SF countdown

I'm madly trying to finish all my work before I head off to the Bay Area for some quality time with friends, poetry, food, and plenty of MLA conference sadomasochism. I'm going to try and stay away from the actual conference and instead just go to the readings and other events in and around the conference. It's possible that one day I will have to attend and interview for a job at MLA, one day, but I'm in no rush. My work life is sustainable and tolerable, even in this economy.

But in between work this weekend, I've been doing plenty of yoga, dancing, and hooping. Tomorrow is the winter solstice here, but I've been thinking about my sisters in Adelaide, and how they're in the middle of the lightest time of year, not the darkest. Not that it's especially dark here in San Diego. Winter is my favorite time of year here. There's fewer tourists, and the weather is like the best kind of autumn day back east. This afternoon I saw migrating whales off shore at Swami's in Encinitas. I'd still trade all this beauty for a viable life in a city with a vibrant international art community, but I don't dislike my life here.

I arrived at Swami's late, so the class was more or less over, but Michelle and I played around for almost three hours. After the hoop jam, I watched the sunset (and the whales, dolphins, cormorants, and pelicans). There was an elderly couple hanging out with a very elderly woman in a wheelchair--either the woman or the man's mother. They kept joking with the woman in the wheelchair, asking her if she was warm enough, and telling her that eventually they would throw her into the water where she would be "nice and cool." This all seemed rather horrific and cruel, except that the very elderly woman/mother thought it was hilarious.

Tomorrow, more grading, web stuff, cleaning, yoga, and hooping.