just how dark the highways are here. I can’t tell if I have my high beams on or if the Jeep’s lights are just so bright because the air around us is so overwhelmingly black.

10. So good to be here.

Ten.Six Hundred & Twenty-Three

1. Just a little bit longer.

2. Of course everyone is very hungry on the morning I chose to sleep in. No, breakfast is not yet ready.

3. Coffee plus a slice of tart berry galette plus trying to decide whether or not securing a sofa should be on the day’s agenda.

4. “One day at a time,” I say. He’s okay with that.

5. Towels and bath rugs. Dinner for tonight. I let her add a wedge of blue cheese to the cart because who am I to discourage a budding gourmand? Plus I have pears and walnuts at home and oh, what a combination that could be.

6. Cleaning can wait.

7. Blanchot, Bougros, Grenouiles, Les Clos, Les Preuses, Valmur, Vaudesir. How is the rhyme still in my head?

8. Almost like the absence of sound.

9. A little too dry.

10. He knows the phases of the moon better than I do.

Ten.Five Hundred & Thirty

1. What time is it? 

2. Move the elf.  

3. Gratitude for extra muffins that can be reheated for today’s breakfast.  

4. We take a quick walk. We find the river which is not a river but a creek—and a very dry one at that.  

5. He says that he’s not doing too bad considering he’s a grandpa with two grandsons in the backseat of his Prius. I wish him good luck. He says, “Thank you! I need it.” People here are so damn nice.  

6. I don’t mind having a “job” if it means getting to make a beautiful drive like this every day. 

7. What a beautiful place to work.  

8. Jack in the box. Never again. Now I remember why I never ate here in high school.

9. He didn’t have that great of a time on his field trip. But he’s excited to show me the pictures that he took of the Golden Gate Bridge and Berkeley. I think of the text message he wrote to me thanking me for moving him to California. I think he really does like it here even if the field trip was a bust. 

10. More Pinot Noir from Alsace. They all talk with their hands. Where do they get that from?

10.1 Fireplace. Christmas music. Stockings. Just the two of us.