Magical Moments

“There is some kiss we want with 

our whole lives, the touch of

 spirit on the body.  Sea water

begs the pearl to break its shell.

And the lily, how passionately

It needs some wild darling! At

Night, I open the window and ask

The moon to come and press its

Face against mine.  Breathe into

Me. Close the language-door and

Open the love-window.  The moon

Won’t use the door.  – Rumi

Last weekend, while at the beach, we had a moment that we both label as magical.  Xing Fu has a few of them that he likes to talk about & this one is on both of our lists.  We went up to the boardwalk in Rehobeth to get Thrashers & hot dogs.   We decided to sit on one of the benches up by the ocean.  As we were sitting there, all of a sudden a little paw appears between the dune & the boardwalk.  I get up & look between & there's a little tabby kitten (a lot like the one pictured above).  He was just sitting there so I decided to feed him some of my polish sausage.  I break off a piece & hold it out to him--his little paw swipes quickly like a piston & snags the meat out of my very surprised fingers.  He looked very healthy--eyes clear, coat shiny, ears clean, so obviously I wasn't the only sausage donor.  I continued to offer pieces of the sausage & he wouldn't allow me to hand it to him--I had to place it on the edge of the boardwalk but after he'd consumed each piece, his little face would pop up looking for more.  Piston paw each time until there was nothing left.  Then, it was as if he knew that it was all gone because when I looked over the edge, he's disappeared just as he'd appeared--I imagined him curled up in the sun somewhere licking his paws for the last taste of the sausage.  It was a small snippet of our time at the beach together but I have to agree with Xing Fu--it was magical because it unfolded only for us--our own shared memory.  Just like the pieces of shell with the purple insides that I collect every time I go to the beach.


We've had a few "magical memories"--Xing Fu recalls evenings at concerts that he found particularly noteworthy--Nada Surf when first we went to Full Kee for dinner, & arrived just as the band came on & then he caught the drum stick as we stood watching.  Another one he remembers is the night we saw Telesma at Sonar with Alex Gray painting his special brand of psychedelia.


I remember being down in North Carolina the night before we dropped my kid off at camp--we stood at the edge of the water on the dock of a marina, watching the water ripple & the moon reflect off of the masts of sailboats & the still water. The feeling of peace that night was just amazing.  

Magical Moments--we have quite a few--I like that he remembers these & refers to them often--bringing us yet closer--like our kitten.

And so I come to another "blogoversary".  I take these posts as a refection point from the previous year.  A "where am I now?" kinda thing.  So where was I & where am I now?


Last year:
It has also been quite amusing to see the dating blunders I've written about--I think ultimately when I do find the right one it will be fun to go back & revisit it all from time to time just to appreciate the journey.

Overall I am happy with what I've experienced--a lot I would never have lived through if I were still married--it has been quite the adventure & I'm looking forward to many more along the way--

My commentary for this year (certainly my blog focus has changed quite a lot):

Have I found "the one"?  How can I think otherwise when we were getting ready for work this morning & he bursts into "Happy Blogoversary, Happy Blogoversary..."  So, I think so--certainly this time last year I was still filtering through the frogs for the prince.  Is Xing Fu my prince?  It certainly has been a dream of a romance--even today, with emails flying back & forth between us, he writes the most loving notes to me.  One phrase that he says to me often is most probably one of my favorites: "Are you as wonderful as I think you are?"  How can a woman not melt when she hears that?   I am a lucky woman that this wonderful man has chosen to be my partner--I hope next year I can write the exact same thing.  

Lucky! Part II

"Behind bad luck comes good luck."  

--from a fortune cookie I had on Friday night

When I wrote my last blog post about being lucky, I never realized how true that theme would follow throughout the weekend...

Our plan for Friday was to go have dinner in Chinatown down in DC & then go to the 9:30 Club to see Nada Surf.  Funny again how things come full circle.  The last time I saw Nada Surf was with the Bull & we also ate dinner (actually late night @ 1:30 AM) at one of the best authentic Chinese restaurants in DC called Full Kee on H Street.  First lucky was finding on-street parking rather quickly--it was hopping on Friday--I think everyone & his brother was out enjoying the warm night.  When we got to the restaurant there was a bit of a line & we became concerned that by the time we were seated  & eating, we might miss the 10:30 start for Nada Surf.  Luckily, the line moved rather quickly & we were soon seated in a relatively quiet back corner with the requisite Chinese Zodiac place mats.  We immediately looked to see if we were compatible.  Xing Fu is a Rabbit & I am a Sheep & of course we are the most compatible--do I need to say anything more?  Having done a bit of research, I knew what to order that would yield the best results.  The outstanding dish was the Oyster Casserole--the oysters were plump & HUGE and the delicate fresh ginger sauce was amazing.  It was a great dinner & we agreed to go back again.  Out the door & on our way to the 9:30 Club--we made it, found great floor spots, & the band started 5 minutes later--LUCKY.  It was a great show--enjoyed hearing the songs that I know so well & they can really rock during their live show--At the end of the show, the drummer threw out one drumstick & lucky as the theme has been, Xing Fu caught it!  That night we stayed up talking almost until sunrise--we just have so much to talk about--it is amazing that there are so many levels that we connect on.


Saturday was another beautiful & jam-packed day.  We decided to go to Cylburn for a picnic before wine tasting with BFF(A).  Cylburn was simply delightful & we shared a nice white wine with prosciutto di parma, strawberries, cheese & crackers to go alongside.  It was so nice just to enjoy the sun, we had briefly thought about finding a spot along the water as we are both jonesing for a sail, especially since the weather was so perfect & racing season is so close; we were missing the water.  After our picnic, we swing by & pick up my BFF(A) for winetasting.  We then were having dinner all together & watching the Final Four games--of course with a careful eye on the WV-Duke game.  It was a packed day & very nice evening & the luck continued with the teams going on to the championship--my bracket looks pretty good right about now despite so many upsets...


