Category Archives: make me smile

magical places


Our family visited the Isle of Man about 8 years ago and it was a sublime (despite having various dramas with British Airways–ugh) vacation. One of our favorite spots were the ruins of Peel Castle (pictured above), a space where my ancestors had certainly walked the halls many generations ago. For me, traveling is magical–especially when I can reconnect with the past in a meaningful way, or just let the beauty of a new place wash over me and fill me up with new sensations.

I can’t wait to return to the IOM someday, but in the meantime I’m dreaming of trips to new places (specifically, my East coast trip starting next week!) to fill me with their wonder.

Speaking of traveling…if you’re in NYC or DC and you want to meetup over the holidays, let me know ASAP. Also, if you’ll be at the AHA conference, let’s definitely touch base at some point during the proceedings. 🙂

some simple pleasures

basil

**chatting with a friend on her front porch

**getting an unexpected check in the mail–an award for a book review written several months ago

**meeting all of my dissertation goals for today

**turning the compost in the backporch bin (I try to remember to do this daily–the wormies do their best work when they get plenty of fresh air)

**GameBoy and Catgirl sitting at the kitchen table dutifully doing their homework. Until they break out into a boisterous debate about the merits of the overland Silk Road vs. the seatrade from Mecca to China

**the smell of fresh basil from my garden

voting

On Monday when I voted, I was ebullient. I Love Voting. Just love it. Although it probably sounds really corny to say this, I felt the spirit of folks like Martin and Alice and Harvey right there alongside me there in that uber hi-tech voting booth. I was also surrounded by dozens of undergrads who were exercising their right for the very first time. The thrill was palpable.

People who are voting next Tuesday: bring a lawnchair and some leftover Halloween candy to share. Those lines are going to be long, but don’t let that deter you. Just do it.

🙂

firsts (the alone edition)

Having married while I was in college, and then had babies shortly thereafter, I’ve rarely done anything by myself. So this trip has been a big one for me—it’s the first time I’ve gone somewhere unfamiliar alone (Salt Lake City and Denver don’t count because I’ve lived both places). So here are some firsts from my first day of travel:

-First cross-country flight alone where I am sitting between two super-tall men who both have a “big stance.” You know what that means? They have like 3 ft each between their two knees and I had no space at all for mine, Everytime I fell asleep I woke up to find myself with the outside of my thighs resting on theirs—as if they were trying to squeeze me out of even more of my legroom. It was a long long night.

-First taxi ride alone (I was really scared, which is crazy because I know it’s a totally normal thing) but to be in a car alone with a strange man? Weird. I don’t think I tipped him enough, but it cost more than I thought and I didn’t want to dig back into my cash stash as we were standing on the street corner at 5:30am in a dodgy area of downtown Boston.

-First view of the Charles River alone (the taxi driver doesn’t count)

-First stay in a hostel alone (nice experience, though I did spring for the private room)

-First aborted attempt to buy a T ticket myself (someone had to bail me out because I was totally oblivious and didn’t know that I needed a Charlie card….). Oh, and along with this one goes “first aborted attempt to get through the T gate myself.” Had to be bailed out of that one, too.

-First ride on the subway alone. Grabbed myself a pole by the door (it was rushhour) and did just fine.

-First chichi Harvard tea & cakes reception(!) alone. When I checked into the Harvard Special Collections library this morning, they handed me an invitation to this event. I went, knowing that it would be something to blog about. Discovered that even though I walked in looking a bit like a drowned rat (having traversed Harvard yard just moments before in a pouring rain with a hole-y umbrella), people were nice to me anyways.

What are your recent “firsts”?

just beachy


together, originally uploaded by pilgrimgirl.

Last night John & I chased the sunset, arriving at the beach just moments before the sun sank into the horizon. We shared a picnic and enjoyed being outdoors together. I marveled that I was feeling well enough to even get to the beach–though I really only walked a few dozen yards from our parking spot to the tideline.

This morning I had a surgical follow-up appointment and was told that my wound had healed enough that I could cease debridement. I’m healing so much faster this time ’round than with any of the previous lancings/drainings of the wound. Everyone is very sure that “we got it this time” and that this is all behind me now.

