Ah, if you could see us.

If you're not familiar with 3 Quarks Daily, get familiar. Among many other fascinating things, they post a poem every day. This is today's. It recalls, for me, so many memories of my own self and of so many women I know and love. It makes me miss tasting wine in the Napa sunshine with Maria, Gretchen, Amanda, Laura, Abby, and everyone else I've ever made that pilgrimage with on a Saturday afternoon. It makes me miss Jocelyn and six dollar magnums of the grossest wine, but in the best company, at the house party du jour in Thousand Oaks. It makes me miss glass upon glass of two buck Chuck in the kitchen on Channing street, or in the fading sunlight of the Dels courtyard, or on the grass up on campus. It makes miss the carefree warmth of what a lingering glass of wine, outside, represents.  
If You Could See Her After Drinking Wine . . . 
—to Micheál agus Michelle



If you could see her after drinking wine,
Wine from Chile of the berry-red kind
Prancing ahead of me in the middle of the night
Through the business district with her face alight
Having left the pub late and a little tight.
Ah, if you could see her after drinking wine.



Wine called Hoch from Germany’s Rhine
Her hands like birds fluttering in flight
In a sugawn café when the day is high
Her voice louder than the crowd’s by just a mite.
Oh, if you could see her after drinking wine.
.
If you could see her after drinking wine,
Beaujolais Nouveau, strawberries and cream
At a garden party under autumn’s gleam
Her bike by the gate lost in a dream
Of the road home as the sun goes to sleep.
Ah, if you could see her after drinking wine.
.
If you could see her after drinking wine.
Wine from California’s grape-fields fresh and new
Hopping through the Stack-of-Barley a bit askew
In her oh so new blue suede shoes.
If you could see her, as I see her,  after drinking wine . . .


If you could see her after drinking wine.

- Colm Breathnach

My 19th first day of school.

Today was the first day of school! I like the first day of school. It's sort of different as the years go on. In elementary school it was all about Scooby-Doo lunchboxes and Barbie backpacks and totally awesome scrunchies and light-up shoes! I mean, obviously I had the best first-day-of-school outfits. And Lisa Frank Trapper-Keepers and pencil cases and gelly pens! Ugh, elementary school ruled.

And then in middle school it was, of course, still about great first-day-of-school outfits and rad backpacks, but the first day was spent mostly comparing schedules and finding out who was in all your classes and which classes all your friends were in so maybe you should try and switch and who had PE when so you could pass notes in each other's lockers! I loved middle school.

And high school was definitely less about first-day-of-school outfits, and no more backpacks -- purses and carrying binders COVERED with pictures and notes and movie tickets and passes out of class and other stupid things. And more comparison of class schedules and teachers and HOMEROOMS and parking spaces and lunch spots.

College was more about first-day-of-school outfits, and then you sort of had a second first day because classes were on different days and you really didn't have it all figured out until the first week was over. And you'd returned to a backpack because you had a laptop and two notebooks and four textbooks! And then it was about roommates and adding absolutely everyone on facebook and which hall you lived in and your major and your hometown and the pictures all over your walls and your best friends back home and your meal plan and how much work you already had after one day!

And then, ah, grad school. I'm probably the only one who cares about first-day-of-school outfits anymore -- although Kelsey did say that this was the only day she'd have make-up and washed hair all semester, so she at least values a first impression. But today was about whether your classes were up the hill or down, where you were living, how CPE went, when your first Sunday back at teaching parish is going to be, how many of your textbooks have arrived yet...

But every school year's beginning was about how GLORIOUS it was to be back together. Whether it was playing the states game on the blacktop, sitting on the wall by the office for lunch, meeting in senior court, running into everyone at the flagpole, or sitting in the courtyard with a cocktail and a textbook...it's always good to be back.

It's hard to imagine what life will be like when this isn't what September means anymore. You know? School 4 lyfe jk lol 143 xoxo.

Bobby + Matt

One of my college roommates married one of my college neighbors yesterday. It was a joyous occasion, mostly due to the mini-CLU reunion it functioned as. It was so so so good to see the faces of those boys again. Always sad to have to leave them again, though. But, such is life. Here are some sweet pics of how much fun we had:

The beautiful bride and groom making their grand entrance.


We were supposed to blow bubbles while they walked in, but we had some trouble. Looked cute doing it, though.

Bree and I shared some champagne while we waited for dinner.

All the CLU alumni in attendance! You're welcome, CLU Magazine.

My life changed forever when these boys transferred to CLU. <3

Anyway, there are a zillion more pictures on the Facebook, but these are my favorites. Being at this wedding just increased my excitement for all the weddings of the rest of our friends, however far-off those may be, and for all the weddings coming up next summer! Don't you just love love?