Tap Dancing!
On February 5, 2016 by Speranza
THE WATER IS BACK ON!!
To say that we are elated would simply not be doing this feeling justice – as The General quipped “It’s like we’re living in a luxury resort now!”
Everyone (First World speaking) should experience this just to realize what brats we really are.
I am surprised how the feeling is lingering too.
I’m now in the habit of emptying excess water into plants, only using a bit of water for tooth brushing and really chocking the dishwasher to capacity.
(The dishwasher!! This time last week that was unimaginable!)
The Peace of Wild Things Or, How I am Feeling Today
On February 2, 2016 by Speranza When despair for the world grows in me and I wake in the night at the least sound in fear of what my life and my children’s lives may be, I go and lie down where the wood drake rests in his beauty on the water, and the great heron feeds. I come into theThe (Other) Bucket List
On February 1, 2016 by Speranza
Day 5 in a house without water.
I awoke this morning to find that I had completely lost touch with the Environmentalist Within and after extravagantly using no less than three Adult Towellettes ( instead of enduring yet another geriatric sponge bath), I then enjoyed my toast and peanut butter on a scrap of facial tissue (save the plate washing!) which the cat then decided to lick the residual essence off. As his tongue melted through the paper, completely spoiling his treat, he shot me a disgusted “Really-has-it-come-to-THIS” look which there was no mistaking.
And I do feel badly about the waste but don’t judge.
These are trying times.
Once more, when I opened the front door this morning some dear, so-far anonymous friends had made a drop (no pun intended) and there was a variety of different sizes of water left, some with the cautionary, yet comical designation of “Flush Only …”
The identity of said ‘AquaMarines’ is yet to be determined but so, so wonderful; for another day or two, we need not worry about carrying in buckets or schlepping mammoth-sized jugs from the hardware store, walking as though one of my legs is a good deal shorter than the other.
Water, Water Everywhere Nor Any Drop to Drink
On January 30, 2016 by Speranza
The General and I were in attendance at the show this week in order to see The Revenant on the big screen; it’s not my thing really, but I can still say that it’s worthwhile despite the endless, mercilessly close-up shots of flesh in varying stages of being charred or stitched or stabbed or scored like the top of a Shepherd’s Pie, which I had to watch through three fingers and occasionally not at all.
Director Alejandro González Iñárritu insisted that the film be shot entirely in natural light and as a result the bright, brittle harshness of winter really translates; in fact, I read recently that the very excellent Will Poulter (Jim Bridger) noted perceptively, that the weather almost has its own character within the film.
But meanwhile, back at our place, The General and I are experiencing a few of our own Revenant-style challenges, albeit without the gore and you know, raw bison liver …
This is Day 3 of a burst waterline that cannot be fixed yet ( cheerful, yet strangely unmoved plumbers tell us that there is too much water at the source to precisely deal with the leak) so we are living without running water in the freezing winter for a minimum of one week till some drainage occurs.
And it is not for sissies.
I Wanna Be Yours
On January 25, 2016 by Speranza
I’ve often thought that if I had ever become an English teacher it would have been interesting to analyze the lyrics of songs as class assignments. So many songs are poetry in their own right (I’m looking at you Diamonds and Rust) but will never be recognized as such; at least not in that respected canon of what really counts.
(And whilst I don’t envision Harold Bloom-esque academics excitedly rushing home to tease out the classical allusions buried within Gangnam Time the fact remains that song lyrics often evoke a personal, singular meaning for listeners that the original writer could not possibly have imagined).
And that is, simply part of the art.