dangerous compassions

I call you / from the comet's cradle

Friday, May 31, 2013

Musee Mechanique and other delights

Yesterday we went to San Francisco to see my old friend P and his ex J.  I have known P through zines for maybe seven years.  It was our second time meeting in person.  He lives in New York.

Let me tell you about our day yesterday.  I will somewhat quote from a postcard I just wrote to my bestie AL.

Traffic jams, burritos, ice cream at Dolores Park, someone trying to sell us pot rice crispie treats.  The Musee Mechanique where you put in a quarter or two and get to see something. 

Here is a partial list of mechanical things we saw.

*Laughing Sal
*a test of strength where you grab a pretend bull by the horns and squeeze them together--I did so so
*a boxing game where two little metal figures box and you control them with gun-like things
*an execution where someone is read their last rites then hanged
*an execution where someone is read their last rites then guillotined
*a laughing drunken sailor
*a drunken mime who taps his foot against the glass of his case and leans against a lightpole
*a test of strength we didn't really understand which involves striking a piece of metal with your finger
*an arm wrestling machine
*a pony kids can ride
*a test of strength where you punch a punching bag--didn't seem to be working
*a fortune telling thing where something reads your palm and it spits out a paper fortune
*a fortune telling grandma
*a fortune telling gypsy
*another fortune telling grandma
*another laughing drunken sailor
*four dancing sailors in white
*some wild west people who fart--there was a sign for this one saying "Don't play if you're easily offended"
*a thing where you kiss your mate and a wheel spins around to land on a rating of the kiss--the kiss Ming and I shared was rated "passionate"
*a zoetrope
*a huge mini fair complete with ferris wheel
* huge mini farm
*a thing where you spin the wheel and different jobs light up--I got Beautician
*video games including my favorite, Bust-a-Move II
*pinball machines
*skeet ball
*whack a mole
*things where you look and see a little move like an earthquake or world's fair
*a helicopter
*a thing where you make a metal ball climb
*a thing where you shoot metal balls that land in holes with different point values
*a funhouse mirror

I remember a lot, but there were way more than this.  Sorry I didn't take a single picture.

We also went to Needles and Pens.  It didn't open till noon, so we got Mexican popsickles and waited.  Ming got rum raisin which was creamy and delicious.  I got watermelon which tasted like laundry detergent.  "Shampoo," Ming said.

Needles and Pens opened late.  While we waited a tour came by.  The tour guide explained it was an anarchist store so you couldn't trust them to open on time.  The tour guide explained what DIY is and what zines are.  It was great to hear.

Inside we looked at lots of zines and cards and books.  Ming looked at some wallets.  I liked many things and bought nothing, which is appropriate because I have about 150 zines on my to read pile from various fests and trades and even purchases.

We got burritos at this bright taqueria.  We got ice cream at Bi-Rite Creamery.  I got Brown Sugar with a ginger caramel swirl and Cheesecake with a rhubarb swirl.  They complimented me on my selection.  Ming got coffee toffee in a sugar cone.

We saw the name Ming in a band name on a flier and on a huge ship.

After all this we went to Indian Pakistani food in Berkeley and came home.

Tuesday, May 28, 2013

new plants


Here is the basil we planted today in bed three.


Here's some yerba buena that we planted months ago in a pot.  To its left is some lemon balm, and to its lower right is some mint.


Here's a garbanzo bean we planted--we planted three in bed four.


Here's rue, which is an herb with a strange background.  I mean, it's very symbolic--for example, it's the one plant a basilisk can't wilt with a glance, and weasels who have been bitten by the basilisk go off and eat rue to recover and return to the fight.


Finally here's the marionberry!  I think we're naming it Orange Tree.  Or maybe not.

zombie fear

I forgot to tell you that when Ming and I walked to Safeway yesterday around 8 in the morning, no one was out.  "Where is everybody?" I asked.  Then I realized it was Memorial Day and everyone was home eating pancakes.  But I started feeling creeped out by the lack of people, as if there was a zombie apocalypse and everyone else knew the zombies were on a rampage but us, and the zombies were going to find and kill us.  It was a strange fear.  I told Ming how I have zombie dreams though I have never once watched a zombie movie.

Monday, May 27, 2013

cute little sweet potato


This sweet potato started sprouting, so Ming put it in water, and it's grown into a beautiful plant on the windowsill.

Rubaiyat quote

Today we walked to the nearest Safeway for another fruit run.  It was fun.  And for the first time I saw this quote on a wall next to a non-flowing fountain.  Love it!


