Seventeen syllables, No. 34

The amber cat on
Guard atop the gate stands--sits--
Stands--wags tail--lies down.

Onto the autumn haiku. ^_^

Seventeen syllables, No. 33

Lemon-lime soda
Stings my tongue. But moonlight-glazed
Clouds float silently.

The small hours

This week I'm venturing into the small hours again.

I spent every other night of last week awake, without a single drop of sleep while the Sun lurked under the horizon. And today I'm doing it again, this after having been amply reminded of the effects of staying up all night. It was just this last Saturday that I woke up at maybe 8:30 am with an intense throbbing pain in my eyes that wouldn't go away for such amount of time as to almost make me nervous. It was a weird pain: it felt as if my left eye were forcibly jammed into the back of my eye socket and was stuck there, immobilized. Not a pleasant experience... but then again it was an experience that I've never felt before. Never in my earlier exploits with foregoing sleep in years past have I felt that particular pain. I conjecture now that the pain came from my eye muscles which were forced to work overtime that night.

At this point I would counter to myself, "Hey, cut me some slack! I had some things to do." But actually, that's not an issue anymore after maybe about 4:30 am. Because at about that time, if you aren't yet sleeping, that's what you need to be doing. ^_^

I had finally caved in and agreed to teach someone how to play piano. She seems definitely interested, and I am too (I'm really wondering whether I can find a replacement pianist or whether I would earn much money in the process), but the books are yet to get here. I'll have to scrounge around for some books that I used to play from when I was learning piano myself.

I'm going to try and get some sleep now, seeing a how my field of vision is starting to swim slightly, and the edges of my laptop screen start to throb. ^_^

Song in my head: Cyndi Lauper, "Time After Time".
Currently reading: Soseki, The Miner. Partly to enjoy the story, and partly to see whether I should voluntarily withdraw from my Modern Japanese Novel class...

Seventeen syllables, No. 32

Outside my window
Lies a lush, vibrant forest
Twenty inches thick.

Death list three

I was walking with Maggie and Jesse from Bohemia to Colleague, on the left side of the road, in order to watch out for vehicles. Suddenly a burly-looking truck loomed behind us slowly, on the wrong side of the road. There were suddenly three vehicles all around us, and just as quickly the road was empty again.

We looked at each other, and finally I said, "Did someone order a hit on one of us?" Then we cooked up multiple conspiracy theories as to which of us ordered the hit, and which one of us it was on. My favorite theory that came out was that I ordered the hit, and that it was for Elaine, but since Elaine was not walking with us the hit did not go through, and that there was nevertheless a timebomb in my car that, as soon as Jesse realized its existence, I had to deactivate. ^_^

I called it a rehearsal of emotions should one (or more) should suddenly die. It was funny, but at least to me, it was thought-provoking. And hey, seeing Maggie get some fresh air with us that night? That's got to be valuable.

I talked with Serenity earlier today. For once, it was day here, and it was the deep of night in Oz where she is at. ^_^ A reversal of roles... and finally I got her to talk at length about something happening with her! Did I really have to wait this long to hear about her side of the screen for a change?

Good luck, Serenity. In all that you do.

In other news I finally used the pasta machine. Pictures will follow soon.

Thanks for reading, everyone.

Song in my head: Sean Cullen, "Wood, Cheese, and Children".

Seventeen syllables, No. 31

The teacher tells me,
"Where are you in what you do?"
I answered, "I'm at

Day # 8400

Can you imagine?

Thanks for coming to the party. You know who you are. ^_^

Song in my head: Survivor, "Eye of the Tiger".

Seventeen syllables, No. 30

I sped downstairs with
Dry books in hand. But the rain
Reached the pavement first.

Seventeen syllables, No. 29

I can't keep the notes
From leaving the flute. But I
Can keep on playing.

Seventeen syllables, No. 28

Horizon changes--
But not for me--as the plane
Zooms out steadily.

Unofficial withdrawal

Something I hope to never hear again. ^_^

I watched a movie with some friends tonight. Well, actually, there was only one friend--Kim--and the other three I met for the first time tonight. But I guess they are friends at the time of this writing. ^_^ We watched Stardust, and I remember cheering out loud at the part when the main guy finally gets the courage to do what we have been wanting him to do since the beginning of the movie. It took him a week to do it? It took me much longer.

You know, I never would have thought that I would see Kim leave. But in a sense, I guess we all have some sort of idea what life requires of us. And her life requires her to seek new horizons. The way I see it, the horizons are all the same.

I am sleepless again, just one day after the Weekend. I don't ever want to forget what I learned in it, but it is only now that I'm realizing how much I have to go through. When I ended the weekend, I expressed my happiness that I have passed the weekend program. But a staff member asked, "But are you ready for what's out there?" He moved away before I can say my answer out loud: "That question will take a lifetime to answer."

I am sleepless again. I am really confused... it is like I want to break down and cry, but I can't. There's no macho upper lip reason behind it, either. Because really, what is the use? I can't cry because I don't think my problem is solvable by me alone. So what do I do? I've been sitting in one place, silently, staring at my wall, or my window, or my ceiling. It was good that I found something to do: finally place all my loose notes from the semester so far into their own notebooks. Nothing is as therapeutic as order.

I can't believe that tomorrow I'm going to the store to pick something out to send Kim off with.

I can't think.

Song in my head: Survivor, "The Search is Over".