Easing into the Weekend

Love LOVE love Fridays - with a full weekend of notta-structure rolled out before me. I walk through the door after singing my way home, dump my gym bag and over sized tote in the front hall, greet and kiss the furbag and head upstairs to put my play clothes on. Dinner is picking time ... a couple of pieces of leftover pizza, some cheese and crackers or anything else my heart desires and the last few drops of wine from the bag ... it's the end for the wine too.

Kidlet came home unexpectedly for the night - with her laundry. 

It's a lazy start to the weekend, just the way I like it. Have a good one.

Something to Sip About

What is it about the perfect cup of steaming tea that calms a ruffled soul or puts the finishing touch on a good meal? After I get home from work and swap my work duds for something loose and flannel, the first thing I do is put the kettle on. It's a reflex. It's required. It's both a want and a need.

When I was in college, the ceramic teapot warming on the back burner was a constant and a comfort and  cheap. I have since then stopped heating my tea once it's steeped - I don't like the taste of smell of the tannins. Instead the water is boiled, the pot warmed and the tea steeped for three minutes. And then I have to drink it while it is steaming hot. Warm tea is not an option and is used to water the plants.

Maybe it's the taste, or maybe it's the soothing heat that radiates from wrapping my hands around my oversized mug - whatever the draw, a cup of tea is an essential part of my relaxation ritual.

So on this Friday night, after a busy week and ditching a cold, I am getting acquainted with my newest cup of tea. Me and my tea. The perfect end to a long week.

Rest For Me - But Not Haiti

I haven't been this happy to see Friday come in a really long time. It is officially my favourite day of the week -- something about having the W H O L E weekend stretching out before me. But today I am tired. I haven't slept well this week; maybe I was watching too many news reports or reading too many blogs about it -- but Haiti was everywhere. I was dreaming their faces and cries and grateful smiles. I woke up feeling heavy - having dreamed their pain and utter grief for those who they loved and lost. Then my thoughts turn instantly to those who are there, livng through it - and I send my complaints packing.  Aid workers, doctors, nurses, volunteers, citizens, victims, media, military .... all there. All living without sleep and essentials. They aren't sleeping well either - if at all.

So today, on a day that I know I have two days of rest ahead of me, I want to acknowledge and honour those who are working tirelessly and those who are trying to survive this crisis in Haiti. My deepest respect and thoughts are with you all. The whole world is pulling for you. You have my deepest gratitude ...

Friday Pause

It's 8:33 pm and my eyelids are drooping. OK - I'll even go as far to admit that I dozed off - computer on my lap, teacup resting on my leg - just for a bit. Fridays are like that. After the stresses of a long week, it seems the moment I allow myself to relax, sleepliness creeps in. And I am not going to fight it. I take my orders from my inner guidance system -- when it tells me I'm tired, I sleep.

I think Friday is a reward for enduring the crazies of the work week. Friday is the pause before the weekend. So tonight I pause and tomorrow I will start again.

Have a good weekend everyone.

Reading Vacay

I fed my guilty pleasure this weekend. I squeezed in hours of reading, not for business or self help, but purely for the pleasure of it. It's been a long while since I've given myself such a gift - probably since my last vacation - or plane ride.

A Thousand Splendid Suns is finished. It rests on the coffee table while I allow the story to sink in; while I silently bid farewell to the heroic characters that were alive to me, and who I grew so very attached to ...

At the risk of turning into a book review, I sing this book's praises (maybe I should just murmur its praises -- I can't even carry a tune). It was written by Khaled Hosseini, the author of The Kite Runner; both books were set in Afganistan. A Thousand Spendid Suns is a delicious epic about love, friendship, oppression, war, family and life in Afghanistan, told through the lives of two women. I shed a tear or two while devouring this book - and devour it I did. When I find a novel I thoroughly enjoy, I immerse myself in it, preferring to plough through it  - rereading favourite sections - in one or two sittings. After gluttonously consuming chapter after chapter, losing myself in the sheer pleasure of it all - panic starts to creep in .... I don't want the story to end. It's a contradiction to be sure.

Nothing relaxes me more than reading; my body is still and quiet while my mind is involved in another reality. So maybe that is the reason that I am ending this weekend on such a contented, laid back note.

So many many books - so little time. I just decided that I am going to indulge myself a lot more often.  And that is a promise.

My Friend Friday

Ah Friday .... you're like an old welcomed friend. After a long week (even though it was only four days), I look so forward to you - my favourite day of the week.

Fridays at our office are quiet; the parking lot is half empty (many are off on their compressed day) and the staff who are there, seem more relaxed. Maybe it's the casual attire, sweaters and jeans. I forgo the headset and play my radio a little louder than usual. It's a day with minimal disruptions; a day to plough through the backlog; a day to breathe a little easier.

And the best part of all about Friday - is Friday night. Winding down, thinking, decompressing time. And that is exactly what I am doing now ... spending quality time with my friend Friday.