Sunday, May 26, 2013

fruit run

We needed fruit bad.  So we went on a fruit run.  We got organic strawberries and organic grapes, because both should be organic, as well as two organic apricots, for which we paid a pretty penny.  We bought an avocado too.  The strawberries are already gone, and they were delicious.  Haven't bought any cherries yet this year because they're supposed to be organic.  Safeway doesn't carry organic cherries.  How many dollars a pound do you think organic cherries cost in Sacramento, California? 

Neutral Milk Hotel -- King of Carrot Flowers Prt 1



This song is not an easy read, but I suggest listening to it at least once.

late spring backyard garden today

Ming took some garden pics for me and for you. 


First are the sunchokes.  There are growing in this pot that doesn't drain well.  They're in with what look like some dead tree collards, but they are just sleeping.


Here is our grapevine.  Its name is Fig Tree.  Doesn't it look lush and great?


Here's bed six.  You can see the huge lemon verbena in the back.  It was just a cute little organic start last year...  And you can see some onions on the left, a tree collard on the right, some buckwheat in the middle.


And here's bed five, a good late afternoon picture of it with the carrot flowers in front, some tree collards on the right, Fig Tree in back, some buckwheat, a marigold.  Can't see the vibrantly blooming bright pink yarrow which is to the right of the collards.

pancakes, rice pudding, orange juice

This morning I was making pancakes and reached in the case of soymilk to get more soymilk and cut my finger on the cardboard.  Wtf, cardboard paper cut!  But the pancakes were really good.  They were vegan cornmeal almond pancakes.

This morning was Buddha puja.  We sang at choir practice and sounded pretty bad, not knowing who all would show up for the actual puja, but then more singers showed up.  And we sounded fine at the actual puja.  Then there was lunch, including rice pudding, and I bought a copy of the Dhammapada for P from the temple bookstore.  The person running the bookstore and I compared two translations, and it was fun to read aloud from both of them.  The $11 translation won--we rejected the $9 Penguin translation.

Yesterday we went to a party and lived to tell the tale.  I think we lasted about an hour, maybe 45 minutes.  The living room was small.  I drank some good orange juice.  We saw the plants growing out back--we saw the bunnies.  We saw our friend's books in a different context--this is the fourth home I've known her to live in.  I guess she moves a lot.  We got some good hugs.

Friday, May 24, 2013

earthquake

Last night I was lying in bed.  Ming was in the bathroom brushing his teeth.  And then the bed was moving.  I thought, "I must be really dizzy.  But it really does feel like the bed is moving."  Then I thought it must have been an earthquake. 

"Did you feel an earthquake just now?" I asked Ming, and he said no.  Then I looked up at the ceiling fan's pull-thing (what do you call those?) and it was still moving.  So I was convinced it was an earthquake, but Ming looked online and there was nothing. 

But in the morning Ming looked it up differently and saw it was a five point something near Susanville, which is pretty far away. 

I've felt several earthquakes in my life.  Some felt like a jolt to the building, as if the building got hit by a car.  I felt the big one during that world series baseball game in San Francisco when I was a kid--felt it all the way in Santa Maria. 

I don't like them.  But they can't be stopped.  They are interesting at least.

Thursday, May 23, 2013

king of carrot flowers


Finally the camera is working, and here is the picture of carrot flowers that I promised you.

emotional work

I've been going through boxes looking for an important document that I think I know where it was at my old place, but I have no idea where it is now.  Well, I have an idea: it's in a box.  But which box?  I went through some old ones and threw away a metric ton of letters from an ex-friend.  It's bittersweet to let them go.

Today we got lots of expired, cooked brown rice at a food giveaway at the nearby church.  We got applesauce in squeezable pouches too.  It has cinnamon in it.  And some bread, and a green bell pepper.

Wednesday, May 22, 2013

garden lists May 2013

I made this list of everything we have growing in our gardens and thought you might like to see.