On Sunday, we parted for most of the day as we both had much to accomplish before the work week & my son was coming home after a busy weekend himself.  BFF(A) & I decided to be ladies of leisure, relaxing outside in the sun & reading magazines--always a rare occurrence.  It was nice to have girlfriend time & not have to worry about anything--our boys were out riding bikes & helping her husband do yard work.  Later, Xing Fu came back for dinner & our busy weekend ended.


Xing Fu & I realized that Luck did figure prominently all weekend--all I can say is that I am lucky to have found such a great guy--we really are great compliments to each other & everyday that becomes clearer.

Lucky!

to make a mountain of
your life is just a choice
but i never learned enough
to listen to the voice that told me
always love
hate will get you every time
always love
don't wait til the finish line

slow demands come around
squeeze the air and keep the rest out
it helps to write it down
even when you then cross it out

--Nada Surf  Always Love 


Xing Fu always seems to know when I need some reassurance & he always knows exactly what to say--he told me today that he was lucky--lucky to be with me & lucky to have met me, etc.  I needed to hear that.  But I am the lucky one--This is a man who catches the red-eye & gets home a day earlier after being away on business for most of the week (my mom said that action exceeds her expectations of a great BF), seems to intuitively say what I'm thinking, & makes me feel so cherished.  I know I sound a little over the top but I've waited one hell of a long time to be treated in a way that I should--I only hope that I am exceeding his expectations.  In 20 years I hope I can still feel the way I do--hell, in 30 years!  

Lucky me--looking at a few of my friends' recent Facebook posts--they're looking for their Prince Charmings & so far they're still kissing the frogs like I was.  I keep reassuring them that if I have been lucky (& is it luck? karma? fate?  another question to ponder in the future), they will as well--have hope & maybe read a bit of Lori Gottlieb's book as well as think about not wasting time on the losers who don't treat you right--a la He's Just Not That Into You.  My good friend MAC seems to have followed that advice & is currently snuggling up to a man who also treats her like gold so she knows exactly how I feel too.   One of the points that I like from Gottlieb's book is that she says that single women needn't fall for that old line of being great on their own--if you want a partner for the rest of your life then why shouldn't you?  It's not a weakness.  That was a freeing statement for me--I used to operate under the incorrect assumption that the mere fact that I wanted to share my life with someone was a weakness.  Lucky it ain't. 

I Win, You Lose!

Just a fantasy of mine--tomorrow is the much-anticipated Spoon concert down at the 9:30 Club in DC.  I've really been looking forward to it immensely as Spoon is one of my favorite bands--anyone who reads this blog knows that simply because I often post Spoon lyrics here.  I can't wait to share this great band with Xing Fu.  I haven't been back to the 9:30 Club in about a year--ever since Nada Surf, actually.  Going back down there gives me a lot of mixed emotions--especially since Spoon is a shared favorite band of a certain other Taurus I knew...so my fantasy is this:

Since it is entirely possible that I could conceivably run into the Bull at this concert, I think it would be just awesome to walk up to him & tell him that he lost--he lost me & now I have a wonderful guy who would NEVER treat me the way the Bull did.  "So now you've won." http://boyfriendplease-sailorgrl.blogspot.com/2009/03/if-hes-sleeping-with-another-woman.html
That statement comes from the last text I received from the Bull.


Actually, I did.

Oh, Wow!

I was dreaming in the driver's seat
When the right words just came to me
And all my finer feelings came up

Always out on some witch's hunt
For the one who never lets me want
Before you know it it's all fuss

Sometimes I think that I'll find a love
One that's gonna change my heart
I'll find it in Commercial Appeal
And then this heartache'll get chased away

--Spoon Finer Feelings



It has been a very good weekend. It started with a MAJOR migraine all day Friday, but I must agree that even though I was suffering, my weekend started early.

I got my Spoon tickets!!! Both shows sold out almost immediately, but some dumb luck that particular ticket-buying site wasn't blocked by the work computer filters. I am so excited! Just one day earlier I had bought tickets to see Nada Surf. I saw them last year with the Bull, had written about how they had done just OK, so I figured a second look was worth it from a new perspective since I did enjoy them still. Even more interesting was what prompted my post about synchronicity. I had been sitting on my bed reading the Baltimore City Paper and came across Sonar's ad. Alex Grey was back on after being snowed out last month. I turned on the computer so I could send Xing Fu an email to tell him it was back on. I opened my email & sure enough there was an email from him, explaining that he was just reading the City Paper & came across the Sonar ad! Serious synchronicity! So now I have 3 months of concerts to watch: Alex Grey in February, SPOON! in March, & Nada Surf in April--Yehaw!

But that's only the tip of a far more wonderfully intense weekend. "Good things come to those who wait." Certainly an oft repeated saying, but it holds true. Good things definitely came to me this weekend in the form of Xing Fu and the realization that synchronicity can happen between two people, amazingly so. I spent most of my weekend somewhat giddy & many people noticed, especially at wine tasting. Goofy smile aside, I kept thinking of another oft repeated phrase, "You snooze, you lose." SM certainly kept asking me what was up. I told him nothing, really, but I'm quite sure he knew. I guess I owe him an explanation & perhaps I'll tell him soon, we'll see.

Anyway, last night I invited Xing Fu over for a visit. Upon entering my house he said, "I hope you don't mind if I watch the game--cable isn't hooked up yet." I answered, "So you only like me for my HD-TV?" Game? What game? I am a seriously happy chickie right about now.