Monday morning, 9:18


Much to get done today, but I'm dragging.

Restless night. Went to see The Dark Knight,
and I have to say I wasn't that wowed with it--
something Wes just can't understand as he was so
sure I would find it as good as he did. He went with
his dad and I last night, even though he saw the midnight
screening the day before it opened.

Was Heath Ledgers performance good? Yes. Did I think it was worthy
of an Oscar nomination. No. I thought Jack Nicholson
was a more interesting joker. If any of the characters
had to really dig deep inside of themselves, I would say
it had to have been Batman and Two-Face. Hell, maybe
I'm just getting old and the thrill is gone for me for action-
adventure films. I think that is what most disturbs Wes
about my choice of films lately--they indicate to him that his
ma is just not as much fun anymore--and he's right.

I rented the Spiderwick Chronicles, A Mighty Heart, and
The Music Within. Finished with the first two. A Mighty
Heart was a well-done film. The story is heartbreaking,
but the movie is not maudlin and does not dwell on the pain
associated with the loss of Daniel Pearl. I need to watch the
last one and get the movies back by Wed.

Finished reading Animal Farm and am now reading some
Annie Proulx short stories. I like her, but I'm not wowed--
like my mom is--by her work. Does she do an excellent job
of describing the landscape and the characters? Absolutely.
But I think I'm going to read some Pilgrim at Tinker Creek
some time today. I want more Annie Dillard.

Been struggling (I say that so often it has become cliche).
Between friends with bad news, my worry for my sister,
and some other personal issues, I feel rather beaten down.

I am hopeful that this trip I am going on will help.

A friend of mine's mother has a condo on Hilton Head
Island, and she has invited me to come for the week.
Leaving Thursday. Daughter is going with me, so we'll
split gas costs and everyone will buy food. We all love
to cook, and my friend is quite an extraordinary cook
(and I'm not such a bad cook myself) , so I'm looking
forward to the friendship, good food, some good wine,
the ocean--oh my, yes, the ocean. Looking forward
to interesting conversations. This friend has her MA
in English, she's radical as hell, and she's f'ing brilliant,
so it makes for some interesting times. I need to go,
but the fatigue I'm feeling is telling me to stay home.

F the fatigue. It's a 10 hour drive, and we're not leaving
until 3 or so (have to wait for daughter to get off work),
so we'll leave Nashville around 3-3:30, I guess. Then
it's I 24 to I 75 to I 16. I've never taken 16, but the other
roads I know quite well.

Poison ivy is travelling. It is now on my inner thigh
on my right leg and on the back of my left leg from
mid-calf to mid-thigh. I still have the other places
as well. I guess the only way I'm not going to get it
is to stop working in my yard. I just can't seem to avoid
it. I look carefully, or at least I think I do, and then,
bam, there it is. Oh well. I know I can't just stop
working in my yard.

I enjoy my gardens and have plans for adding more
to them, but it costs a great deal to garden, so I'm not
making great progress. I am thrilled that my Impressionist
climbing rose bush I bought last summer is now at least
5 ft tall. It has the loveliest blooms. The buds look
magenta when they first appear on the stems, but
as they start to open, they turn a reddish-orange,
and then as they open more, the center is yellow
with bands of magenta and reddish-orange toward the
bottom. I placed it next to the trellis that leads into
my father's garden, and I think it's going to be lovely
as it starts to climb the trellis. My wisteria is still
blooming, which surprises me. The garden phlox
is lovely, as are the speedwell and stella d'oros. It's
all pretty to look at. It's all a great deal of work.

But it's worth it, even if I have to put up with poisin
ivy now and then.

Have a meeting today about a job. Actually meeting with
a friend who is a supervisor to discuss some of the problems
I am encountering in my job search. I think she'll be some help.

I finally started stripping some more wallpaper off the hallway
walls yesterday. Think I'll get back to that now before
I talk myself out of it.