community garden plot

onions
tree kale
oregano
Mexican marjoram
lavender
Greek mountain tea
celery--stubborn, we keep ripping it out
asparagus
echinacea
opium poppies
California poppies
lemon balm or catnip--not sure
borage
strawberries--not producing
chives
white sage
yarrow with bright pink flowers
yerba buena
thyme
potatoes
buckwheat


backyard--six beds plus

onions
tree collards
lemon verbena
oregano
tomatoes--stupice, unknown from MyPlant, 1000 cherry tomato, unknown from neighbors
green beans--unknown from neighbors
snap peas or snow peas--from neighbors
Christmas lima bean?--not sure which of the beans is coming up
lemon cucumbers
fava beans
carrots
garlic
cauliflower
celery--blooming
parsley--blooming
chard
zucchini
bay laurel
corn
Moro blood orange named Mary
sunchokes
lettuce--blooming
bell pepper--not thriving
yarrow with bright pink flowers
yarrow that has not bloomed but is supposed to be white
yerba buena
lemon balm
grapevine named Fig Tree
grapevine cuttings that might or might not be still alive
aloe
bright purple succulent--neighbors
mint--gone wild
potatoes
buckwheat
marigolds
strawberries
New Zealand spinach
naked ladies

Tuesday, May 21, 2013

the dangers of demonstrating

Today at the demonstration we go to every week there was a bunch of people because of a graduation going on in the community building right there.  There were a ton of people milling around, and it made for a different energy.  Ming and I stood on our usual corner.  I held my favorite sign, "no torture, no drones" and Ming had one about closing Guantanamo Bay.

Some people commented from passing vehicles, and some people talked to us.  I want to tell you about this obnoxious yuppie-looking middle aged white guy who confronted us, wanting to talk to us about our signs, and he was a creep. 

He asked me about my sign, and I said, "I hate torture, and I hate drones."

"Have you ever experienced torture?" he asked.

"Not really," I said.  "Not the type of torture that our government does."

"And have you experienced drones?" he asked.

"I've never been subject to a drone strike," I said.  "But I've experienced drones, in Nevada, near Creech Air Force Base, where drone pilots practice take offs and landings."

"But you've never experienced a drone strike?" he asked.

"No," I said.

"So why do you believe they've taken place?" he asked.

"The news," I said.  "There are drone strikes in Pakistan," I said.

"How do you know they've taken place?" he asked.

"The news," I said.  I don't even watch the news.  I don't have a tv!

"But how do you know, without firsthand knowledge?" he asked.

"We believe plenty of things we don't have firsthand knowledge of," I said.  I have never been to England, but I believe it exists.  There are plenty of things we take on faith--strict skepticism would be pretty ugly.  If I had to doubt the existence of every country other than the United States, how fun would that be?  Or maybe I should even doubt the existence of anything outside of Sacramento? outside of my own mind?  An evil genius could have control over my brain, and nothing I experience could be real.  But what kind of life is that, to live believing in the control of evil genii?

"Be very careful," he said in a chastising way.  "Be very careful of what you protest." 

Then he turned to Ming.  The asshole agreed with Ming's sign about closing Guantanamo, but he said there was no good solution.  He presented Ming with this question: what would you think if twenty terrorists were taken from Guantanamo and dropped off in Sacramento? 

A woman was standing at a distance, looking on.  She seemed to be the asshole's partner or otherwise with him, and she seemed neutral, not agreeing with him or condemning him.

"I congratulate you," the creep said.  Then he shook Ming's hand, and I was like oh shit, he's going to shake my hand now too.  I considered refusing, but that's so hard to do.  I accepted the handshake, and it was extra gross because the creep held my hand in both of his as he condescendingly and repulsively thanked us for whatever. 

A few minutes later a cop come up to as and told us to tell one of our demonstration-mates to get out of the street--this particular demonstrator likes to stand a little bit off the sidewalk.  The cop said that if a driver clips our friend, the cop will take our friend to jail.

I don't know why the cop didn't just go tell our friend himself.  But I elected Ming to go convey the cop's message, so Ming left me alone on my corner, and someone else talked to me about my sign.

"What's it say?" another middle aged white guy asked me.

"No torture, no drones," I said.  I was kinda traumatized by the asshole and wanted Ming to come back to my street corner.

"I like the other side better," this white guy said.  "No spying on US citizens."

"Oh yeah," I said.

"NSA spies on all of us," he said.  "They have copies of everything that's digital."

Then Ming came back, and the graduates in their blue graduation gowns and blue graduation hats were leaving the community building, and I told Ming, "I think I gotta get out of here."  So we put our signs back and walked back to Bucket of Bolts and drove home, where Ming made me pretend Spaghetti-Os for dinner.  The end.

first tomatoes

This morning we ate the first two tomatoes from our cherry tomato plant.  They were delicious!

Monday, May 20, 2013

the story called yesterday

Yesterday we went to the East Bay and got vegan donuts.  I told Ming he was a Berkeley cliche, with his long hair, tie dye, permaculture book under his arm, walking into a vegan donut shop!

