happenings

it was a good weekend. john and i went to his lake house in panora too meet up with his parents for the day sunday. the weather was definitely not ideal, but it was a great day. we took the boat out on the lake a couple times. it was hoodie and jeans wearing weather on the lake, but it felt great. at about 8 that night, the sun decided to come out and we sat on the deck. it was beautiful.

john has been living in filth for most of the summer, but a couple of weeks ago, we cleaned his kitchen. it's amazing how your environment can change the way you feel. the kitchen has been (nearly) spotless for the last week or so and things have been perfect. it's a little strange, but it's almost like it was a burden hanging over our heads.

i finally cut my hair. it's a very strange thing - i feel so vulnerable and so empowered at the same time. all of my hair is gone, the hair that most people have come to know me by, and i feel so naked. everything feels exposed and i have never felt like this before. on the other hand, though, i feel like such a woman. my new 'do says ' this is me.' i like it.

lollapalooza is looking like a no. this summer hasn't been as profitable as past summers, so my adventures are limited. we're going to chicago labor day weekend for my very first larue weekend, so it looks like that's the next time i'll be traveling out of the state.

my vow.

today, i take a vow of self-improvement (less binging, more activity).

meet & greet.

hi. meet my new nephew mahambi emanuel bonyombe. he's wonderfully precious and adorably tinety.

why, when our limits are pushed and we are completely exhausted, do we say things we don't mean to the people who mean the most to us?

Slow days, but good days.

life is grand.

since high school, my summers have been bogged down by several different jobs, at least 2, if not 3. this summer was looking like that was going to happen again, but fortunately (and unfortunately), it's different. i have 2 jobs right now, but work very few shifts at both. i would definitely like to work more, but i can't complain with some new-found free time. i am looking for a 3rd, as i quit the sanctuary after just 2 shifts there. phew. such a cool place, such lousy energy. i decided to take a stand against the negative energy because i didn't want to surround myself with it...i'm all about positive energy because it really makes a difference. i have since applied at fair grounds (née grounds for dessert), a fair trade, vegan/vegetarian coffee shop downtown. if that doesn't fair, i'll look into applying at joe's place in the fall and will resort to working in a bar yet again. ugh.

there's a new little man in my life...his name is mahambi emanuel bonyombe and he's the toast man's little brother, born tuesday the 12th. he came in weighing a measly 4 lbs. 14 oz., which is a result of being born 3(+) weeks early. prior to his birth day, ultrasounds/checkups were showing that he wasn't moving much, which is obviously a concern, so all parties concerned decided it was best to get him out. thankfully, he's a beautiful, healthy little man (i'll put up some pictures when his dad decides to give my camera back). today is his big brother's 2nd birthday, but sadly, manny will be celebrating in the hospital so the docs can make sure that he's as healthy as he needs to be.

i bought in praise of slowness, by carl honore at prairie lights a while back. i've been reading it here and there, but today, i really delved into it while working on my tan lines. it advocates a slower paced life, one that most of us aren't used to being so exploited by clocks and schedules. it discusses the Slow Movement, a movement that is gaining strength across the globe, advising people that life is something to be enjoyed, that the idea of time is not a finite thing, that time renews itself. i'm not even 100 pages into it yet, but i can see that the Slow life is the life i want to live. all i can say at this point is read the book and be moved. it's one of those.

i guess this is just a summer of love, one to just enjoy life.

newness

so, as i've said before, i'm looking to make a change to my look.
my hair has been my trademark for a while...at least the last 3 years, but as it no longer has a distinguishable style, i think it's time to switch it up.
i can't handle combing it once a week because it hurts too much to comb it more often or pretending that i don't have dreadlocks when, in all reality, i have the fiercest unintentional dreadlocks you will ever come across.
so i'm going to leave all of that behind and get this: