Monthly Archive: January 2010

One word

So what’s the one word that people will use to sum up your life? Would you prefer they use a different word? Can you sum your life up in one word? I hope to be in Texas by sunset. If I’m really lucky, perhaps I’ll have a glass of wine with friends before I sleep again. Until then…

Penguin

Stories

The Presbyterian way of dealing with death is through a Celebration of Life. Commending a soul on to the afterlife. Erupting from the junction of two large, very Presbyterian families, I’ve known the passing of a loved one to be a time when the family rejoined, shared stories, shared food and shared friendship. Yes, we’d lost a brother or sister or mother or father or aunt or uncle. But, the kingdom...

RX-8 road trip

Serenity

We all find serenity in different places. Different times. Different people. But it’s always out there. Sometimes elusive. Sometimes pervasive. In some strange fashion I find serenity in long drives in the car. More so, at times, when those are long, solo drives in the car. I found a certain peace on the drive here Saturday. Even as hopes were shattered early in the trip, the miles brought healing of the soul. I...

Wind chimes

Wind chimes

My mom found some really cool wind chimes. Some great big ones. Some little tiny dainty ones. For Christmas last month she gave us a set that are tuned to Pachelbel’s Canon. On her front porch are some deep, loud, low and ominous chimes. Inside the house are some lovely bamboo chimes that sing gently as you brush by them. Everywhere you turn is another set. Some quiet, some loud. Some...

The WMD diaries – Day 2

Dear Diary, Uh-oh. I think I’ve made a terrible mistake. I didn’t mean to upset Him so, but apparently I jumped onto the bed and landed on Him one time too many. The alarm went off (too early, I might add) on Saturday morning. I jumped on Him. And He left. Really. He got in the car and left. I think I heard Her talking on the phone to Him yesterday morning. I...

Guitar strings

Changing the strings

Last night, I changed the strings on my guitar. A fresh set of strings does a lot for a guitar… Its tone becomes a little more lively. Its strings move a little easier. Its like a whole new life beneath your fingers. Or there are times you try some new strings that just don’t pair well with a guitar. It’s tone becomes dull or harsh. The strings grab your fingers or buzz...

The WMD Diaries – Day 1

Dear Diary: He nearly caught me today. I didn’t quite get the latch redone on my kennel, and he looked at it funny when he was “letting me out.” I’m still unable to open the door to escape the bedroom and gain access to the computers, but I found a Nokia n700 under one of the bedroom cabinets. It’s primitive, but it does have WiFi and I was able to connect to the access point....

The best part of a run with the WMD

9.5 Weeks

It’s been a while since I tied on my running shoes. October 24th, to be exact, for the 5k at the Austin LiveSTRONG Challenge. Then, I rode the bike 64 miles on Sunday. For two weeks after that event I was “on break” and then, following my return to the bicycle on November 7th and 8th, I was wiped out by a truck while riding to work on my motorcycle. In the...

Things that go flush in the night

So those of you who know me may have picked up on the fact that I am a master procrastinator. I tend to think of it as being very patient most of the time, but deep down I know that I’m just putting things off. For example, we’ve had one and a half toilets downstairs for some time now. Not one and a half baths (well… that, too) but one fully functional...