Sidetracked by Flashbacks

Old report cards. Artwork signed by the hand of a child. Notes I wrote when conversations where impossible. These are just a sampling of the lost treasures I came across today as I cleared out the bedroom closets of my grown daughters.

I allowed myself a detour - a side trip - back to another time and space. I sat on the floor, immersed in sifting through the memorabilia - flipping through my daughters art portfolio with her trademark, cartoonish figures with clever captions. Another sketchbook contained poetry and clever musings from my other daughter - I read every word. Today was one of those rare treats ... a potpourri of cleaning and leisurely browsing, as I just mentioned.

Time has passed so very quickly. I know - cliche, right? When I am alone and the house is quiet, if I lay on one of my girls' beds, and close my eyes, I swear I can hear the faint giggles of little girls and the echoes of yesteryear. The walls have absorbed the sounds of living and if you listen very closely, you can hear them. I am acutely aware that soon Kidlet will go the way of my other two precious treasures, as she embarks on a life of her own.

For now, I don't have to depend on the walls to remind me -- I still have a backstage pass.

Dinner Date

I'm a little damp, fresh back from my trip into the city. I met J - my friend of 36 years - for dinner at a quaint little Italian cafe. It poured the entire drive and as I wrestled with my mini microscopic umbrella and walked from the parking lot to the restaurant, it seemed to come down even harder. [reminder to self: get a new umbrella]

I was a little fatigued all day and I wasn't sure I had the energy to go out after work. [don't worry, it wasn't swine flu] But once the day was done, and I was on my way, my second wind arrived and the thought of seeing my friend buoyed my spirits. Friendship is good medicine - cures what ails us.

She had ordered the wine and was casually sipping away when I arrived late. We laughed at the fact that once again she had let her cell phone battery die down hence I hadn't been able to let her know that I was parked on the highway behind one of several accidents.

The chatter was constant; the atmosphere warm and easy; the recognition unmistakable and the bond eternal. We're those same two little girls giggling across the lunchroom tables, finishing one another's sentences.

I'm not exactly sure why I've been privileged with this kindred spirit to accompany me on my life's journey ... in fact, I have been blessed with a special handful. But in the absence of answers I simply try to deserve the special people in my life; to honour them by appreciating their presence. They are the fragrant blossoms in my garden ... my beautiful garden.

Breathing Easy

Time to exhale.

It's the end of what seemed to be a long week. How is that?? Today was my Friday. (happy sigh) Tomorrow Hubby and I are having a mini vacay -- his Christmas gift to me. We are heading up north for a night at a resort and then lunch on the snow train. How sweet is that?

Hubby has been working long hours for the past few months down in the cave (he works out of the house) so I am really looking forward to some quality time with him. No computers. No phones. Just him and his smile. Although he may sneak his Zune in there somewhere ...

With Kidlet off with her dad to an out of town hockey tournament and eldest daughter dogging sitting Fritz, we're home free; a guilt free weekend!

For now, at this very moment, I lean back in my soft place and take a deep breath and ever so slowly, e x h a l e.

Procrastinating Can Be Fun

So today I was supposed to take down the tree and put away the Christmas decorations and say my final farewell to the holiday season. I had good intentions but I also had a conflict -- with my new approach -- taking it as I like it. Instead I lounged in bed for an extra hour this morning, remote in hand, surfing channels to find out what happened in the world overnight. Funny enough, CNN (the Cable NEWS Network) doesn't cover more than one story at a time! I tried HNN (Headline News) but they were just goofing around and seemed more like TMZ than a news channel. Thank goodness for the CTV Newsnet and BBC. Journalism lives! However, I digress.

Had my self-prescribed 2 mugs of coffee and a big bowl of Cheerios and then puttered some more. I surveyed the situation and Hubby even brought up all of the crates and boxes out of the basement for me to fill. Decided we needed food and went grocery shopping. Called eldest and youngest daughters to invite them for spaghetti tonight (which Hubby makes so well - with big, spicy meatballs). Yum. I can smell them cooking as I write this procrastinate.

Made the mistake of logging onto my computer and flicking on the TV when I got home. Of course I had to watch Step Mom for the tenth time ... especially that part when Susan Sarandon is singing Ain't No Mountain High Enough with her kids. But again -- I digress, or procrastinate. Or both.

As I sit here contemplating if I should have wine with my dinner (even though tomorrow is a work day), my tree is lit up, my garlands and banisters a ablaze in white light for the final time and I have decided to defer undressing the house. Rather, we will enjoy the beauty one more day (or two) or until I get my backside in gear.

What is that quote? Don't put off 'til tomorrow what you can do today.
I think I prefer Mark Twain's version: Never put off till tomorrow what you can do the day after tomorrow.

And so the tree will wait. But the spaghetti won't, and a little glass of wine never hurt anyone. Cheers - and here's to taking it as it comes - or as you like it.