early december full moon

it seemed to move

behind one tree, then another

as we circled the cul-de-sac route

in the morning dark

with heavy frost all around

and frozen breath visible

as we passed under the street lanterns

it was a bright, full moon

in a clear December sky

illuminating tree branches and rooftops

until gradually

as we rounded the third pass of the loop

the sky began to lighten

with the sun's subtle rise

the moon, still full, still visible, yet fading

into the pink-streaked baby blue sky

the phone call

Whenever I need a laugh, I go onto YouTube and search for John Roberts videos. I posted "Mother's Day," back in May, but I haven't posted any since. Soon it will be time for "The Christmas Tree." Of course I love the classic, "My Son is Gay?" The guy is brilliant. Enjoy!

thoughts on cornucopia

I wish you a happy Thanksgiving! This holiday is about more than just the food. When I think of cornucopia as metaphor, as a representation of abundance and sustenance, I feel a deep gratitude for all I enjoy in this life. I am thankful for my family, friends, health, home, and work. I am grateful for worldly possessions, books, the Internet, and for the capacity to enjoy and employ them.

Nearly every time I run the water in the faucet, I think of the clean water we have at our disposal that most of the world does not have. I think about the fact that I am rarely hungry, physically, spiritually, or emotionally. When I need replenishment, I can get it.

I am thankful for the people I know and the people I've had the good fortune to know who are no longer here. Thanksgiving can be a time to celebrate those whom we also mourn.

Some of the gifts we enjoy are music and art and laughter, and remembering that beauty exists amidst pain and destruction and poverty. I am thankful for the sweet pets many of us have in our lives to give us warm and furry comfort and enjoyment. Endearment exists in many forms!

Gratitude is a universal human value, but it is one that we have to bring our consciousness to else we forget to be thankful. A consciousness of gratitude enhances our experience of life in each and every moment. And of those to whom much has been given, much is required ... to paraphrase a quote from the New Testament.

Holiday traditions can be a way of bringing family together for a conscious celebration of thanksgiving, usually around a special feast of some kind. When I think back to traditions of the past and how over time traditions have to shift to follow our lives, I have happy memories, tinged with nostalgia, and I look ahead to future. One thing is for certain, if we focus only on the food, we are missing out. Don't get me wrong, I love good food, but within the food is the message.

We will be traveling to Philadelphia today, Allentown tomorrow, and then back home for the weekend. We'll spend time with Tom's side of the family, and we are all looking forward to some laughter, good food, board games, and just quality time together.

Whatever your plans, I wish you the gift of gratitude. Certainly I am thankful for my blogger friends and family who give me special threads of connection in my life! Best wishes to you!

joan armatrading - love and affection

Enjoy this oldie but goodie. This is Joan Armatrading performing "Love and Affection," live in a Cologne, Germany television studio in 1979.

a vital link

I'm home today -- a precious day off from work. Much needed. I will be be serving as a vital link in my own homeland-security system.

beatles 3000

Speaking of anthropology, enjoy this fun video, "copyright 3126."

the sparrow

I just finished reading The Sparrow (1996), by Mary Doria Russell. The author, an anthropologist by training, has created a highly thought-provoking science fiction novel, bringing the reader back and forth between the years 2015-2019 and 2059-2060.

The main protagonist, Emilio Sandoz, is a Jesuit priest who travels with a small team of friends and colleagues to the planet Rakhat in a faraway galaxy to explore a distant culture of peoples discovered by research scientists. Sandoz is a linguistic scholar, and the nature of language and culture is examined throughout. A deeply disturbing mystery is revealed as the book unfolds. Certainly not everything is what it seems to be.

Like an anthropologist would, Mary Doria Russell reminds the readers that we must look at our own assumptions and remember that other cultures may not view things the way we do. The backdrop theme for the novel is the exploration of faith in God. The title of the book comes from Matthew 10:29-31, "not even a sparrow falls to the earth without God knowing it." The themes from this book will stay with me for some time.

