a few things:

1. god bless gene roddenberry.

2. god bless my little red rice cooker.

3. god bless my korean ancestry.

4. i'm watching this human body special on the discovery channel and the miraculousness of the human body is overwhelming. and i've only watched the part on eyes!!!! optical illusions get me panicky.

5. i mostly like the word panicky because of the spelling. so sue me.

6. one of the things i appreciate about virginia beach is the decent ratio of cloudy days to clear. i love clouds - big and small, stormy or benign, i love 'em all - but i also love a good ol' clear blue sky from time to time. you understand. there's a nice balance here.

7. sometimes i like feeling close to the earth. i like looking up at the sky and seeing trees in my peripheral; i'm comforted by the knowledge that their roots have a strong hold in the ground i stand on, you know? i feel enveloped, protected. but when you have a sense of the snugness, you sacrifice the horizon. if you're surrounded by trees you can't see where the sky meets the Earth.

8. this is one thing i feel i need in my life: horizon. but i need it in doses, cycles, periods of years. i miss the desert and it's been too long since i've felt that surge in my heart -- it's like there's a little space in my chest where i keep a vial of pure desert air and it seeps into my blood throughout the years, supplements me. i need to refill it, recharge it, kick things up again. 

9. oh autumn i'm so glad you're here. i can't wait to use the fireplace again.