Draw.

Today I drew for a good long while,
but I cannot post evidence,
because what I am working on is a SECRET!

Write.

I made some progress on a new project that I started a couple weeks ago. As the story developed, I had the setting, the scene, the movement, but not the dialogue, and then suddenly, the dialogue started happening and I just focused on that, and forgot about all the other details.

Today I had to go back and add dialogue to the bits where I had movement, and add movement to the bits where I had the dialogue.

And I finished it!
Which is terribly exciting.

It's a sort of philosophical love drama, or something like it, and it's also funny. When I finish it, I am sure that it will get publicized in some shape or form. It is slightly epic.

Visit.

I do not know why visiting with Lilah always seems to deserve the verb "visit." There are many other verbs that we partake in when we come together. We hug, and talk, and swap stories, and usually walk somewhere and eat something or drink something, and often we play with her kitties. But somehow, "visit" just sums it all up.

Today I visited with Lilah, and we exchanged the meaningful bits about our lives, and went to lunch at the lovely Thai restaurant with lavender walls and purple flowers on every table.

Publish.

We officially returned from our voyages around 11AM, but the rest of the day for me proceeded in a sort of haze. Somehow, travelling can do that to me. I wanted to clean up the house, pick up my room, go to the grocery store, etc., but none of that happened. Truthfully, I don't know what I did. I didn't watch TV, because it would be a violation of lent, and I didn't clean anything.

I know that I sat on the computer for a while.
I know that I looked through all the photographs we took on our journey.
I know that I published an album on Facebook.

That might have been the most and only productive thing I did, besides drive us back home to San Diego.

Return.

At 2:00AM (PST) I awoke from a fitful slumber and began the arduous process of returning home. Lisa and I stumbled around in the dark, put things away for the last time, and struggled down the steps with our huge packs of luggage.

30 minutes to the airport.
30 minutes or so to fill out customs forms, pay the exit tax, check in, pass through security.
30 minutes or so browsing the gift shop.
30 minutes or so to board the first plane.
3 hours or so to make it to Mexico City.
8 hours or so to wait in Mexico City.
And so on and so forth.

Waiting.
Reading Under the Banner of Heaven.
Playing Sudoku.

After many annoying stops, we arrive in LA! I think that travelers conveniently forget the traveling bit, which is tiresome. So tiresome.

11:30PM (PST) I filled out the missing baggage claim (sigh) and cried, because I had been awake for 22 and a half hours, and that was the last and final straw.
12:30AM (PST) I fell asleep, after doing an inventory of all the stuff in my bag, and mildly freaking out.

Lounge.

I spent much of the morning laying in this hammock, making a quick playlist called "Sundaymorn," and watching the sky change colors as the rain thought about whether or not to fall.

This is this playlist, so if you find a hammock lying around, you can replicate the experience:

1. "New Slang" by The Shins
2. "Jesus the Mexican Boy" by Iron & Wine
3. "Diamond Ring" by Pedro the Lion
4. "Apres Moi" by Regina Spektor
5. "Desert Sunrise" by Brett Dennen
6. "Sky Blue Sky" by Wilco
7. "All for You" by Sister Hazel
8. "You" by Switchfoot
9. "Everyday" by Dave Matthews Band
10. "Eleanor Rigby" by The Beatles
11. "Say Yes! To M!Ch!Gan" by Sufjan Stevens
12. "Amends" by Derek Halets
13. "Everything's Not Lost" by Coldplay

Swim.

Cahuita was our last official destination in Costa Rica, and it turned out to be well worth the miserable bus ride that brought us here last night. Today, we wandered the sleepy town and arrived at the Caribbean coast. After photohunting monkeys in the jungle directly adjacent to the beach, I swam in the ocean for a good solid hour or so. It felt absolutely divinely perfect. I would always swim in the ocean if it felt this good and was this warm.

Travel.

