I head out to San Diego tomorrow for a work event and have run into panic full-face. It ends up that I have to go into the office tomorrow because a coworker and I are still working on something I’d hoped to finish today. But I also have to go to the bank (which is across town) and to the post office (in the opposite direction. Have I mentioned that I neglected to do laundry last night, which means it’s all sopping wet in the living room right now?

It will come together, as it always does, but it’s all just feeling a bit much right now. So I reacted in my typical over-stressed manner and took a three hour nap. At least I’m well rested for my panic attack right?

What’s a girl to do when she’s freaking out and PMSing? Why take a deep breath and inhale a little zen into her life by looking back at three beautiful things from the past week:

1. I arrive at the pizzeria on my birthday to find a group of friends waiting for me and the pie just coming out of the oven. I keep looking up from my slices to gaze around the table and see how lucky I am.

2. We’ve been watching the Olympics every night and are routinely blown away by the spirit and athleticism of the competitors. From the opening ceremony’s slam poet, orcas, and ice floes to this week’s performances by Johnny Weir, Lindsey Vonn, Shaun White, Torah Bright, Apollo Ohno, and Maelle Ricker, it’s all been a lot of fun. I look forward to another ten days of good tv.

3. I assemble a bouquet of tulips and anemones that I leave on the top of the fridge (safely out of Della’s reach). Every time I pass the kitchen, the flowers have opened slightly more and I just think it can’t get any more lovely. And yet it does.

How about you? What’s been beautiful in your world lately?

Did you know that I have been thinking about snow non-stop since the last time I wrote a three beautiful things post? Well, why stop now? Three beautiful snow-related things on this lovely Thursday night:

1. For essentially a whole week, the entire region ground to a halt. Flakes became inches, which in turn became feet. Metro experienced its slowest days ever. People were home from work. Streets were free of cars. Silence reigned. This is not a town that under normal circumstances likes to slow down, so it was a true pleasure to see its residents forced to have to hang up the dark suits and put on colorful galoshes, whether it be to shovel or to throw snow at one another.

2. Our sidewalks are clear thanks to Rudi’s constant attention through the two storms. And we have twice cleared our car and dug out a path for it to reach the street. When we find cement or pavement, it is cause to celebrate, particularly since the snow banks have grown to the same height as the car’s roof.

3. After an impromptu staycation of four days, the email arrives telling us to come back to work. We are ready. It is time. And isn’t that beautiful indeed?

What’s been beautiful in your world?

It’s Thursday, also known as Snowmageddon Eve. D.C. is now slated to get 16-26 inches of snow between tomorrow morning and Sunday. Very exciting…

(I can say that because I currently have 10 videos and several books out from the library; a kitchen stocked for baking, preparing meals of grilled cheese and tomato soup, and pouring mugs of steaming hot chocolate; and miles of yarn.)

But before the snow arrives, let’s look backwards at three beautiful things from this past week:

1. On my way home from the metro, I spy a man walking his two Old English Sheepdogs. The older one is well groomed, with hair long enough to keep him warm but not so long as to be mistaken for a duster. The young one’s coat hasn’t reached a full winter weight yet and his black hasn’t faded to grey.

2. I stop in to a dairy near my office to buy some cheese for sandwiches during the upcoming Snowmageddon and leave with a container of strawberry yogurt, too. It’s from a Pennsylvania farm and is made with whole milk and may have been the best strawberry yogurt in the history of humankind.

3. I headed to the DMV to finish registering my car on Saturday morning. Although I set the alarm to go off Very Early, I didn’t drag myself out of the house until after 10:30. I wandered to Georgetown through a snowy Rose Park and arrived at the DMV to (not surprisingly) find a crowd. Yet the line at the triage counter was only two people deep and I had a number and a form to fill out within five minutes of arriving. And I hadn’t really even had time to start filling out the form before my number was called. The woman helping me was pleasant, as we chatted about her eleven years on the job. A mere twelve minutes after getting my number (and certainly less than 20 minutes from walking in the door), I was on my way with a fully registered D.C. car. Thanks for a beautiful experience (and one I certainly didn’t expect to be equally as painfree as last week’s ease at the inspection station), D.C. DMV!

So, what’s been beautiful in your world this week?

Thanks for all the great bed-related tips. Rudi and I have read all of them and will definitely use the wisdom you’ve shared.

But since we won’t be buying a bed tonight, instead I’ll share three beautiful things from the past week:

1. Sarah remembered I was very excited about the Library at Alexandria during her trip planning. Over the weekend, a postcard arrives from there. Thanks, Sarah!

2. A nearly full moon lights up an inky sky.

3. As we wander the West Village looking for a lunch spot, I glance across the street and spy a garden behind a wall. We cross the avenue and enter into the park at St. Luke in the Field.

And just because this was too amazing to leave off the list:

4. I fail my car inspection on Tuesday. After some repairs yesterday, I plan to head back today, but am running too late to go before work. And then I miscalculate the closing time of the DMV station (but catch the mistake in the nick of time when it occurs to me to double-check). When I pull up to the building twenty minutes before they lock the gates, I’m able to drive right up to the bay. My car goes through practically faster than I can walk the length of the building’s corridor, the attendant gives me the thumbs up and a smile, and I find myself back at the office within my lunch hour with a pass sticker on my car’s windshield.

What’s been beautiful in your life this week?

Three beautiful things from my week past:

1. Posey is particularly fond of when I leave my Mary Janes lying out. She likes to put her front paws in one and push it around the Burrow like she’s driving a bumper car.

2. In college, the weekend party scene would kick off with what were called TNE’s — Thursday Night Events. Tonight, we reprised that tradition by heading out to watch The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus with Michael and Julia. The movie was a clever fairy tale of a story (a street performer tries to figure out a way of a deal he made with the devil many years earlier with the help of his troupe of outcasts) with memorable performances by Heath Ledger (in his final role), Christopher Plummer (Captain Von Trapp from The Sound of Music), and Tom Waits (who didn’t sing once). I’d recommend seeing it if it’s in a theater nearby.

3. I am knitting with soft green yarn. My yarn and the pattern’s were different, which meant that it took three tries before I was happy with how my project was progressing.

What’s been beautiful in your world this week?

We’re coming up on a three-day weekend and I am ready for it. Here are three beautiful things from the past seven days:

1. A girl in a cloche gets a piggyback ride from a man in a loosely looped scarf.

2. A belated Christmas note elicits a chatty card from an elderly former neighbor.

3. A mom about my age helps her small daughter with mittens. From across the street a large, fuzzy Irish Wolfhound (or a similar dog) stands on his hind legs, drapes his front ones over the front gate, and watches with a smile on his face. I imagine if I hadn’t happened by, he would have asked the woman how her week had been.

How about you? What’s been beautiful in your world this week?