car wash graffiti, fresh lemons in my kitchen, ezra's toothy grin, the sunflowers on dekalb avenue, my turquoise necklace, a good sweat, the fountain at fellini's, ava's elaborate drawings/paintings/stories, my bright pink adidas (I never wear them but love to sit around and look at them), flickr, goat cheese, jack black, the large metal winged foot that hangs above our fireplace, orange fingernail polish, the new david sedaris book, the promise of a road trip, the promise of a dance class, the promise of a trip to the thrift store, the promise of a trip to the movie theatre, the promise of a foot rub, homemade cherry sno-cones in the middle of the afternoon for no reason, my brown leather wrist cuff, mos def's music, big mouth lip gloss, juicy chunks of watermelon, ava's gangster-speak, new crayons, singing HEY MAMBO! MAMBO ITALIANO! at the top of my lungs (and scaring the pants off of everyone in the house), silly straws, the moment ward walks through the door at the end of the day.
what's doing it for you?
ok - i had to go away for a bit and think about this one - but i'm back with my list! (what a fun post btw!)
ReplyDeletethings that get me through the day:
my morning coffee with milk, noah's knock knock jokes; might machines; pink popsicles; mid-day phone calls from earl; my arne jacobsen chairs; noah's dancing spurts; fresh blueberries - well even frozen; frozen breyers vanilla yogurt; my digital camera; finding cool art; "i love you mommy"; my silver charm bracelet; my pink plastic faux patton (spelling?) leather purse with the black accents; orange nail polish (with you there!) and i also dig when my better-half gets home from work.
thinking of the fond memories we had with you all this weekend! Wow! What fun!
ReplyDeleteHmmm... it's one of those days that's got me looking for something. Any ideas? You know what gets me going. Help!
ReplyDeleteFirst, I LOVE DAVID SADARIS' writing! I have only read Me talk pretty one day... but when I get to actually read for pleasure again at some point I will read more :)
ReplyDeletetoday- getting things crossed off my todo list
owen climbing everything and falling dramatically making me laugh. knowing i get to leave town tomorrow and play a ton a games with jeff's family. a roast that turned out soooooo good for dinner tonight. i love when i actually feel up to cooking! a game of dutch blitz with my husband. clean laundry.
jan-- yes! blueberries! so much goodness. and seconds to the silver charm bracelet. I have a couple but ever since I lost one of the charms, I'm afraid to wear them. I take them out from time to time to look at them and they make me so happy. wow, and that purse sounds fab.
ReplyDeletedad-- feeling a little down since you left on monday and so I had to put together this list to bring the vibe back up.. had such a great time... miss y'all.
nancila-- the color red, the jewelry we shopped together for in nyc, the fact that ava adores you...
elizabeth-- great to find a fellow david sedaris fan! 'me talk pretty one day' is my favorite but 'naked' is pretty fantastic, too. and I'm so with you on the act of crossing things off the list. love to do that. and clean laundry (hate to do it, hate to fold it but love the smell of it, the feeling that it's DONE). thanks for sharing!
of course the word graffiti automatically gets my attention, but i forgot to ask - what is car wash graffiti? and your turquiose necklace sounds like something i'd like!
ReplyDeleteWhat a great insight into my own momma's life. That, in itself, was a nice moment for me to enjoy.
ReplyDeleteGreat post here, sweetie. Some things that make it for me throughout the day:
Making my kids laugh with that deep down gutteral laugh where they have no choice but to fall over, giggling with glee; that moment when I walk through the door after a long stressful day, seeing the bright smiles of my family; a nice icy Cola-Cola; flipping the pages of my animation paper when I'm working on a scene; that feeling you get when you see your work actually come together and it moves like magic; my inspiration board at work, seeing all the artists, artwork, fun quirky things, pictures of my family, all together to form one nice inspirational collage; driving around listening to some great driving music, just thinking about nothing; the smell of aerosol; a nicely sharpened #2 pencil; rubbing my wife's feet (believe it or not); going through my collection of old ephemera, pamphlets, booklets, books, illustrations from a time long since passed; doing the same at a flea market; doing the same at a thrift store and/or antiques market; staying up late late watching some silly shows with my wife; "Daddy, hold me?"; "Oh teeney, oh seeney...."; Ezra trying to say "thank you;" watching Ezra walk; watching Ava draw; Ava's set-ups; holding hands with my wife in the movie theater, laughing at and making fun at the silliness projected onscreen; my wife's eyes; the scent of my children's foreheads (I know it's odd, but 'tis a sweet thing); the small of Andrea's back; watching Andrea dance....
There's many more, but this helps me forget all the deadlines and stressful moments that each day may compile.
Aaaahhh... that's it. Thanks!