Then we went to the marina and walked to the end of the pier.  We looked at graffiti and empty boxes of calamari that fisherpeople were using as bait.

Then we went to see Ming's kids.  It was low stress.  We ate lunch at Saturn Cafe, Ming and me and the younger of the kids.  He's about to graduate from high school and is a charming person--with lots of sunglasses, playing with lanyards, wearing bright shoes.  Then I went to a cafe while those two went to a Japanese festival and met with the older of the kids.  So I never saw the older kid.

Then Ming and I went to Oakland to the East Bay Depot for Creative Reuse, and I bought some postcards for specific people and some envelopes.

Then we came home at a decent hour.  The neighbor told Ming that two tomato plants are growing out the sides of this plastic box that has compost from our compost pile in it.

And that's the story called yesterday.

Saturday, May 18, 2013

happy birthday

A good friend gave me a gift card to Safeway, and we hadn't shopped there much before, but now we are shopping there more.  Today we looked at their salsa and they didn't have any green kind and I was amazed. 

But we got some tofu, two types of soy chorizo, bananas, raspberries, and some red salsa that looks okay but I really wanted green to put on potatoes.  Our main neighbor gave us some potatoes.

And we gave him that oregano, and he's using it on his BBQ chicken.  Ming wanted me to tell you that. 

Today is the birthday of some of my most loved and important friends.  One is 78, one is 35, and one is...33.  I am with these three friends in my heart.  The 35-year-old is camping in the redwoods and brought my zines with her to read today so I would be there with her.  And a long time ago I sat in a redwood grove writing her a love letter because she asked for love on facebook and I was too shy to wax on facebook.  And she ended up having a bad allergic reaction to some hairdye and was very sick, so the letter was extra helpful during a dark time.

Here are the lyrics to "Happy Birthday" by the Innocence Mission.

When you wake up sun will shine.
We will not go under any cloud.
Let balloons go up in town,
ring out every bell.
Happy birthday, beautiful,
all the birds of this day
sing a song, sing a song.

Dream of trains carrying you
through the state parks with the cherry flowers.
When you wake up it will be
the beginning of the world.
Happy birthday, beautiful,
in the fields of this day
hear a song, hear a song.

Oh, undeserved sweetness and light,
stay by my side.
We will go out in the morning now,
a crown of maple leaves, a crown of flowers
circling your sweet head.

Happy birthday, beautiful.
In the streets of this day,
play a song, play a song.

Friday, May 17, 2013

bright pink

This morning I went to the women's center for egg day but there were no eggs!  Wtf?  Rumor was french toast was on its way, but french toast did not appear the whole time I was there.  But for the first time they had bagels, so delicious.

Then Ming had a dentist appointment and I had two hours home alone, which I spent writing postcards, making a mix cd, and shopping for rings online.  I love claddagh rings, and I don't know why--I'm not Irish.

There's yarrow blooming like crazy in the backyard, bright pink.  We still have delicious beans.  I'm listening to "How Soon Is Now?" by the Smiths and enjoying it.


Laura-Marie on libraries

Somehow a room full of people staring at their own computer screens seems sad in a way that a room full of people starting at their own books doesn't.

Thursday, May 16, 2013

the least we could do is some garland

Oops, it's Thursday.  So much has happened.  This morning we were up early, and we drove to midtown where we took a walk then gardened.  I dug up some yarrow so we could plant some carrots.  The yarrow, oregano, and borage are taking over as if they're on...steroids.  The garden which looked so vibrant a couple months ago now looks crowded and messy.  But we're working on it.  I watered some.  I ripped out some borage that was yellowing.  I ripped out some weeds.  Ming planted some buckwheat. 

We went to the grocery store so Ming could return an energy drink that got a hole in it.  It kind of exploded in the cabinet.  And we bought delicious chewy bagels.  Just two.  Mine was chia seed.  I never had that kind before.

And we went to a food giveaway.  And we made beans.  They were government pinto beans.  They turned out pretty delicious though not falling-apart-done the way I like them.

We have some oregano in a blue vase.  It rained on us a little this morning.  Food giveaway was indoors, a claustrophobic's nightmare.  We had to stand in this narrow hallway for a long time.  It was just bad.  But we got a bunch of expired rice that's good and some applesauce and mushrooms, a bell pepper, some tiny peaches.  Oh, English muffins.  "English muffin days are here again," I told Ming as we walked home. 

We brought our cart, Tinkley.  I told Ming that we should decorate Tinkley and suggested LED lights.  It would be like for Burning Man, if there were food banks at Burning Man.

