In lieu of today’s nap

I prefer quiet weeks that feature good books and naps and pajamas at 6:30 PM.

But sometimes, I find myself driving south on I-5 in slow traffic at 5:30 PM, heading to an art museum to hear an author speak.  And after I park, I notice the scrolling shadows behind a gate as I walk to the auditorium and I am so grateful to have an iPhone to capture that image.

Sue Monk Kidd, by the way, was gracious and interesting and had the mildest southern accent.  She had beautiful white hair, in case you wondered, even though all her book jackets and most websites show her with brown hair.  It was like expecting to see a long-lost aunt and finding instead, your grandmother, only a stylish and wise one who speaks about novels.  I sat in the fifth row.

Tomorrow, I’m hosting an Open House at my house for my blog-friend-turned-real-friend, Carrien (She Laughs at the Days).  She lives in Thailand now and since she has a lot of friends here and not much time (she’s in North America for about a month), she invited people to come all at once to see her.  And I volunteered my house.

Which explains why I was at Ralph’s at noon renting a Rug Doctor from the world’s slowest-moving Ralph’s employee.  My dog, Lola, occasionally sneaks into the living room to pee.  I KNOW.  It’s disgusting but mysterious.  I don’t know when she does it.  I don’t know why she does it.  She has access to the outside all the time.  She never, ever pees anywhere else in the house but the formal living room, go figure.  So, I was cleaning the carpet today.

Then, because this is Southern California, and I am a mom, I spent a couple hours picking up kids.  I spend so much time in the car, picking up and delivering kids.

Then after all that, I headed down the freeway to hear Sue Monk Kidd.  The event took place in La Jolla.  I wasn’t sure where to park, so I turned a corner and found a space directly across from a spectacular beach.

(In other news, last Saturday we had a new water heater installed.  Now, there’s a fun thing to spend hundreds of dollars on.  Oh, and last Friday, my daughter got braces on.  Another fun thing to spend hundreds and hundreds of dollars on.)