PlazaJen: Passion Knit

I had a blog post last summer titled, "The Only Way Out Is Through", and I'm trying a different tactic for 2007. Up with people, Up with Jen! OK, that's a little squirrely. But you wake up on January 1, 2007, and clean up dog poop because you have a dog who every three months thinks it's perfectly acceptable to ignore her time outside as pooping time and just do it in the house once you're both back asleep, and you, too, my friends, will think, Bravo! We can only go upwards from here! Polly, on the other hand, has some learnin' to do.

We rang in the new year splendidly. The Chiefs clinched a spot in the playoffs, and we were celebrating with hot wings & other munchies at James' friend's house, about 45 minutes from home. The night was spent playing poker (mostly the guys), and card games (mostly the girls), and I actually won the pot for one round of "Shit on Your Neighbor"! (Though I guess Polly trumped everyone this morning with the less-popular game, "Shit on the Floor!") We got home very late, and it was nice to sleep in. I'm sort of delaying the accordion-style lineup of things that have to start happening once I get dressed & showered - for then, I have to go run errands. Get gas. Do the work I brought home. Blah blah blah.

I know this is a super-duper popular day for resolutions. I say Schmezolutions. Whatever. I chided a rep friend of mine at lunch a month ago, when she was agonizing over a friendship she couldn't quite let go of, because of her guilt - despite how it was harming her. I told her, "Don't wait for someone to die to figure out what's really important to you." Sometimes it takes that extreme of an event to bring it all into focus - but you don't need it to be that sharply focused to figure out your priorities. If it hurts, quit touching it. If it brings you joy, keep doing it. If it needs to be done, just do it. Even if you don't wanna. It doesn't get easier? But it gets clearer.

One of the best musical artists I discovered in 2006 (and really, JWo discovered her & introduced us) is Regina Spektor. She's taken some listening for the songs to really grab hold, and I know when something resonates because I wake up hearing the words and music in my head. I woke up with one of her songs this morning, "On The Radio", and these lyrics from that song seem so fitting, given what I just wrote:

This is how it works
You're young until you're not
You love until you don't
You try until you can't
You laugh until you cry
You cry until you laugh
And everyone must breathe
Until their dying breath

No, this is how it works
You peer inside yourself
You take the things you like
And try to love the things you took
And then you take that love you made
And stick it into some
Someone else's heart
Pumping someone else's blood
And walking arm in arm
You hope it don't get harmed
But even if it does
You'll just do it all again


May 2007 be a better year for all of us. May your sorrows be short and your laughter be loud, and may your love be so great that it guides you, everywhere you go.