I think it's good. (It's something I can get my head around)

My sister already summarized the events of this weekend more eloquently than I could hope.

It is difficult to imagine loving any kids more than I love my cousins' children.

Weekends like this make me wish I could freeze time and still the sun in the blue glow of yesterday afternoon: Logan's wide eyes filled with innocent wonder, Kade's perfect smile and ethereal giggle, Taylor's excited energy and intense intelligence.

I feel as if my heart has both shattered into fragments, and mended in places I didn't know were still torn.

here is the deepest secret nobody knows
(here is the root of the root and the bud of the bud
and the sky of the sky of a tree called life; which grows
higher than soul can hope or mind can hide)
and this is the wonder that's keeping the stars apart

i carry your heart(i carry it in my heart)

e e cummings

Virgin America is awesome

Z and I are sitting in the terminal right now, waiting to board the plane to SAN DIEGO.

That Chair Z is sitting in? That's a Virgin America luxury. They're all over the place.

This weekend marks the end of our first year of marriage. It's hard believe it's been a full year; I simultaneously feel as if it can't possibly have been that long, and that we've been married all our lives.

I am sure we will spend a lot of time in reflection this weekend, thinking over the things we've done, the goals we've accomplished, the dreams yet to come.

However, right now, I can only think of one thing:

SEA WORLD. SEA WORLD.

Image Source

To be specific:

DOLPHINS. DOLPHINS. DOLPHINS.

Images: Source, Source, Source, Source, Source

I love dolphins. I'm pretty sure only my sisters and cousins can understand my obsession with these creatures. Suffice it to say, I am stoked. So stoked I almost started crying in the car on the way to the airport. Because I was so excited. I am almost as excited to go to Sea World as I was this time last year to go to Costa Rica.

Almost.

Uncontainable

Is that a word? My computer says yes.

This weekend was SO fun. More details to come on it, but for now I'll just say that the St. Athanasius students are some of the most talented middle/high school students I have ever met. Plus they're hilarious.

I had almost forgotten what a real sun looks like. San Francisco sun is never real: always filtered by a gray cloud layer, making the yellow rays cold and the light a glaring blue tint. Not so in Santa Barbara! Santa Barbara sun threatens to burn your skin just when you look at it. It's glorious. And it's warm warm warm. Even the gray mornings are pleasant because you know that eventually it will be warm.

Not so in San Francisco. This morning I woke up to wet sidewalks and the promise of rain.

I curse you, San Francisco skies.

Paso Robles?

We're in Paso Robles right now, staying at a Travelodge. I didn't know there was anything in Paso Robles. I didn't know the "s" was silent. It's not 'Robe-less'? We also almost didn't know how to get here because of the thick accent of the woman at the desk. I though she told me she was going to kill me when she asked if I had a reservation. "We're booked" sounded an awful like "I kill you."

But now we are here, and we did have a reservation: miracle number one of the weekend. We're waiting for the morning to come so we can drive the rest of the way to Goleta/Santa Barbara. Tomorrow begins "Summer in the Arts" at Saint Athanasius: a three-day theatre/writing workshop for students, led by Z and me.

Oh, and San Francisco: we found the sun. Dilly Dilly.

A little country twang never hurt anyone

Oh! Welcome back to the West Coast.

Since Friday I've been to:

Fresno-Las Vegas-Dallas, TX--Nashville, TN--Paducah, KY--back to Nashville, TN--Detroit, MI--Ann Arbor-ish, MI--Los Angeles--Fresno--then back here to Hume.

What? 

Oh. Yes. Michael and Carly's wedding, Pascha, meeting Zak's family  ... all-in-all a long, full, wonderful trip.

I don't quite know what to write about. My brain feels foggy with the rush of travel and I'm still catching my bearings. The mice are still alive, if anybody is wondering ...

Although I didn't take any pictures at the wedding, due to the chaos of my arrival, I did click a few blinks around the cobblestone, brick-building, vine caressed city of Ann Arbor while Zak and I wandered about in the rain. 

Hm. It's lonely here in the Cave. Today I sat for two hours outside in the newfound sun, resting my feet on the rail of the porch while I turned the pages of the life of a saint. 

This blog feels like my Lesson Plans

I don't remember what I was going to write about when I clicked "new post" in conjunction with a link to Lynne's blog.

I think my original intention had something to do with the description of a chain of events that led to a minor concussion.

But instead I just want Lynne's tonsillitis to go away. I remember in the olden days, they took out tonsils when they exploded. Now you just get drugs.

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Tomorrow, 7pm, I fly to Nashville, Tennessee. I'll wave a hearty "hello," and jump in a rental car, commencing the "journey" to Paducah, Kentucky for Michael and Carly's wedding. 

Insomnia--either from the excitement or from the annoying pain in my brain--has me sitting here, staring at the computer screen, waiting for something to either bore me to tears, or inspire me to go to sleep. I've already cleaned the entire house--even the rooms no one goes in--, vaccuumed the whole upstairs, dusted my whole room and re-organized everything from the desk to the bathroom, and re-structured Addy and Lily's habitat.

Who are Addy and Lil, you ask?

Well ... 

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Changes the subject 

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I may-or-may-not be losing my wits. I had a rather long conversation with my stuffed cow this evening, regarding Love and life's great questions.

I think I'm alright as long as he doesn't start talking back.

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Oh, and for those of you who are wondering, dinner was great.