After having read The Sparrow, I poked around the Internet a bit for an image and some trivia. I learned that this was Doria Russell's first novel, and it understandably won several awards. I have the sequel sitting on my desk, thanks to sister-in-law Sue, who keeps me in the good books. I also learned, with a bit of dismay, that a movie based on the novel is coming out in 2010, starring Brad Pitt as Emilio Sandoz. No, no, no. It isn't supposed to be Brad Pitt. Emilio is a handsome, celibate, Puerto Rican Jesuit priest. Perhaps money and fame can buy any role. I find it highly ironic, but I won't elaborate, because I don't want this review to be a spoiler. After you read the book, tell me if you get what I am saying.

A review from Amazon.com:

In 2019, humanity finally finds proof of extraterrestrial life when a listening post in Puerto Rico picks up exquisite singing from a planet which will come to be known as Rakhat. While United Nations diplomats endlessly debate a possible first contact mission, the Society of Jesus quietly organizes an eight-person scientific expedition of its own. What the Jesuits find is a world so beyond comprehension that it will lead them to question the meaning of being "human." When the lone survivor of the expedition, Emilio Sandoz, returns to Earth in 2059, he will try to explain what went wrong... Words like "provocative" and "compelling" will come to mind as you read this shocking novel about first contact with a race that creates music akin to both poetry and prayer.

clear horizon

This is Libana, introduced to me by my blogger friend Splendid over at http://splendidgibberish.bravejournal.com/. It is lovely. Close your eyes and enjoy a little momentary meditation.

a good day

Tonight is the annual Relay for Life event at the college where I work. I advise the club that puts on the event, and I am a member of Team Justice for a Cure, comprised of students and staff from my office. Within just a few hours, we'll be walking laps in celebration of cancer survivors, in support of those undergoing treatment, and in memory of dear family members and friends who lost the battle. I am walking for: Beth B, Pamelia W, Jeff K, Elyse, "Yucky," Leslee, Nelie, Marilou, my Grandpa, Anthony D and others.

This year the theme is "sports teams - making plays against cancer." Our team will be doing a "ball park" theme, so that any member can wear/bring any baseball team apparel, memorabilia, etc. We'll be sure to not juxtapose the Yankee and Red Sox stuff. Our on-site fundraiser will be selling pop corn, cotton candy, and hot dogs. I just picked up the hot dogs and rolls around noon today, and am still defrosting them in cold water in my sink because I just hadn't thought it through. Of course they'd be frozen solid. We are hoping to sell out!

It should be a fun and meaningful event. Matt is bringing a friend. We won't stay all night, and I will head back to the event after catching a few hours sleep -- probably around 5:30 a.m. tomorrow for the closing ceremony and clean up crew. This is my fifth year doing this, and it gets better every year.

Also - on this day in history - 45 years ago my parents got married. Happy Anniversary to my mom and dad. Hard to imagine the whirlwind life they've led. Married just before the holidays, their first born (me) comes along 10 months later. Four kids born in six years, careers, retirement, grand kids, community involvement, and lots of music and concerts. I am thankful for their health and happiness, and wish them many more years together!

These photos were taken this past fall. We attempted to get a new family photo that would include our two newest members, the youngest of whom is now 2 years old. Unfortunately, we had an unexpected wait at the photo studio (like nearly 45 minutes), so by the time the 14 of us crammed into the little room, we weren't necessarily all feeling like smiling. Of the many we took, this was the only one where nobody blinked or had a funny look on their face. I think we all wished we could express ourselves like our toddler Lily did. I am happy that we did manage to take this photo, because the memory of the photo session will be pretty humorous, and after all, we did it.

'cuse!

This past week, my favorite college basketball team, the Syracuse Orange, defeated two highly ranked teams! I got to watch most of the game the other night against #13 California. It was a terrific win at Madison Square Garden (a kind of home away from home for Syracuse) as part of the Coaches vs. Cancer fundraiser tournament. Last night's game was an even bigger win against #6 North Carolina. Unfortunately, I had a hearing (my third of the week) yesterday that began at 3:45 p.m. and deliberations wrapped up at 10:50 p.m. Seriously. So I completely missed the excitement, but was very happy to hear the news before I went to sleep last night. Both wins weren't squeakers at all. They were decisive wins! I am guessing SU's ranking will improve from its current #24 after this weekend.

