I’m queuing this a bit early, so it does not reflect the most recent events. Therefore, three beautiful things from earlier in the week:

1. Suzanne is getting married. I’m so excited for her.

2. We pass a small girl who is bubbling over with laughter. I look at Rudi who smilingly asks me if “laughing girl” will be in this week’s list of beauty. Indeed.

3. At our company picnic, they have organized a volleyball tournament. We have several players on our team who have played before and we occasionally succeed in getting three controlled hits on our side before sending it over the net. As a front row player, I admit that I’d never understood the joy of a well-handled bump before, but it really is beautiful when the rest of the action is dictated by such an understated play.

PS: Posey is sitting on my lap as I type this and staring at something intently on the desk. Since I can’t see any bugs and since she often relies on her good looks to get by, I try to figure out what she’s watching. She shifts away from my hand as I block her line of sight and eventually I realize that she’s watching the upside-down reflection of us (and my hand) in the mirror in the center of my computer speaker. Tee hee.

If it’s Thursday, it’s time to look back on some beautiful things from the past week. Here are three from my weekend:

1. It is 95 degrees on Saturday and Shelley’s children are in their bathing suits playing with the hose and with water balloons. We spend the latter part of the evening around a campfire in their backyard, and Irisa, still in her bikini, curls up in my lap.

2. Mum makes apple crisp for Dad’s birthday. Usually pie is Gramma’s domain, but for Dad, Mum demands sole baking rights. The pie is chock-full of tasty apples and the crumbly topping is sweet and cinnamon-y.

3. I sleep in over the weekend, which means I miss the normal morning chats Dad and I have over breakfast preparations. So when Mum heads up to bed at midnight on Sunday, Dad stays downstairs to chat over cups of tea.

Anything beautiful going on in your life this week?

I bet you were starting to think I’d forgotten…

But, no. Three beautiful things from my past week:

1. A couple is cuddling on the stairs to nowhere by the Hinckley Hilton tennis court in broad daylight.

2. Posey lies on the floor, her body and head hidden under the drape of a dress that needs to be hung up in the closet. Her front legs stretch in front of her, crossed at the paws.

3. Yesterday was my friend Amani’s birthday and she opted for a more low-key celebratory lunch in rather than out. Sarah baked peach cobbler and I bought ice cream, but Amani outdid herself as the birthday girl, offering up homemade brownies and cupcakes.

Oh yes! Remember a couple weeks ago when I mentioned a new resident of our garden plot? Well, he’s continued growing and Rudi captured a few shots of him this week.

I’m just in sad shape here: Clearly my brain is no longer attached to my body. In my head, I make up a list of beautiful things as the week goes on. Sure, things periodically get forgotten or fall off the list, but not usually the important ones. Yet this week, I’ve missed two.

The last was the previous item. The other was that my friend Shelley got an interview request for med school! Shelley has been talking about becoming a doctor since before I moved down to D.C. and has actively taking classes for the last several years. She took the MCAT at the beginning of the summer, struggled through essay writing for months, and two weeks ago hit the submit button on the last of her applications. Getting an interview for med school is kind of like getting a job interview; it doesn’t guarantee you’ll get the job, but it signals that you’re in the running. I’m really excited about this new beautiful part of Shelley’s life.

Because my fall allergies have kicked in, my head is full of goo again and I’m not thinking clearly. That is the only reason that in my earlier beautiful things tv beat out a baby.

Bonus Beautiful Things: poop

My coworker brought her three year old and her month-old baby in to the office earlier this week. I arrived later than she did, but still got to spend some time with them. Ally showed me her tiny purple Crocs and told me about elephant poop. Jack lay in my arms and held my finger and pooped in his diaper.

Three beautiful things from the past week:

1. Heroes began its second season on Monday. It was such a relief to discover that the writers had not slacked off over the summer.

2. The anticipation of the fall tv season is palpable. People ask if you’re planning to watch any premieres and recommend ones they think will be good. And old shows return after time away. Journeyman will live to see a second episode, but Back to You got turned off midshow. We will pull Chuck up on the computer this weekend and Pushing Daisies intrigues. The water cooler gabfest is a lot of fun; feel free to participate around a virtual one in the comments section.

3. I had a grumpy night earlier in the week and couldn’t figure out how to right it. So I pulled out The Ballet Shoes and curled up in the rocking chair when Rudi went to bed. Before I knew it, I’d been sucked simultaneously into 1930s London and into my own second grade year when I first read the story. It’s hard to stay grumpy when that happens.