News Trend Coincidence|Actual

"Coincidence is God's way of remaining anonymous." - Albert Einstein

This week, I stumbled upon a book left lying around the house by my second-born, and soon fell fast and deep into the story.

During a time of frustration and pain in her own life, a teenage girl loses her dearly beloved uncle. As she grieves, she must come to terms with the new knowledge that her uncle was gay, and died from AIDS. Making peace with his lover is a critical step as she rebuilds relationships with her family.

[Tell The Wolves I'm Home by Carol Rifka Brunt]

Last night, my husband scrolled through a list of movie ideas, and randomly chose one for us to watch. I was riveted.

During a season of stalled growth in his own life, a thirty-something man loses his dearly beloved father. As he grieves, he must come to terms with the fact that four years before his death, at age 75, his father came out as a life-long gay, and died with his new lover at his side. Making peace with his father's partner is a critical step as he works to establish a relationship with a new woman in his life.

[Beginners written and directed by Mike Mills]

* * * * *

Well. Cue the thunder bolts, electrical jolts and epic floods.

Because I can see that these plot lines share more than a passing similarity.

And the emotions that I felt as each story unwound

my fondness for the main characters,

my sympathetic pain and confusion for their struggles,

my shifty discomfort that the endings left things far from truly resolved,

were spot-on the same. I feel as if I'd strapped into two seemingly unrelated roller coasters and ended up taking the exact same ride

God often lays for me a trail of bread crumbs like this one. I know without a doubt that I'm supposed to pay attention and learn something from this pair of matching stories, this highly specific coincidence.

But I haven't figured out yet what that might be.

I have no severely ill or recently deceased male relatives.

I'm seriously lacking in father figures altogether.

No recently outed gays in my life.

Ditto that on any loved ones' partners whom I might be challenged to love and accept.

So, without any obvious parallels in my life, I have a bit of a mystery on my hands.

In the next few days, I'll be mulling over this puzzle.

I'll go back to each story, rereading passages and rewatching key scenes.

I'll daydream about each story makes me feel and what buttons each one pushes within me.

And I'll probably end up asking God to make his point a bit more clear. Sometimes I need extra help to catch on.

But one thing I know for sure: whenever I experience a coincidence like this one, the real truth is that it is no coincidence at all.

News Trend Twenty Years |Actual

Twenty years ago, we DIYed these little shelves into an alcove in our master bathroom.

And for the next nineteen and a half years, they drove me insane.

Well. That's not fair. I can only blame myself for the ongoing tides of flotsam and jetsam that drifted across their unsuspecting pine planks.

Too easily did I just stash ordinary things here, neglecting to bring beauty to this space.

Too long did I make other areas of the house a priority  and ignored this private corner of the house rarely seen by anyone outside the immediate family.

Too many times did I use the excuse of money to deny myself some much-needed change.

A few months back, I finally snapped.

My inner stylist demanded that we stop the madness and do this space up right.

My inner therapist insisted that I should do this for myself, even if no one else saw it.

My inner financier siphoned a hundred bucks out of the grocery account and felt no shame.

Then we all got busy and here's what we came up with.

Towels

I used to jam bath towels onto these slim shelves, but I finally realized that hand towels were a much better fit. I spoiled myself with two new sets.

Candles

Every busy woman on the planet fantasizes about ending the day with a long, leisurely bubble bath surrounded by glowing candles. Well. I am not a fan of soaking myself but I love me a candlelit shower. And on the nights when I forget to light a candle, I just enjoy seeing them sitting their on their shelf, all white and clean and fresh.

Plants

Let's be honest. My little philodendron hates his life in this shadowy corner, and much prefers when I take him on holiday to a sunnier room. He comes back now and then to visit his friends on the shelf, but we've all come to accept that his time here is limited.

Trays

I used to tell myself that trays are essential organizers and I need them for functional purposes. That, however, is a bald faced lie. I will now proudly admit that I buy trays because I like the way they look, even though I could just as easily set my bottle and jars directly on the shelf.

Geometric Thingy

I'm obsessed with metal geometric sculptures and they pop up all over my house. I'm also obsessed with spray painting them on a whim, and this one's recent reincarnation in white makes me happy.

Polka Dot Dish

It's  white. And square. And just the right amount of little. And covered with gold polka dots, too? When my eyes fell on this gem, I knew I had to buy it and was forced to invent a use for it on the spot. Hair bands and bobby pins deserve a home of their own and I feel no remorse whatsoever,

A Word About Labels

Call me neurotic, but after purifying my soul with these newly styled shelves, I was not about to pollute my creation with brightly colored, text-saturated plastic bottles and jars. But my inner realist scoffed at the idea of repackaging my toiletries into generic containers; I may wish I had the discipline to squirt my new bottles of lotion into a silvery dispenser, but I know perfectly well that I do not. So I've come up with a compromise: I buy products in white or clear packaging, and peel off the labels, leaving me with satisfactorily neutral containers to live on my shelves.

* * * * *

It's been five months since my shelves transformed and I'm happier than ever with how the project turned out.

I love this little corner of calming white.

I smile to myself every morning as I stumble into the bathroom to start my day.

And I'm pretty sure that no one even noticed the budget meals I slid onto the table during the pay period of my purchases.

In fact, my only regret about styling up my bathroom shelves is that it took me two decades to get round to making it happen.

plant | home depot

plant container | ikea

chevron towels | cost plus world market

plain towels | target

candles | target

marble tray | bed, bath & beyond

white tray | nate berkus for target

geometric sculpture | hobby lobby, painted white

polka dot dish (similar) | hobby lobby

News Trend Baby Blue Baseball Skies|Actual

Play ball!

