now-ish

Now-ish

More vegetables, more library books, more square dancing — and the weirdly mild weather continues.

pink rhododendron blossoms and their greenery

in January!

The avgolemono turned out delicious. Whole wheat orzo is slightly chewier than regular, but very suitable for the soup. A note for next time: the tempering of the egg and lemon with the hot broth worked fine, but the egg itself needs to be very well beaten first– a few scraps of unmixed egg white became apparent when they cooked. I might try it with leek broth, as we have leek tops more often than chicken bones to make broth with… maybe with a little less lemon because there’s less fat to mellow it out?

Yesterday I attended two, count ’em two, social events. Evening was the Black and White Ball edition of our club’s monthly square dance. I was more like “stagehand” in all black and not-at-all-dressy, but that’s what I got. This is the one month when I make a concerted effort to follow the theme– unlike the several rainbow months, it really stands out if I don’t.

And before that, in the afternoon I caught the bus to a New Year’s party for Oregon Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators. I joined SCBWI before retiring (in the final burst of spending down my professional development funds) but this was my first in-person event. Kidlit people are so nice, you guys! Everybody was happy to talk and there were library-themed table decorations and name tags and plenty of snacks. I ducked out early to catch the bus home again, but life seemed brighter after going than it had before. Is this how extroverts feel? Now I’m thinking I’ll go to the one-day conference in May, in Hillsboro.

A routine is finally settling in with my own work. I’m more viscerally aware that it’s up to me to decide on and generate that work, and no one else particularly cares. It’s both freeing and unnerving.

Thursday I’m signed up for a bird walk down at the rhododendron gardens by the college. I’m a lackadaisical birder at best, but it’s a nice chance to see the gardens for free– I haven’t been there in years and will be curious to see if anything’s blooming early.

Now-ish, new year’s edition

Two days of Christmas left! I have two cards with enclosures to send, and presents to wrap (for the family gathering postponed to MLK weekend).

I took the traditional photo at the park on New Year’s Day; a light cold drizzle was falling and there weren’t too many people out, except a few walking their dogs.

a wet picnic table in a muddy park, with dark fir trees towering behind it

Yesterday we went to see Charlie and his owner, our former neighbor who now lives in a retirement complex a few neighborhoods away. I love that little dog so much! When I want to feel cozy at home I pretend I can hear him snoring again. As I begin to browse rescue dogs on the internet with a tiny bit more purpose than before, one of my mental filters is, “Can I see this dog being buddies with Charlie?”

After that we ate lunch at a Syrian cafe within walking distance of our house that we hadn’t tried yet. The mint lemonade is fantastic.

Here’s how my desk is looking these days:

a wooden table lit with banker's lamp and string lights, piled with books, a laptop, pens, and cords.
Progress is slow on the fic and risograph; today at the library I picked up a book I’d requested on how to paint travel posters, since that’s approximately the look I’d like for the riso.
I bought ingredients to make avgolemono since we have really good stock for it right now. And I think we’re in pretty good shape for the flood of CSA vegetables incoming on Tuesday.
Feeling a little old and creaky, as my lower back, which had been doing great after physical therapy this summer, started talking to me again. I will be gentle at the gym tomorrow; I wonder if it will be crowded with resolution-keepers?
In a mood to hide from the world and keep reading The Rose Field. And I got quite a few picture books at the library to dream over. It is still the quiet, quiet time.

Now-ish Sunday

a thick tangle of holly, with shiny green leaves and red berries

 

It’s the liminal days. I’m catching up on holiday correspondence and visits, restarting non-holiday things that got dropped (e.g. going to the gym), and eating a lot of delicious leftovers and improvised meals.

Sang and I watched Carol, and keep meaning to rewatch The Lion in Winter but also keep diverting or downgrading, twice to sample the gay Hallmark Christmas movies (The Holiday Sitter and Friends and Family Christmas so far), which are better than anticipated.

I’m working on a fic and a risograph print (they are not related to each other). There are many other things– piano, getting more flexible, drawing– that I’d like to practice steadily, but haven’t yet found where to work them in. I also browse rescue dogs on the internet.

I’m reading Philip Pullman’s The Rose Field and deeply happy that it’s 650 pages long so I get to read it for a long time. Conversely, all my favorite books of 2025 are picture books.

2025 has been a lot. My father died in February and was buried in a military cemetery; we also held a public memorial service for him in June. I retired from the university in September. Sang and I traveled to Japan for several weeks after that. My youngest aunt, energetic and vivacious as always in June, was taken down by pancreatic cancer and died on Thanksgiving. A less eventful 2026 would be just fine. I could find a lot of joys in homebody life with outdoor walks.