The Best 2008 Ever!
That's what I'm wishing for you!
If you'd like a really terrific thought to get your New Year's Day off in the right direction (or any day of the year, in fact), check out Bill Brent's favorite resolution for 2008 at this link here. It is courtesy of Ralph Waldo Emerson.
New Year's Eve around here was very quiet. Mom got out of rehab yesterday -- 5 days ahead of schedule. So that was great. I went all out for her and dug leftovers out of her freezer, defrosted it in her microwave (without melting the Tupperware but coming pretty darn close; her microwave is powered by rocket fuel or something and is powerful enough to split an atom), and we called it dinner. However, there are now 365 fresh days ahead in which to be a tad more festive. So, onward.
My French lesson yesterday was a little less impressive than Friday's. My poor brain was fried from tackling these non-stop revisions on When the Night Stood Still (soon to be re-titled The Insiders). I was groping for the simplest vocabulary words. I was staring blankly when asked to reply to the simplest questions on Earth:
"Say: she returned to her house."
Me, blinking, crickets chirping in the utter silence...
Maybe it wasn't that bad, but it felt that bad. I was so tired and it was only 11 o'clock in the morning. After an hour and a half of struggling to communicate, we did something miraculous. We did a 20 minute Chinese workout to center, open, awaken, what have you, our chi. It was incredibly cool. And at no extra charge. I got to see her living room and dining room, too. I said, "Your furniture is so French."
She said, "That's because it's from France."
Ah.
On my way out the door, I noticed a textbook for Modern Physics on her kitchen counter. I said, "Are you reading this?"
She said, "No, someone is borrowing it. That was my textbook from college back in the 60s. I majored in Physics."
The book was in English, mind you. I said, "You came here straight from France and got a degree in Physics, in English?"
"Oui. But my mind did all the math in French. It wasn't difficult."
Ah. Oui. Holy cow.
So Friday's lesson is also going to be followed by the chi workout, perhaps even some physics equations if I'm lucky. My 2008 is really off to an awesome start, isn't it? I hope yours is just as inspiring for you, wherever you are! I gotta get crackin' here, gang. Thanks for visiting.
If you'd like a really terrific thought to get your New Year's Day off in the right direction (or any day of the year, in fact), check out Bill Brent's favorite resolution for 2008 at this link here. It is courtesy of Ralph Waldo Emerson.
New Year's Eve around here was very quiet. Mom got out of rehab yesterday -- 5 days ahead of schedule. So that was great. I went all out for her and dug leftovers out of her freezer, defrosted it in her microwave (without melting the Tupperware but coming pretty darn close; her microwave is powered by rocket fuel or something and is powerful enough to split an atom), and we called it dinner. However, there are now 365 fresh days ahead in which to be a tad more festive. So, onward.
My French lesson yesterday was a little less impressive than Friday's. My poor brain was fried from tackling these non-stop revisions on When the Night Stood Still (soon to be re-titled The Insiders). I was groping for the simplest vocabulary words. I was staring blankly when asked to reply to the simplest questions on Earth:
"Say: she returned to her house."
Me, blinking, crickets chirping in the utter silence...
Maybe it wasn't that bad, but it felt that bad. I was so tired and it was only 11 o'clock in the morning. After an hour and a half of struggling to communicate, we did something miraculous. We did a 20 minute Chinese workout to center, open, awaken, what have you, our chi. It was incredibly cool. And at no extra charge. I got to see her living room and dining room, too. I said, "Your furniture is so French."
She said, "That's because it's from France."
Ah.
On my way out the door, I noticed a textbook for Modern Physics on her kitchen counter. I said, "Are you reading this?"
She said, "No, someone is borrowing it. That was my textbook from college back in the 60s. I majored in Physics."
The book was in English, mind you. I said, "You came here straight from France and got a degree in Physics, in English?"
"Oui. But my mind did all the math in French. It wasn't difficult."
Ah. Oui. Holy cow.
So Friday's lesson is also going to be followed by the chi workout, perhaps even some physics equations if I'm lucky. My 2008 is really off to an awesome start, isn't it? I hope yours is just as inspiring for you, wherever you are! I gotta get crackin' here, gang. Thanks for visiting.
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