ReplyDeletejan-- there's this carwash place on a road I travel almost everyday that has some beautiful graff pieces up on the back wall (I will post them soon). unfortunately, I noticed that they have been painted over! and yeah, I think you would love the turquoise necklace...
ReplyDeletecarlene-- absolutely, I believe in those everyday sparks... the small things. I so enjoyed reading about your comment (some things I knew, some I did not).
ward-- I'm so lucky to have you. so so lucky.
nancila-- hope those helped you get through the day. you know I love you.
orbit green gum, cold bottles of aquafina, burt's bees chapstick, looking forward to a trip to chicago labor day weekend, the hope and ever present possibility that tomorrow things can change for the better, random text messages, old movies downtown, a new ikea catalog, the new deepspace 5 record, knowing someone is praying for you & pulling for you, phil 4:4-8, old photos, looking at owen's cute pics, being with family & friends that are like family, dangly earrings, learning how to plant flowers, the fact that autumn is coming, looking forward to more road trips, crossing things off lists.....
ReplyDeleteI think i'll come back and comment tomorrow when my brain is still working and i don't have baby screams hurling at me whilst my homework stares me in the face and i'm not avoiding it by reading your site :)
ReplyDeletebut, today it was my son's infectious smiles and laughter right after we got up. I took photographic proof and of course blogged about it, so that at 2:10am (my time) when he was screaming at the top of his lungs (like he is now) I could look at them and not want to pull out my hair or fling the baby monitor halfway across the room... goodness he's cute when he's not screaming.
enclosed spaces, brown-eyed girls with boho hair, the thought of touching the 808, dad, improvisation, ideas of song form and freedom, this cool little store called matter, cigs, fall, this great idea I have about an installation, couches, wine, saying to people "do you mind?", hollywood will fall, doom, old stereo equip, calling this headhunter my agent, the joke that states the WNBA scoreboards are powered by public apathy, representations of naked mattresses, the city of ages, the hudson, luxury buildings with those amenities that you didn't know existed, fronting
ReplyDeleteThe first cup of coffee in the morning, Nova's crooked little smile, Aaron's strong shoulders as he holds her, Blueberries, Giant greeen salads, Black olives, The darkest of darkly dark chocolate, the smell of Honeysuckle on our neighborhood walks, Target, playing vinyl records on the turntable for Nova, Trader Joe's, KCRW (you can check it out online at KCRW.org), talking to my sister on the phone, my big box of mostly unused and seductive scrapbooking materials, our comfy Ikea bed (especially when it's made), reading in the comfy bed late at night after everyone else is asleep, finding the secret meanings in Radiohead songs, Polaroids, my postpartum but healthy body, the promise of Saturday morning yard sales, and believing in endless possibilities.
ReplyDeleteThanks for sharing and stirring up this lovely discussion, Andrea!
The thing that gets me through the day: laptops to write stories on and a cat on my bed. I love your colorful pictures. Have a wonderful day
ReplyDeleteLatte with skim, cracking up with my coworkers as we watch the Rico Suavo video while the boss is out, coming home from work and seeing my bed all crisp, the possibility of margaritas or wine after work, memories of trips on planes, trains, and automobiles, SILVER HOOP EARRINGS, kids sticking their head in my office to tell me bye as they leave daycamp, my lipgloss that never ever leaves a rim around my lip line, tomatoes from somebody's garden, my daily inspiration from Pam the neighborhood schizophrenic "Nancy you're a good person - you've got God on your forehead", sunsets on an Illinois corn field, sunsets on the ocean, sunsets anywhere, stars, being called baby by any black woman, admiring my manicure.
ReplyDeleteYES. yes, I say. I love you, all my commenting peoples, I do.
ReplyDeletemeredith- yesyesyes to all of it. we just got an ikea in atlanta (another reason for you to make your way down here) and I have been a very happy girl. the catalog has finally come to life. loving the new deepspace five joint... the last track (one for the road) is some of nate's most beautiful work, I think. and dangly earrings... so much goodness.
moi- those baby smiles have amazing capabilities... they have the power to make you forget the longest and loudest baby-shrieking sessions. it's crazy, ain't it?
amazingdrx- aahhh, cedar branches on sauna rocks. I am breathing deeply just thinking of it. and raspberries! fresh raspberries. thanks so much for dropping by.
anonymous- all of it, just all of it. you funny man. you very funny man. what's the installation idea? and always with the fronting.
sparklemom- reading your list brought me great joy. seconds to so much you have listed. lovelovelove. and I'm glad I'm not the only one that has that box of delicious scrapbooking supplies (just begging to be used). your list makes me want to call you so we can talk again (and I will).
jenny- my lovely little mac laptop has altered the very fabric of my life, so amen to that. thanks so much for stopping by.
nancila- pam the neighborhood schizophrenic will keep me going for days. all the things you list here are why we will be friends forever and ever. amen.