Pretty nice day

This morning, I went to see WALL-E with a friend. Um... can we say, awesome? I know all the reviews have said it, but this is a really great movie and definitely worth seeing in the theaters. My friend and I were debating whether or not kids would even like the movie because so much of it is very sophisticated (even though it's mostly non-verbal).

This evening, I made one of my favorite meals: braised fennel with diced vegetables (there's a French word for what this is, but I don't remember it) and a white wine sauce. It was very delicious and now the apartment smells really good.

Sure, there was a lot of school work and other less fun stuff in between, but two very nice things make apretty nice day overall.

Sweet nectar of the gods

We don't drink much soda. About a year ago, we bought eight or ten 12 packs of soda because of some sale. Last night, I got a hankering for some soda with my popcorn (precisely why I stocked up on said soda), crawled under the sink to our food-cavern only to discover all we had left was diet Canada Dry. Blech. Well, bad soda is better than none when a hankering is progress, right? Wrong. God, it was terrible. As I choked it down (why did I persist? I don't know.), I suddenly thought fondly of the only ginger ale worth drinking: Vernors. However, I've never seen it outside the Detroit/Toledo area (where I first tasted it while staying with relatives). Sadness.

So today I went to the grocery store, determined to get some kind of drinkable soda. I'm cruising the aisles, getting some root beer and grape soda (NOT a cola gal here). Out of the corner of my eye--and I think angels sang and a spotlight shone--I saw a PILE of Vernors, both regular and diet. AAAAAAAHHHHHH (angels sing in a chorus). Of course, then I have to debate with myself about spending SIX DOLLARS on 12 cans of soda. Actually, the debate was whether I should get THREE 12 packs, because they were buy 1 get 1 free, or just the one. I went with the one, but now I am second guessing myself. We'll see. The sale runs through tomorrow, so if it's everything I dreamed it to be after my first cold can, I may go back. We'll see.

PS In spite of desiring delicious soda where it does not live, I LOVE regional foods. This world would suck much more if you could get everything anywhere. Then why would a can of Vernors be anymore special than a can of Coke?

Amazing video

I don't really know why, but I laughed, cried, and did both at the same time watching this video. So, so worth the watch. An incredible video we all need to see as people living on this little blue planet.


Where the Hell is Matt? (2008) from Matthew Harding on Vimeo.

Courage

One of my summer assignments is "Writer's Workshop," primarily a group for adults with aphasia (language and word-finding impairments, usually from stroke). Working with these individuals has been very inspiring, but never more than today.

Today, I shared my first prose piece with the group, a short "tour" of Reno. They were all very complimentary, but one gentleman more so than the others. He told me, in essence, that I should submit it to a magazine or some other place for publication. I brushed off his compliments, well aware of how difficult it is to make a living as a "writer."

He then shared with us some of his work from before his stroke. It was beautiful; full of descriptive language and imagery. While his poetry today is also lovely, he struggles for a very long time to put together even a simple phrase because the words come so hard won. As we were talking about his work, he said something about my writing again. He mentioned how he used to write "years ago," but "then work, and you know."

One of the other clinicians was sitting next to me, and she reframed his words for me. I wish I could remember exactly what she said, but in essence, she was telling me that he was saying that I needed to keep writing because life can so easily get in the way. We never know what could happen. There, but for the grace of God go I.

This gentleman was writer too. Then he stopped writing too. Years slipped by, and one day, he lost those words he thought he would have forever.

Wow. I think I have work to do.

OMG, Internet Part II

Woah. I just saw that George Carlin died today. Weird coincidence that I wrote about him on my blog the very same day. I'm assuming he did not read my obscure post about his appearance on Shining Time Station and have some adverse medical reaction to my writing, so I'll call it coincidence.

Very shocking news indeed.

OMG, Internet

You will not believe what I just found out. I am not crazy in one small miniscule area of my life.

So, years and years ago, I happened to catch the kids' show "Shining Time Station" on TV. I couldn't believe that my beloved Ringo Starr was on a TV show for kids playing a teeny-tiny train conductor. Then, who knows how long later, I saw it again and realized I must have been crazy because it wasn't the incredible Ringo Starr, but some OTHER guy, who appeared to be suspiciously like George Carlin (really?). So I figured I was just crazy and had a very poor memory and imagined my hero into some random TV show.

Flash forward to today, when I found through a random link that: HELLO!!! They were BOTH on the show! Ringo started the role, and then was replaced by Carlin! Oh, thank goodness, I'm not totally nuts!

(And yes, I realize what a crappy post this is to come back after a month away from updating. Apologies.)