Happenings

My mind is on overload. There's so much I have to do in the next couple months, and on top of it, my solve that I've had for a few months now is really coming together and making more and more sense as I read the poem and book over and over again...and as I go back through things F has written, my confirmation or confirmation bias (won't know which til I search) grows stronger.

And work is so busy that when I get home, I just want to relax for a few minutes, without cats or kittens or kids or anything. I really could sleep for three days straight, I think. Lol. But stuff has to get done, and I plow on.

I want to take a minute to brag about Joe...

He participated in a county-wide World Heritage Competition last weekend, and he had submitted a story, but was told beforehand that it went over the word limit by 1,000 words, so he would be disqualified. However, his Latin teacher forgot to include that rule when she discussed the assignment, so she wanted him to submit the story anyway. I now know why...he won FIRST PLACE! And the story will move on to the state competition.

The assignment topic was "Modern Myth." They could either take an old myth and re-write it in modern language, or make up a myth and write it in modern language. Joe chose to make up a new myth, and it was so good that he won first place even though he should have been disqualified for going over the word estimate. It totally surprised him, and he was so proud (and of course, I was too) of this ribbon:

When I read his story, I was amazed at how well-written and entertaining it was. He wrote about how the Nile was formed, and it was really imaginative without being over the top, and sounded exactly how a myth should sound in the terminology of today. We're going to try and get it published in a magazine about mythology that pays 25 cents a word (which is pretty darn good). He figures he would make about $516 for the story.

Speaking of art, the surgeon I work for surprised me and my boss the other day. When my boss is on the phone, she doodles on a desk calendar with a black Sharpee. Depending on how the call is going, she either doodles relaxing curves or what she calls "Christmas trees," which symbolize stress or frustration and are full of sharp, jagged angles. 

When last month was over, the doctor took the artwork covering the days, then flipped it over. He liked what he saw in the "abstract art," and this week, he got it framed. I got a little honorable mention, because at some point in the month, I thought the piece could use some eyes...so the eyes are my contribution:

Anyway, they're waiting to be hung somewhere in the building. Lol. It's amazing how little things like someone's doodles can bring a measure of happiness.

Oh, and isn't this a beautiful painting by Eric Sloane? I love his Taos paintings. This one features geese making their flight back north after a cold NM winter... I love the lighting in the sky. I'm amazed at how Eric could depict the sky so realistically and so ideally at the same time...

James is coming over tonight to help get things ready to move. We're thinking about hauling everything to a storage unit and auctioning it off "Storage Wars" style. We'll advertise it to the hilt and put some valuable items in there to entice a crowd. We're not sure of the legality of it, and what it would entail, so right now it's just in the idea and fact-finding stage. But it would be cool if we could make it happen. We'd put in less effort in preparing, and probably make more money than if we attempted to sell each thing piece by piece. 

Anyway, it's that time of the day...I'm glad it's Friday!