Work Hard, Play Hard

That's been my motto of late (although seems I'm working harder than playing).  Today, for instance, after babysitting twin toddlers, I met up with my friend Diana for our bi-weekly poetry & dinner meeting.  She suggested the Saturn Cafe in downtown Berkeley, which is a sparkly, retro, space age vegetarian diner.  That's right.  And I had a salad and a milkshake--how's that for juxtaposition?

And speaking of juxtaposition:

WORK: California standardized testing this week at the high school.  Schedule all outta whack.


PLAY:  Dinner and beers with friends Saturday night included Heather's baby Rowan, who has developed an impressive pair of cheeks:

hi, I'm 3 months and I'm lookin' like my mama here

WORK:  Trying to create a powerpoint on Restorative Justice for my students.  Don't really understand powerpoint.

PLAY:  Planning for three back to back visits from far-away friends starting in late May.  Beaches, coastal hiking trails, Burmese food, rooftop cocktails, Napa wineries, Mission burritos--here we come!

Tomorrow morning it's back to the grind: teach teach teach, babysit babysit babysit.  But somewhere in between all that chaos, I will inevitably find time for my latest obsession:

from

I've got it bad.  I can't put this game down.  In fact, I've been neglecting my Words with Friends friends because I've been spending every waking iPhone hour with Tiny Wings.

Gonna call it a night, given that this post is already as erratic as they come.  Fingers & toes are crossed for a return to normalcy and deep breathing soon.  At least I've got prom to look forward to. ;)

Bittersweet

Do any of you have a friend who is just so good they're almost too good to be true?  Like, they never bitch about anything really, they're nice to and about everyone, they don't get drunk and chip their teeth, and you trust them implicitly?  Such is Diana, one of my best friends, and whom I've talked about many times cause she is one of the Cobras.  She's the most loyal person in the world, she loves me despite my (many) faults, and she doesn't really have any of her own.  Ha.  I'd say she was intimidating if she wasn't the sweetest person ever.  She kind of reminds me of Faiza.  

When Ali can't come to our poetry soirees and it's just Diana and me, we tend to go to fun places out on the town and discuss our poems from the week prior (as well as assignments for the next week).

I am here to tell you that if you live in the San Francisco Bay Area and you have not been to Bittersweet, get off the computer right now and hightail it there!  Diana first introduced me to it years ago, and let's just say that it changed my experience of hot chocolate.  As in, since that fateful day back in 2005 (I think), I haven't been able to enjoy a hot chocolate anywhere else.

Check this:

Diana's hot (milk) chocolate, homemade vanilla marshmallows, my soy salted caramel hot chocolate

I was nervous to branch out and order something different (I usually get the regular hot chocolate), but the salted caramel was the best I've ever had.  It's pretty crazy how good this place is.  They even have a hot dark chocolate that I think is even vegan!  Just straight up liquid chocolate.  Amazing (if you're into dark chocolate).  The only problem with Bittersweet is that they close at 7 pm, which is kind of unacceptable according to my night-owl self.  Oh, and there's one other problem: I've totally become a hot chocolate elitist and now I don't think it tastes very good from anywhere else.

A fine price to pay, in my book. I mean look at this--

close up of the best hot chocolate in the world

A Cute Baby, Poems, and a Giveaway!

Thanks everyone for humoring my over-eager "guest blogger" yesterday (I found him working suspiciously quietly on my computer, asked what he was up to, and he said "Oh, just writing an email" . . . twenty minutes later, 90% of his self-declared "Guest Post" was written--HA).  He loved the attention, and maybe he'll be back early next week since I will be in Guatemala!  


Yesterday after work I drove over the Golden Gate Bridge to hang out with the Freitags, and I know sometimes I tend to go overboard with the baby pics . . . but can you believe this sweet face?

Jude:  The Good Egg

Goodness that is one sweet baby boy.  And speaking of good things, my oldest friend Lesley (she was at the hospital waiting for me to be born--she was only 6 months old and knew we'd be best friends since our mamas were!) is hosting a special Christmas giveaway from my sister's vintage etsy shop!  Click here to enter, and grab the button on my right sidebar if you're so inclined.  This is what's up for grabs:

very fine house

Today is my Cobra day and my poem is due in a few short hours.  I always have the most trouble writing when I'm responding to one of my own assignments (we take turns giving assignments, then have dinner & mini poetry workshops every other week or so).  This time, it's write a poem that addresses your greatest fear.  Pretty terrifying, huh?  I have a few fears and phobias to work with, ha, so I'm not sure which one I'm gonna tackle yet.  Maybe developing paranoid schizophrenia or some sort of psychosis . . . that scares the living daylights out of me.  I'm shuddering just thinking about all my greatest fears . . . 

What would you write about?

Wednesday Companions

1. Miss Rosalie Lenora Porter

I have my friends' 8 month old daughter, Rosalie today. What a sweet little beamy baby. Last week I got her big sis, Naomi, for two days, and today I have baby Rosalie. I'm so lucky that my friends have cute kids! And doesn't she have the greatest name? Look at her sitting on my couch like a big girl!

2. Writer's Block

♥

My girls--The Cobras--are coming over tonight, and I still don't have my poem written. Par for the freakin' course. These days we're only meeting every other Wednesday, which means that we have two whole weeks to get our assignments done. We rotate giving assignments, and go figure that I always have the toughest time getting it done when I'm the one who gives it--cruel, cruel irony! This week I gave us a Romanian poem by Mihai Eminescu to "translate" (look at the words/structure, having no idea what they mean, and let your own words emerge from the original language). So far, I'm two lines in. Goodness gracious alive.

3. Old School Beverly Hills 90210

Nothing like throwback episodes of 90210 in the middle of the day (maybe it's not so much writer's block that is my problem . . . ). Every episode I watch reminds me of how much of a boyfriend-stealing breezy Kelly Taylor is. And that whiny poor-little-girl voice. She's almost as annoying as Andrea. But speaking of 90210, I gotta get back to it pronto cause Donna and David are about to do the nasty for the first time.

xoxo!

Poetry, Prosecco, and Pretty Girls

So my favorite day of the week is Wednesday. Why Wednesday? Cause that's the day I get to see my Cobras!

The Cobras:

Claire Ali Diana

We all went to grad school together to get our ever-practical Masters of Fine Arts in Creative Writing (ha), and since then have been the best of friends! I love these two beauties . . . (seriously, aren't they so pretty?)!

Every Wednesday evening (with rare & devastating exception), the Cobras gather at my house and drink wine and eat dinner and workshop our poems from that week. The three of us take turns coming up with the assignments. Last week was my turn, for instance, and since we were going to have to skip a week (horrifying!), I assigned two poems:

1. Write a sestina, pantoum, or villanelle;

2. Pick a "mentor poet," read 30 poems from him/her, and write a poem that is inspired by your poet

But our lovely Ali just moved into a ridiculously gorgeous, serene house in the Oakland hills with her boyfriend, so we packed up and had a little Cobra field trip to her new digs . . . OMG:

I mean for real??

Those of you who live in cities understand how rare it is to have this kind of amazing beauty and space at home. Fountains! Yards! And what's that in the top left?? A HOT TUB.

We sat outside and had some okra & brie, and also some of this:

let's just say we finished both bottles . . . and only two of us drink

It was amazing. Ali cooked us a lovely dinner, we drank aplenty, and we discussed our poems. Next Wednesday I'll be in Georgia, and although I'm so excited to see my family . . . I'll be missing my Cobras. xoxo.