Our fortitude for travel had officially waned by the time we'd even gotten on this final bus to el caribe sur. It went down something like this:

Peaceful morning waking up in the treehouse.
Speedhike to the waterfall.
Breakfast.
Miss our bus (8:45AM).
Wait for another bus.
Catch a fortuitous bus straight to San Jose (9:45AM)!
Pleasant bus ride watching scenery and reading Cannery Row.
Arrive in San Jose (1:20PM).
Get lost looking for the bus terminal.
Ask a taxi to take us there (1:45PM).
Arrive at bus terminal right on time for the 2 o'clock bus that was already full (1:50PM).
Eat lunch.
Wait for a few hours.
Get on 4 o'clock bus that arrived 30 minutes late.
Traffic.
Traffic.
Misery.
Spot a cockroach.
More misery.
Humidity.
Darkness.
Can't breath.
Endless.
Endless.
Bus ride.
For forever.
Arrive (11:00PM).

Despite the misery, everything worked out exactly as it needed to. We had an escort through the town, caught a taxi the rest of the mile or so to our hotel, the guard let us in and led us straight to our room, where I showered the humidity, stank, and sweat off of my body before falling into a blissful slumber.

Fly.

We went to Selvatura today and flew (technically, zip-lined) over the treetops in the Santa Elena cloud forest reserve. It was breathtaking, and so.much.fun.

After that, we also did the tarzan swing, which is a 26-foot, bungee-like drop off of a ledge, and I screamed the loudest (though not the longest -- the little 10-year-old girl who jumped after me took that title).

Nap.

On the first official day of our Costa Rican adventure, we felt like we had forever to be on vacation. After travelling all day yesterday, today we arrived at our destination in Monteverde and decided, after a large lunch, to take a nap in our rooms. This was one of the best days. Time felt unending.

Arrive.

We realized sometime on our first plane to Vegas that our plans were going awry. Our first mistake was drastically underestimating the mountainous quality of Costa Rican landscape. Although Monteverde is only an inch away from San Jose on the map, that's an inch of mountainous, one-lane, partially dirt road, which is only frequented twice a day by a bus that leaves at 6:30AM and 2:30PM daily. We would not arrive in San Jose until 6:40PM, and thus began the first official predicament.

Our taxi driver graciously helped us discover Plan C, which was a little hotel called Meson del Angel. By the time we ventured out for supper, almost everything was closed. After quite a bit of walking in a part of town that seemed pretty sketchy, we were almost convinced that the only place open was McDonald's. I couldn't bear it. Not on the first night!

Let's look down one more street, I said, and we found Pollo Snax! Definitely a step up on the authenticity scale!

We ate, purchased a bit of bread from a panderia for our breakfast, and slept in our happy little hotel.

Walk.

I went to downtown LA for the first time with Lina today. We handcuffed ourselves, but we don't think anyone noticed.

Picnic.

This is one of the things we do best.

Celebrate.

As Thursday was my Dearest One's birthday, today I drove the length of the distance between so that I could celebrate with her tonight at her pizza party.

We made goody bags for all the guests (just like back in the good-old days when you went to a birthday party and got little treats), and then went to Pizza Uno for some of the most fantastic deep dish pizza in all of Pasadena.

Lina opted for birthday candles on the inaugural pizza, which turned out to be a better idea in theory than in actuality, since the pizza melted all the candles, and then you couldn't really eat the crust unless you happen to enjoy the taste of candle wax...

All in all, a huge success! Afterwards, we went back to her house for a celebratory birthday bonfire. We stayed up too late, and got happily drowsy as the fire burned on and on into the littler hours of the evening/morning.

Watch.

My sister and I have a tradition (recently) of watching Degrassi together. After many such types of entries in this verb blog, I realize that I have many such traditions of watching shows with various people.

Tonight Degrassi was supa-intense! Only two more episodes left in this part of the season! :(

Exhibit.

I woke up this morning with a list rolling through my brain. Stantions, spotlights, stereo, set-up, pizza, clean, this that poster, the other thing. This is the spring season, and also the time for Festival del Sol, our school wide exhibition.

My students exhibited the model roller coasters they designed, as well as media and other artifacts. It'd odd to be here. It's odd to be finishing. This always marks the beginning of the end. We only have 8 more weeks left of the school year (after Spring Break)!

Long day, but exciting and fun, too.

Cheer.

I went to the Padres game this afternoon after school with my parents (and tons of people from their church that I don't know too well, or haven't seen in a while). Ball games are always satisfying. It feels good to shout out sometimes, and jump up and high five strangers just because you have a team affiliation.

