currently

i am home alone.

it is blissful, but also a little bit quiet.

it's warm enough outside to have the windows open and it's 9:30 p.m.

spring is springing.

i'm listening to a half-terrible cozy ghost/mystery series.

sometimes that's just what i need.

i had a creative brain day.

it's kind of exhausting.

but also wonderful.

and also just what i needed.

husband is in amsterdam.

the child is back in phoenix (for the moment). 

it's just me and olga up here in the quiet bedroom.

i bought new sheets and a new duvet cover at ikea on my way home.

new sheets are transformative.

knitting an organic cotton sophie scarf. my 9th.

it's the perfect activity for the aforementioned half-terrible cozy mystery.

and for quieting a brain that worked overtime today.

a few of my favorite things

with all the utter madness being caused by a certain spray-tanned madman, it can be hard to look on the bright side these days. but some sunshine and warm temperatures this weekend made it easier around here. i worked on clearing all of last year's plants out of the greenhouses and pruned my grape plant back. molly lounged around, watching me. she's still my bestie. got her back in 2012 in minnesota and she's still going strong. when i get back from minnesota and arizona (i'm going on thursday), it will be time to do the last work to get them ready for the season. 

i went out to nina's to get some presents to take with me to the us and ended up buying these two tiny vases for myself. it's the little things that make us happy - i filled them with the last of the snowdrops and they're so cheerful. yesterday, we grilled the first sausages of the season. and today i actually went running (well running and walking, but there was some running), it was so nice. it's amazing what a difference a bit of sunshine makes on one's mental health. 

and the last favorite thing - these soft, comfy ugg slippers. sabin sent them home to be stored here and i had to have them. they are so soft and comfy, they make my feet very happy.

here's hoping you found some moments of happiness in your weekend!

good things or have i mentioned our fox?

so much goodness going on right now...

~ as you can see, our fox continues to enchant. we were sitting in the garden, sipping wine with friends this evening when she came out to join us. one of the big barn kittens ran towards her, wanting to play (and nearly giving me a heart attack) and she ran away. she's not a normal fox.

~ preparing for my upcoming real life blogging course! it will run locally the month of october in two locations! and i'm not taking it, i'm the teacher if you can believe it! it's so much fun putting together the lesson plan, i'm really excited about it.

~ also preparing for the beginning russian course i was roped into teaching. i'm still hoping a little bit that they don't get enough people signing up for it to hold it, as i'm not sure i remember enough russian to teach it, let alone teach it through danish rather than through english! ack! at the same time, i'm enjoying talking to the interested people (read, cute-sounding older ladies) who are calling to inquire about it.

~ i think i can live with reading on an iPad if the book is in PDF form and i can open it in notability, where i can highlight and scribble in the margins, just like in a real book. maybe there is something to this whole eBook thing after all.

~ our summery days have returned and they are glorious.  as is that moon. i didn't bother to try to photograph it, i just took a picture with my eyes and am holding it in my memory.

~ trying out a new, more subdued blog banner. i'm not sure how long it will last, but for tonight, i like it.

~ we ordered some insanely cute and probably poisonous japanese candy from eBay this evening. you know about stuff like that if you have an almost-teenager in the house.

~ the almost-teenager is still the most sensible member of the family. i was going to buy some frozen shrimp to put in tonight's pasta dish and she said, "mom, wait 'til friday and buy fresh from the fish guy when he comes." why didn't i think of that?

~ the next iPhone is coming soon. we're ready.

