A Room of One's Own

I really want to jump the gun

Yesterday I went to a luncheon and they gave out those little raffle tickets. The fellow handed me mine and said, "Here's the winning ticket." A dubious assumption. I never win anything. I am always the one who graciously claps while others at my table win huge gift baskets and centerpieces. Smiling through spite. Always a bridesmaid, never a bride. Until today.

I had no idea what they were even raffling off. This is how certain I was that I would not win. They break out a large backet and say, "Here's a little something to start off your holiday season." I heard just that. And something about $75 worth of something. They call the number and I'm doing a very half hearted job of finding my ticket and HOLY CRAP! I won. I walked up to the podium, praying in my head that the basket had wine or other liquor in it, with the most smug of look I could possibly muster up. I reserved that right.

The basket was heavy. I plopped down in my chair, all kinds of proud at my good fortune and started showing my loot off to John, who happens to be one of the principals for a company who is my largest contractor at work and adorable in a large teddy bear way. He is as giddy as I am. There was no adult beverages but the was peppermint bark, toffee hot chocolate, holiday coasters (only me, with my Monica Gellar-esque tendencies, would be ecstatic over coasters...), a variety of other sugary items, a teddy bear ny daughter went nuts over and the two most perfect holiday mugs you will ever see. Ever.

I know. I am utterly jazzed over holiday mugs. I understand how weird that sounds but they are so damn cute I took them out of the basket all afternoon and just looked at them. They are not at all kitchy like the reindeer sweaters grandmothers in Walmart sport this time of year. Oh no. They are kind of funky and retro looking from Pier 1. One matches the decor of my whole house entirely too well. I see a trip to Pier 1 for a whole bunch more in my future, which is good because I apparantly need to go there to get "Indian takeaway faerie lights" per my posh British friend Sali. Two birds meet one stone. Really, I can't tell you enough how darling these mugs are. I might carry pictures of them in my wallet as though they are my children.

These mugs are creating a small problem, though. I now want to break out all of my Christmas stuff and go to town on my house. I may not be able to wait any longer. My friend Veronica gave me her full blessing to get my Martha on two weeks ago. If I did it next weekend, I'd only be two weeks early, right? No harm there if it makes me happy, right? And it does make me happy. I can sense this Christmas is going to be much better than last year. Honestly, I don't think it can get worse. Go check the Archives of Christmas Past. You'll agree. I have that going for me and that may be reason enough to celebrate.

So what are your thoughts? Bypass Thanksgiving and move right from Halloween to Christmas? Or go with my least favorite virtue - patience?

This woman KNOWS how to make sure I'm happy

Who might you ask? My lovely friend Jerusha. She does love me.

She let me know yesterday that she put a little something in the mail to me on Saturday. I was damn nearly giddy as a 6 year old on Christmas morning. I kid you not. She is in LA so I was fully expecting not to see anything until Tuesday. When I got home, l and behold there was something in my mailbox! It was dark but I could not see what it was. It was just a soft white packing envelope. But, I knew instantly it was from Jerusha. It was squishy.

Much to my dog's chagrin, I did not feed him the minute I got in the door. I ran for the kitchen shears to cut that package open. I gasped when I saw the contents. First, she took care of my Poodle (for anyone not aware, this my pet name formy daughter.) She sent her a Disney Princesses DVD. Excellent. So this means that after I pick her up from school today, I can make dinner in peace as she will be glued to said DVD. I have already told her that she has a present waiting from Aun' 'Rusha. Sidebar: Somehow Jerusha has gotten credit for giving my daughter a whole array of presents that did not, in fact, come from Jerusha. I have NO idea how this happened...

Then for me... Two skeins of the most gorgeous, soft, hand dyed Malabrigo yarn made in Uruguay in a rich garnet color. I hugged them. I put them in my neat little new yarn basket but picked them up several times last night just to fondle them. Note: I really must take a picture of the basket of yarn because the mere site makes me 18 kinds of warm, fuzzy and happy.

I called her to thank her and asked her to what do I owe this spectacular gift. She saidbecause no one should NOT have some Malabrigo in their yarn stash. Seriously. Then she tells me that flights prices have dropped between LA and Phoenix and she's checking dates. Umm hell yeah! Jerusha weekends are basically the two of us up until the wee hours talking and knitting and drinking vodka. Many times there has been really bad reality TV. We have always said her visits are not complete until Nick Carter cries. It's just the pinnacle of the weekend.

I am one happy happy chica.

If I could bottle this...

Yesterday was, for all intensive purposes, delightful. I needed a delightful day. I have been working incredibly hard and get very stressed out during the week. My weekend is the only salvation of my sanity. I have intentionally NOT gone anywhere for the last two weekends because I have just needed a break that bad.

