Springtime Tuesday afternoon at home

Thinking about things:

It has been quite a while since I have written. This is because I had been fretting about things. Not everything. Just certain pectulant deeds that [I thought] had to be done [before I could partake of the more joyous deeds I wanted to do]. Disobedient deeds like my taxes and vacuuming, for example. And perplexing deeds that involved fixing things that had broken in the past few weeks. Like my car and my computer, most especially; and my email account [Oh dear me. I have lost my archive of messages that I had so carefully kept since 2002]; and my wireless router that, as it turned out, was causing computer crashes; and my front door key which broke in half in the lock just yesterday.

I must say, though, that despite all the time I have spent 1] at my desk sitting in front of my computer, trying to find the lost files that hold the history of my e-conversations with people I care about; 2] at the Genius Bar at the Apple Store on Bay Street waiting for my appointment and hoping my genius would help me find what I had lost [which, by the way, he was not able to do]; 3] and even sitting on the floor in my study with my computer on my lap while I talked to a kind young man named Mario who did help me re-set my new airport router account that had worked when I first installed the required data but had suddenly failed, I am good.

I am good because throughout [and with] all of this, I make note here, I have had lots of joy in my life. Here is a list of some of the encounters/events/people and dogs that provided me with such feelings of gladness:

1. Walks with my sweet Desie in the late late afternoon.
2. Visits with my friends [and family] in my kitchen and on the front porch.
3. Teaching my Salon classes with my excellent students.
4. Attending a very incredible Brandford Marsalis performance at Zellerbach with my son Shanan.
5. Attending an Arts and Lecture event with David Brooks with my son Shanan and by accident Luporni and Ed.
6. Going out to dinner at Mediterranean on College and Mint Leaf on Shattuck with dear friends.
7. Walking at the Presidio and Lands End Trail with with my dear son Shanan and Goose and Desie.
8. Attending an Alvin Ailey performance of the quite wonderful [and exceptional] Prodigal Prince [designed, scored and choreographed by the brilliant Geoffrey Holder], and lovely and elegant Memoria and Revelations [choreographed by the great Alvin Ailey].

Significances abound, it seems.

by Edward Gorey