Qu'est-ce que c'est?

Aujourd'hui, mon journal sera en Francais.

Just kidding; it took enough effort for me to remember how to write that first phrase. Fulfilling the arduous task of writing an entire entry in French would take me days, and by then you wouldn't have the patience left to read it.

Part of me wishes to write in list form today, so....

Things that happened since my previous post:

--Jason and I celebrated our one year anniversary on March 9th. Being with him is one of the happiest points in my life thus far (and that's saying a lot, because I've had quite the joyous existence). We went out to a lovely little dinner at a favorite restaurant of mine called Luciano's, wherein we dined on delicious home-made Italian cuisine.

--Jason and I went to a bed and breakfast called Smithfield Farms for a belated anniversary trip on March 12th-13th. This B&B has been in the owner Ruth's family since 1816, when it was built by her great-great grandfather (well, not by him, but by slaves). The rooms are large, tall, wooden squares, full of comfy old furniture, plush carpets, and fireplaces. The floors creak just slightly in some spots, which reminded me of my grandparents' house in Uniontown. It was so nice to relax out in the peaceful, quiet countryside. I can't wait to live there again...someday.

--On Sunday the 13th, my friend Jess arrived and stayed with us for a few days. It was wonderful seeing her again! The week was filled with trips to Silver Diner for their classic milkshakes, and of course a belated birthday trip for Jess to Fuddrucker's. I find it humorous how much she adores American food. She was on her way back to England from a fast-paced journey round the world (Australia, NZ, and several places in South America). I'm quite jealous of her travels, to say the least. That's what you get when you live in a country where you have a guaranteed 4 weeks vacation every year (minimum). Jason and I will be traveling to England in September to see her and my other great friend Alison!

--I found a photography society to join in NOVA! I'm very excited about this. I will go to my first meeting, which happens to be a macro shot workshop, on the 30th. They have all sorts of activities, competitions and workshops that one can get involved in, for all skill levels. I'm making it a habit to seriously pursue my passions.

--This past weekend, Bean surprised me with a visit home! We celebrated my stepbrother's birthday at my parents' house and then came back to Jason's and my place to hang out; all of it was lovely. Bean and I had to, of course, engage in a shopping spree at Ross yesterday morning before enjoying brunch at the Amphora with our father.

--Last night, Jason and I went to see "An Ideal Husband" by Oscar Wilde, which is a very clever satire of the life of the politically inclined wealthy class of 1895. There are, however, serious undertones alluding to the effect that dishonesty can have on the individual, which were brilliantly tied in with the humor. We then enjoyed a late-night dinner at IHOP!

Today, I will do my usual: work out, read, play the flute. I have framed one picture (I cleverly cut it out from an Ansel Adams calendar I got as a Christmas gift years ago), and I hope to frame another by tomorrow. I don't really have much else to talk about, so here is a picture, instead:

A Strange and Disturbing Dream

I only remember parts, but what I do remember I want to record and sort through.

The most significant part of the dream involved two very frightening occurrences: being kidnapped, and a close friend being murdered.

The only thing I remember about being kidnapped is that I was in an unfamiliar place; one I had never been to before. Several men in a pick-up truck came by and snatched up a few other people and me, and took us to a place (I don't recall anything about it now) where they were going to keep us and possibly kill us. There was something about a play or a show in this situation, but I can 't recall it further. I don't know how it happened that I escaped, but I believe it is because they just decided to let me go. There were other people there, some with disabilities, almost causing the kidnap situation to seemingly transform into a hospital-like appearance/theme.

One dream sort of faded into the next, almost like I traveled from being kidnapped into the second one. In this dream, I came upon my old school friend Kelly's father, who informed me that she was dead and that the funeral was going to be that evening. I hadn't seen him or the rest of the family in years, so hearing this news was quite a shock. He said that he had found her crying with her right hand chopped off, and she had lost so much blood that she died. Oddly enough, he seemed sad but not as much as one would expect; the same was true of her mother, when I saw her. The funeral was being planned, we were again in an unfamiliar place for the funeral activities, there were people there I didn't know, and I never did see Kelly's body. I'm not sure where it was.

This is about all I can remember. I wonder what it all means??

Eating

Wake up! If you knew for certain you had a terminal illness—if you had little time left to live—you would waste precious little of it! Well, I’m telling you…you do have a terminal illness: It’s called birth. You don’t have more than a few years left. No one does! So be happy now, without reason—or you will never be at all. ~Dan Millman


I mused over this brilliant quote today as I shoved an Eat-n-Park "grilled stickie" (i.e., a delectable sticky bun heated in the oven in order that all its syrupy, sugary, doughy goodness flow eternally) into my mouth. It proceeded to melt into my tongue and teeth, punching joy and life into every taste bud.

You know how you smile when you eat something with amazing flavor? It's because in that moment, you're truly happy. As Millman points out in his thought above, you don't even have to possess a reason for happiness...but today's food joy was a simple, yet pure way for me to be consumed by it.

The grilled stickies weren't the only wonderful part of the meal my stomach happily digested, either; other manifestations of bliss included blueberry buttermilk pancakes, potato pancakes, and egg whites (yes, even I wondered in an afterthought why I bothered to skip out on the yolk for this feast). My sister and I sipped on matching cappuccinos.

It can be said with certainty that calories consumed during this time were simultaneously astronomical in numeric value and derived from the least healthy of sources. Then, there is the other piece: happiness, in every single second.

I have been somewhat, if not very, neurotic in the last few months about what I'm eating, and today I forgave myself and allowed my spirit to soar into the culinary heavens--and I still feel good, even great, about myself. That's the most important part, and a big lesson learned: if I'm working so hard most of the time to be healthy and then never taking time to allow a reward for the hard work, what's the point? The journey is about happiness, not just the end result. There are rewards to be had the entire time, not just in one moment.

I don't regret any of today, and I will do it again.

MANGIA!

Morning Entertainment.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/bob-cesca/sarah-palins-narcissism-f_b_831187.html