PROGRESS AND TEMPTATION

14 of #100daychallenge

I think it was Dickinson's sister, Lavinia, who was the cat person. I think Emily was more into dogs.

Enjoying some gins-and-tonics as I put away books and rewatch all three seasons of The Handmaid's Tale. I am close to getting to watch the new season, and, of course, am tempted (especially after the gs&ts) to watch through the night. I know I would regret that.

Not really that much to report. Karen, Patty, and I had a delish breakfast and a good gossip. Karen and I did some house-looking in Long Beach, strictly drive-by, and a soupçon of thrift shopping. I found this cool, I think old, vase that has a flapper version of Diana. How cool is that. The day does go by. I had a long talk with LC while I worked on the library and really not much else happened today.  

The library still looks like a screaming mess, but I can see parts of the floor again and the shelves are almost full. There is a strong temptation to start some project now that my crafty supplies and books are much more at hand. I moved all the vases into the case so I had better access. 

CHEMISE

What would the self

disrobed look like,

the form undraped?

There is a flimsy cloth

we can’t take off—

some last chemise

we can’t escape—

a hope more intimate

than paint

to please.

ATTENTION

As strong as

the suction cups

on the octopus

are the valves

of the attention.

If threatened

or pulled off

they leave welts

and pink rings

but also

can unstick

unfelt

from things.

— Kay Ryan, The Best of It: New and Selected Poems, Grove Press, New York 2010

My friend D. Matthew Smith used to say, "If I could find the zipper on this monkey suit, I'd climb out of it." I have felt that way many times in my life. Not terribly much right now.