Personhood

Feelin' Feelin'

Today I felt like a person. A recurrent sentiment in my life. Such a sensation is achieved by an assortment of odd, ordinary and rare stimuli. Driving beneath the 101 junction sign with all my windows down makes me feel like a person. And the longer the absence of such a drive, the more intense my person feeling becomes.

Long phone calls make me feel like a person, despite my relucatance to make them. "Dancing in the Moonlight", preferably Toploader's cover, makes me feel like a person. Waking up very very early to raft waterfalls and board airplanes conjures my person-feeling. Crickets beatboxing beyond my window make me feel a rush of person-ness. And today, drinking a mango boba tea rekindled my ownership of personhood.

Personal

My instantaneous flashes of person-ness take me out of the moment. They are a roadblock to the immediate, the here & now. While the causes may strongly differ, each flash moment reminds me of all my layers of living. They are mementos of the people I have loved and the days I have lived. And my afternoon treat was such a memento. 

The sunken bobas reminded me of my first mango drink on an impossibly bright sophomore afternoon, almost ten years back. My wide straw brought to mind Sydney's omnipresent drink chain, Chatime. Every sip poured easy happiness into my veins. 

Sydney, near George St., NSW

And the thing is, drinking a silly, sugar-saturated, over-priced beverage made me feel happy and whole. It reaffirmed all that living before and behind me.  

Home Sweet

I have taken to counting the days left on our lease. This year has been a long lesson in patience, the importance of gloves and home. My home is layered within me. It exists in friendships and mountain ranges. It mozies down cobblestones streets. It hides between book pages. It nestles into Preston's arms. It eats dinner at my family's oak table. And it loves California best. 

 

I traveled far, to find my home exactly where I left it. A thousand miles south. 

TBT: Easter

70 degrees with a slight breeze was Minnesota's most thoughtful Easter gift. Legos, Bordeaux eggs and a copy of Frozen was California's.

A Month

"April is the time for plans & projects"

Leo Tolstoy

"April is the cruelest of months"

T.S. Eliot

"April is the time before it all ends and it all begins (and the time when my mom visits, work goes crazy and Easter happens); a frostbitten frenzy"

Kailynn von Kronemann

Midwest Specific

Eternal Recurrence: Winter Edition

A Saturday Afternoon

A Return

All of Fargo had a weekend of exuberance. Winter's icy grasp finally melted under a springtime sun, releasing its captives from living rooms and basements. The people of Fargo rejoiced and took to the streets. They shot hoops, roller bladed and sunned in drive-way lawn chairs. The icy fortress was no more. Fargoans and lost Californians rejoiced to greet their long-lost companion, "HELLO WORLD!"

even our themies got a bit of sun

Me & My Man

As per usual, me and my man did some pretty spectacular eating this weekend. There was pizza, (cuz, duh Friday=Pizza Day), green lantern cocktails and most importantly Taco Bell breakfast. 

the only tbell breakfast photo that will be released
(However, go get yourself a dozen Cinnabon Delights
right now!!!)

But seeing as how I am just one more breakfast post away from renaming my blog "Sunshine & Syrup", I thought I'd focus on a something different. Something learned. Something, called the Fargo Library. 

La Biblioteca

Before Preston acquired a set of wheels for me, I used my feet and Fargo's sad sad public transit system. I allotted an hour of cushion time for all of my travel plans. Most days I spent that time in Downtown's bricky and cozy library. 

the most learned of lime green walls

This past Saturday the library threw a "Game of Thrones" party. The party took the shape of a medieval tournament.  Preston and I snacked on crystal-lite lemonade as sweaty knights battled for fair maiden's honor in the library's largest conference room. The group of Mid-West medieval enthusiasts meets once a week to spin yarn, shoot arrows and battle with bamboo swords. They even have an annually elected king. 

treasure!

Before the event concluded Preston and I tried on a twenty pound helmet and won two raffle prizes! To add awesomeness to awesomeness our prizes reflected the results of our buzzfeed quiz GOT personality. And yeah that may be kinda nerdy to admit that, but it's still super awesome. 

Hip

And by the way, we took some shefies. 

And Preston found a jeep.

Afternoon over. 

A Bit

Today I spotted a lone Canadian goose flying north. As I walked on snow-free pavement I heard a quartet of songbirds chirping and trilling. I wore gloves, but didn't need to. It was 38 degrees out, and the (relative)warmth of the day evoked the sensation of homeostasis.

Standing outside without shivering or cursing(silently or aloud) the tundra of the North made me feel whole. Dwelling in the fresh air with trees nearby and grass underfoot restored a bit of my humanity. I admire North Dakota's prairies and white winters, but I cannot wait to fly south this summer; so I too can return home. 

A Midwest April Fools

March Blizzard = April Snow

Fun Fact: I am going into my SIXTH consecutive month of winter.

Fun Fact II: I am going into FOURTH month of sporting da big jacket.