These performances nearly erase the memory of having a (solid) local Division II school, LeMoyne College, defeat the Orange in an exhibition game earlier this month. What I loved about that game was that the head coach of LeMoyne's team is Steve Evans, a kid for whom I used to babysit! His dad, Stan "Buddy" Evans, was the long-time varsity basketball coach at my high school, and he now assists his son. Seeing the look on Coach Evans' (Sr.) face as LeMoyne beat SU was priceless. Steve showed himself to be a very classy guy in the quotes he gave to the media after the game.

"I feel bad,’’ LeMoyne coach Steve Evans said, raising more than a few eyebrows before offering an explanation. “The story tomorrow will be ‘What’s wrong with Syracuse basketball?’ I don’t think there’s anything wrong with Syracuse basketball. They’ve got tremendous players. And it’s an exhibition game. They’re gonna be terrific.’"

It is hard to believe that basketball season is already here. I associate this season with winter. I guess I'd better wake up and smell the coffee on that one. Matt has started his basketball practices on T/R this week after school. He did miss the first practice due to being sick. He recovered from the flu very nicely, after being down for the count from Saturday through Wednesday. He returned to school on Thursday, and we are very grateful that he recovered so quickly, and that Tom and I didn't get it! Whew!

cautiously optimistic

sick bay update

Thankfully Matthew is improving day by day, and so far Tom and I seem to be fine -- if not finding that our hands are getting a little raw from the constant hand washing. Matt is still running a low-grade temp and the cough is still present, but the other symptoms seem to be improving relatively quickly. As the doctor predicted, the media hype has many people very scared of this flu, but for most people who are ordinarily healthy, this virus will present with relatively minor symptoms once the high fever subsides. It isn't anything to monkey around with, but it also isn't something to be insanely scared of either. I am sure I'd feel differently if my child was quite young or had a compromised immune system. I am grateful that Matthew is such a strong and healthy guy. He will bounce back from this faster than most, I am guessing.

It is a very busy work week for me, unfortunately. I feel like I am getting worn out on the home and work fronts these days. Tom was able to stay home with Matt today and will be able to most of tomorrow (with a quick hour or so when we'll have to trade places), and we'll juggle Wednesday if our guy isn't ready to go back to school by then. There are distinct disadvantages to living apart from the rest of extended family who might be able to help in situations like this. We are lucky at least that both of us work in the same town in which we live and do not have to commute.

I can tell Matt is sick of being sick already, and that is one of the sure signs of improvement. He doesn't want to wear his mask anymore, and I can't say I blame him, but with any luck we can limit the exposure that Tom and I have to this virus so that we can get the vaccine and be protected from coming down with it also.

Speaking of being sick of being sick . . . related to the "sick bay update" on an extremely positive note: my friend Beth has finished her last chemo treatment as of this afternoon. She was diagnosed with two types of cancer six months ago, went through a regimen of radiation, and has been going through a very rough run of six chemo treatments (amidst some serious infections and side effect that have delayed her finish.) She has had numerous hospitalizations and set backs and it has been a very trying time. Even though the week ahead, post treatment, will surely not be fun, she did it. Within a month, we will be praying she has a clear scan with no cancer cells to be found. This is the highlight of the day! Congratulations to you, Beth! (And to you too, Cheryl - who happens to have dabbled in the H1N1 just a few weeks ago

H1N1 in da house

Remember the post from a couple of days ago when I was mildly ranting on the long and unpleasant wait in our local emergency room to have Matt's knee examined, while people all around us with suspected H1N1 flu coughed into their sometimes in place masks? I don't think it is just coincidence that despite my telling Matthew to wash his hands really well after he used the bathroom and to not touch anything and to not touch his face, that yesterday morning he woke up with a sore throat and a chest cough and a fever that was quickly and steadily rising. (He had said his throat started to feel a little scratchy on Friday, but he otherwise felt fine.)

His first bit of bad news yesterday was that we told him he couldn't go to his good friend Russell's birthday party, where the dart gun war of all time was scheduled to take place after lunch. He cried big tears of disappointment that broke my heart. Part of those tears, of course, came from the fact that he didn't feel well.

