people



i was shopping at trader joe's the other day and i was shucking some corn at the box that they provide for you, looking around at all the people buying their treats.
my eyes found a woman standing at the strawberries.
she had been standing at the strawberries for a long time.
i watched her method of madness as she went on a search and destroy mission through every single container of strawberries.
she opened each box
she rifled through each strawberry in each box.
picking them up,
smelling them.
then placing them back in the box.
a couple of strawberries dropped out and rolled across the floor.
she picked them up and placed them back into the container.
she finally settled on one box and left.
so i found a clerk and let her know that every one of their strawberries had been handled and sniffed.
she looked at me with a defeated look and said, "yes, it happens a lot...there's not a whole lot we can do about it. they get so mad when you say something to them about it." she went over to the strawberries and began to sort through them..clearing them out.

kinda makes me look a little differently at my produce these days.



merry-go-rounds are not the most exciting rides.
with their around and around and up and down
in a tiresome, predictable way.
but they're beautiful in their own right.
a little freakish
a little garrish..
with their screaming bright colors and animals with manic expressions
imploring you to ride on them
they do the best they can within the confines of their poles.
a certain bizarre beauty.




sometimes i wonder if i can only think in terms of lists.
short.
simple.
to the point.
my brain it seems is always on overload.
too much is crowding in all the time.
leaving me inert.
i'm reluctantto talk to you on the phone.
i fear i wouldn't be able to focus.
and then i'd be lost in the conversation.
and you'd know i wasn't paying attention.
not because i don't love you, but because i'm simply overwhelmed.
over.
whelmed.
so just send me a text.
txt.

xo

one day


i will skip instead of walk
i will yank out every automated answering machine i can find
i will wear nothing but orange
i will remember to smile more
i will paint my toenails rainbow stripes
i will think before i speak
i will wear an un-ironed shirt
i will be unpredictable
i will order only desserts at every meal
i will not care what anybody else thinks
i will throw my cell phone into the ocean
i will ride in a helicopter
i will live without trying

one day.
i will.




If our country is worth dying for in time of war let us resolve that it is truly worth living for in time of peace.
Hamilton Fish

happy 4th all!

today:



beauty
warmth
long shadows
blue sky
compassion
brilliant colors
laughter
frustration
sincerity
understanding
love.

those are all the things i saw in my mind's eye today.
those are the images that i didn't capture with my camera.
but they will be forever ingrained in my brain.

happy wednesday, all.

another ridiculous ode




oh lenscap, lenscap
you frustrate me so
whenever i can't find you
i never know where to go.
i take you away from your home
and away i do roam
all the while never caring
while through the lens i am staring
i really do love you
for your worth is immense
and why i can't remember where i put you,
makes absolutely no sense
except that i am certainly dense.
:-)


can you photographers out there relate?
as for me?
i'm just boneheaded.

funny words



1. jaunty.jaunty used in conjunction with other words like hat, path, walk but especially hat. "a jaunty little hat perched on his head".
2. flick
3. spew
4. luncheonette. why aren't there breakfastettes and dinnerettes? why luncheonette?
5. merriment
6. bobby pins. why are they named bobby pins? they're not really pins. and why bobby? why not betty? or boris? or possibly not even a "b" name at all?
7. devil's food cake. why food cake? isn't that redundant? and why do devils and angels have cakes named after them? how come there isn't an average joe food cake?
8. underpants. underpants is just funny. there is no dignity in the word underpants.
9. cocky
10. ostentatious. just using the word ostentatious is ostentatious.

how about some others?



remember when you first became a dad?
remember when you first held our beautiful daughter in your arms and you cried with happiness?
how about those endless picnics and tea parties and barbies and trampoline jumping and walks to the park?
do you remember reading bedtime stories at night?
dad taxi service?
how about those endless knight in shining armour duties of changing the oil in her car, helping her move, helping her get a leg up on her independent life, talking her down off a ledge when she's stressed and anxious and all the other countless things you continue to do for her every single day?

i do.
and i thank you.
happy father's day to an amazing man and father.
i love you.



have you ever been lost in a conversation with a compulsive talker?
someone who goes on and on
and then you find your mind drifting off thinking about what
you need to buy at the grocery store
and if you remembered to put on underwear today
and all the little errands you need to run
and geez i wish i could somehow work this piece of lettuce out of my teeth
and does it look like i'm listening because i really have no idea what you're talking about
but i can still maintain eye contact and look convincing
and wait
was that a little pug dog that just walked by?
because i think they are so cute
i think i have to go to the bathroom
good gawd it's hot out here
i really can't wait to take these shoes off
what are we doing this weekend anyways?
if i don't clean my house, it's going to be consumed by one ginormous massive dog hairball.

and then you realize.
you're a compulsive inner talker

huh.

happy friday all!



children have their own pace.
i think we're better adults if we allow ourselves to follow that
every once in a while.

happy weekend!



today i would like to declare as "tell me the color that your toenails are" day.
what color are you sporting right at this very moment?
and no generic names, either.
how about some big time descriptions
just to spice things up a bit.

what color are mine?

i would say they are "been way too freaking long since i had a pedicure because they sure have seen better days but hey, haven't had the time to get to the salon lately so i'm just limping along with what used to be pretty ruby red with a touch of pink" color.
does OPI sell that?
probably not.

so tell me, what color are your toenails?



kids know how to live, don't they?
and you know we do this too as adults, don't we?
admit it.
you know that when no one is looking
or you're all alone in the house
that you yourself have picked up a cupcake
and shoved it into your mouth
just
like
this.

happy monday!



arthur: "do you want anything?"
hobson: "i want to be young again."
arthur: "sorry, it's your job to be older."

from the movie arthur
and one of my all time favorite movies to quote.
there are just some movies that are written so cleverly,
so tender to the human condition,
full of incredible wordplay
and yet so funny
that you remember them for all time.

arthur is one of those movies for me.
some others:

when harry met sally
bull durham
rosencrantz and guildenstern are dead
and the princess bride.

what are yours?

happy friday all!



does everybody know about storypeople?
i think this group of writers and artists are brilliant.

some of my favorites from them:

No hurt survives for long without our help, she said & then she kissed me & sent me out to play again for the rest of my life.

Is willing to accept that she creates her own reality except for some of the parts where she can't help but wonder what the hell she was thinking

I need someone to invent a mirror that leaves out some of the details, she said.

This is the place I keep current thoughts about everything & since I'm pretty uninformed lately, it's easy to keep clean.

go visit them and share your favorites!