Round and about 2006

I completed my cookie baking Sunday, so now I have time to blog. Just for the record, first I baked Almond Spritz, which in my family we roll into balls, and then roll in confectioner's sugar while they are still warm from the oven. I also made vanilla meringues, chocolate crinkles (Em's fave, and she is coming on Friday!), and Scottish shortbread. Just four batches this year, conserving energy for the actual holidays!

It's that time of year. Last night, I hung the ornaments on our 24" tall fiber optic tree. When I moved to California last year, Matt felt the one box of Christmas ornaments I brought was truly waste of space. (Only rivaled by my KitchenAid mixer, enthroned in our tiny kitchen, and worshiped all weekend.) But I love going through that box. I have a very eclectic collection of ornaments given to me by friends, ones made by my grandmother (you should see the red felt mittens that hug the tree via a vintage hair clip), old ones from my childhood tree, ones made by Em circa 1993. The tin devil from Holly & Bob. The tree really has a fetish aspect. It made me so happy, to trace the past through ephemera that only has meaning for me, to think of everyone I have decorated trees with!

OK. This is the main update post. I am consciously making some information a little opaque. It is not that I wish to be coy with you, but I don't want this blog coming up as a hit on the first page of Google results for something. That's already happened with my other blogs, and since this one is much more personal than those, I do choose to be oblique. Please don't comment that you can find tons of information about me online with no difficulty. Let me have my little fantasy. (Besides, you probably do know my name, at least if you are a relative.)

I continue to be the branch librarian of a library beside Lindo Lake in California. It's wonderful. In the spring, there were ducklings and goslings and even egretlings! We took the preschool story hour on a nature walk. It was super fun. I have really great co-workers in a really nice facility with a healthy book budget. It is so far from my experiences in Philadelphia that I literally have to pinch myself sometimes.

Matt and I moved from our temporary quarters in the neon strip to a much nicer neighborhood near a beach-by-the-ocean.. Matt continues as a neighborhood beach branch librarian. We do not have very many books in our quaint (read small) beach apartment surrounded by rose bushes. We do have two Mac computers (I got a MacBook in June, which I looooove.) In April, I finally sold the condo in Philly at a tidy profit, so I am getting a glance at how the other half lives (That is, the 20% with no balances on their charge cards. Woo hoo!)

Emily is completing her two years in community college in a year and a half. She is in a big hurry to go to Japan, as she has dreamed so long. She has straight As in Japanese, and likes to memorize kanji characters in her spare time. She's also taken more Spanish. And she also continues to draw comics. Let's hope she'll translate for us in a comment. If she doesn't sue me for copyright infringement...

My bi-yearly (at least it seems like it) medical melodrama struck in June. I was diagnosed with what I generally refer to as "the disease", which is how it seems to be referred to by many other patients. It is more specifically a demyelinating disorder of the central nervous system. I started disease modifying medication in July, which is going very well. Plus lots of physical therapy, always a favorite. It's actually quite a relief to have a diagnosis, and though it sounds crazy, it's the best thing that has happened to me medically in years.

I am learning to monitor my energy level, and to save my energy for the stuff that matters. Living in paradise helps keep that in perspective on a daily basis. This morning, I admired how shiny the coconuts fronds were against the blue, blue sky, almost like tinsel high in the sky. The tide was high and I could here the waves crashing on the rocks at the end of the block. Too bad I had to head to work after I walked Lady! But there will be lots more walks, and Matt will always make sure we schedule time for fun. He has become very involved in cooking, lots of fresh ingredients, which are plentiful and cheap. Low salt and low fat, so we are getting healthier while eating fabulous meals! I tend to say I am the luckiest person in the world on a very regular basis. It is almost embarrassing to be this happy. All this without mentioning the November elections! I am still working with MoveOn.

I hope that 2007 will see us heading toward peace, and that this blog conveys my best wishes to everyone who reads it. Thank you for stopping by!