{my topography}

I was tagged by the beautiful Boho to write about 5 things that I haven’t already told you… hmm…I’ve already told you more than is decent to tell, but here goes.

1) I was six when I first kissed a boy.

2) I love drawing free-hand maps of the world. I love to draw the blue water pressing up against the tiny irregular shapes of the islands and continents. Drawing maps reminds me how both miraculous and insignificant we are, in the scope of the cosmos.

3) If I were to entirely reinvent myself and be someone completely other than I am, I’d be a veterinarian or a midwife or both.

4) If I could learn anything right now by osmosis, it would be to do the meringue beautifully.

5) I live each day with intolerable delight and great terror, simultaneously: I grew up somehow believing that I am capable of anything.

You’re it. What are five things you haven’t told about your self?

(And because they are all attempting NaNoBloPoMo, the following lovelies have no excuse but to write…A writerly rebel, an amazing wannabe, a lovely blog vixen, and a perfect peach)

1) Your awesome list ideas rock. Thank you a zillion times. I have never, ever purchased any legit holiday gifts before, oh, December 23, and though that may not change this year, at least I now have no shortage of good ideas!

2) I pierced my ears over the weekend. This was a HUGE deal. My dad never let me pierce my ears as a kid, and for years and years since then I refrained from doing so, first out of an odd deference to him, and then because it made me more unique NOT to have pierced years. Recently however, it dawned on that wearing a gorgeous pair of dangley earings makes an otherwise unimpressive outfit chic and lovely, and I am all about things that make me look good without actually requiring effort… so I went with my most favorite girlfriends in the whole world and got holes in my ears. I cannot imagine what my dad would say if he were alive still. It felt somehow like a childish act of rebellion, and maybe it was. Who knows why we suddenly get the urge to do things?

3) I made the most delicious gingersnaps tonight. Also a random urge. I used fresh ginger, and without a recipie, figured out how to crystalize it. Am I not a domestic goddess? (It’s okay, you can lie.)

4) I have been so exhausted at the end of the day I have done no writing, and am feeling utterly guilty about that–especially as deadlines are gradually approaching. But…

5) I stumbled upon an absolutely wonderful book that I’ve been carrying around with me everywhere and relishing.

What might one give a guy this holiday season? I need some ideas…both for big gifts and tiny ones (Dh & I are uber cheesy; we exchange little treasures every day of advent–a tradition left over from my childhood). I always hate myself when it’s December 23 and I haven’t thought of anything and end up opting for sweaters. What are you contemplating for the men in your lives?

An entire week of goodness. Time with long-time friends. Pedicures and walking bare-toed down cold cobblestone to share coffee. Browsing jewelry stores. Trying on dresses, the three of us to a dressing room, and then twirling in front of the mirror. Toasting with champagne and eating pomegranates. Laughing. A lot. And soaking up time with the in-laws also here, as the best babysitters ever. So much fun, chatter, intellectualizing, giggling, cooking, strolling, enjoying. Now that everyone is gone, the house seems hollow and big, and Bean fell apart at every gusset, over-stimulated, teething, and off schedule.

We’re all ready to find our rhythms again. To get back to the things of daily life: showering before bed so my hair doesn’t turn to icicles in the early morning frost; planning out lessons; replying to an overcrowded email inbox that has sat untended for days on end. It’s a shock to the system though, to go from such heady days to this, yet I find myself craving downtime.