afternoon notes
1. The night sky was clear last night for once. The loss of cloud cover increased the rate of convectional cooling, so the air was brisk and dried the leaves out quickly, the ones blown down by the showers earlier in the day. I went for a good run last night and traced the constellations as I ran. Orion is up again, as are the Bull, the Twins, and the Big and Little Dogs. The light pollution was a bit too overbearing to get a clear view of the Pleiades, but I know where they belonged. It’s nice to have a clear sky again–it gives my solitary runs an almost social aspect to be able to look up and be met with a winking familiarity.
2. Last night I signed up for the Old Reliable 10K in Raleigh. It’s a week from Sunday. I think I should be ready by then, and in any case I get a t-shirt.
3. Going to see The Incredibles tonight. I’ve been looking forward to seeing it for a long time, and I’ll enjoy more than just the film–the down time will be pleasant too. It’s been a hard week.
4. John’s Camaro isn’t going to be ready in time for my second installment of the homeschooler car fundamentals class on Tuesday, in spite of the fact that we got the new engine in last Saturday. He needed a custom driveshaft and those take time to make. So I’m disappointed, but the upcoming class will be a more hands-on affair, so I’m not as concerned about holding their attention. It’ll be fun.
5. Walking out to my car today the wind gusted, and the newly dry leaves picked up and swirled around and around next to me. It really feels like fall with the chilly, dry air and the warm sun. I love it.
6. I’ve found the first item I want for Christmas. It’s this. My mom used to, and still has, an ancient Panasonic shortwave radio that she kept in the kitchen and listened to at all hours. I have strong memories of hearing the opening jingle to “All Things Considered” and smelling broccoli cooking on the stove in the evenings, back when my nose would barely reach the countertop. Ever since I’ve always needed music or commentary in the kitchen, especially when cooking or doing dishes–not overbearing, but just present. It just completes the experience for me, and is a big part of why I have an affinity for doing the dishes (the immensely satisfying, zen-like organizational quality of it plays a big part too). I think it’s the domestic side of me peeking through. It’s a small side, but a side nevertheless :)
What is it about doing dishes? Even when I was a messy and disorganized teenager I enjoyed doing them. My mom has a collection of photos of me doing the washing up starting back when I needed a stool to reach the sink.
I’ve pondered this, and I have theories, but nothing concrete. There’s just something amazingly satisfying about it. Maybe it’s the feeling like we can clean and completely organize at least one area of our lives? Maybe it’s the meditative, inner-peace-through-manual-labor part of it, liking raking pebbles in a Japanese courtyard. Or maybe it’s the feeling we get from reversing entropy, the natural decay of things, for a few minutes in a realm of our lives? Probably a combination of all of it.
For what it’s worth, I didn’t used to like it, but my appreciation for it grew in direct proportion to the amount of daily responsibility I shouldered. Hmm.
You kids can come over and do my dishes any day of the week… even Wednes… ANY day of the week. :)