I love watching people get super into it. Sing out "Take me out to the ball game" in the 7th inning stretch, and try to get other people to start the wave (not successful tonight, but I did my part).

Tonight I relished in my extravagant purchase of purple cotton candy (like a sugar cloud!) and I got to hang out with my mom & dad, who I do not see nearly enough. I am glad that this is one of our traditions, and I am glad that the Padres won! (if they don't win, it's a shame.)

Read.

Today was an odd sort of day off. I know it sounds odd, but the air felt clunky, even as I was driving to work. Passing Otay Ranch HS, I remember thinking about the wild fires of 2007, and the way things were cancelled because we had better things to do (stay alive, namely).

Black helicopters circled overhead, and I have never seen so many police cars in one place. People craned their necks to see what was going on, but didn't stop, and it wasn't obvious just from looking, so we kept going.

When I arrived at school, there were police cars there too, and Ray standing at the corner by the stoplight saying, "School's cancelled."

The threat level was lifted within half an hour, but they had to make the call quickly. There had been a "smash and grab" at the mall up the road, and from 7-8, the burglars were armed and somewhere nearby.

It was the right call, I think, even though things turned out to be secure before school was scheduled to start. But why gamble on something like that? No matter how important our exhibition is this Thursday, there are things that are more.

So instead, I came home, feeling a little guilty to be so happy about having the day off. I got over that, relatively, and I read all afternoon. I sat on my porch, and the sun shone down on me happily, and I read.

I finished the book, I Capture the Castle by Dodie Smith, and I really liked it. I read it on the GoodReads recommendation from Heather. She recently posted a review of it, and it sounded intriguing, and I happened to have purchased a copy of it for my classroom library.

This is one of my favorite quotations from the book, and it reminds me of Jaymie:

"I finish this entry sitting on the stairs. I think it worthy of note that I never felt happier in my life--despite sorrow for father, pity for Rose, embarrasssment about Stephen's poetry and no justification for hope as regards our family's general outlook. Perhaps it is because I have satisfied by creative urge; or it may be due to the thought of eggs for tea."

Obsess.

While I was farting around on the Internet this afternoon (really, it was a lazy sort of Sunday), Naomi caught me online and chatted to me. This was very, very exciting, because I have not really gotten to "catch up" with Naomi in ages, and ages, and ages. Entire histories have passed between us since we actually had a conversation.

Well, we're back on the same page, and in the midst of our profound IM conversation, Naomi introduced me to Cimorelli (Naomi is extremely adept at discovering interesting things on YouTube, and she has a particular affinity to a capella groups). Cimorelli is a musical group of harmonizing sisters, ranging in age from 10 to about 19.

I have pretty much obsessed over it, and listened to every song they have ever recorded (exaggeration, but only slightly) since Naomi sent me the link to Price Tag. That one is, no doubt, one of the best, but this one catches my fancy, too.



They are so freaking talented!

Listen.

I had to finish that PowerPoint that I worked on yesterday, and while doing so, discovered my New Favorite Pandora Station! I guess it is the Glee episode hiatus that pushed me to it, or maybe just longing for a new mix from Amy, but I just was craving some good choruses.

Try it for yourself.
Go to Pandora and type in "Glee" as the artist.

This was the glorious randomized soundtrack inspired by the beat and tempo of the Glee Cast Soundtracks:

Marry You by Bruno Mars
I Want You Back by Colbie Callat
Crazy Love by Michael Bublé
Take Me Or Leave Me on the RENT: Original Soundtrack
Halo by Beyonce
Part Of Your World by Alan Menken on The Little Mermaid Soundtrack (I laughed, but did not skip this)
Everything by Michael Bublé
Let It Be by The Beatles
Hey, Soul Sister by Train
Thriller by Michael Jackson
Feeling Good by Michael Bublé
Over The Rainbow by Israel 'IZ' Kamakawiwo'ole
Here Comes The Sun by The Beatles
Any Way You Want It by Journey
Poker Face by Glee Cast

This was exactly what I wanted for a Friday night of PowerPointing. (You know you want to try it. Go try it.)