Monday, May 13, 2013

postie, Dogjaw

Yesterday--was that yesterday?--I got a message from an old friend.  It was through GoodReads.  Then I wrote him a long letter, and today I mailed it to him with lots of zines.  "It'll get there Thursday," the worker said.  The post office was strange.  There was someone there whose mail is being delivered to the wrong address.  He talked to the worker for kind of a long time.  He wove a tale of seizures, disability, Grass Valley, and misdirected mail.

I think I love Dogjaw, but not only does my library not have any Dogjaw, all the libraries my library is connected to don't have any Dogjaw.  Seems like I'm shit outta luck. 


sauerkraut win

Last Thursday at a food giveaway at a church down the street, they were giving away a big bag of shredded red cabbage (in addition to many, many other foods).  "Wanna make some sauerkraut?" I asked Ming, and we thought about it and decided yes. 

So we packed it in a clean food grade bucket with salt and covered it with a plate and weighed down the plate.  And we waited.  Guess what?  We made sauerkraut!  It's good too!  I didn't really like the kind from a can.  But this stuff is fresh and delicious. 

So victory is ours.

Sunday, May 12, 2013

Canticle Farm

Canticle Farm is a farm in Oakland.  The people who live there meditate (or have 'receptive silence') for two hours a day!  Holy crap!  A co-founder of Nevada Desert Experience lives there.

http://ncronline.org/blogs/road-peace/making-peace-inner-city-oakland-one-block-time

weird day in SF

Friday we went to San Francisco with this teacher who lives in Davis.  She found me through an internet search, found functionally ill.  So she wanted me to speak to her class--it was a class on mental illness, poverty, and design.  But she ran out of time.  So she invited me and Ming to come to the last day of class where her students presented their final projects. 

So we went.  The class was six hours, so it was a long day.  The teacher wore a suit.  We talked in the car.  Ming and I drove to Davis and we carpooled from there. 

I don't have the energy to describe it all.  But it went well.  We took breaks.  Afterward we went to dinner with the teacher and her friend.  We had Indian-Pakistani food.  It was delicious. 

Saturday, May 11, 2013

turkey sighting

This morning we were driving down the street on the way to my doctor's appointment, stopped at a red light, and the car next to us didn't go when the light turned red.  Instead it honked.  "There's a turkey in front of that car," Ming said, so I turned around, and there was in fact and indeed a turkey there.  It was very strange because we were in an urban area with no park nearby.

Thursday, May 09, 2013

night

The sky near the horizon is pink.  This morning I woke up to the smell of Ming baking cookies from the cookie dough we made yesterday.  The cookies are raisiny so not for me.  Neighbors are playing ball and listening to music but the cd is skipping.  And it's our bedtime.

Wednesday, May 08, 2013

crop swap

Yesterday evening we went to this crop swap.  We brought a grocery bag full of collard greens.  We got some radish seeds, oranges and lemons, and three plants: yarrow with white flowers, a tomato plant, and some bee balm.  I got bogged down a little bit in meetingness.  Sometimes I thought I needed to bail.  But we stayed the whole time, and it was good.  We brainstormed ideas for the season.  As Ming and I walked home, I was so happy to have wonderful free things to eat and grow.

how to make government condensed vegetable soup taste good

We sauteed some onions and garlic in olive oil, added the condensed soup, two thirds of a can of government peas, and most of a can of water.  And some salt.  It's good!

Tuesday, May 07, 2013

Sharon Astyk

I'm really enjoying the work of Sharon Astyk lately.  She's the one who wrote Making Home which is one of the best books I've read in years.  You can read some blogposts by her at the following url.  If gardening, being prepared, and peak oil interest you, please look for things she's written.

http://www.resilience.org/author-detail/1007660-sharon-astyk

friend love

We had fun with our friend.  She had some ideas for us about what to plant in our garden.  She suggested sunchokes in a bucket since they get out of hand.  What else did she suggest?  Carrots and radishes.  Even if you don't eat the carrots, their flowers attract bees. 

We need ideas of what to plant that doesn't require constant attention and water since we don't get to that garden more than two or three times a week.

We took out some borage today that was starting to yellow.  I was worried Ming would piss off the bees, but none stung him.  I ate some borage flowers and picked a few weeds. 

Then we shared some food.  J brought homemade sauerkraut.   It was good!  She also brought sourdough bread made with garbanzo bean flour.  We ate some with honey.  She also brought garbanzo beans seasoned with mustard and dill.  All was delicious!

