Re-engaging

It's the start of a scorching hot month—temperatures over 100 degrees the past couple of days. Fire season has been declared open, three to four weeks early.

On Saturday I escaped the heat with some friends by—yes—going hiking in the middle of the day (check out the second half of their May 3 entry for photos). Walking in the shade along a meager stream and climbing across boulders from an old landslide that had blocked the path was truly refreshing.

I've let the events of life pile up around me recently, so it was good to escape to the woods and hug a few boulders. I keep thinking that life will tidy itself up just any day now. But instead there is a steady progression of things to do, decisions to make, and experiences to live through. The following partial list is because I need to make a list:

Work
• Finish the RFP tomorrow that has consumed my time (and overtime) for more than a week.
• With the RFP finished, I'll have one day to work on my project for a training class on Thursday.
• Contemplate going back to work full-time; it's difficult to work on the type of projects that I've been given while on a part-time basis.

  School

• The semester is almost over. Arrange appointment with advisor to discuss decision about finishing my program.
• Contemplate and make decision about finishing my program.

  Boarding School Reunion

• Finalize pricing for those not taking the entire package or who are bringing families and answer e-mails.
• Call the conference planning office.
• Continue working on events schedule.
• This will be finished by the end of July. With the reunion planning and administering off my mind, maybe this persistent sense of anxiousness and inability to relax fully will go away.

  Church

• Ongoing challenges, but a sense of watching and being involved in something painfully real and worthwhile.

  Household

• Need to keep the encroaching chaos pushed back. Washing dishes is always a good place to start.
• Depending on the decision I make about grad. school, I would like to rearrange some rooms, so that the living/dining room is no longer a living/dining/studying room. Put the desk in the back of the house and the piano in the front.
• Consider a possible (local) relocation. Pros: Larger house and yard; near friends. Cons: More rent; freeway noise; neighborhood not as nice/safe?; different stores and restaurants; the stress of moving.
• Consider buying a house later this year, but not here. A much longer list to be developed elsewhere. Meanwhile, interest rates have gone up one percent. . . .

  Fun stuff

• Start knitting again.
• Write letters to faraway friends.
• Have guests over (but, first, see Household above).
• Get back to writing here and visiting the websites in my Favorites folder.

Above all, be grateful for and enjoy LIFE!

Weblog sabbatical

I'm taking a break from posting online for a while. Please check back in a week or two. Best, JBB.

Housing prices

From today's LA Times: "Home Prices in L.A. Soar at Record Rate," by Roger Vincent and Don Lee.

Home values in Los Angeles County posted the biggest year-over-year increase in at least 15 years in March as frenetic buying activity pushed the median sale price up 29%, to a record $375,000, according to data released Monday.

Confounding predictions by the experts, sales were surprisingly strong, jumping 12% from a year ago to 10,875 new and resold houses and condos. Analysts and brokers said the heavy demand was driven by anxious consumers, many of whom are paying more than the asking price to get in the housing market before interest rates rise and supplies thin further.

The inventory of houses available for sale has been at historical lows, and the latest flurry of purchases suggests that the market will only heat up as the busy home-buying season nears.

For comparison, the article notes the median price in Michigan is $133,500. A few houses down the street from me, a 1,108 sq. ft. 2 bedroom, 1 bath bungalow is going for $550,000.

Of course, articles like this make me doubt my choices over the past years to 1) go to school and 2) not purchase a house because I was going to school and only working part-time, especially because finishing school is not so assured right now. Thankfully, my rent has been holding steady.

Malaria and DDT, reconsidered

"What the World Needs Now is DDT," by Tina Rosenberg in Sunday's NY Times Magazine.

The paradox is that sprayed in tiny quantities inside houses -- the only way anyone proposes to use it today -- DDT is most likely not harmful to people or the environment. Certainly, the possible harm from DDT is vastly outweighed by its ability to save children's lives.

Now I wished I'd quoted, or summarized, more from the LA Times' article on the same subject, to which I linked last year, so I could compare the viewpoints.

Via dangerousmeta!, who finds his opinion shifting and who is open to controlled, careful use of DDT.

Reverse chronology

Sunday evening. Nothing worthwhile to watch on television. Many other things that could be done, but it's a Sunday evening after all.

Sunday afternoon. Drove out to the beach again. The return trip, especially, was eerily traffic-light. On one of the most notorious stretches of Southland freeway. I kept imagining it was tomorrow, when it will be stop and go. I kept expecting traffic to slow down around each corner. It never did. It was hot inland (85 degrees) but very windy, although sunny, at the beach. Watched kite boarding for a while (a cross amongst surfing, wind surfing, flying a kite, skateboarding, and water-skiing) and then caught a nap wedged in a crevice mostly out of the wind using my backpack for a pillow. Cap low over my eyes, conscious only of the waves pounding and thoughts of writing about being conscious of waves pounding. . . .

Sunday morning. Got up early to slice six different kinds of cheese for the Easter breakfast at church. As I anticipated, the Norwegian Gjetost (goat's) cheese, was a hit. The service was lovely and included a piece by the bell choir.

Saturday afternoon. Spent the afternoon in the church office redoing the bulletin for Sunday's service.

Saturday morning. Got up early to prepare a breakfast for the women's Bible study. Went to the study.

Friday mid-day. Went to an ecumenical service. Our bell choir played; Pr Peg preached.

Thursday. Most of the day in a training class—in Pasadena! Oh! that I still worked here and didn't have to commute. I'm starting a course in my company's equivalent of Six Sigma. Maybe it will help me learn how to plan out things better. (Flow-charting is a main component of what we're required to do.) I have one week to finish a huge lot of work before next Thursday's class—and I won't be able to go to work tomorrow.

Wednesday. Started sketching out the requirements and figuring out the fields for a database for a project at work.

Tuesday. The usual.

Monday afternoon. To the beach. 134 W to 101 N to 23 S; PCH to Topanga to 101 S to 134 E.

Monday morning. Dropped off my parents at the airport and then went to work: 210 134 W to I-5 N; I-5 S to 10 E to 710 S to 60 E.

Sand and sea and starfish

Time and mental space have been a bit rare for posting here, but fortunately I have friends who are more disciplined about writing and have a digital camera, so check out the April 7 Path to Freedom diary entry for pictures of the wonderful Monday afternoon I spent at the SoCal seashore with friends.

Our significant world

From the Easter message of Mark S. Hanson, Presiding Bishop of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America:

We are gifted with a world rich with significance.

Via Pr. Peg Schultz-Akerson.