earthquake

i have nickels buried all over the world. friends on vacation take my nickels and plant them in beautiful and interesting places i'll never see. it's a long story, but this has been going on for years and years.

my two most recent nickels, just placed weeks ago, were buried by three dear friends on two separate trips to nepal. all afternoon, i've been reading the reports of the earthquake, looking at photos of the devastation, and sending up prayers for the good people of the country - and also thanking heaven for keeping my friends safe as they traveled.

here's the spot in kathmandu where my friend gretchen buried my nickel. she said it was beautiful, and i would love it there.

go away, rain

this morning i am wishing that some of this persistent new england rain would turn around on itself and head back toward the midwest, toward arizona, where it sounds like it is sorely needed. folks there have been in my thoughts for hours now.

comfort food

tomato soup and a grilled cheese cheese sandwich. 

it just seemed like a good idea on a cold, snowy, sad weekend. 

battening down the hatches

hurricane preparedness this calm saturday morning - so serene and peaceful it's hard to believe threatening weather's even coming. you know me by now - i love a good storm! but this one has me jumpy and nervous, pacing like an animal. perhaps my latent sense of doom-and-gloom kicking in. lessons learned in all this already: text messages can still be transmitted when cell networks become bogged down. and if power goes out, a bowl of ice cubes in the freezer are an indicator of the condition of frozen food. who knew? if you're an east coast reader, be safe and keep in touch. for myself, i plan to read and sleep and, god willing, blog on monday.

the lump in my throat

from the first early morning rescue to tonight's thirty-third and final recovery, i've found myself today either blinking back tears or weeping outright, wide-eyed and silent. what amazing resilience on the parts of so many people - governments, rescue teams, families, and especially miners. very thankful tonight that the rescue efforts in chile were so wondrously successful.