Let's make a list. What are 20 things in your life that you're grateful for?
Inspired by wyndslash.vox.com.
Only 20?
- Being reunited with (hopefully) all of my girls later this year
- My MINI Cooper, Theo
- Laughing until I cry at lunchtime
- My sister, the Pod
- My dog, Jamie
- Pod telling me that she's going to dress Jamie as a pack mule for Halloween
- Radiohead
- Reading Pablo Neruda out loud
- Celebrating my 15th Friend Anniversary with Kerry this year
- Bruises all over my arms
- Achewood
- Having the Healing Touch
- H-O-R-S-E
- Seeing the Shins at the Download Festival this weekend.
- Peanut Butter and Stuff Sandwiches from Specialty's
- Driving from Santa Clara up to South SF, picking up the PB&J's and getting back to Santa Clara, all in one hour-- for reals (You want to be me, but you can't be me)
- Grey's Anatomy Season 2 on DVD
- Vodka
- That moment in the Death Cab song "Transatlanticism" when the percussion builds up to this constant thrum overhead and Ben Gibbard starts singing, "So come one..."
- Being slightly flushed and euphoric from good wine and better company
I wish I had an answer for her. Everything that I've read from Burgham has been breathtakingly captivating. I love his writing--at least the meager scraps of it that I've actually read.
His work first came to my attention through, of all things, a jewelry website. I'm a big fan of Jeanine Payer's pieces. The combination of literature and accessories is a pure act of genius, and she uses a number of beautiful Rumi quotes, too. Although I'm quite loathe to spend her asking prices for silver (maybe I'll take an engraving class instead) I like to look at her things. She makes a ring with this quote of Burgham's on it: "...and you, a windrose, a compass, my direction, my description of the world."
The first time I saw this I literally gasped. That's just about the prettiest thing I've ever read. I've continued since to try and amass bits and pieces of Burgham's work, and it is all beautiful. "I owe you a thin straight line of road" he says. This is a thought that has floated in my mind for years, but I didn't really come into full understanding of it until I read those words.
And in another place I found this: "Touch has erased words to an inarticulate mist. Perfect things appear now that never had life before." His writing is so immediate. It has an open edge that makes me want to read more and more. Which is why it's so frustrating that I've only been able to track down a couple of complete poems by Burgham. I don't believe he's published any full length poetry books and it's quite difficult to find anything in print, on page or online, by him. It makes me so unhappy to know that there is beauty out there that I can't get a hold of.
I know it was my own decision to move hundreds of miles away from my family and most of my best friends, but that still doesn't mean that every once in a while I don't rue the day that I went away. It's not that I really miss Southern California at all, but the people I left behind---sometimes I miss them so much the feeling is like something I can see and touch.
The past couple of weeks my thoughts have been drifting constantly to my group of best friends (The Friends). Kerry's invitations that I made have been on my mind constantly. I think about Caroline and her little girl walking around Beverly Hills. I imagine Sophia trying to control a classful of Hopkins undergrads. My promise to visit Sue in Phoenix hasn't been forgotten. And I've been playing phone tag with Jen all week.
Yesterday, just when my longing for them was so strong it was almost overwhelming, I got a call from Susan and she asked me to have lunch with her today. I was so happy to see her it was ridiculous. She came bounding down the stairs and put a Fair Trade pin on me right away. "Because I know you care!" she said. We caught up on things in record time because we're both just about the fastest talkers in the world. Seriously, we could get second careers reading those legal messages at the end of radio commercials. We ate some great organic foods at her workplace and she plied me with
all sorts of snacks and junk. "Take energy bars!" she demanded. "I hate energy bars," I reminded her. "Well then take gum! I know you love gum. Take blood oranges!" I was glad to check out her new digs and I think she'll be very happy there. They're lucky as all get out to have her.
What's your musical horoscope? (Put your music player on shuffle and write down the first 10 songs that come up.) Inspired by Stephanie.
1) We Will Become Silhouettes - The Postal Service
2) Brave New World - Richard Ashcroft
3) Saturday Morning - Eels
4) Toxic Girl - Kings of Convenience
5) The Blower's Daughter - Damien Rice
6) Out of Touch - Hall & Oates
7) Jumpin', Jumpin' - Destiny's Child
8) Stir it Up - Bob Marley
9) Picky Bugger - Elbow
10) Small Stakes - Spoon
She's the kind of mom who splurges on an all Janie & Jack wardrobe for him. They most definitely own every single baby development item known to mankind. I'm surprised their baby hasn't cured cancer at this point.
Then this morning it hit me--books. They haven't bought him any yet, and books are my favorite gift to give.
Especially childrens' books, which I love tremendously. There are very few things I do well, but one of them is reading aloud, and childrens' stories are immensely pleasurable to read. When my sister was small I read to her every night. There was two weeks when my voice was scratchy and hoarse all the time from reading Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban to her.
I think I'll go pick up some baby favorites for my friend's son this afternoon; Goodnight Moon, Pat the Bunny, The Very Hungry Caterpillar and anything by Richard Scarry. It might be a little while until he can really enjoy them, but I can't wait.
If you could watch any movie on the big screen right at this moment, what would it be?
Either one of these films would do, but it would be great to see them back to back, as they are a little bit linked. That scene with the rings of the redwood tree absolutely gives me the chills, in both movies.
I hate ants.
I came home really late from work today, so tired. All I wanted to do was change my clothes, avoid people and eat the snacks I had leftover from the drive to L.A.
I finally sit down with my little bag of beef jerky and fish snacks (don't ask) and ants are swarming all over the inside of the bag. The hell. Why? I tied the bag up, opened the door and just threw the whole thing out on the porch. I'll deal with that mess tomorrow morning.
But now I have Phantom Ants, you know that feeling you get when you feel like ants are crawling over you, even if there aren't any there? Sad.
New goal for the night: stop moping, get in bed by 11.
What's your middle name? Is there a story or history behind it?
At my work everything that we do gets tagged with our initials. Mine show up as BLT, which always makes me smie.
The "L" stands for Lan, which is the English adaptation of the Vietnamese version of my Chinese name. Yeah, I know. Welcome to my confusing world. This name means "orchid", which is one reason why I'm so drawn to these wild and gorgeous flowers, especially the more exotic varieties. I have tried and failed many times to cultivate these plants in my own home.
The funny thing is I have a different Chinese middle name, a word that means "poet". This I very much appreciate.
