I've forever relieved Dan of the bogus obligation to buy me chocolate, roses, or jewelry on 14 Feb. I've told him not to even buy a card.
But every work morning at 5:45 in the cold and dark, he walks me to the car holding hands. He waves goodbye then goes back to the warm boat.
Love isn't what you show in extravagant gestures on special days. It's what you show in tiny rituals, every day.
14 February 2009
Things I Wanna Do "Someday"
Learn to make crepes.
Free-dive 15 feet.
Explore some art - sketching, pastels, colored pencils.
Expand my iPod music library.
Interview a librarian to learn how the Internet has changed his/her job.
Rebuild the winches.
Learn to back the boat better.
Do my own personal research project: what insights do you get into a society's values by knowing the things it funds with (mandatory) taxes vs the things it funds with (voluntary)charity?
Advanced Pilates.
Make a food art mosaic of the word BEANS spelled out in different color beans.
Read at least one non-fiction book a month.
Blog more often.
Sail and swim and snorkel and hike, and toast every sunrise and sunset with Dan.
Like most of the liveaboards we know, we keep a small storage shed on land. Mostly it holds off-season clothing, suitcases, parts for boat projects yet to be done, old files and records, books we might never read again but aren't quite ready to get rid of. But also in a box is a complete rainbow of colored pencils, I used them in college and haven't had time since. Today, though, we were sorting through the stuff in the shed to get swimsuits and stuff for our vacation, and I saw the pencils in their silver box. "When?" they asked. "Soon," I thought at them.
I was talking with L. again yesterday, his wife retires in 2 weeks and he follows a month later. He said he's both excited and scared; "me too" I told him. All that leisure is fine as long as it doesn't degenerate into sloth; I think that's our secret fear. But I think of my Someday list and really believe I'll be just fine.
Free-dive 15 feet.
Explore some art - sketching, pastels, colored pencils.
Expand my iPod music library.
Interview a librarian to learn how the Internet has changed his/her job.
Rebuild the winches.
Learn to back the boat better.
Do my own personal research project: what insights do you get into a society's values by knowing the things it funds with (mandatory) taxes vs the things it funds with (voluntary)charity?
Advanced Pilates.
Make a food art mosaic of the word BEANS spelled out in different color beans.
Read at least one non-fiction book a month.
Blog more often.
Sail and swim and snorkel and hike, and toast every sunrise and sunset with Dan.
Like most of the liveaboards we know, we keep a small storage shed on land. Mostly it holds off-season clothing, suitcases, parts for boat projects yet to be done, old files and records, books we might never read again but aren't quite ready to get rid of. But also in a box is a complete rainbow of colored pencils, I used them in college and haven't had time since. Today, though, we were sorting through the stuff in the shed to get swimsuits and stuff for our vacation, and I saw the pencils in their silver box. "When?" they asked. "Soon," I thought at them.
I was talking with L. again yesterday, his wife retires in 2 weeks and he follows a month later. He said he's both excited and scared; "me too" I told him. All that leisure is fine as long as it doesn't degenerate into sloth; I think that's our secret fear. But I think of my Someday list and really believe I'll be just fine.
13 February 2009
It's official, my boss is leaving
And I'm not looking forward to it, he's been a great boss. Smart, insightful, humble, and realistic, he's always understood that this job is an important thing, but not the only thing in any of our lives. He's always kept expectations reasonable, and let us pursue tangents that interested us. But I'm happy for him and his wife as they move to their waterfront dream home in Florida.
I've already been told I'll be asked to do 1/2 his job, plus 3/4 of mine, for the next 4-5 months. The good news is, I'll get a temporary promotion, which will boost my pension forever. The bad news is, I know how much crap he's always shielded me from, and now I'll be the one trying to intercept the crap for the rest of our group. Sigh. I'm trying to view it as a chance to learn.