To be honest, I was pretty sure it was strep throat. He has had strep before, and when he finally admitted that the throat hurt a lot and that he felt a little queasy, I decided we better go to the prompt care center for a quick throat culture and get an antibiotic started so that he could get better more quickly. (Note to self, we learned that our convenient care center affiliated with a different hospital, with its lovely and clean waiting room, can do X-rays . . . and so we could have been there Tuesday night instead of in the local ER. No guarantee we wouldn't have had to wait any less time, but man it would have been a nicer place in which to hang out!)

While at the prompt care appointment, Matthew's temp had risen to 103 degrees, and he vomited the little bit of fluid we were able to get him to drink earlier. I was even more certain it was strep because he wasn't really coughing and he said his throat hurt a lot. Imagine my surprise when the doctor came in the room with a mask on and said the throat culture was negative and that it is likely that Matthew has H1N1. He went on to say that they are no longer testing people, but are diagnosing by clinical exam. We went through the checklist: sudden high fever, sore throat, chest congestion and slight cough (that will probably develop), headache, some body aches developing, vomiting. Yes, that sure does sound like it. Why hadn't I seen it? I suppose I just didn't want to think that our household would get hit with this.

He handed me some masks and said that since he is a healthy kid without asthma, he will likely get over this in a few days. Despite what the media portrays, most people get through this as they would a seasonal flu. The treatment is rest, plenty of fluids, ibuprofen for the high temperature, and sequestering from public. He can return to school 24 hours after his fever returns to normal and he feels well.

When we returned home from the appointment Matt went right to bed. We set up the portable DVD player and have been trying to get him to eat Popsicles and drink juices. He wears his mask if he is coughing. He did have a mango and some chicken soup for dinner, so that was good. I went to check in on him at 5 a.m. this morning, he was burning up. I took his temp and it was 104.8 -- perhaps the highest it has ever been. We quickly got him some more ibuprofen. Thank God for that stuff! We are looking ahead a few days and are hoping he gets better quickly and that Tom and I are able to escape it. My hands are already raw from all the hand washing and it is only November!?

The kicker: we three have an appointment on Wednesday to get the H1N1 vaccine. Matt was scheduled to have the nasal vaccine. I guess he will be building up his immunity another way, and with any luck Tom and I can still get the vaccine this week. At least we were all able to get the seasonal flu vaccine earlier this fall.

Seeing one's ordinarily energetic, active child so sick is difficult. It isn't how we hoped to spend the weekend. On the other hand, this should be over well before Thanksgiving. I guess this is what it means to "roll with it." Be well!

clouds

If I had to pick a favorite solo musical artist, it would definitely be Joni Mitchell. Her work is so varied over the years, changing, deepening, from pure sweet folk to rich jazz with African influences -- always with intelligent lyrics and the ability to evoke emotions, tell stories, and create images in the listener's mind.

Among those albums that were influential for me early on are Clouds, Ladies of the Canyon, Blue, For the Roses, Court and Spark, Hejira, Miles of Aisles, and The Hissing of Summer Lawns. I have all of her albums actually, including a few live bootlegs, and even though her voice has changed over the years due to her chronic smoking, I appreciate even her recent jazz standards and other work with its usual lyrical prowess that have left many fans behind.

Because I am always coming to things from "behind the times," I encountered most of these albums at about the same time and not sequentially. They are all mixed up in my mind. I like it that way.

So as I was thinking about this new blog category, influential albums, I knew I would have to try to wrap my arms around the idea of which Joni albums were influential. I thought I would start at the beginning (for me), with Clouds.

In the mid to late 1970s as I was coming of age, I was listening to The Beatles, Paul Winter Consort, Bruce Cockburn, Pink Floyd, Supertramp, Genesis, Peter Gabriel, and others. Along came Joni Mitchell (she had been around, but she was new to me) and somehow her music was set apart from all the rest that I loved. My first discovery of Joni was via the album, Clouds.

I was about 14 years old, babysitting at a neighbor's home, waiting to put the two children to bed so that I could pull albums from their collection, quietly put them on the turn table, close my eyes, and listen to the music of the immediate past. When I hit upon Clouds, I stopped sampling other albums and focused on this album, playing it over and over again each time I babysat, until I had memorized every chord, every note, every guitar riff, and every word. This album has some of the most melancholy, emotional music I had ever heard, mixed in with some exceptionally upbeat pieces.

