Yes, this is a day late, but that’s because yesterday’s workday extended well into the night and after eating a bowl of chili when I got home, I promptly fell into the sleep of the dead on the couch, not to be roused until the first of the early morning news shows was on. So I post belatedly. Three of the many beautiful things from last week:

1. I depart the office just before sunset. Looking west along I Street, I realize I have reached the clearing at precisely the magic moment of a sunset. You know, the one right before the one you usually catch when you think, “Pretty!” Instead I am struck silent by its utter, soul-cleaning magnificence.

2. I think that when I lived in areas where I was surrounded by lawns and green things that I didn’t notice how much growing plants do every night. But here, where we stuff trees into pocket parks and squeeze gardens into the the two feet between building sidewalk, I look with eager eyes. The first daffodil arrived just before the rains, a harbinger of its relations who took advantage of the pre-spring shower to burst forth en masse Monday morning. The next day it was the green shoots on bushes and a camellia flower. Then an early magnolia tree. And yesterday a tulip puckered up and started applying just the hit of bright pink lipstick. I bet it’s out fully this morning when I head to the metro.

3. My cell phone rings with an unrecognized number. When I tell the woman she’s dialed the wrong number, she replies, “Awww, I’m sorry, honey,” before we say goodbye.

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

I haven’t looked forward to a weekend this much in a while, so I’m really glad it’s Thursday today.

Here are three beautiful things from the last week:

1. I left work early on Friday, which meant I walked home from the Metro during daylight. Along the way I passed blooming snowdrops and croci (crocuses?). It absolutely brightened my foul mood to see the yellow and purple and white flowers.

2. My parents made me handcrafted gifts for my birthday. Mum sewed me a cheery apron based on one of hers that I always use and framed a trio of old photos of us, and Dad made me a mix cd that I’ve listened to every day this week.

3. The start of the work week was warm and sunny, so I ate lunch outside. On Monday I sat in front of the White House and on Tuesday I parked myself outside the Smithsonian National Portrait Gallery. I forget sometimes exactly how cool it is to live and work in D.C.

What’s been beautiful in your world?

Thursday? Really? Come and gone already? Are you sure?

Okay, fine. So that means it’s time to look back at Three Beautiful Things from the past week. In addition to D.C.’s marriage equality bill taking effect (and there’s not much more beautiful than that…), here are three more random moments from the past week:

1. I groused about the hockey final on Sunday and I really didn’t watch any of it even though I was in the house for the final period or so. But I have to say that I was roused from under my iPod headphones by the sheer joy of the Canadian national anthem being sung along to by anyone with even a passing affiliation with the nation. I’m pretty sure that even if Rudi had turned off the tv, I would still have heard it loud and clear, nearly a thousand miles south of the border. Hockey is their sport. It was their Olympics. And it was a fitting conclusion to the event.

2. In areas that were under two feet of snow two weeks ago and still a bit icy last week, I saw green bulbs pushing out of the earth all over this week and pussy willow catkins in one front yard. Sarah found an even more hopeful sign that spring is nearly here with her first crocus of the season.

3. My friend Susan has been miserable at her job for months now. She called up Saturday to say she’d quit and to invite us over for a celebratory dinner. She looked so calm, happy, and relaxed (despite not yet knowing what her future might hold), that it was impossible to believe this decision was anything but the perfect move for her.

What’s been beautiful in your world this week?

We were supposed to head up to Connecticut last weekend, but I drive so infrequently these days that I wimped out at the thought of traversing the mid-Atlantic and southern New England through a significant winter storm. We postponed until this weekend, so will be heading north tomorrow. I’ll try to post from my folks’, but I’m going to see Karen and Marshall and Gramma’s having a birthday, so the blog may remain quiet in lieu of real life.

It’s been a long week (mostly in a good sense) and I’m feeling overwhelmed and exhausted by it. So my three beautiful things may make sense to no one but myself — or maybe they will:

1. The first peek of ocean when coming around a bend in the road is enough to make me feel like a load has been lifted from my shoulders. The hour or so we spend on the beach is my most relaxing in months.

2. D.C. has had a surprisingly chilly, snowy winter. I left home on a day that felt balmy in the lower 40s only to reach the other coast and find it practically tropical in the 60s. On Tuesday I spent much of the day out in the sun with bare arms and legs. In February…

3. My brother’s partner appears to be exactly what I would have picked out for him: sweet, funny, kind, and cute. I’m sure he’s not perfect, but he really does seem like a great guy, and I’m really happy for the two of them.

And because this merits mention, a fourth bonus item:

4. An old friend is the best kind because they know you well enough to call you on your shit, remember your old stories when they were just life, and are willing to stay up late with you when the nothing you thought you had to say turns out to be something after all, even though you both have to be up early the next day. Plus, sometimes they will invite you to bake cookies with them.

What’s been beautiful in your world recently?

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?