going lean, once again

I realized recently that while i was doing the contracting thingi had gotten into the habit of eating out and opting for convenience. there are other spiritual elements that accompanied this, and i think it's about time for me to have a bit of spring cleaning soulfully and with my habits as well as with the house.

i'll keep you posted on how it goes.
today: petrol, $10.

As i looked at my calendar for this week, i realized we're but a month away from going to Daylight Saving Time, at least for this year. Beginning next year, we'll start two weeks earlier, on the second Sunday of March, and end a full month later, on the last Sunday in November. Call me crazy and out of step with the mainstream, but how does extending the amount of darkness during my morning routine help save energy?

One can only hope that some good will come of it, for i certainly am not a fan of the existing six month schedule, let alone its extended cousin-to-be.

house-hold

so many renovations; so little time.

the kitchen might actually get finished this month. no really!

the den is looking up as well, as kn0w1 has offered to help move a couple bits of furniture out with me tomorrow, and i have paint just waiting for the walls.

i still can't decide on living room furniture, as the long couch sits on one end and looms toward the blank space where other, decent, less controversial folks would be thoughtful enough to provide an entertainment center (large and hulking and precluding thought).

i refuse to stress about the bits of the upstairs just now. one obsession at a time, that's my policy.

cures

Ever since the accident, I've been still a little dizzy. Then on Thursday morning, i seem to have developed a stuffiness which has grown into what i would believe was a full-blown attack of allergies, if i had allergies.

i have handled it as Aunt Heidi would prescribe: autumn-garden golden noodle soup and murder mysteries. thank goodness for Too Many Books. When I went in and looked at Linda and said "I need some grisly serial killers to fight off my cold" she knew just what to put in my hands. What could be better?

to market to market

i went to Fresh Market at towers mall today and have to say i'm totally blown away. the store is fantastic, not only because it has so much of what i'm looking for, but because it places organic and high-quality, ethically-minded foods in the most valuable of places. produce that isn't organic is labeled 'conventional.' how cool is that?

i came home with a bunch off food that the boys and i are goingt o cook tonight and tomorrow. soul food and soul cooking.

phones and cars and such

it's official: i now have transportation and communication. i'm not a fan of my new phone, mostly because it isn't my old phone, and i knew where all the buttons were and how to work it. i'll adjust.

many thanks to kn0w1 for taking me through new-phone-hell and to phillip for managing the insurance stuff. thanks to jax and mags for talking and listening and being there. and thanks for lunch at wildflour.

alas alack, i have bought new books, mostly geeky replacements of ones which have gone missing in the past few years, and all of them non-fiction. i also popped in to the new Fresh Fields at towers and am completely impressed. today's work being done, i think i'm headed for a long hot bath and then out for sushi.

hope all is well in your world.

school again school again jiggity jig

i've been reading tons about the idea of justice and the family, about utilitarian ethics and suchlike. yes, i have a thesis in the works again at long last, and this is not simply some random foray into academia. i could use a printer, but that's what libraries and notecards are for after all.

the bibliography and feasibility notes are due next thursday, with the official and formal proposal due at the end of the month. i'm a little intimidated, mind you, but so far it looks as though i have a bit of a framework ofr writing the whole thing, and the thesis statement is coming along nicely. the framework for the first chapter seems to be presenting itself well, and the quotes i have found to date are wonderful, inspiring, and all in all it seems to be flowing.

i'm thrilled.

i have no idea when my official graduation date will be, but i know that professor becker and i would like to see me complete this sometime this summer at the latest, given that i can only reasonably write and research while the boys are at school.

wish me luck, and beware the pending geekinkess on my part.

dear universe

the dear universe has decided that while i am without transportation i ought not have communication either. my phone is quite out of service and will need to be replaced.

fun, eh?

no stuff, there i was, minding my own business.

really! honest!

the boys and i were bringing phillip home from his having dropped off his car at the shop for basic work when we (amazingly enough) joined the long line of cars stopped at the red light. it was a long line, and clearly took a few of us by surprise. the folks behind me left over 30 feet of skid marks before they plowed into the back of Charlotte The Jeep, they were so surprised (and clearly going so quickly toward the intersection).