The beauty of yesterday was that it was complete happenstance delightful. Very different from your contrived or planned delightful. I had a very nice man in my company for the better part of yesterday. A man who really does not need to be entertained by me in order to enjoy himself (let's face it, my mere existence is plenty entertaining to many.) A man with a serious penchant for cuddling on the couch. A man who shares my general philosophy of laziness and has no problem spending a significant amount of time in my exceptionally girly abode. This is why we keep inviting him there.

It was a little overcast yesterday, which is very welcome in Phoenix. We sat on the patio and had coffee and then watched a movie. We started watching a little football until we decided pizza was mandatory. We're gluttons. We know. It's fun. Don't judge. Let's just say that large amounts of really good pizza and slightly overcast skies lend themselves to a really truly fabulous activity. The midday nap. There is only one thing better than napping. It's waking up to the sound of thunder after sleeping god knows how long.

The highlight of my weekend was a good half an hour on my patio, under a blanket with aforementioned man, watching it pour down rain, my lantana plants perfuming the air, two large dogs trying very hard to climb under the blanket with us. It was just chilly enough to warrant the blanket but not so much that being outside was not tolerable. After it stopped raining, we went back inside to make more coffee, which we appropriately spiked. More football on the couch.

Eventually, he had to get back to his own house which left me with an entire early evening to do whatever I felt the need to do. I spend the rest of the night on my couch furiously trying to finish a wrap I'm knitting, watching old movies and drinking tea. I lit the first fire in my fireplace for the season. It was just too lovely not too. Really, Earl Grey and Gene Kelly need a fireplace. And it was perfect for watching movies in which Americans become Parisians and spending a few hours in a dream world where I got to be Audrey Hepburn being photographed by Fred Astaire.

I slept well and very peacefully last night.

Yes we DID!

I cast my ballot at a church by my house this morning because I like the whole ritual and tradition of going out with a group of people to exercise our rights as citizen to be part of democracy. I waited in line for about 15 minutes and had a delightful chat with Bernie Kaplan, the poll volunteer that when I asked how he was doing today, he said he "couldn't be better without bursting into a song and dance." Needless to say, I loved Bernie.

I picked up my daughter at school today and they held a mock election. They explained to the kids what the election was, what the president does, what the parties are and who is representing what parties. I asked who Caroline voted for and she told me the "blue guy." "Obama?" "Yeah, Orama!" I told her that it was a really important night and we were going to watch the news all night. She was game.

I voted for Obama.

21 months ago I had no idea who Obama was but I was reading a book called Bowling Alone - The Collapse and Revival of American Community by Robert Putnam. My friend Todd recommended it to me after I caught a scrolling quote from it as his screen saver. "Community happens when local people gather. The rest is metaphor." The book discusses the full realm of social capital. Social capital is the basis of the idea that norms of reciprocity and trustworthniess come directly out of social and civic connections. Pretty much sums up the entire reason for my being. Build social capital.

The book was completely inspiring. So much of what is wrong with our country comes as a result of absence of social capital. People come home, drive into their garages and close the door. We've lost social and civic engagement. As a result of the book, a group of leaders across the nation were called forth by the John F Kennedy School of Government at Harvard to review the implications and determine what it means for America, now and in the future, and what can be done to create a better America. The result was the Saguaro Seminar that summed up their findings in a report called Better Together. It was nearly 10 years ago and a member of the Seminar was a then completely unknown state senator from Illinois. That's when I started following Barack Obama.

When Obama got mocked for highlighting his work as a community organizer as work that could help him as president, I was more than a little perturbed. I work to build community and get paid to do it. I sit on three different boards because I want to create a better community where I live. If I had the time, I would serve on three more. It's my passion and now when people ask what I do, I just smile and say, "I'm a community organizer." It pretty much silences them. They have no idea what that means and most don't ask.

So much of what Obama believes in and speaks to goes back to social capital. And I am a bleeding heart liberal. I am an optimist. I am Pollyanna. I don't think that building a better America is all about economics and it infuriates me that when most Republicans heard I was voting for Obama their first response was, "So you're okay with the 'redistribution of wealth?'" Yeah, I sure as hell am! Back it with solid consideration from a Senate Appropriations Committee that will fund meaningful social programs that aren't considered a "handout." I've read the entire US Constitution. I'm smart enough to know these things need to pass through House and Senate. But I like the idea of a man leading the process that believes in people.

This country is about people. Bottom line. Obama is about people. I love what he sees and I love the sense of hope he has put back into the people of this country. He inspires people. He is the voice of "if I can do it, so can you." I think that anyone who said that hope doesn't win elections just learned a hard lesson. I think those people may also be shocked at what inspired people can do. I feel good. I feel hopeful.