I was as surprised as anyone when Ruby was called up to test tonight. She was asked to perform four forms and do some rolls. I was completely floored when she executed two forms that I didn’t even realize she could do. Her Uke (Jonathan) was fantastic, as usual, and really helped her to be her best, but in the end, it was all Ruby. She is now 10th Kyu. Congratulations sweetheart!
It all started last weekend when Ruby and Anika started angling for a sleepover No Ru, you didn’t have a nap today and it just wouldn’t be a good idea, Vick calmly states. I will have a sleepover, Ruby corrects. Ruby, listen to your moma, she said no, says I. Daddy, Anika and I will have a sleepover tonight, she insists I don’t know exactly how it happened but the next thing we know Jennifer is trying to figure out how to ride three kids home on her bike, and we were all happily joking about the padawan in our midst. The force is strong with this one. After three or four more successful executions of her new skill, I felt compelled to impress upon her that no sometimes does mean no. You can guess how that went.
Olive rang in her 1.5 year birthday like a princess. I arrived home to both kids yelling “ta-da” and showing me their beautifully painted faces. . We had some wonderful fajitas for dinner and then a 6 minute chocolate cake with home made whipped cream for desert. Olive reveled while Ruby led the group in a round of Halfy Birthday to Olive…
Last night I roasted my first batch of coffee in 5 years. It was a Sulawesi Enrekang “Mount Alla” (from Sweet Maria’s, of course). I roasted it to Full City, as recommended. The first shot was sweet, earthy and fruited (apparently fruity isn’t good), with a tiny bit of sour. The sour was most likely due to extraction, and not a characteristic of the roast or origin. All in all I was quite pleased. ...
For the longest time after moving to California, Vick and I were convinced that this was a state (or at least a region) that seriously undervalued community. We were more than a little surprised to find, once Victoria got pregnant, that their was this completely amazing virtual community of parents hidden, Hogwarts style, from our view all that time. Now years after our first child was born, we’re grateful to be surrounded by wonderful and supportive friends (some even without children), and a strong community. So partly as a celebration of that good fortune, and partly to bolster and encourage a stronger sense of community, we’ve started to hold a weekly Coffee Social. ...
I spend a lot of time thinking about how I’m going to leave this world better than I found it. This is a bugaboo of a thing to spend any time worrying about because the scope is grossly un-bracketed. I could satisfy my sense of social responsibility by creating an organization that brings food or educational resources to third world countries, or by raising two fantastic children who carry forward the same desire to do good. ...