The little things

Yesterday at work I attended a lunch celebrating birthdays from the first quarter of the year. (Be nice. There are 100+ employees. This makes celebrating manageable and actually happen. Plus I got free tasty lunch.) We went around talking about either our best birthday or what we did this year (I told both. That's just the way I roll.) and I mentioned buying myself a potted Lily of the Valley and the nice dinner Clive treated me to and told the story of Mel and Jeremy and The Vance taking me to snow my first birthday out here (which is still, to this day, the best birthday surprise. The bracelet from Jan is probably the best present, but I digress) and said something about missing the seasons and the taste of fall.

"The taste of fall?" queried our second-in-command. He's from California, but several others who clearly come from places where the leaves change colour and fall really is the year wiping down the counters came to my defense. When one of them asked if I missed seasons enough to go back, I said: "Not there. But somewhere with seasons, yes."

There is that saying "Don't sweat the small stuff." I don't know that I agree with that today. Not that I'm a proponent of freaking about every little thing, but the small stuff (the colour of the shadows under a clear blue sky, voices singing in harmony, the feel of something knitted) is what gives substance to life. I want to notice it, let it touch and affect me.

What I don't endorse is the freaking out part. I just wish there were an on/off switch for the panic. Or rather, I wish I could find the 'off' switch. Fine seems to be fully functional.

I've been a week, maybe two, with empty needles. That, I believe, will be changing tonight. I'm feeling the need to make some socks coming strong and fast. There's a certain playwright who I promised socks to a year ago (though I don't think he took me seriously. Which is (of course) a challenge.) and I think once I get one project going the rest will just follow.

But for the moment I'm enjoying the idea of working at my own pace and the feel of the air. You know: the little things.