Author Archives: Autumn

Turning In

I’ve just finished my second article for the next issue of the local journal and sent it off. Yay me. Yet again I am amazed at how much I know about a topic, and how superficial an examination must be in the space of 900 words.

Despite my cheerful optimism regarding orchestra last night, I had a really rough evening when I got there. It was a strings-only rehearsal, and we practiced every sequence that gave us trouble in the Haydn symphony for two hours. This means that we did a lot of work on the frustrating passages that are (naturally) challenging, and didn’t get the rewarding boost of playing the easier stuff in between. On top of that my fingers and my brain were not talking to one another last night and I just couldn’t get warm or count correctly, all of which conspired to make me play even worse than usual. I was so out of it by the end of the night that I missed every single entrance in the Handel bouree and couldn’t find a place to jump in before it was over. ADZO had shared an insightful chat earlier in the day with me regarding applying professional standards to everything one does, however, and that really went a long way towards me not feeling as despondent about rehearsal as I otherwise might have felt.

The boy had two shots this morning and got a bandage on each of them that the doctor then added little stickers to, a fire engine and a train to be precise. It was an excellent way to grab his attention and get him to stop the indignant crying. He also got a train sticker for his hand because he kept craning his head around to try to look at his upper arms, and he showed it to the five-month-old baby waiting his turn to see the doctor. He very helpfully took his medicare card from me and carried it into the office on his own for the nurse to check at the beginning of the appointment, too. He’s a good kid.

Tomorrow, the Friday plans which have been postponed twice will happen! But now, I have to try to get myself into a sleep-like headspace.

As Good As

As I sat down in my desk chair after lunch, I noticed something. My chair was facing the window, because I had turned it to reach something before standing up. Sitting in it, I observed that facing east in the middle of the room instead of south staring at a wall felt good. Really good, in fact.

And then I remembered that when cabin fever struck at any time of year, I used to move furniture around. We haven’t done that in this apartment very much, mainly because the location of windows, closets, and heaters really limits furniture placement.

So I’ve just spent the last hour swinging the desk around to jut out from the wall, played with all the finicky wires and cables that connect me to that wall and the rest of the world, and I now have a different perspective. (As regards physical location, anyhow.) A change is as good as rest, as the aphorism says, and even though we all know that isn’t absolutely true it does help somewhat.

The office certainly won’t stay exactly like this. It needs better arrangement, for one, and careful proper rerouting of cables for another. HRH’s computer isn’t currently connected to the internet because this end of the ethernet cable doesn’t reach the router’s new position, but I think that can be fixed by feeding more cable up from the basement. I have less floor space overall, but as all I’ve been doing in here lately is sitting and working at the desk that’s not much of a loss. I may move it back later; I may make this floorplan more permanent. Who knows? But it feels good to sit here like this right now, and so I’m happier.

Gratitude

I’d like to thank a handful of friends who, over the past two days, have really been instrumental in the maintenance of my sanity, either by telling me I’m competent, telling me they love me, opening their homes to me to enable me to leave the house for an hour or so, and reminding me that they’re there if I need them.

Thanks, everyone. I deeply appreciate you.

Battered

At least once a day Liam does something that hurts me enough to make me yelp at him. Some days it’s hitting my forehead with the corner of a wooden train as he whips around quickly. Others, it’s one of his booted feet stomping down with all his weight on my tarsals. Whatever he does usually leaves a bruise or a welt or a scrape. He doesn’t do it on purpose; it’s just collateral damage inflicted by a very enthusiastic twenty month old boy. It can be hard to remember that, however, when one is tired and cranky and short on patience.

Early this morning, he grabbed lightning-fast at the fresh hot cup of tea I held in my hand, which spilled down the neck of my sweater and left a burn line down my breastbone to my stomach. I put cold compresses on it and massaged in some lavender oil, but the red line remains. It’s not a severe burn or anything; still, it’s enough to twinge when my pullover rubs against it.

I know it wasn’t intentional. Nonetheless, after the first aid I had to go sit in another room by myself for a while and do some breathing exercises in order to calm down, and when Liam came charging in right away to see what I was doing I asked HRH to take him away to play somewhere else for a few minutes.

I need down time. I just never seem to get it, because there’s always something I have to be doing when Liam is with his caregiver or his grandma for a day. Any time winter wants to leave town would be fine, too, because it’s not helping.

I never did get a cup of tea this morning. I will go remedy that right now.

Do You Have It?

I’ve been looking for some of my books recently, and some are missing. I have a bad habit of enthusiastically pressing books on people as they leave my home, and I forget to write down who has what.

Today I’m looking for Poppy Palin’s Craft of the Wild Witch: Green Spirituality & Natural Enchantment. Do any of my Gentle Readers perchance have my copy in their possession?

Actually, if you currently have any of my books I’d appreciate a note in the comments, even if you think that I remember that you have it. Despite your confidence in my mental recall, chances are good that I won’t notice that you have it until I need it.