Then we went to a cafe.  Then we walked around a farmers market.  Then we walked around a cactus garden at the capitol.  I showed her the book I'm reading, Making Home.  She showed me a book she's reading.  We talked about magnolia flowers, making stuff, and doing things.  I gave her a small plastic container with a screw on lid and some colored pencils I didn't need.

It was great, and I love our friend.

picnic day

Good morning.  There were thunderstorms last night.  Today we show a friend our midtown garden and have a picnic with her.  Being social is hard for me, lately.  But I gotta do it, for health and for love.

Tonight there are three things I want to do, but only one will win.  I don't think I can do some combination of things incompletely.  But maybe I can find a way. 

Now I'm going to have some bread with pretend butter and maybe some soy yogurt that Ming made yesterday.  He scalded the milk then realized we didn't have any yogurt as starter, so we made a quick yogurt run.

Monday, May 06, 2013

Gaya's River Feast

We're singing "Gaya's River Feast" again for Buddha this year, and I love that song, and I googled it to learn more about it or find the lyrics for you or anything, but the only hit I got was for my own blog, in quotes, and without quotes I was getting sites for a riverfest.  WTF, google thinking it's smarter than me.  I hate the way I try to look up vegan recipes and it shows me vegetarian recipes.  Sorry, but there's a big difference.  If I wanted vegetarian, I would ask for that.  I know I can overcome these problems with minus signs or going into advanced, but I would rather it work well for me without having to do special things.  I think in the old days google didn't do that.  But maybe I'm misremembering.

Oh welcome to me
was that day of spring.
I saw the Buddha
teaching righteousness supreme,
saw that great light,
teacher of multitudes,
he who had won
the highest
light of all.
For shining splendor pure,
immune of mind.
From whence,
from whom
shall come fear now?
Ay, but I'm free
from rebirth
and death
and all that dragged me back
is hurled away.
Oh welcome to me
was that of spring.

Those are the lyrics to my best recollection, and the "from whence, from whom shall come fear now?" gives me goosebumps.  What a beautiful song!

Sunday, May 05, 2013

sweetlime

Yesterday I was so happy I learned the secret word and we got five farmers market bucks each!  We bought strawberries, onions, garlic, English peas, snap peas, mandarins, and most interesting, a sweetlime.  I asked the worker about it, and he said you could eat it just by itself, cook with it, make juice with it...  I somehow did not believe him.  But we were standing around at the farmers market and ate it!  It was very mild and pretty sweet.  I was amazed we could eat it out of hand.  It was yellow and looked like a lemon.

Friday, May 03, 2013

Catholic Worker Farms

I'm really inspired by this website about Catholic Worker Farms made by friends.

http://farm.catholicworker.biz/process.html

insomnia, Thai iced tea, mysterious monk

Yesterday I was super social, and it slayed me.  Last night I was over-stimulated and exhausted.  Ming made me dinner, got me water, was nice. 

This morning I've been up since 2.  I tried chatting with someone on a new chat site, but he just wanted "sexy female."  He said he was in the UK but could not fool me because I googled distances, and he's surely not.

This morning it's egg day at free breakfast.  I should go back to bed and wake up in time for getting there right at 7:30 because 8 is too late for eggs. 

The other day they had strawberry milk.  No one knew what that pink liquid was until finally someone verified it was strawberry milk. 

Yesterday late morning I met a friend at Temple II and had Thai iced tea.  I used to be a no caffeine person, but times have changed.  But maybe it's a bad idea.  I want to learn to make my own Thai iced tea decaf.

Ming and I went to the Social Security office to submit some paperwork.  There's an automated check-in machine that gives you a number.  A monk was there, from an order I was unfamiliar with.  Afterward Ming guessed something Greek Orthodox, I think.  He was wearing black but there was a white and gold underside, and he carried a shepherd's crook, and he was wearing black tennies with velcro.  He was with someone, and they spoke English, so who knows.

Thursday, May 02, 2013

hiding

Last night I slept for about 12 hours.  I was hiding.  Today I need to hide less.

But we went to the postie and I sent out zines to 20 people.  That was good. 

The windshield wipers on our truck got stuck in an up position, so we needed to get that fixed, which was expensive.  The motor was $80?  And we paid the neighbor who did it too.

The landlord and another neighbor are working on our balcony thing.  What do you call that thing?  It's a landing?  A breezeway?  No, definitely a landing.

Gardens are growing well.  I want to photograph the carrot flowers to show you.