I’m scared to be too hopeful yet, but let’s just say that I’m actually making my reservation for the Exponent Women’s Retreat in Boston today–working on the hope that I will actually be well enough in September to go. (for those of you who are local to Boston–where’s the best teahouse/coffeehouse? Last time we were there we encountered a few late at night walking around Harvard, but didn’t have time to try any of them.)

A few days ago I cut my hair–realizing that it had been months since I’d even had the energy to think about hair, face, etc. I’d not even had the strength to stand at the sink long enough to really brush my hair, much less consider style and/or blowdry. It’s such a superficial thing, but it’s really a thrill to notice the difference in how I feel–that I actually have the mental and physical stamina to get back into my own self-care routines.

Today the surgical nurse warned me that I’m going to have a pretty ugly indented scar on my leg for the rest of my life. I told her that that didn’t matter to me as long as the infection was gone. Scars are of such little consequence when one is finally feeling better again!

Pilgrimsteps: the World Tour

beehive tearoom

I got this idea from Dar, who posted it as #67 of her “100 Things to Do Before I Die” list…

I would totally love to do a Pilgrimsteps World Tour to have a cup of tea with all of you groovy blogfolk. Drop a line in the comments to tell me where I’ll need to stop on my tour (your city), and also name your favorite local teahouse/coffeehouse (or bakery, yum!) for our meetup. Sound fun?

Weehaa, here we go!

For the OC tourstop, we’ll meet at Kean’s Coffee, where we can sip artisan lattes and watch the rich & famous get their caffeine fix.

let’s celebrate today (with a giveaway!)

orange and cheery

There’s so much good going on right now! It’s time for some celebrating:

1) I’ve been aching to take some pictures, but just as I started feeling well enough to do so, my camera broke. John picked up a new one for me today, and let me tell you, the first few sample shots have me pleased (see the one above), even if I do still need to learn the bells and whistles. Speaking of which….my camera really needs a good name. For everyone who submits a name suggestion in the comments, I’ll put your name in a hat for a DRAWING next Friday. The PRIZE will be any 8″x10″ print that you’d like from my flickr feed–I’d suggest one of the garden pics, myself.

2) I’m healing well–no current signs of infection and I can get around pretty well without crutches now. I’m guessing that within the next week or so, I’m going to feel better than I have for many months (fingers crossed, knocking on wood, etc, etc, etc.)

3) Gradually, I’ve been getting to visiting many of your blogs. You people are so smart and interesting and cool! Thanks so much just for being you (queue Mr. Rogers’ music….”because I like you just the way you are”).

4) Today as I’ve puttered around the house a bit I’ve been overwhelmed by the love that’s been showered on my family over the past few weeks. There are nummy foods from friends in the fridge, flowers on my table, handmade soap on my nightstand (that I will actually break open and use soon enough), colorful cards propped up on my sewing table, and a generous stash of dark chocolate in the cupboard. You all really know how to make me smile. Thank you.

PS: I’m not usually so sappy, but I’m just so happy to be feeling good again. Can you blame me? 🙂

UPDATE…
The camera is another powershot, very similar to my last one. I didn’t say that right off the bat, because…well, it’s a bit embarrassing to be using a camera like that when so many of my blogger friends have REAL cameras–like the rebel kinds with ginormous phallic lenses and stuff.
One of the reviews said “This is the kind of camera you buy for your Mum.” So I guess you can now all call me Mum.
(but do note that it is a groovy shade of “Bohemian Brown,” so that ups its coolness factor just a tidge)

when good things happen to me

Just as a quick addendum to my last post, I wanted to let ya know that the healing I’ve been doing for the past two weeks? Well, as of right now it looks as though further intravenous treatments, surgery, and so forth will not be necessary. Hah!

The upshot: I’ve got a busy summer ahead full of swimming, researching, teaching, gardening, writing, meditating, and LIVING.

🙂

In the meantime: continuing to praise each new day. At this moment: drinking my afternoon cuppa with a silly grin on my face and a purry-purry kitty at my hip.