I've already been told I'll be asked to do 1/2 his job, plus 3/4 of mine, for the next 4-5 months. The good news is, I'll get a temporary promotion, which will boost my pension forever. The bad news is, I know how much crap he's always shielded me from, and now I'll be the one trying to intercept the crap for the rest of our group. Sigh. I'm trying to view it as a chance to learn.
05 February 2009
Self-knowledge (just for fun)
RoseAnn claimed that she loves filling out forms, etc - it's like a test where you know all the answers LOL! And sometimes when I'm feeling braindead doing a goofy quiz is a great way to focus. Got this fun one from Nancy, and I think it captured me fairly well.
Your result for The Great Minds Advice Test...
Do Something Worth Doing
42% Franklin, 0% Freud, 25% Teresa, 8% Wilde and 25% Leonardo!
"If you would not be forgotten, as soon as you are dead and rotten, either write things worth reading, or do things worth the writing." ~ B. Franklin
Your life advisor is Benjamin Franklin.
Franklin was definitely a doer. He believed that life should be lived to the fullest and that a person should never stop striving to learn. Once you have learned everything your life was over.
So, you should move. Get up and do something. Discover something new. Let your mind work to it's fullest and experience life.
02 February 2009
The day you could live over and over
In addition to six more weeks of winter (ugh) I've seen multiple blogs today with variations on the theme of Groundhog Day (the movie, with the idea of living one day over and over again).
One question posed was pick one day of your life that you'd relive over and over. My answers to that question were pretty cliched. The day before my Mom was diagnosed with cancer, our last day as a happy, innocent family. The day after Dan and I were married. One of the days of our Grand Canyon raft trip (any one, they were all great). The night Dan woke me up to see a moon-rainbow, soon after we'd moved to our first house we bought together.
But I was even more fascinated with Gretchen's challenge - what if you could design a perfect day, that you wouldn't mind living over and over again, what would it look like? Her Q. gripped me especially as I look at only 7 more months of work life before I do get to design my perfect day in my retired life.
My perfect day would be sunny and not too warm (of course). It would have a little work and a little play, a little social time and a little quiet time, a little exercise and a little rest. It would start in the morning watching sunrise while sharing a pot of coffee with Dan. After breakfast we'd be "out and about" - taking a walk to explore the town we're in, going to a farmer's market, or maybe for a swim or row. Then it would be back to the boat for some quiet time, reading or blogging or drawing or listening to music. In late afternoon we'd cook an interesting meal and share it with friends, or go to a restaurant with friends, or just have friends for wine and cheese. And finally we'd wind down with a cup of tea or some other bevarage, and compare notes on the day before cuddling down to sleep and looking forward to the new day.
One question posed was pick one day of your life that you'd relive over and over. My answers to that question were pretty cliched. The day before my Mom was diagnosed with cancer, our last day as a happy, innocent family. The day after Dan and I were married. One of the days of our Grand Canyon raft trip (any one, they were all great). The night Dan woke me up to see a moon-rainbow, soon after we'd moved to our first house we bought together.
But I was even more fascinated with Gretchen's challenge - what if you could design a perfect day, that you wouldn't mind living over and over again, what would it look like? Her Q. gripped me especially as I look at only 7 more months of work life before I do get to design my perfect day in my retired life.
My perfect day would be sunny and not too warm (of course). It would have a little work and a little play, a little social time and a little quiet time, a little exercise and a little rest. It would start in the morning watching sunrise while sharing a pot of coffee with Dan. After breakfast we'd be "out and about" - taking a walk to explore the town we're in, going to a farmer's market, or maybe for a swim or row. Then it would be back to the boat for some quiet time, reading or blogging or drawing or listening to music. In late afternoon we'd cook an interesting meal and share it with friends, or go to a restaurant with friends, or just have friends for wine and cheese. And finally we'd wind down with a cup of tea or some other bevarage, and compare notes on the day before cuddling down to sleep and looking forward to the new day.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)