20.

This coming Friday is my 20th birthday. I'm not sure I have any particular feelings on this occasion, but whether or not I do, the birthday will still happen. There will be a Big Lebowski themed party at my home (Eden @21 and Rio, ATX) Friday night, wear your bath robe, come drink white russians.

My friend Peter fractured his spine in a few places Sunday evening, which led to an interesting string of events. Including meeting an unimaginably stoic man in the ER parking garage named Herb Washington. He zip-tied my under-car bumper back to my car after a huge speed-bump dismembered my vehicle approximately 50 ft. from the garage's exit. You should just take my word for it, Mr. Herb Washington is a character, and I hope you are equally as lucky and may meet him someday when you least expect it.

Must finish essay on Ruzbihan Baqli before classssssss.

the box.

even after this series of repeated assaults, my morale will someday recover enough to actually appeal to someone again.

Eden house + garden

EDEN HOUSE:tv/video game room.


living room.
one corner of my room.
my bed.
desk, strange elevated closet, and bag of trash?

=my room!

As some of you may know, it is the beginning of planting season and here are some adorable baby vegetable plants.
in this garden there is currently roma tomato, cucumber, okra, red bell pepper, and yellow squash, not to mention every herb you can think of. Oh and lettuces!!
baby yellow squash plant.
row of baby yellow squashes.
BASIL!! oh man, pesto all summer long.
baby baby roma tomato plants.

love.

recently.

I really need to decide a few things in the next few weeks. I need to decide whether or not I'm dropping my Islamic Studies major, what to do about my incomplete from last semester, if Yemen will be too dangerous to travel to this summer, and if I don't go to Yemen, what will I do?

Also, I need to sell or give away or throw away a bunch of my shit. I have too many clothes, too much furniture for my small ass room, high heels??, tons of film and random other things like inkjet photopaper (like 300 sheets!!!!) when I don't even have a photo printer! Also, a plethera of photo chemicals, some of which I plan to keep, but everyone in my family had the same idea as far as christmas presents went, and now they're going to go bad far before I can get to using them.

I'm hopeful that everything will work out for the best, but I need to take some initiative on these things. Also, I did some good at our house meeting tonight (hopefully) and now it is mandatory that there be a veggie present at every dinner. This seems like not a big deal to most, but we've seriously been eating only starch for the last month. Also, the house is now giving me $50 a month for the garden!! That means more vegetablesssss and herbssss and fruiitttssss!!! YAY!!! AND reimbursement for obtaining vegetables for free by volunteering at Johnson's Backyard. Woo! I love home improvement! I'll try and get some pictures up over the next weekend of the garden and my new home and my bike and all of the lovely new people in my life.

SO, in conclusion, this month has been particularly heavy emotionally, but there are so many other wonderful things to keep me busy and distracted and if I can only hold out long enough those shitty things will pass and I will be left with wonderful new friendships, a garden full of delicious things, and a tidier simpler life.

sharp and tart and red and deep.

i hate sleeping alone again all of the time. but i'll be just fine. amelia and i are putting on pretty dresses and biking around this afternoon.

other news. the garden is coming along. squash and okra and cucumber and tomato sprouting. and basil and cilantro and sunflowers and alamo vine and lavender and mint and so much more. I'll take photos soon.

Sometimes you just have to be okay with the fact that things are not always going to go as you expect or hope. All you can do is just continue on as if you had planned it this way all along and not forget to remain kind.

kindnessissity.

did you know if you google that (not)word that 3 out of the 4 websites are mine...

right now all you have is time time time time time.

"and right now all you have is time time time yeah,
but someday that time will run out.
that's the only thing you can be absolutely certain about.

name ten thousand reasons why you never wanna die, go and tell someone who might've forgotten
try to list the endless reasons why it's good to be alive, and then just smile for awhile about them"
-p. baribeau

-gardens and soil and vegetables are good.
-bike rides are good.
-building things is good.
-books are good.
-heavy blankets are good.
-stuffed soft guinea pigs names Dijon are good.
-reading chairs are good.
-smells are good.
-chemical changes are good.
-tea is good.
-feeling at home is good.
-feeling comfortable is good.
-feeling uncomfortable is good.
-feeling is good.
-accomplishing things you hope to accomplish is good.
-eating and drinking delicious things is good.
-challenges are good.
-sex is good.
-house shoes are good.
-photos are good.
-love is good.
-compassion, empathy, and honesty are good.
-cereal is good.
-warm showers and baths are good.
-pressed coffee is good.
-sunshine is good.
-expression and release are good.
-back-of-the-neck-under-the-hair-when-you-least-expect-it-kisses are good.
-paper mache and paint is good.
-firm hugs are good.
-hats are good.
-being able to trust someone is good.
-eden house is good.
-the beach is good.
-sailing is good.
-wind in your face because of speed is good.
-waterballoon and pinecone battles are good.
-shaking your ass is good.
-yelling out at the dam is good.
-long and double exposures are good.
-trampolines are good.
-overcoming is good.