In gratitude

…for warm clothing.

…for the humor provided by the painfully obvious.

…for 8-10 more inches of snow in the next two days.

…for beautiful bridges I've admired my whole time here.

 …for the weather holding off long enough for my friend to fly to her interview.

…for frozen waterfalls.

 …for community.

…for blue sky.

 …for reminders to keep the faith when it feels like I'm fighting a losing battle.

…for pristine snow.

 …for constant learning about myself.

…for time to just hang out and chat with beloved studio friends.

 …for unexpected connections.

…for vitamin C during flu season.

 …for sitting on the kitchen floor chatting for hours.

…for inside jokes about fruit fly sex (housemate's genetics lab).

…for ice cream even in winter.

In need of silence

Evidence of my current disorganized state

It has been a crazy few days and promises to continue that way for the next week. While all the things that are making my life incredibly busy are good things; work, getting new projects underway, making new friends and getting together with old treasured ones. I wish I could say I take it all in my stride and am impervious to stress, frustration, and emotional exhaustion. However that would be a lie. Emotional exhaustion is the big one for me right now since I selfishly hoard my energy close and thus being a worse friend.

My schedule for this week

I know I am out of balance when I don't even have time to address my basic needs like cooking and when I can't remember when I last showered. I've been scarfing sandwiches and maybe had a shower on Sunday, but I'd have to double check. I need to find a moment, or several moments, to replenish my soul. Moments of silence. Moments of nesting while the snow blows. Moments of wonder. Moments of delight. Moments to remember who I am and why I do what I do.

The beautiful snowstorm we're having

Now to find moments to indulge in a warm cup of tea and some quiet contemplation. I invite you to join me.

Happy hippy child: Air drying clothes indoors

First of all, sorry for the mostly empty drying rack, I only thought to write about writing this post after I put my clothes away.

Right now here in the Northeast it is cold, like really cold. Not as cold as other places for sure, but definitely enough that the heat is on all the time, so why not make it do double duty? At first I was on the fence about air drying versus putting my clothes in the dryer, would they dry as fast? Was it really saving energy if I had to turn my heater up? Would my clothes feel all crinkly? Despite these misgivings I gave it a shot anyway. I was joyfully surprised, my clothes were dry in less than a day and they were not as soft as coming out of the dryer, but not uncomfortable either. I still don't know for sure if it counts as eco friendly if I have to turn my heat up a bit, but I'm going to go with yes because I get two services for roughly the same amount of energy. And if my room has to be a sauna for a few hours there are worse things in life.

In gratitude...

…for project teammates that join me in my crazy ideas.

…for cozy places.

…for winter sunshine.

 …for rediscovering my love of dance.

…for plans in motion.

…for four legged visitors.

…for heating that works.

…for the smell of baking.

…for housemates that make sugar on snow.

 …for kitchen laughter.

…for the beauty of nature.

…for phone calls from home.

 …for ingenuity.

 …for caffeine.

…for the chance to get outside.

…for unexpected encounters.

…for winter safety measures.

…for my beautiful sunshine yellow co-op.

…for learning new things about an old topic.

 …for the promise of warmer weather.

…for the amazing women I live with.

…for mosey-iers (people who are interested in joining our co-op next year) that show up even during a snow storm.

…for frozen lakes.

…for the constant chance to begin again.