Rudi and I head off to our college reunion tomorrow. I suppose that means I should think about packing, but before I do, I have some time to share three beautiful things from the week past:

1. On the way home from the garden tonight just at twilight I notice the first lightning bugs of the season dancing by the blackberry bush along the fence.

2. Rudi and I pick strawberries and sour cherries at a local farm on Monday, then head by the garden where we pick more strawberries from our own plants and the first of the shelling peas. Tonight, I pick another pound of strawberries and more peas and notice the first tomatoes and peppers on the plants.

3. I have never devoted a post to the wonders that are the salty oat cookies, served locally by Teaism (by baked up in Massachusetts), but that’s clearly been an oversight. I walked in last weekend for a lassi and a cookie to discover a new salty oat sibling had joined the family (one with raisins and the other a chocolate chocolate chip variety heretofore). The new cookie is an oatmeal cookie with chocolate chunks and pecans in it, topped with salt. Utterly divine. (Apologies to the D.C. readers who now must make Teaism a stop tomorrow…)

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

It’s been a kind of up and down week, but I think the ups are winning. Here are three of the beautiful moments from the past week:

1. On Monday afternoon, I skipped out of work early to catch author Michael Scott’s appearance up at Politics & Prose. Although I missed his talk and reading, I did catch most of the q&a, where he answered kids’ questions about The Secrets of the Immortal Nicholas Flamel series. With his lilting Irish accent and quiet demeanor, he gave thoughtful replies to questions ranging from how to become an author (read all sorts of books, write every day, know most of your early writing will be terrible, force yourself to finish, and find a comfortable chair because you’re going to be sitting an awful lot) to the origins of some of his lesser known mythologically based characters (he draws from South America and Ireland, as well as more traditional Latin, Greek, Norse, and Egyptian sources). When the bookstore employee tasked with keeping him on schedule so he wouldn’t miss his train back to New York shut down the question period, Michael encouraged anyone who hadn’t had a chance to ask something to bring it up when they got their book signed. He chatted with everyone in line and seemed to remember several fans from previous visits, including an excited teenage football player. (And, yes, I do have a shiny (literally), signed copy of The Warlock to read this weekend when Rudi’s off on his cycling holiday.)

2. Passing through a dark park with a mirror-like reflecting pool, Rudi realizes the last duck at the sidewalk’s edge is perched over her fluffy baby ducklings, keeping them safe from predators and chatty pedestrians. The ducklings want to know why their sleep is being disturbed, so after a few minutes of night birdwatching, we move along.

3. A baby new to walking has squeakers in her shoes, so she beeps with every rapid, toddling step she takes on the sidewalk.

And this was so crazily beautiful it needed the distinction of being a rare fourth beautiful thing:

4. As I mentioned on Monday, last night we went to DAR Constitution Hall to see Paul Simon perform. What a joyful show! The band worked well together, the show as a whole had what I think of as an upbeat New Orleans vibe (mind you, that’s without ever having been to New Orleans), the audience was dancing in the aisles, and Paul himself seemed to be having a great time, shaking audience members’ hands each time he left the stage. Plus, Paul sang some great songs (including “Mother and Child Reunion,” “Diamonds on the Soles of Her Shoes” (we almost called, Mum and Dad, but we were holding out for a song that didn’t end up getting played, “Only Living Boy in New York” (we nearly called you, Rebs), and “Here Comes the Sun”). And then, just when you were thinking, what a great, well-oiled concert, he missed his cue to come in on a song. A fan up front must not have, though, because all of a sudden, Paul was motioning him up on stage to come and sing “Gumboots” with him. The two of them had a blast performing together and the audience just went wild. It was just one of those moments where you’re lucky to be in the room.

This is the best of the videos that have surfaced thus far. None is complete, but this catches the event earlier on than the rest, even if the camera work is a bit shaky at the beginning:

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

Hey there! It’s Thursday night, which means it’s time to review three of the beautiful things from the previous week:

1. Between storms, pastel clouds dash across the sky as if late to an Impressionist’s canvas.

2. We cook out for Rudi’s birthday party, and he and I tend the grill on the breezy evening. Our hair smells pleasantly of campfire smoke all night.