~ it's been four days since i've bought lego minifigures.

it's a lilac-scented world

so much goodness swirling in the air right now, much of it lilac-scented. lilacs are my favorite.

feeling uncharacteristically grateful for it all - both possibilities and just where it's all at right now. husband (i may have mentioned that he's a keeper), the garden, being outdoors, good food, laughter, south african white wine, horses who are part clown, cats who are part dog (read: frankie), netflix, molly on the mend (tho' her mastitis still isn't totally cleared up), fine strong kittens, homemade bread, homegrown asparagus, lilacs, dandelions, green grass, i could go on, but it starts to seem a little insufferable. i guess the scent of lilacs has gone to my head.

here's hoping your weekend was a good one.

when the storm clouds lift

i have been a storm cloud all day. it's one of those days where everything just feels aggravating. it's not that anything exactly is wrong, it just that it feels frustrating and pointless. it's surely more a symptom of SAD more than PMS and the grey, grey day didn't help. it also didn't help that the car was making a strange rattling sound. 

but things are beginning to look up. that rattling was just a non-essential piece that had rusted itself loose. we've ordered a new one and i can drive it in the meantime. sabin's class is doing a nativity scene this evening and we'll eat æbleskiver and glögg. and then i got a sweet mail from a new friend who works at the farm where molly came from in minnesota. in it, she asked me what i love about living in denmark. and that really helped. because i wasn't feeling much in love with anything today.

so, things i currently love about denmark:

~ that knowing danish gives you at least some ability to understand swedish, norwegian, dutch and german. at least the written bits.

~ the daily show on only one day's delay.

~ that it's not that long 'til the solstice and the light begins to return.

~ great drama. 

~ that a new julekalendar starts on saturday. (that's a christmas program that airs a new episode every day 'til christmas).

~ that the danes think christmas is on the 24th. this normally bugs the hell out of me, but this time, i'm looking on it as hey, two christmas meals!

~ going to sabin's christmas program and laughing with some of the other parents.

~ P1 - denmark's answer to NPR, only even better.

~ ny nordisk mad (new nordic food).

so a big thank you to jessica for shining a little light of positivity on my afternoon. i really needed that.

* * *

this is great - a lioness photographs her own poo with a canon dslr.

* * *

BBC radio 4 podcast on øresundsbroen.

i love how the professor says that lund university was built to swedify (read: civilize) the danes.

* * *

articles on the new feminism keep cropping up. this time, about crafting.

and tho' i think the writing is absolute crap in that piece, there are some interesting things to ponder.

* * *

the l boards on pinterest: ladders, lego my lego, let's play (this is work-related), looks interesting (mostly stuff to read with the occasional film), lysthus (my coming backyard refuge).

a happy list

because my last post was a little bit sad and i hate to go to bed on a sad note, i have to shake it all off with some positivity (sorry if it's insufferable, but it's where i'm at right now. and blogging is cheaper than therapy). and i know i'm not supposed to confess to happiness anymore (thanks molly), but just enjoy it. but still, we're made to think we should feel a little bit guilty about it, in the face of all of the unhappiness in the world...however, i give you a little list of things i like, and a gratuitous kitten photo.

i like:

~ instant coffee with a speck of cream. yes. i like instant coffee. and drink it all the time.

~ earrings that don't match each other.

~ pickled eggs.

~ being perceived of as a balanced person.

~ watching kittens play attack one another.

~ warming risotto when it's cold (and it's cold today, so you can guess what we had for dinner).

~ that my 11-year-old child's favorite program is called kontant and it's one where they expose consumer fraud (usually on the part of charter travel bureaus and people who sell fish from a truck).

~ that our baby bunnies have all found homes. :-(

~ that it's yet another holiday tomorrow.

~ and i'm going here.

~ i expect to come back fearless.

so watch out.

so far today...

i have:

~ broken up a serious rabbit fight.
~ fed the animals.
~ written some on my proposal.
~ picked my brain.
~ made a new friend.
~ stalked my new friend's pinterest boards.
~ folded laundry. and hung some up to dry.
~ downloaded iBooks Author.

i haven't:

~ gotten properly dressed.
~ combed my hair.
~ put on contacts.
~ yet played with iBooks Author.

i want:

~ a fainting couch.
~ a secret hideaway in the garden.

small madnesses:

~ changing all the capital letters to lower case when i repin.
~ mixing grains for bunny and chicken food (they contain some, but not all of the same ingredients).
~ even numbers.
~ talking in animal voice.