A Life

Today I Saw Two Pink Flamingos, 2012

It was dark and silent when I realized I was awake. I was holding two socks in my right hand, beneath my pillow. Wearing socks to bed on a cold night always seems a good idea, until it isn't. I inevitably wake with my socks removed.

I wrote this down in the library, the branch that inspired Richard Brautigan's fictional library of unpublishable books.

There was an old Mason jar filled with paperwhites placed atop a shelf neatly stacked with various newspapers and Chinese magazines. I couldn't stop looking at the flowers, and the jar. I'd never seen fresh flowers in a library. They changed the space in the most positive of ways.

I was also surprised by the number of people without keyboards before them, and the library quiet of the past.

A hardcover titled Paris Trout seemed to scream from the shelf across from my table. The title font was enormous and slanted to the right, as if in action. Freedom sat on a shelf to my left. I guessed its days of having a queue were over.

Still holding my socks I thought of a sentence Annie Dillard had written. I'd found it the night before, in the form of a note in one of my old journals.

I hear the river outside the window, if I remember to listen.

My river was the moan of the distant foghorn. It was dependable, except on those days that decided to turn blue.

Teaching a Stone to Talk: Expeditions and Encounters by Annie Dillard

Satsuma, meet Kishu.

Kishu, 2012

I've tasted my first Kishu. Satsuma now has a rival. Kishu Mandarins are smaller than Satsuma Mandarins, they are even smaller than Page Mandarins. Almost bite-size. No seeds. They are rumored to be easy to peel, but it's all a matter of perspective. The Kishu is not as easy to peel as the Satsuma, but much easier than the Page. They are not as juicy as the Page, but juicier than the Satsumas I've eaten lately. If the two Kishus I've eaten today represent the typical, I prefer their overall taste to both the Satsuma and the Page. Luckily I have three more.

Kishu
Satsuma
Page

Twilight

Half Past Five, 2012

There is something about the sunsets in La Jolla. When I'm here, I cannot miss them. I enjoy sunsets at home, but they don't pull me toward them as these do. I bundle up each evening and walk along the water while the sun sinks and the sea roars. I watch the horizon as the light shifts and the colors change. It is hypnotic. I saw a fire truck filled with firemen pull to the curb and settle in to watch the display this evening. So many people do the same. I understand. The sea and what's left of the sun absorb all of my tension. Most of the onlookers disappear with the sun, leaving the brief stretch of time before dark to the congregation of cormorants, and me.

FO

Hat, 2012

I kept meaning to ask the ever-inspiring Rachel what an FO was, and then I figured it out. It's knitspeak for a finished object (knitted object).

So here's my most recent FO. A hat. I finished it this morning and I'm so pleased. I bought the yarn from Sophie at Bluebird Yarn in Sausalito. The yarn is a Merino Wool/Alpaca/Silk blend (Mirasol Sulka in Wine, Shade: 203). I found the Colour Sparks pattern on Ravelry. It is also available on Etsy. As you can see, I decided against the flower. I just wasn't feeling flowery.

It knit up quickly, well, there was a bit of drama last night, but it was silly, so I won't get into it. It fits perfectly. Completing it was a nice way to begin a day.

And that's not all. I recently finished some pretty sweet fingerless gloves. I used Madelinetosh yarn for the first time. Laurie from Greenwich Yarn (here in San Francisco) thought I would like it, and I did. Knitting with it was a treat.

Watch out, I'm moving, albeit slowly, beyond scarves...

There was a man...

from here, 2012

The man in the furthest window seat from the door, the only space with a cushioned seat, he wears a faded green train conductor type hat and a synthetic vest with metallic safety stripes. I wanted to look at him longer, because he had a nice way about him, but he stood up shortly after I sat down. He very purposefully gathered his cup, napkin, and paper bag which likely held his pastry or muffin, and dusted away every crumb from from his table. He left with a free newspaper cradled beneath his arm and a humble smile. I continued to look at the now empty space and wondered what had been in his paper cup and his bag, what his plans were for today.

Temptation

voting with my pocketbook, 2012

So many books in the queue, but with a first page that begins like this...seriously, how could I resist?

Within each horseradish leaf, where it unwinds from the stem, there’s a small bead of rainwater. He sees one there, shining brilliantly in the morning sun, as if it’s been placed, a jewel, pure and dazzling. It’s perfect. This will be lovely he thinks, leading his daughter toward the plant, her hand so small and cool in his own, both of them crouching over the leaves till their shadows merge.

-Excerpt from the novel Sea Change by Jeremy Page.

4:02 PM Inspiration

inspiration, 2012

This beautiful slice of banana oatmeal bread inspired me. I hope mine inspires you. I only made my usual changes to the recipe, nine ingredients or so. I can't help it. It's my nature. I say start with Pam's recipe and make it your own, but if you really want to know what I switched up, just let me know.

Now for a warm slice...

what her world might have felt like

just before the new year, 2011

Lecia has me thinking. I'm not surprised. She does this often. Her post took me back to the day I was born, the day my mother became a mother. Of course, I don't remember a thing, but this song gives me an idea of what her world might have felt like, back then.

To Sir With Love by Lulu