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?

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?