3. We head to the Thai embassy for the afternoon, where they entertain us with feats of skill and delicious food. Rudi eats a papaya salad and I opt, at his suggestion, for mango sticky rice. Did you know they make it sticky with coconut milk? Yum!

How about you? What was beautiful in your life last week?

This has been a beautiful, lovely, amazing, fantastic week of superlative spring weather. It has been, people, the week we will look back on in mid-July when the temperatures are 90 hazy degrees with 90 percent humidity and our tempers are flaring because we are not so slowly becoming a human puddle and think, “I wish for that.” So I’ve spent time outside every day and walked or ridden my bike and sat at cafes and enjoyed outdoor markets and festivals and plan to continue to do so until the weather gods cut me off.

1. The first strawberries of the season dye my fingertips pink.

2. Bachelor buttons are 5/$1 at the local farmers’ market. I take a dollar’s worth back to the office for my desk — pink, purple, orchid, burgundy, and white with a deep violet center.

3. When we get in the car to drive up to the wool festival on Sunday, the radio is working. (Rudi informs me this is a somewhat rare occurrence these days.) And my iPod shuffle opts for “Last Train to Clarksville.” So I turned up the radio and rolled down the windows to share the joyful combination of fortune with the rest of Dupont Circle. (And, yes, my iPod says it knows that “Pleasant Valley Sunday” would have been more appropriate, but it didn’t want to send me over to rapturous.)

What’s been beautiful in your world this week?

(Oh, and before we go, happy early birthday to Jenn!)

Today is sunny and mild and a perfect spring day — the perfect time to reflect on three beautiful things from the past week:

1. After a grey and dreary day, rain clouds pass through, leaving the sky washed clear with pink cotton candy clouds decorating the horizon.

2. One of my favorite tv series of the Aughts comes to Netflix streaming. Having missed the first season when it originally aired, I greedily watch the first five episodes of Charlie and Don trying to build a working relationship.

3. A card arrives in the mail with Easter wishes. The entire inside is filled with notes and colors, spilling over onto the back. Real mail makes my mailbox (and me) happy, but particularly when it’s so ebullient in its expression.

[Incidentally, we have just passed the six-year anniversary of publishing three beautiful things each Thursday. Thanks to Clare, who inspired such a lovely way to spend a part of each week.]

How about your week? What was beautiful in it?

Three beautiful things from my week past before I go make some scones for tomorrow’s early morning tv watching:

1. The escalator is out on the side of the Metro lacking an elevator. A heavily pregnant woman asks her toddler to get out of the stroller and prepares to fold the stroller so she can carry both the child and the equipment up what are now a steep set of stairs. A man passing by pauses to ask, “May I carry that up for you?” She gladly accepts.

2. I procure a couple new bras. The flowery one is a complete surprise — usually truly pretty bras are only to be found in smaller sizes.

3. Rudi and I catch two of the three Mets-Nationals games this week. Although Tuesday’s had our preferred outcome of a Mets win, Thursday is truly a perfect example of a spring baseball game. Sarah and Julia hold the other pair of tickets for the night, and spending an evening with friends always makes for a nicer experience. Plus, the storms have moved on, leaving behind clear skies, dry air, and comfortable temperatures. Puffy clouds sit along the horizon, turning shades of persimmon and orchid with the sunset, while the river behind us reflects a lavender sky. Generally jovial crowds are interspersed throughout the ballpark, offering up the occasional cheer or chant. On the field, the teams are well matched. There are diving catches galore, long balls, pop ups, stolen bases, and bases protected. There are fast-balls and off-speed curves. There are bunts and a well executed squeeze play. And there is dramatic tension right up through the final batter of the night, who could have changed the outcome of the game with a swing of his bat.

How about you? What beautiful things have you been noticing this week?