On the verge of something wonderful

pearlsbeforeswine-travel.gif
From Pearls Before Swine

I’m in the midst of making lists and running errands, and my brother just sent me a text-message:

Keep the twenty dollars, I’m taking your sunglasses. :) muahaha!

He’s referring to the orange-brown aviator sunglasses that the Lovely L Lady convinced to buy (for eight dollars, for the record) from an accessories stand on Durant, in Berkeley. It’s always difficult for me to find sunglasses I like, but it made me smile to know we have the same taste, and so I’m letting him keep them. While oversized on my face, they fit him perfectly.

[+]

I fly out tomorrow night for my Hindku-speaking love N‘s wedding in Ottawa, where I get to meet the rockstar Maha on Sunday, too! And then, a quick swing by DC to stalk the DC contingent of the All-Star Crackstar Squad, Baji and SI and 2Scoops, for a couple of days.

It shall be grand – except for that little thing called WINTER in Places Where it Snows. My little California self cannot bear to wear shoes (or boots!) for prolonged periods of time, and so this entire trip worries me a bit. But, I figure if I can manage to survive December in Ottawa and DC, I can do anything.

Meanwhile, if you have any tips and tricks for How to Be a Rockstar & Navigate Cold Places Without Catching Hypothermia, please do let me know. I need all the help I can get. So far, my little post-it list contains things like:

-Socks
-Black BOOTS
-Green shoes
-Red shoes
-Thermals
-Scarves
-Black coat

Of, course, I could always go with Hashim‘s advice: Personally, yaar, just stay indoors when you are there.

[+]

I am looking out the front window while typing this post. A UPS truck just parked at the foot of our driveway. A man got down from the truck, reached over the black wrought-iron gate, picked a persimmon or two off our brilliantly-colored tree, then got back in the truck and drove away. My neighborhood makes me smile so much, and so do my parents, who have cultivated this open-handed generosity for decades, so that all who pass by know they are welcome to the ripe fruit off our trees, without needing to formally ask.

It’s so beautifully sunny here. Lovely California, what ever will I do without you for nearly a week?

23 thoughts on “On the verge of something wonderful

  1. Hoy, you coming East-side but not visiting me? What be this? Beantown has slurpees you must sample and bookstores that must be perused. And it’s only a leel ways away from DC. *bats eyelashes*

  2. Oh, Owl, I would if I could! I want to see EVERYONE on the East Coast, and, as we established during Newunion007 in July, that was quite a lot of us. =) But everyone’s scattered all over, and I can’t manage stalking sessions for everyone. Don’t forget, though, we’re doing a Newunion re-enactment next year.

    And, hey, give me advice on how to survive the cold, yaar! You should know, having gone from the UAE to Beantown.

  3. dude, it’s not EVEN that cold right now. if you can survive FEBRRRRRUARY in DC, then you get props. it’ll be in the mid-50s when you arrive and mid-40s when you depart. i’ve got an electric blanket AND space heater in your room (since owl and anju aren’t coming – although they are most welcome- you get it all to yourself!). if you are still cold, i give you zp to keep you warm. ;)

  4. I guess I can’t complain about you not visiting NJ/NY since you did that last time and I missed you. Poop! Hope you have tons of fun though! :)
    And I love that last story, very sweet. I wanna live in Cali. Sigh, if only I was rich!

  5. come brave a day of chicago’s winter… its not even december and its already begun: it was 18 degrees when i left this morning.

  6. Preeti, we can still complain. I did, anyway. :) but that would be so much more than weekend trip.. Ottawa, (Toronto?), Boston, NYC, Philly, DC.. she’d never leave!

    though that wouldn’t be so bad either…

    have a great trip yasminay =) remember – double-layers of socks!!

  7. Mittens! Or gloves! Otherwise you might have to type with your nose when your fingers get frostbite and snap off… and of course I loved the Pearls comic as always!

  8. Don’t forget mittens and gloves! and earmuffs!

    Stay warm and safe travels.

    Your mention of persimmons just made me nostalgic for the persimmon pulp pudding my aunt makes from her Bay Area Persimmon tree.

    I really want to move to CA now.

  9. Screw Berkeley and finals and graduation. I wish I had eloped with you.

    Come baaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaack! I want my roommate back! Who else is going to tell you to go to bed when you fall asleep over your laptop?

  10. Salamaat,
    Awesome yaz, you have been nominated at brass cresent. Congratulations!

    Have a safe, happy, and warm (inshaallah) trip…don’t worry all that Cali sunshine you carry with you, will melt all the snow!

  11. When you going down Yazzo? Mayhap I can stow aboard a passing vessel and meet ye in St Louis Louis. *nudgenudgewinkwink*

    My advice – thermals. I’ve been wearing them since October. Though I do change them sometimes ;)

  12. yz – i take it back – it *is* getting a bit frosty here these days. but what better way to enjoy some hot cocoa?! (interrowhippedcreamontop!)

    owl – array? what’s this? *knowwhatimean* are you a goer? er, i mean, are you coming to dc too? ye are most welcome if you are!

  13. Brothers. They walk all over their sisters, but the sisters never seem to mind. ;-)

    Photos and stories like that of San Francisco always make want to move there!

  14. (I am so happy to have you on google reader and tus SO much more accessible)

    OK, here’s the thing I remember: you lose most heat from your head and toes. In Michigan I would always wear socks even indoors and when going out do whatever you want but wear ear mufflers or a hat that will cover your ears sufficiently. I found that went a long way to keeping me warm.

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