Things February

February.  Crocus.  

The image to imagine is the crocus and the snow:

I think of this illustration:

But there is more to February than birthdays and crocuses and presidents and sweethearts and Mardi Gras and groundhogs.  I am, of course, referring to its flexibility and versatile cardinality in its number of days.  Not only is it a month by itself in length of days, but it is also by itself by having no single number of days.

And I'm glad there's an extra day, because it just feels like we need that adjustment in our yearly revolution around Sol our star.  Like we're getting a little ahead of ourselves--let's hold off on advancing to that 60th day of the year.

Asher Lev

"How much can I care about Jewish life in New England circa 1940s?"  This is generally how I feel when I start trying to read a Philip Roth book, which is just what I was going through last year, and I expressed just that sentiment to Bonnie.  But his year aren't I singing a different tune.  I just got done with My Name is Asher Lev, which deals in part with Jewish life in New England in the 1940s.  Fascinating.  And I know I would probably appreciate the Roth books if I made it through them--but so far his work goes down as the prize winning stories I can't seem to finish.

Anyway, I'm looking for more Asher Lev.  Chaim Potok, the author, whose birth date was yesterday, wrote a sequel, and he also wrote other books I am interested in reading now.  He also lived in Korea for a while.

We are in Louisiana now, eating boiled shrimp, pulled pork po boys (this is the non-vegan part of my diet) and watching the eagle cam.

Head Spin

Oh Google.  You've done it again with your Valentine's doodle.  And really, this must be the greatest day, for it has brought forth such marvels.  Like my wife Bonnie, who is so marvelous it will make your head spin.

When I was a graduate student at LSU, I caught a Japanese name on my roster.  And it wasn't a first name, but a Japanese middle name.  So I thought, aha, someone with ancestry of  心 and 修.  And I saw that with a first name like Bonnie and a last name like Bourg (I was pronouncing it to myself like the Star Trek pseudo-race), I was at once fascinated.

Then I saw this Bonnie in my class.  And it wasn't exactly the Bonnie of today, but a thinner younger version with a styled zebra hairdo and a navy styled purse/booksack.  And when she spoke, out came this speech which hid no morsel of the Japanese language at all.  I continued to be intrigued.

And then, of course, Bonnie was the best student, and she brought me a gift of grapefruit, and we talked after class and at tutorials sometimes.  For those of you who know the story, you know that although there were sparks of intrigue and fascination, no romance lit up in those days.  Another turn around the sun was to pass before our time was to come.

And come it did.  Because one day I decided I needed to meet more people like me--a green boy in a red state.  So I found out about a local meeting of Greenies.  And I went.  And I met another Bourg.  Who could not be related to the other Bourg I knew--but of course, she was.  And it gave me a great chance to look up Bonnie, email her, and invite her to what else but a meeting of politically concerned citizens.

From there it was a hop, skip, and a jump into dating.  And from there it was a stone's throw into talking about marriage, since Bonnie fit the stringent criteria one should have for a mate.  And then there was a trip together to and around Idaho, over the meadow and through the woods.

When we returned to Louisiana, it looked like the end for us, however, as we grew bickery and bothered and decided to split ways.  However, in a twist of fate not unlike God sending manna for the early Hebrews, our relationship was salvaged when we found out a new life was formed.

And salvaged it was!  Because we got married right away, and what a wonderful marriage it has been.  At least for me.  Poor Bonnie, on the other hand has endured the junk parts that God welded her to.  But she does so with such grace.  And the wonderful children we have borne has increased our blessings in an incredible way.  Thank you Bonnie!  Happy Birthday and Happy Valentine's Day!

3s, Fs, and other things

First, the numbers.  It should be noted that today, the 34th day of the year, is the last day that I will be 33.  Yesterday deserves mentioning because it was the 33rd day of the year, and on this year and every leap year there are 333 days remaining on that day.  So even though it was 2/2/12 it was really a day of threes.  Especially for 33 year old me.  A year and a day away will be by golden birthday again, for it will be the 35th day of that year, and I will be turning 35, godwilling that I shall live another year and a day.  But today is a day of Fs, for it is a fantastic Friday in February, and the only change to make it effier would be if it were Friday, February fourth.  For now, let us forego frivolities and field more fitting affairs:

We've been going to Wednesday church activity nights for the past year or so.  Before we would frequent these when available, going to Lenten soup suppers or other series.  Well, the current series is a nice 5 month commitment of reading the bible narrative as The Story.  It is a pleasant way to read it, and we're in a cozy group of eight plus discussing, these days, the allegience of Ruth to Naomi and Naomi to her people and her people sometimes to God and sometimes not.  Et cetera.  The church we've been going to, St Dunstan's Episcopal Church, has been one of the greatest things about our life in Texas.

Of course, friends and family also factor vastly in our life quality, and that goes for those of you far and near, thanks to telecommunications, the Internet, and brainwaves.

Our little family is like this.  There is me, husband, father, teacher, and dreamer.  There is Bonnie, mother, wife, homemaker, craft doer, and dreamer.  And there are our three little ones, dreamers all.  What are we dreaming about these days?  Maybe taking a drive to Alaska in our new 12 year old van Pearl.

Orry is ahead of his expected cognitive development, and faring well with mom in homeschool, where we are using curriculum guides we have found and some workbooks and other materials to put together material that is stimulating and enjoyable for him.  

Isaac made some leaps and bounds this past month in his language and articulation of ideas and expressing himself.  He is also growing well and is really a little helper around the house.  We await more lab results regarding his IBD and things are looking pretty good for now... no new news, which is good news.  So far we are pretty pleased with the results of his brainwave optimization treatments, but we don't know yet to what extent.

Annie continues to grow and learn.  She can really throw a tantrum, but more often than not she's a little angel.

Have a wonderful weekend!