Sabbatical

Yesterday: coffee shop writing with Francisco who was, depressingly, booking our return flights--2 months to go. Worst news ever. (Aside that when we return, we're returning to my childhood home, which is the best place to visit. Plus, there will be nieces and/or nephews! Most anticipated events of the year.) I biked a bit--I'm trying to "train," which is to say get back on a bike, for an ill-advised biking activity next month. I'm not an athlete--I just find it thrilling to be on the road a bit. This means that today my back is aching. 

From our garden. 

Last night we finished The Fantastic Mr. Fox. So good. And the boys told us how it was different from the book. 

I made a chicken dish that was adjacent to chicken tikka. It was pretty good. And, unrelatedly, guacamole.

Then I had a work zoom for a fall class. I'm looking forward to teaching again. (But not to other things like emails and committees and another thing that I am especially dreading, which is a new leadership role for me that has a name of a piece of furniture. It's not sofa.) My goal: To not take things on. I'm failing. 

But back to sabbatical--this morning mass and then a walk to a new coffee shop. 

 

The view from my window. 

This reminds me of Blaze's name, a derivation, which means dove. 

These colors. 

So wonderful to start the day with the food of eternal life. And with the saints. 

I've been thinking about how the bread of life is the apparently unassuming, quiet miracle to which all other miracles point. The problem is when we get obsessed with physical health or financial well-being, when spiritual healing is the most real thing that Christ offers to every single person. And this spiritual healing is both once--baptism--and every single day--a deepening conversion. 

Anyway, the stained glass of Joan reminded me that I've wanted to tell you about my reading. Right now, The End of the Affair. Graham Greene's been meaning so much to me this year. 

And I just finished Fates and Furies. So much sex--I was so embarrassed. And I don't know--I'm kind of tired of this "he said, she said" thing--The tv show, The Affair; the play, Faith Healer; this book. But Groff is a great writer. And her unfolding of the story is interesting, giving us the most relevant piece of information, in light of which everything changes, in the last chapter. I guess we never really know another person--or ourselves. 

I read Saint Joan, the play, with George Bernard Shaw's preface. Francisco and I saw this play some years ago in New York. I didn't realize that she wasn't canonized until the 20's--and he wrote this not too long after, taking a different position, that she was neither saint nor witch, but rather a realist who transforms war and politics and religion--the first protestant. It's his way of canonizing her for his own religion, I guess. 

And I'll have to tell you later about Darling, You Shouldn't Have Gone to So Much Trouble. (Could have gotten that title wrong.) It's at home. 

Sabbatical

The spring is wonderful. My spirits are lifted. 

Francisco walked 10 miles through muddy fields and little towns yesterday, discovering an 11th century church with medieval frescos inside. 

I worked too much and chatted with my therapist and played PIT with the boys. A nice calm quiet day.

 

Best Day Ever

Above: A new candle appeared to replace my burnt down Christmas candles. Sweetest husband. 

Yesterday was an unexpectedly wonderful day from start to finish--I feel entirely too lucky and too spoiled. Well, I knew it would be great to have the kids back in school. And to have the space to do my first bit of writing in probably 2.5 weeks. Everything has been stewing and shifting around in my brain in that time, so it was a delight to start organizing and sketching a new chapter. After a solid hour of writing and of course time for emails, Francisco and I biked to a Turkish restaurant that he wanted to try (first biking together since the fall--so so fun). 

My hopes were low--nothing has yet topped my favorite Turkish restaurant in a city near us, but this one really did. We ordered mezze (above) and a little Turkish pizza. They threw in the yogurt and cucumber and dill spread and the lovely beetroot salad. Everything was wonderful. After a big lunch, we still left with two boxes for dinner. 

The cherry petals are starting to fall in our garden. 

Our friends told us about an app, Too Good to Go, that sells you cheaply leftover pastries and other food from restaurants and cafes at the end of the day. So we tried it out at our favorite coffee shop and got 6 assorted pastries for 7 pounds. That is a lot of pastries--coconut lemon (!!), blood orange, apple cake, almond croissant. So good. We enjoyed them at the park and with tea at home. I think I'm going to like this app. 

Below: Massive fern unfolding in our garden. 

After a dinner of leftovers from the weekend and from lunch, I headed out to a play that I had been really anticipating--London Tide, a remake of Charles Dickens' Our Mutual Friend, with music by PJ Harvey. I had sworn off musicals after one in New York about Robert Moses, but this combination made me risk it. 

I had fun and enjoyed myself during the 3 hour and 15 minute (!) musical. It was a weird combination of Victorian dress and Harvey's low-voiced grungy, rocky music played by a three-person band of piano, keyboard, drums, and guitar rocking out on the stage. 

The set was minimal--a lot of the motion on stage was made by the extensive, modern stage lights moving up and down in a rhythmic pattern like the river. 

