So it's that time of year again. I suspect I may be a little earlier than usual, but if I am I lay it at the feet of the Royal Mail who have me in all of a tizz trying to work out how late I can send Christmas presents to Australia without strike action meaning they won't arrive till March or something.
So the usual applies - this is intended to guide those who want to give me a present but have no clue where to start - it's not intended to beg for gifts from anyone who didn't intend that thought when they came here! It's a long list for the simple reason that I like Christmas to be full of surprises and a long list gives more scope for surprise. I've also tried to include a variety of budget- and long-distance-post-friendly options so you should find something appropriate here - if not, feel free to deviate and invent - hopefully this should give you a few ideas.
If you do decide to send me something from this list, please email djelibeybi what you've chosen, to avoid possible doubling-up. If you don't have his email, let me know :-)
(Sorry it's a little half-baked - one of the problems of blogging a list like this on your iPod on the tube is you can't look anything up and I'm past my bedtime now)
So without further ado, here we go!
Vefa's Kitchen - Phaidon's big Greek cookbook
Hummingbird Bakery cookbook
Le Creuset Poterie lasagne dish in red or red-orange
Le Creuset Poterie ramekins or mini casserole dishes w lids - 6 for
pref in red or red-orange but 2 would make a perfectly acceptable start
Amazon vouchers *again* - I think this is the third year in a row that these have been in here and still no takers *sigh*
Book of David Hockney UK paintings from Tate shop (when I get a chance, I'll hunt out the actual name of it. Big book. It's got all his Yorkshire paintings in it, including the ones he's started doing which are a combination of photos and painting)
Nico Muhly Mothertongue
Camera - Canon G11 or Panasonic Lumix TZ-7 (I think - need to double-check the Lumix number. Will do that this weekend. I doubt there'll be a rush for this one in the next couple of days though...)
An original artwork by Simone O'Callaghan - I've always wanted one of her prints and her prices are ridiculously reasonable. Ask djeli if you need her email address.
Wooden knitting needles - interchangeable ends circular set (link will come when there's time...)
Row counter
Shoulder massage device - something designed to remove tension knots, not just feel nice. I would love you forever if you can really find something that will take out knots. Doubly so if it will fit tidily into a handbag.
Colinette chunky yarn - yah. yummy stuff. can't remember the name (see earlier note re: weekend)
Sock knitting books! There's a couple of them, but (again), I'll need to look them up
2 skeins Koigu sock yarn - so can actually make socks with it this time (one skein per foot, in case you're not a knitter and you're wondering - can't get a whole pair out of one skein!)
Artists' sketchbooks book (see re: weekend)
iTunes voucher (must be in ££s though - AuD can't be used in the UK store) - lots of little digital helpers I'd like to get - the full version of Karajan ear training for a start!
... and if all that's not enough, there was a lot left over from last year's list too - anything not formatted with strikeout is fair game :-)
If you joined the circus, what act would you most want to perform?
Setting free the elephants. The lions and bears, too. Pretty much all of the animals. Only not just setting them free - somehow magically restoring their lost habitats and returning them home, so they can heal up from the bullhook scars and other injuries that are all just part of being "trained" to entertain people.
After that? Maybe the trapeze.
Recently, I've been a lot more thankful for everything I have in life. I made a resolve a few months ago to stop complaining at work (harder than I thought honestly -- some of the stuff that goes in the ICU really tests me sometimes) and try to live an overall happier life. I think all of this is after something I remember harping to my mom about -- "Ma, I don't think I ever hear a positive word come out of your mouth." "Isn't what you're saying now negative too?" she rebutted. Smartass!
Today is "Evaluate Your Life Day." So, tell us: how do you think you're life's going so far?
Clearly my li'fe does not ha've enough random apostrophes. Im telling' you, I think every'one needs more of them.
What's new with you? I want to know.
With me?
My sister Beth and her husband Alfredo welcomed a delightful new addition, baby Isaac, into their family at the beginning of the month. Yay!
Esther came to visit from England for about two weeks. We went to New York City. We went to Chicago. We turned 32. We ate and ate and ate. We laughed almost non-stop. I was sad to say goodbye.
My classes are kicking my butt, but in a good way; kicking me into shape intellectually. I feel as if I am slowly being shaped into a better scholar and a better thinker. With the exception of one class which is fairly dull, I am being challenged and pushed. As part of my undergraduate research training scholarship I am working with a faculty member who looks at teachers who become sexually involved with their students. I am delving into Shakespeare more deeply than ever before. I am researching medieval drama. I am learning data analysis and research methodology. I am soaking up brilliant literature and finding that my Current Political Ideologies class, in which we discuss philosophy and psychology more than we do politics, is really just inexpensive therapy. I love it all. This kind of stuff makes me love being a student.
Love it so much, apparently, that I am studying (in theory -- certainly not in practice) for the GRE so that I can -- with luck -- get accepted into the Master's program that I'm eyeing.
I am also, for the fifth time, teaching a class for gifted students through Purdue's Gifted Education Research Institute.
No matter how busy I am, my little ones -- as enchanting as ever -- still need me just as much. They also need those pesky quotidian necessities such as food, clean clothes, rides to activities and friends' houses, and someone to listen to the stories of their day. I'm not going to lie: finding a balance is hard. Fortunately, my little world is full of very supportive people and I am not afraid to admit to my limitations. I can call my mother-in-law, tell her I need help, and know that she will be willing to get on a plane and take over the reins at home for a while. She arrives in about two weeks.
Photos of Esther's visit to follow. In the meantime, here's a taste of NYC.
Im conflicted.
I feel more alive than ever before. Happier in myself and appreciative of what I have.I am in love, really powerfully, omg I can't believe I tried to settle for less and muddle through. I feel I've finally woken after living my whole life half asleep. In a fog.
I feel sad for the person I used ot be. It seems such a waste of a life.
From death comes life..
I'd go back in a heartbeat, spend my whole life that way to have him back though. It kills me to think that his life..her life..were sacrificed in order for me to finally be happy.
Whilst I was picking myself up and dusting myself off. Falling in love. Her life was being snuffed out. Her will and fierce joy for life, her loyalty and selfishless changed me. But I would go back to living in dense fog for her bright flame to reignite.
From death comes life..
Because I am happy, because I am alive and feeling things...things I have buried and not dealt with are bubbling beneath the surface. I totally shut down last year. Often not noticing weeks go by. Not knowing what month it was. I was numb.
Now I need help. I feel Im on the verge of some kind of meltdown but still fighting it off. Greg and I have chatted, and I have talked to SOnny's health worker and we have decided that grief counselling is necessary.
This is a terrifying prospect. It means acknowledging it. It means admitting that he is gone.ANd even writing that makes me choke.
My next tattoo will read..'From death comes life'
Ok..now to lighten the mood..some pics.
Here's some a little diff ...shoosh, don't tell my dad, mk?
