Seems like this year I've only done baby knitting. That isn't going to change, since between now and my due date I imagine that I'll be knitting exclusively for Poppy. Did I tell you, my incubating daughter's name is Poppy.

( Pictures of knitted baby things )

A few weeks ago I bought a necklace. At the Renegade Craft Fair today I bought two necklaces. They start to replace the small but sentimental collection, all-of-my-jewelry-that-was, that I accidentally put into the donation pile when I moved in December. Oops.




Mine is Orange, not Green

I have good news:

Praise Song for the Day

Each day we go about our business,
walking past each other, catching each other's
eyes or not, about to speak or speaking.

All about us is noise. All about us is
noise and bramble, thorn and din, each
one of our ancestors on our tongues.

Someone is stitching up a hem, darning
a hole in a uniform, patching a tire,
repairing the things in need of repair.

Someone is trying to make music somewhere,
with a pair of wooden spoons on an oil drum,
with cello, boom box, harmonica, voice.

A woman and her son wait for the bus.
A farmer considers the changing sky.
A teacher says, Take out your pencils. Begin.

We encounter each other in words, words
spiny or smooth, whispered or declaimed,
words to consider, reconsider.

We cross dirt roads and highways that mark
the will of some one and then others, who said
I need to see what's on the other side.

I know there's something better down the road.
We need to find a place where we are safe.
We walk into that which we cannot yet see.

Say it plain: that many have died for this day.
Sing the names of the dead who brought us here,
who laid the train tracks, raised the bridges,

picked the cotton and the lettuce, built
brick by brick the glittering edifices
they would then keep clean and work inside of.

Praise song for struggle, praise song for the day.
Praise song for every hand-lettered sign,
the figuring-it-out at kitchen tables.

Some live by love thy neighbor as thyself,
others by first do no harm or take no more
than you need. What if the mightiest word is love?

Love beyond marital, filial, national,
love that casts a widening pool of light,
love with no need to pre-empt grievance.

In today's sharp sparkle, this winter air,
any thing can be made, any sentence begun.
On the brink, on the brim, on the cusp,

praise song for walking forward in that light

— Elizabeth Alexander

[Read by the poet at the innauguration of President Barack Obama, January 20, 2009.]

According to usa.gov, these are some popular New Year's Resolutions for Americans. My comments inline.

Lose Weight Meh. If I do, I do. With any luck I'll be pregnant most of this year, so my goal will read more like "don't gain too much weight"

Manage Debt No debt to manage.

Save Money No problems.

Get a Better Job The only way I could love my job more is if it moved to San Francisco. No job searching for me.

Get Fit I would like to get in better shape, actually. In 2006 when I completed a triathlon I was probably in the best shape of my life. Getting back to that would be fun. Not sure if I care enough to make it a goal, though.

Eat Right I eat better than some, worse than others. Well enough for me.

Get a Better Education Other than reading interesting books to learn new skills and improve the ones I have, no on this resolution. No desire to go back to school, for example.

Drink Less Alcohol I don't drink much as it is, a glass or two here and there.

Quit Smoking Now Never smoked, check.

Reduce Stress Overall Hm, this wouldn't hurt. Getting more sleep would probably do the trick.

Reduce Stress at Work This wouldn't hurt either, but it's mostly self imposed I think.

Take a Trip We have a few trips planned to visit friends, but a big foreign vacation is not in the cards for this year. That's fine, I feel like nesting anyway.

Volunteer to Help Others I have actually been thinking about doing this. So far I've done a lot of looking and thinking but no actual helping.

If today had happened a few weeks ago:
Sleep through my alarm for thirty minutes. Become annoyed because I just missed the 6:20am bus to the 6:44am train, and this early in the morning the buses come too infrequently to catch the 6:59am train by bus either. Kill lots of time until the 7:20am bus, take to the 7:44am train, wait for the shuttle to work (that only runs once an hour), arrive at work at 8:50am, an hour later than I meant to. Compete with dozens of people for the last of breakfast before it's taken away at 9am.

What actually happened:
Sleep through my alarm for thirty minutes. Don't fret because unlike the previous dozen or so months, I did not buy a bus pass for August. I've done this in hopes that I'll bike more. Take a shower and pack my bag at a leisurely pace. Top off bike tires, bike the 2.5 miles to the train station and catch the 7:19am train. This one doesn't stop at the station closest to work, but it gets pretty close. Bike 5 miles to work (instead of the 3.5 miles I would have biked had I caught the 6:44am or 6:59am trains.) Arrive at work at 8:30am and eat a leisurely breakfast.

Extras:
* What's with sleeping through my alarm? I never do that.
* On my ride to the train station, another cyclist asked me where I got my ($10) bike basket.
* In the train bike car, another cyclist asked me where I got my ($10) bungee net that holds things in my bike basket.
* The ride from the San Carlos Caltrain (aka "close enough") station to the Redwood City Caltrain (aka "my usual") station couldn't possibly be easier. 1.5 miles of slightly downhill, straight, wide lane, embankment on the right so no roads connecting from that direction, pavement in good condition paved road bliss.