Ben Power, who adapted the play from the original, changed some stuff, notably the ending of one of the characters, making it way more feminist. My complaint about the play--he made it just too overt and explicit. Structural oppression! No choice! Difficult circumstances! He took the subtlety away. (I haven't read the Dickens--just saw the miniseries a million years ago; I'm assuming Dickens is more subtle, but maybe he's not.)

The songs, too--were a bit overt, though I appreciate it there, because I have trouble following the plot if you stick it in a song; I'll just miss stuff: London! The city! The river! Connects us all!

Some of the story is a bit difficult to translate into the contemporary world--it's difficult to feel that someone could be ruined because their parents are falsely accused or because they know someone poor/in disgraced circumstances.

Jenny Wren was my absolutely favorite character. She was not disabled in the play; rather, Bellah's sister, Lavinia used a wheelchair.  

Two different people I overheard after the play saying, "The was a dickens of a Dickens!" I don't get it, but they cracked themselves up. 

***

Oh--the other day I read this in the NYT about Richard Wilbur: 

someone would pick a thing, and the rest of the family had to find an unexpected, funny, or surprising opposite. Wilbur and his family enjoyed the game so much that he ended up publishing a book of the resulting poems, called Opposites. Here’s one of my favorites:     

            The opposite of doughnut? Wait

            A minute while I meditate.

            This isn’t easy. Ah, I’ve found it!

            A cookie with a hole around it.

Ilana gave us the book when Q was born--such a wonderful book. But I'm not sure that I realized that the book emerged from a game. We tried this game on the way to mass the other night and had a lot of fun. Let's do more this summer, Nana! 

 

Easter Break

The weekend weather was perfect. Just lovely. 

Our house guests spent 6.5 hours touring the tour of London (??!) on Saturday. So we spent the afternoon at the park and then I napped to an audiobook (the best kind of nap), while the kids designed video games. 

Francisco made amazing enchiladas, which we all enjoyed together, before an evening walk to the park together. We stayed up super late (and I let the kids stay up late!), playing card games--PIT and they introduced us to Cockroach Poker, which was great fun. The boys were just so happy to have kids to play with.

 On Sunday I made pancakes and bacon, and then we headed to the Science Museum. I do not care for museums that are not art museums or book museums. I need to stop going, probably. There were a couple of cool things. 

Aesthetically pleasing space capsule parachute. 

Tower of cars. You know I'd go for the green. 

First iron lung. 

Very early dialysis. 

Okay I was totally interested in this--paintings of thanksgiving (above) for healing and anatomical votive offerings (below) for healing--an Egyptian, Greek, and Christian practice.  

Aesthetically pleasing replica of an early hot air balloon that had been sent up with animals (they call roosters "cockerels" here). 

After the Science Museum (3.5 hours--our friends are serious museum-ers), we walked across Kensington Gardens and had ice cream (kids) and coffee (adults). Then our guests said good-bye, and we headed to a late mass. Blaze napped in my arms for the whole mass. So sweet. We were all tired out. 

Chaos. 

Easter Break

On Friday I took the boys to a workshop on Macbeth at the Globe. I had to pay for this one and it was pure bliss for Blaze, but pitched too young for Q, so by and large a bit of a loss. 

Then I took them to some free spring animal activities in Grosvenor Square. Q listened to audiobook, and Blaze delighted in everything--finding insects, learning about animal teeth, coloring, making a seed bomb, decorating and drilling a wooden pendant. A blissfully warm and lovely afternoon. Francisco met up with us and took us out for ice cream, and then we headed home to rest until our weekend guests showed up. 

There are kids in the mix--and the boys are having so much fun. They played Among Us in real life, and Minecraft on screens, and Labyrinth the board game. They ate pizza at 9 o'clock and then brownies and ice cream and stayed up way too late. Blaze giggled endlessly, and Q talked endlessly. 

We had breakfast together this morning; we will meet up with them this afternoon. 

Day Trip for Me

Francisco could tell I needed some time alone, so he encouraged me to head out of town for the day myself on Thursday. He took the boys to the park, and they ate fish and chips. 

I headed to a couple of exhibits, read a book I was interested in in a rare book archive, sat in a park and read some Graham Greene, worked a bit in a coffee shop, listened to my audiobook as I walked all around town, and went to a play. It was a long and delightful day. Okay--I'm burying the lede--I planned the whole day around a Dorothy Sayers play!

The weather was gorgeous spring weather (am I British now always talking about the weather?). 

The exhibit on Blake was great. Above: An illustration of Dante. 

He did a book about America! And on on Europe and revolution. I need to read more Blake. 

He did a book influenced by Wollstonecraft. Must read it!

Illustration for Job. 

I walked 5 miles, just going to and fro. 

This exhibit, above, was nothing to write home about. There was Wilkie Collins' writing table. 

I read an interesting book about being a foundling by a foundling. 

A nouveau shop window. 

I went to a Dorothy Sayers play! It was amateur actors and there were a few forgotten lines, but the play was great fun, and so was the audience!

I sat on Jesus Green in the late afternoon and it was just lovely. 

And arrived home in the wee hours of the morning.