Warning: some hard stuff news stories.

Monday night.

Thinking about a lot of things. Thinking about this. And this. And this book. A lot because Onleilove and I want to make chapel for people who have experienced sexual trauma. We want to scream and make safe space to break things. We both think lighting candles (which Christians do for everything) is insufficient to the threat, and to the lived reality, of a lot of bodies.

Went to the Long Island wedding yesterday of Kenny B and Ally. A couple beautiful moments. The best photobooth pics ever. Hanging out with Jeremy and Emily. Talking to Allison's dad, who had gone to see her burlesque show (eep!), and who was so very very proud of her "for being so confident in her own skin...I see so many brides get married here, and some of them are just so uncomfortable. I'm proud of her, out there with her red dress and her tattoos." Hava Nagila. More food than H. and I had maybe ever seen in one place. Crazy dancing. (Side note: after 2 hour yoga Sunday morning and hours of walking and trains and dancing in 4 inch heels, my legs are totally shot). Lots of laughter on the LIRR.

I am up writing an analysis of a 15-minute lecture I delivered last week in my pedagogy class about thinking about gender in the church. I'm sick (I kept pushing it off and today it came back and bit me), and I'm not thinking well, although the experience was pretty big. Something will get written.

I'm falling in love with Dan Bern all over again. Especially this song. It's important for me to remember faith, past belief.

Can I just say how much I love my best friend? A TON. I've been thinking a lot lately about how important it is for me to have a best friend, finally, after so many years. I have a complete wealth of good friends right now in my life, for which I am thankful and bewildered (what did I do to deserve these fan-TAS-tic people in my life?). I am also experiencing a real lack of babies. For the past 10 years, I've been taking care of someone's bubs, and now there is a lack of baths and bubbles and little crackers and naps and warm heads and snuggling and laughing hysterically. It's a big place of emptiness, although when baby Grace left last year, I got so lonely for Jane and Ben and Alice and Bea that I knew I couldn't keep doing that kind of loss again and again. It's an interesting void that I will be living with for a while.

Must continue to write paper. For real. Kisses.