Friday, May 23, 2008

5/22 The Day of Working and Dancing

I worked last night and this morning, so my mom dvrd So You Think You Can Dance and we all went over there after I got out of work and watched it, hung out, drank margaritas (well the grown ups) and played (the kids)

Ivy is getting much more comfortable with Grandma and Grandpa. More independent. She likes to play and run around and ask for cookies.

G enjoyed the dancing, too. So did Ivy. When they heard a song or saw a dancer they liked, they would dance, too. G at least liked to try and copy what the dancer did.

It is nice to get out of the house and work, to be out among adults and talk about things not baby related. It’s nice to feel the warm breeze and drink some ice tea, and do what needs to be done, even if I’m not making a whole lot of cash.

Thursday, May 22, 2008

5/22 The Day of Work at Work and Work at Home, Just Whistle While You Work

Getting off work. That made me happy. It wasn’t bad, just when you’re working and on your feet, it’s nice to stop.

My last customer was the Cookie Man, the guy famous for bringing, you guessed it, cookies to the staff at the Sunset Grill. I had oatmeal and cranberry cookies. Yum

Singing as I work. I always used to do that. I like it.

Spending some time with just Ivy, while G kept napping. When you’ve got a loud big brother it’s always about divided attention.

I got some writing done before work,almost five pages of rewriting, some new, some old. Even when it’s hard to get started and the writing isn’t inspired, it still feels good to have done it, to have conquered my demons.

Ivy almost falling asleep in my arms before nap. She’s so cute. She lays back and her eyes start blinking very slow and her mouth pouts and she says, “mama, mama.”

Jack Jack Attack… the added material to The Incredibles. G really liked it. And then he liked Dash, too. When he saw the whole show, and Dash was running super speed, it inspired him to run run run fast around the room.

Wednesday, May 21, 2008

5/21 The Day of The World's First Rosymamacita Roast Chicken, Some Critters, and Doing, Not Just Talking

G caught a lizard today! He was looking at it sitting on the bromeliad, pointed it out to me and then all of a sudden, his hand darts out and BOOM! He’s holding it. It surprised him so much that he dropped it and it raced off into the bushes. I think it scared him a little, but it also made him even more interested in lizards. S and Uncle were both proud of him, too, and amazed that he was fast enough and coordinated enough to catch a lizard.

G also found a little baby frog. I thought he was exclaiming about some ants or a plant, but he kept saying no and and pointing until I came over and looked, and there it was, about the size of a dime and gray green. Jump! Jump! I don’t think it could get back into the pond. Then Papa came and picked it up and put it back, talking to G about being gentle with them. G was then very much more interested in frogs, walking around saying “frog, frog.”

Oh, then there was the time that he was watching the unripe mangoes hanging from the tree, pretending that he was going to get them, and looking for my reaction, but really he wasn’t.

And he and Ivy baked a “cake” of dirt.

G had many garden moments today, but Mama had a big one, too. I finally roasted a whole chicken for the first time in my life. And it came out DELICIOUS! I mixed and matched some Martha recipes and some Allrecipes.com recipes and made some potatoes to go with it and boiled some ears of corn. Next time, I’ll make more, because there are no leftovers.

The kitchen was so hot that we decided to eat in the garden. That was nice. Cool, with lizards and frogs and avocado trees. The kids cleaned their plates and then tried to clear ours. The adults had beer or wine. Then the kids went off to play some more and the adults sat and chatted. Yay mamacita.

Oh, and I just applied for a blogging post at a group blog that might pay if I get enough clicks or whatever. It’s a start. It’s actually the first freelance thing I’ve ever applied to, well, for pay. And I joined some other groups and newsletters to get links to jobs. Basically, I took the first steps towards actually being a freelancer, rather than just talking/writing about maybe doing it.

Tuesday, May 20, 2008

5/21 The Day of Pizza and Cutoffs

Uncle ordered pizza when he got home, which was good, because due to a grocery shopping mishap, the kids had all the leftovers and the grown ups were too tired to cook once they had gone to bed.

Cut off jeans! Haven’t worn them in years, but I just chopped off the legs of my least favorite pair of jeans and am quite pleased.

Reading books to the kids at bedtime, we all lay in G’s little bed and enjoyed the Alphabet book. G enjoyed acting out the various actions that the animals were doing.

More rain. Short lived rainstorms. And we saw some egrets across the street, splashing in the puddles.

I found an old favorite website, that I probably should have left alone. Bad habit. Time waste. Spent too long on it today.

Monday, May 19, 2008

5/19 The Day of Making No Money, but Money Comes and It Goes, So I May As Well Be Happy

Getting out of work early and stopping by the pub on the way home with S. Having a beer and chatting. Don’t think we’ve done that without kids in three years.

Dead slow day at work today. This is the painful business of working at a restaurant that has just opened… even if the place has been in business for forty years. But the good part about this is that when it was so empty customers must have thought it was closed, I took my southern Iced Tea and sat at one of the tables outside, and chatted with my colleague, pretending to be eating there. And the weather was nice, and the breeze was fresh and the jasmine still smelled sweet. It wasn’t that bad a place to hang out. Even if I should have been making money.

I wrote, yes I did. Forced it, but it worked. And the words came back, out of the confusion. I should have more faith that the words almost always come back, once I try, honestly try.

I had an idea for keeping track of the thoughts, experiences, creative impulses and maybe even sketches that occur while I am at work. I am thinking of calling them the “Sunset Chronicles,” or the “Restaurant Pages” or something like that. I used to write poems on my dupe checks. I used to paint mini landscapes when it was slow at work. I used to plan novels while watching my tables. I think that might be fun to continue it, probably online.

Sunday, May 18, 2008

5/18 The Lazy Sunday

Lazy day with nothing scheduled to do. Had some coffee and did the crossword, and did better than I normally do.

G is getting better everyday at speaking. He was a little slow with expressive language, but it doesn’t seem to be a problem any more.

A quick rainstorm. I love a rainstorm. It cooled everything off nicely, and the plants were happy.

Uncle worked on the garden yesterday, moving the yucca that had been sitting in front of the pond and getting in the way of the path. He also cut back some of the ferns and other greenery and then did other stuff that is kind of over my head/black thumb. The whole garden looks more open and welcoming now.

Talking with uncle about art and writing and animation and computers and life paths and the business of being an artist.

Getting an hour of writing on my second draft done today, even though it was a lazy day and I didn’t work in the afternoon during nap time. I stuck to my guns and kept up with my self challenge… even if it was a little slower because I am confused about what I want to show in this scene. I’m seeing the process come together. Every draft is another layer.