one of the things i like best about the weekend is having the time to enjoy a leisurely breakfast and a cup (or two!) of milky french press coffee. i am not a morning person, and during the week it's always a rush to get out the door. even if my weekend mornings sometimes technically don't begin until early afternoon, i always make the most of my weekend breakfast ritual.
it may not be croissants, fresh-squeezed orange juice, and café crème in the jardin des tuileries, but it makes me happy nonetheless.
happy monday!
what an incredibly restful long weekend this was! and, just what i needed. i think things at work are finally settling down and the busyness is becoming manageable. in fact, my office closed early on friday and, for the first time in weeks, i didn't stay late! better yet, i left on time, fit in a little stop at the mall with a friend, and was home, purchases in tow, by 4:30.
for the most part, the rest of my weekend was spent quietly at home, sleeping in, creating pretty vignettes around the house, playing with my camera (i hadn't done that in ages!), Skyping with family, snacking on fresh peaches, finishing one book, beginning another, and watching movies from the comfort of my couch. in fact, a friend visited yesterday and upon sitting down declared, "no wonder you didn't want to go out this weekend." i'm telling you, it was perfect.
by the way, in case it's not obvious from the photo above, the book i finished is Mao's Last Dancer, the inspiring autobiography of Li Cunxin who, though born into utter poverty in communist china, became one of the best ballet dancers in the world. to say he endured hardships along the way is to understate the harsh realities of mao's cultural revolution, to say nothing of the discipline required of anyone who seriously undertakes a career in the ballet. if you need to be uplifted, if you need encouragement along your way to a goal, if you're struggling with your sense of commitment, read this book. it will remind you what determination, resilience, passion, and the human heart can achieve. then, see the movie. Li Cunxin was involved in its development, so it's true to the story, beautifully acted, and the dancing...ah, the dancing. the pirouettes alone make it worth watching, but i assure you, there's so much more to the story of this incredible man.
on that note, i promise not to grumble too much at the gym tomorrow and to appreciate that i have enough food to eat.
that's what my life has been lately. bananas. well, my work life, anyway. it was tiring me out! that is the main reason i decided to give up sugar for a while and i must admit that, two weeks in, i feel better. significantly less bone tired, less...spent. i expected i would be cranky for a week or so as i adjusted to life without regular doses of mini Hershey® bars, but i am beginning to suspect that being a little miss crankypants is just an unfortunate aspect of my personality. then again, in my own defense, i'm not entirely convinced that i'm not surrounded by these:
so. tgif. i hope your weekend is lovely.
last night as i walked to my car while, i admit, texting, a man caught my eye, smiled, and said, "isn't it funny how we're all so busy doing that that we miss what's right in front of us?" even though it clearly was not his intention to call me out -- he went on to say something charming about noticing when other people are "checking us out" -- i felt completely guilty. i'd been caught in the act of doing the very thing i am trying to avoid!
because i feel so rushed lately, like there are not enough hours in the day to do everything that needs doing, i have been trying to pay attention to the small, ordinary bits of beauty all around me.
here are a few bits, from recent days:
1. dew sparkling on cobwebs right outside my door
2. purple zinnias help to render manageable a stack of unopened mail
3. fresh farmers market strawberries, for their color and flavor
4. the swoopy skyline created by LACMA's Pavilion for Japanese Art
yesterday, i really needed that reminder to look up, to pay attention. so...what have you noticed lately?
this week is going by so fast...it's been a blur! not only is work really busy right now, i seem to be feeling the dog days of summer more than usual this year. it isn't particularly hot here, despite the sudden and appalling appearance of men wearing shorts and flip flops in the workplace, but that's another post for another day. (by the way, did anyone else catch this?)
perhaps it's the busy pace during the day that makes me so ineffectual and unmotivated when i get home in the evenings. there are things to do, of course. some of them nag at me. worse, some pop into my head at random moments: while driving, just as i'm about to drift off to sleep, while pouring my morning coffee... never does one occur, though, at a time or in a place where i'm in any position to do anything about said nagging task, which will, inevitably, leave my addled brain shortly thereafter.
i strive for a balance between work and life, but this week work is definitely winning. so, life, next week it's gonna be you and me. just you wait!