As soon as I was able to, I obtained a cassette tape of this album from an older friend with whom I played tennis and who had nearly all of Joni's albums. I then scammed copies of a few other very influential Joni Mitchell albums, coming to discover her music nearly 10 years after it came out. I immersed myself into about six or seven albums of her various "periods" and loved every bit of it. Many people correctly associate the popular "Both Sides Now" and "Chelsea Morning" songs with the Clouds album. Both are great.

Equally influential to me are some of the songs that were not as well known. Here, for your enjoyment, are three of those songs, and without a doubt, they shaped my musical and emotional development. These YouTube selections capture some rare live performances - the first two from the 1972 (Kept By) Her Own Devices live concert and the third from a 1968 concert in Germany. They are not the studio versions from the album. I tried to find a good video of Joni singing, "Songs to Aging Children Come," but I only found covers. [Enjoy the photo montages.]

That Song About the Midway - circa 1972

The Gallery - circa 1972

I Don't Know Where I Stand - circa 1968

inventory

In honor of Veteran's Day, Jeff over at View From the Ledge posted a great selection called Inventory from Frances Richey's poetic memoir, “The Warrior: A Mother’s Story of a Son at War.”

Because I am running off to do an evening program at work, rather than re-post here, I want to send you over to his place to read this poignant poem, Inventory. Thinking of our veterans today - and the loved ones who wait.

the contusion

Let me summarize what began at 6:30 p.m. and concluded at 10 p.m. this evening:

"Well the good news is, it doesn't sound like a tear if the pain is sharp rather than a burning pain." This is one of the things I learned this evening. A torn ACL would burn rather than be a sharp stabbing pain. "The good news is, we don't see any fractures on the X-rays. What we seem to have is a rather large contusion to the side of the knee, which as you can see from the swelling, will probably take some time to heal."

As I was leaving a meeting at 6:15 to get home by 6:30 so that Tom could go off to his meeting, I received a cell phone call from Tom letting me know that Matthew had fallen on our neighbor's basement floor (concrete) and hurt his knee and he couldn't put any weight on it. (They were playing hide and seek ball tag.) His knee was quite swollen. As soon as I got home, I changed, ate a quick bite to eat, and Matt and I headed over to the emergency room. We got there just before 7, and I didn't think it was a good omen that the parking lot was packed.

Most of our experiences in our emergency room have been fairly decent -- without the horror stories one hears. Matt had a series of ear infections when he was a baby, and we certainly had an experience there with Tom last December. I have had a couple myself in the past (last time being in 2004) . . . but it has been some time since we've had to go and actually wait to be seen. With H1N1 being fairly out there these days, Matt was "triaged" to ice his knee (to the tune of two ice packs getting warm.) We waited and waited and waited -- more than an hour before they put the little bracelet on. The coughing and sneezing and masked people were all around us (removing their masks to blow their noses). Each one was called in before Matt was -- even if they arrived much later. Triage. We then waited and waited and waited -- only to be told that we needed to wait for X-rays and then could go to a different waiting room after the X-rays to wait for the doctor. Am I saying "wait" too much yet? I am a patient person. We had each brought a book, but amidst the coughing, sneezing, crying, and general smelly-ness of the ER waiting room, it was hard to concentrate on reading.

We were finally met by the ER doctor at around 9:15. He was very pleasant, if not harried, having had to deal with workload we observed. The doctor did some tests on Matt's leg, and along with the X-rays decided that he would likely be just fine. We just need to keep icing it and give him Ibuprofen for pain. He took one look at his leg with the little bruises and scars and scabs and said, "you're a kid who plays hard, aren't you." To that Matt said, "yep." "I can tell," said the doctor with a smile that was met with a grin by Matt. Better safe than sorry. Matt was a bit bummed out that we had "wasted all that time for nothing," but I reminded him that the X-rays were important to rule out something that could have gotten worse if we didn't attend to it right away.

We left the hospital about 9:40 p.m., arrived home to call the friends who had left him messages wondering how he was. We called Gram quickly to let her know how we made out (as we had called from the waiting room) and all's well that ends well.

It is a contusion. It is a crushing of the deep tissues. It will heal. No break, no cast, no surgery, no crutches. Contusion -- music to my ears.

tuesday smile