Days 317 and 318: Sweeties

Fell into bed last night in a state of happy exhaustion. Just as I was falling asleep I realized that I did not write a blog entry. But the sleep train was too fast and I too eager a passenger. Sometimes, you live so happy you just don't have to write about it.

The source? An entire day with my Sweeties at the Museum of Technology. We arrived when it opened and left when it closed. The two big attractions that lured us there were electric cars you can drive and a workshop where you could program Lego robots to drive through a course on "Mars."

These were both successes with my (now 9-year-old) Sweeties but the biggest hit of the day was the Wii dancing game. It took some convincing to get them to try ("But I don't want to dance Auntie Bella!") but once they did, that's all they wanted to do! Such a good form of exercise too. And something we could share as I love to dance and love games...and love the Sweeties too of course. You can see a sample of their dancing in this video clip:



To my delight, one Sweetie slept over, complete with breakfast, a piano recital, two readings of The Sound of Music pop-up book (including all the songs) and a long listening to music on YouTube while snuggling on the bed session.

People, I tell you, life is good!

Day 316: Odds and ends

A day of clearing up what I like to call the "niggelies." Here's a sampling:

- order food for the co-op annual meeting
- invite hosts to language café on Monday
- send a letter off for comments
- empty the dishwasher
- fill the dishwasher
- re-file returned keys
- research what's in town for two nine-year-olds to do
- inform a NYer about a museum tour
- clean the mud off yesterday's walking shoes
- process annual meeting RSVPs

When I take care of the niggelies I realize how many different things I am involved with and what fun it is to do them. Also, I feel happy and efficient.

Now, good night!

Day 315: You can't beat city hall

Yes, my American friends, I know the expression is "you can't fight city hall" but in this instance I mean beat. As in, ours is so beautiful, it can't be beat. Just take a look at these photos (bearing in mind that I took them more or less blinded by the sunlight) and tell me you don't agree!

It lifts my spirits just to walk around the courtyard. As a bonus, it is situated right by the water and the view is simply spectacular. And that, my friends, is today's happy.

Day 314: Book hangover

One of the women in the book club I belong to used the term "book hangover" to describe the feeling when a book you've read keeps holding on. You can't quite shake it and you can't quite get into the next book because the previous one has not moved over to make room for a new arrival.

That's how I'm feeling today, and it's about a book that I did not think was particularly well-written, although it got a lot of critical acclaim. It's called The Book Thief and is set in a small town in Germany during the time of Hilter. According to the author, the theme of the book is the power of words and I can see that he is true to that theme. That, however, is not what stuck with me. Rather, the story got me thinking about how important it is to know what's important in order to create a life you consider a life worth living.

I'm happy to have found something worthwhile in the book, at least in retrospect.

Day 313: Physical fitness

It's occurred to me twice in the past week that I am currently in the best physical condition I've ever been in. This will come as a shock, or as amusement, to those among you who know me well and know how much I despise working out. Still, it's true.

I remember one of the first times that I visited Stockholm and stayed with a friend who lived near Hornstull on Södermalm. She was teaching a tap class at the time and suggested we walk over Västerbron to the class. I thought the walk was endless. She thought it was a hop, skip and a jump away. Nowadays, I walk everywhere, including this week over that very same bridge...and beyond.

Feels good. Makes me happy.

Today's photo is of a sight that made me happy on the walk home from Gamla Stan. It was taken at 8:10 PM and you'll note that the sun is just setting. The journey toward the light is so very beautiful.

Day 312: Hope springs eternal

Spring hopes eternal? Either way, for the first time this year I did not need a scarf, hat or gloves on my walk from Skanstull to Gamla Stan. Perhaps we will have a spring this year after all???

Oh, and as you can see in the photo below, the Swedes are out in droves wherever outdoor seating is available. Never mind all the ice flows...the sun is shining people, let's worship.

And I even got to practice some French. It's a good Sunday one and all!