We are fine. really. i have the x-rays to prove it. i ache like the dickens, given that just as it became apparent that the car would indeed hit us i remembered the ice skates in the cargo area and turned around to look for them. sometimes the subconscious works in weird ways, as twisted around from the front seat is not the ideal impact position. the skates stayed in the cargo area where they belonged, of course, just to prove how silly humans are.

Charlotte runs. She clearly won the argument between her and the white Altima, which lost all of its front bumper and sustained quite a bit of damage in the hood area. The people in the other car are fine as well. Charlotte's exhaust system was scrunched, and she makes horrible rattling noises when she starts up and drives. I am hoping this is related to the exhaust system but am taking no chances and will take her to Wayne The UberMechanic. Think wonderful it's-not-the-drivetrain thoughts for her, please.

Many kudos to phillip and johnny for dealing with the boys and me last night. they were wonderful and deserve a gold star. i'm not certain where the points-and-stars score sheet is located; perhaps i'll need to build a website for it. Kudos to Nana for being school taxi this morning and afternoon. She gets points and stars too. Much love goes to Mags and Jules for being so wonderful and reassuring and accommodating given my lack of transportation. stars and points in abundance to you, m'ladies.

as to the medieveal event in fincastle this weekend: I have arranged a ride and will be attending without the children. I have been assured that even though i'm sore tot he bone, my job is simply to sit around and look regal and at this event i plan to put that to the test. the boys will stay in roanoke as I am not up for managing them during youth combat, even though they are naturally wanting to go. I am certain we can arrange a home-grown whack-a-knight for the boys to feel accommodated in the coming weeks (hint hint, dear chatelaine!). while Tiger is the one most noticeably excited, Dragon is the one with the sneaky little gleam in his eye every time such youth activities are mentioned. We SCAdians should get together and discuss a possible spring event for them, as the boys have a clear event bid put together where it can be All About The Children. I'm looking forward to getting to see such of you as will be in attendance at the event -- please be delicate but forthcoming with the hugs and swoopings (you know who you are).

for those of you expecting to meet with me for lunch or other things this afternoon and evening: i'm not going anywhere. i'll give you a call in the coming week to reschedule. i'll be out of cell reach tonight after 6 or so. i plan on taking a long hot bath tonight, and so will likely not be inclined to sit in front of a computer to check my mail, despite having one available.

i hope your coming weekend is wonderful, whatever you might have planned. for those of you traveling, be careful and well. i'm spending the afternoon reading Terry Pratchett and snuggling with kittens and covers.

february

having visited the great white north, i can honestly report that no amount of snow and clod blastly weather diminishes my enjoyment of the smell of ice. apparently the boys have inherited this bizarre condition, and we went ice skating each day while we were there. they went from wobbly to confident, and it was a joy to watch. by the time we left on monday, we had a routine of getting up, putting on layers after breakfast and hitting the outdoor rink downtown, armed with skates, donut holes and hot chocolate. what a brilliant weekend! they can't wait to visit the local rink in town and are more excited than ever to go to the hockey games.

settling in has happened slowly, a gradual affair involving checking in with kittens, warming the house back up, buying groceries, cooking and suchlike. we picked up gabriel from jax and mags yesterday and enjoyed having our dinner-and-overnight again. it is good to be home and amongst friends once more.

Tiger is blossoming into a fine man. He impressed me by stating that he simply 'needed' to get flowers for his Valentine, a young lady at school, whose favourite colour is pink. I asked him how he knew that, and he said, "Mom, she wears it all the time." Well. Who knew he could be so observant? He wrote the card himself, and delivered the flowers at school, much to her delight. The deep pink spray roses with lavender statice were a fine choice, and i think the red vase set them off perfectly. They each selected flowers for me as well, and I feel blessed beyond measure to have such fine upstanding and loving men in my life. I am beamingly proud, of course.

The thesis work calls me today, as I have some pages to turn in next week. I am enjoying both the research and the writing. No matter what comes of this, I am learning and exploring and investigating, and it feels overwhelmingly good.

This weekend is the baronial investiture, and I am looking forward to it. I finished the calligraphy on the invitations to Queen's Tea and think that the group effort is quite something to behold.