I caught a couple games of the Seattle Mariners' series with the Texas Rangers this week.

I know. It's only April, a bit early for a civilized outing to the ball park, especially up here in the soggy Pacific Northwest. But when my daughter's favorite team comes to town, we go, no matter what.

And anyway, t's a well-documented fact that I love me some major league baseball.

The long-standing rivalries between the clubs

The slow, lyrical pacing of a leisurely game.

The sudden bursts of adrenaline from a home run or a double play

The sustained rally of an inning full of solid base hits and strong base running.

The always-present suspense of knowing that with each pitch of the ball, anything might happen.

I'm also a huge fan of the baseball culture:

Honoring our country before the first pitch.

Filling in my score card.

Listening to the vendors hawk their wares

Singing my heart out during the seventh inning stretch

And oh my gosh, the smell of those garlic fries is pure heaven.

But I must confess that on top of all those sports-specific pleasantries, I may most appreciate the simple joy of spending a few hours sitting outside under a baby blue summer sky.

Or in the case of this week, a sunny but shockingly chilly mid-spring sky.

Monday night's game was rough - despite my hat, mittens, boots, and layers of sweaters, I shivered through the game.

Tuesday was even colder. At forty-eight degrees, the air hung heavy and cold, damp from the day's rain. Luckily, I was prepared. Wrapping myself up like a burrito in a fleecy blanket, I managed to stayed warm as toast for all nine innings.

And best of all, on both nights, after the game had ended and I was home tucked in bed, I slept with the wonderful weariness that only comes from spending hours in the fresh air.

Magical things happen under those baby blue ballpark skies and my summer baseball mojo is off to a great start.

* * * * *

For more stories about baseball, check out:

Take Me Out To The Crowd

Buy Me Some Peanuts And Cracker Jack

As American As Apple Pie

#yolo

Face-Off

Safeco Sunday

News Trend Uncontrollable|Actual

Some years, spring comes wandering in like a dawdling child.

Slowly

Cautiously

Taking her own sweet time

And no matter how excited you are to see her, or impatient you might be to have her bloom into her full glory, you just have to let spring happen when she is good and ready.

Then there are other years, when the opposite is true.

When you are still comfortable with grey skies, tumbling clouds, sweater weather and only a tiny hint of change in the air, she rushes in, all posies and tree buds and pink-cheeked toddlers playing outside after their naps.

And BAM.

Whether you are ready or not, spring arrives. She can be quite bossy like that.

This spring, for me, has been the pushy kind. I would be happy to wear my boots and cable knits for a few more weeks, but oh no. Today, I had no choice but to break out my sandals, throw open all the windows, and take a nap on the grass in my backyard

I can't control Sirius either. But he is not putting up much of a fight on this warm spring afternoon.

Spring, I can't control you. And that's just as well

Because you are a very good reminder that this life is not meant to be controlled at all.

News Trend Perfect|Actual

Ranger and I see eye-to-eye on the ideal conditions for our daily walk.

A cool fifty-five degrees with a light mist falling.

Not only do we feel invigorated and refreshed in the brisk air, but the rain keeps most everyone else inside.

We love having the streets to ourselves.

And though Ranger and I definitely enjoy our outing in very different ways, we can both agree that today's walk was perfect.

News Trend For Now|Actual

Last week, I bought a set of coasters for my family room.

They were nice coasters. From the moment I saw them, I loved their

round shapes

wooden tones

and dip-dyed shades of turquoise and coral.

For a reasonable price, I snapped them up, brought them home, spread them around my coffee table, and felt perfect peace.

Oh, what's that you say? You don't see any shades of blue or red in these photos?

Yes. That's because I have a serious masalah with leaving well enough alone.

Somewhere along the recent way, I've tossed my lifelong obsession with bold color aside and decided that shades of black, white and grey are my new thing.

And within just a few hours of bringing these unsuspecting angels into my home and momentarily enjoying their bright coastal hues, I couldn't handle myself anymore.

Craving some delicious Scandinavian black and white minimalism, I dragged these innocent discs out into my rainy backyard where I attacked them with masking tape, various cans of paint and a passion for reforming them in my new image.

Now we are all living together in monochromatic heaven and I couldn't be any happier.

At least for now.

Acacia wood coasters sasaran

side table target

jade plant

News Trend Life Of A Math Teacher: Sharing Life|Actual

* * * * *

Today I found in one of my feeds this beautiful image and thoughtful message.

Though I would have found them meaningful under any circumstances, I was especially touched when I saw that they were posted by my former student, Tori.

I've known Tori since she was a sweet little ninth-grader, just back in the United States after living abroad with her family for five years, and definitely acclimating to the American high school culture.

Soon she became my student and we studied algebra together for several years. Because of the unique path I walk with homeschooled students, our connection has grown and deepened over the years. I've continued to work with her younger siblings as she headed off to college; we keep up with one another's news and see each other from time to time. From my special vantage point, I've enjoyed the privilege of watching her grow into her life as a sensitive, responsible, interesting young adult.

So thank you, Tori, for reminding me of the gifts of our planet on this Earth Day. And thank you too, for reminding me of how lucky I am to share life with all my wonderful students, including you!

* * * * *

Read more stories about my life as a math teacher:

Social Distancing

Playing With A Full Deck

The (Math) Joke's On Me

Sharing Life

Little Brothers

Sweet Inspiration

My Hero

What I Do

Number 15

Christmas Edition

tiga.1415926

Buy It And Burn It

In Honor Of James K. Polk

House Tours

My Deep Gladness

Isolating The Radical

By The Numbers

Teaching My Own: High School Art And Algebra