Chachi In Charge

Ever since Maggie came out with her life list, I've been mulling over what would be on mine. I thought now would be as good a time as any to start writing some of these down.

1. Establish a scholarship.
2. Be listed as a patron to a museum.
3. Go on safari in Africa.
4. Visit the town of Berlingo in Italy.
5. Take each of my brother's kids on a special vacation trip with just them.
6. Knit a sweater for E.
7. Visit every continent.
8. Visit Glacier National Park.
9. See the polar bears in Churchill, Canada.
10. Write a book.
11. Be asked to keynote a conference.
12. Spend at least a couple of months living in Europe.
13. Scuba dive at the Great Barrier Reef.
14. Road trip across the USA.
15. Go skinny dipping.
16. Sleep outside, not in a tent.
17. Host an annual party that folks look forward to.
18. Read all 100 novels on the Modern Library's best list.
19. March on Washington (again).
20. Be a Girl Scout leader or Boy Scout Den Mother.
21. Meditate on a regular basis.
22. Cultivate a flower garden.
23. Pick berries and make jam.
24. Take a cake decorating class.
25. Visit every state in the Union.

I had this sticker back in high school.

From Futility Closet:

bablatrice

n. a female babbler

I don't think I've done this one before. From CleverGirl, back in Feb.

Where is your cell phone.... I hope in my purse, or I have no idea where it is

Your hair.... desperately needs a cut and color. Where did all that gray come from?

Your father.... has been missed more than usual lately.

Your favorite thing.... cuddling with my sweetie and the cats.

Your dream last night.... freaked me out and has me worried about a friend.

Your favorite drink.... something sweet and fruity.

Your dream/goal.... to only have to work if I want to and to establish a scholarship

The room you are in.... dining room

Your fear.... losing the ones I love

Where do you want to be in 6 years.... a mommy

Muffins.... I agree with CleverGirl: No. Cake!

One of your wish list items.... a pony

Where you grew up.... VA, CT, CO, then CT again

The last thing you did....got tipsy with the in-laws-to-be

What are you wearing.... comfy pants & knit top

Your TV.... isn't working at the moment. It's actually quite refreshing.

Your pets.... Freesia (yes, she's still alive) and Smudge, both cats

Your computer.... MacBook Pro

Your life.... is crazy and busy

Your mood.... is mostly up

Missing someone.... my dad

Your car.... Ford Focus station wagon

Favorite store.... a big bookstore or knitting store

Favorite color.... green

Last time you laughed.... tonight

Last time you cried.... Monday

People who e-mail you.... coworkers

One of your favorite foods.... mousse

Place you'd rather be right now.... on vacation

Classic Hepburn and Grant screwball comedy. The dialog is brilliant, the timing perfect, the house in Connecticut is to die for. I grew up wishing that I could be more like Susan Vance. She's smart, clever, funny, beautiful, has an amazing sense of adventure and certainly doesn't live a normal life.

This weekend I picked up a bunch of pale pink peonies from Trader Joe's.

They are just starting to open up. I have them in the kitchen, so I get to pass them fairly often. I can't help but stick my nose into the blooms and breathe deeply. They smell like June is suppose to smell.

My mother's house used to have 5-6 peony plants along the driveway. They'd topple over, their blooms were so big and heavy. Their scent takes me right back to soft, warm June evenings. The kind of evening where everything feels green and lush. The grass is baby soft under your feet. You can hear the crickets and frogs chirping at each other. It's the time of day where twilight seems to last forever. And you hate to go back inside.

I miss those Connecticut June nights.

While I was Stumbling along the internet today, I came across a little blurb that I used to have on a postcard when I was in college. I was going to just link to the image, but I thought I'd repost the text here.

Because woman's work is never done
and is underpaid or unpaid or boring or
repetitious and we're the first to get fired
and what we look like is more important
than what we do and if we get raped it's
our fault and if we get beaten we must have
provoked it and if we raise our voices we're
nagging bitches and if we enjoy sex we're
nymphos and if we don't we're frigid and if
we love women it's because we can't get a
"real" man and if we ask our doctor too many
questions we're neurotic and/or pushy and
if we expect childcare we're selfish and if we
stand up for our rights we're aggressive and
"unfeminine" and if we don't we're typical
weak females and if we want to get married
we're out to trap a map and if we don't we're
unnatural and because we still can't get an
adequate safe contraceptive but men can walk
on the moon and if we can't cope or don't
want a pregnancy we're made to feel
guilty about abortion and... for lots and lots
of other reasons we are part of the
women's liberation movement.

This has always made me smile. At one time I could recite it from memory. From the NOW site.

2008.11.12 - The letter

It really depends upon what it is I am writing. I am certainly faster typing than writing longhand. And my thoughts start flowing so quickly that it's easier to keep up on a keyboard. I also love the feel of the keys under my fingertips and the clickclick noise the keys make.

But there is also something magical about a really good pen and fine quality paper. My handwriting has gotten more sloppy over the years, as I type more. But there are moments when it brings me great happiness to see the words and letters forming perfectly on the page.