Philadelphia Story

I spent the better part of my day in the city perhaps best described as the more respected cousin of Baltimore. My company has satellite offices in Philadelphia, and I and a colleague went to do some field work. It was a successful, pretty stress-free visit on all counts, and I had some interesting conversation with the woman who accompanied me. You never know how these work trips are going to be, but it wasn't awkward at all.

Literary Salon

Last night was the first gathering of the women with whom I was in poetry workshop this past semester. We decided to keep meeting, on a monthly basis, to share our work and benefit from each other's insight. I drank two glasses of wine and admired the hostesses 3 cats--Maynard, Pooka, and Zorro the Gay Blade (I am not making this up).

The Salon

Being in desperate need of a relaxer and a trim, this visit to my stylist could not have come soon enough. Tomorrow at 1:30 I put myself into her cabable hands for the transformation.

No Right or Wrong

At my mother's urging, and after thinking it over, I sent G a brief e-mail wishing him well and inquiring about his new year. My mother has told me several times that she believed he was under the impression that I did not wish to speak to him. Yesterday was probably the 5th time she'd mentioned that to me, and I started to wonder... "am I being stubborn?" In any case, it suddenly felt counterintuitive not to e-mail him, so I did. He's written back, and from what I can tell, he doesn't seem to have been terribly bothered by any of it. I did not mention our pronounced hiatus from communicating and neither did he. I'm relieved to be able to file it away as something that doesn't need futher pondering--and it's nice to know where things stand and what is reasonable to expect.

If he ever hurts my feelings again, it will be something of a feat, because I can't imagine that I'd be inclined to extend myself much in his direction... and if I did, my expectations are so very changed, that I don't know if I am capable of being disappointed in him anymore. I was asked this morning by a couple of friends if it bothered me that he didn't even mention the incident,and I could say truthfully that it didn't, because now I know that it's not the character of our association to be able to talk through difficult matters.

Life is so strange. Because I mean everything I said above, and yet, I missed him terribly for the last month and a half.