All Right Now

Yes, it's been a little while. Sorry about that. I've had a viral respiratory infection, followed by a bacterial chest infection, and frankly, it's knocked me right off my perch. Off my perch.

But now I'm nearly back to normal, apart from three or four tubercular-sounding coughing fits a day.

In no order of importance, here are a few snippets from the last two weeks:

• Sweeney fell over and banged his cheek on the step one night. It swelled up and looked nasty, but after half an hour with a cold cloth and a cuddle, it all came right. In the morning I asked him how his face felt, and he said "dirty";
• I haven't been to yoga for two weeks. Every time I do a downward dog, I nearly pass out with oxygen deprivation;
• we moved offices. Now I work in the swankiest, most expensive office space in Wellington. We have all brand new cups and glasses and cutlery. The lights dim when the natural light increases, and vice versa. The lift has no buttons. Yes, really;
• I have an exam on Tuesday. I really don't feel like studying, and being sick took two weeks off my schedule;
• tickets are booked for me, Sweeney and Harper to head to Christchurch and beyond in November; and
• Dad made macaroni cheese last night for dinner. Awesome;
• the first blooms have come out on the Dublin Bay at the front of the house. Just beautiful;
• Mum continues to live through ongoing aftershocks in Christchurch;
• Sweeney, Harper and I went to Bela's fifth - FIFTH - birthday party, just as The Illness was coming on. I was a sub-optimal guest - no wrapping on the present, no revving the kids up, no glugging back litres of fizzy wine - but the boys had a really good time. Harper was excited the night before about cake, and Sweeney just loves Bela's dolls' house.

Writing that was exhausting. Zzzzzzzz.

Yo Ho Ho

This just in* from Sweeney:

- can we read the book about pirates, Mum??

- sure, where is it??

- got it, now I want to see the pirates in timeout.

- ???

- [feverishly turning pages] here they are!! Pirates in timeout, Mum!!

- ohhhhh. They're in prison. I guess that's like a timeout. Only it goes on for aaaages.

In other news, the broad beans have developed actual bean pods and the broccoli has started forming heads. In the garden. My splendid, splendid vege garden.

* at bedtime tonight

The (Food) Chain of Love

This just in* from Sweeney:

- What do elephants eat, Mum?? Do they eat peanuts??

- Sure they do. They eat other stuff, too ...

[Not actually interested in that]

- What do leopards eat, Mum??

- Umm, they eat meat.

- Do they eat giraffes??

- Yeah, I guess, if a leopard caught a small giraffe, it'd eat it.

- No, Mum, the giraffe GIVES the leopard the meat.

- Youwhatnow??

- The giraffe gets the meat from the tree. Out of the nuts. The beaver gets the meat out of the nuts and gives it to the giraffe and the giraffe gives it to the leopard.

- Uhhh, wha??

- Yes, the giraffe gets the beavernutmeat for the leopard.

- Okay. Snuggle down now ...

Note to self - will leave explaining omnivorism or carnivorism, to the professionals. In this case, any professional other than myself.** Because ...

I think I was about his age when the connection between the lambs in the truck, my toy Lamb Chop, and my dinner was made apparent to me. I was aghast for a bit. I still feel a little pang when I see Lamb Chop in Sweeney's room.

*3.5 hours ago, at bedtime.

** Never fear, I'll explain to him that beavers don't live in trees OR Africa. I expect he'll be aghast.

Hey, Paul

Start the day off early enough for some alone time with Paul Newman in Hudsucker Proxy, and you can't go wrong. Not if you're an Ange, anyway. I watched Road to Perdition the other day and realised that I just love watching, and listening to Paul Newman. Because the other big piece of viewing in our place of late has been Cars. Trying to interest Sweeney in the person behind Doc Hudson is a futile exercise.
And I have to admit that I wasn't any sort of George Clooney fan until I watched Fantastic Mr Fox. Okay, until we had Fantastic Mr Fox on near-constant play for about a month. But now I've watched a bunch of his stuff and I'm in his thrall. Mostly for the ugly roles - O Brother, Where Art Thou and Syriana - but also the gorgeous, smooth stuff - Ocean's Eleven and Michael Clayton. And Solaris. I thought he was lovely in Solaris.

In other new, Sweeney's horrible chest seems to be clearing up, but he has an almighty coughing fit every time he runs anywhere. We spent a few hours today clearing some land around where the O'Neills are building a monument for Sweeney's grandma. Beautiful, looking out over Ngaio Gorge. Hateful asparagus weed. Gorgeous seeing Sweeney climb and climb and climb up a steep, steep bank, calling to us that he was higher!! Higher!!

And he squeezed in two trips to the zoo over the weekend, with various uncles, his cousin Harper and his pal Jackson. He told me he loved the chipmunks lying on the rocks, which I thought was a strange habitat for chipmunks, until we put it together that he really meant chimpanzees.

As Sidney J. Mussburger would say, sure sure ...

Just Be Good To Me

I love this ... Politeness as a radical act. There's so much more to it than please and thank you. At our house, we're well into excuse me, now, and working our way into some deep table manners. There's so much more to it than that, even, isn't there?? There's letting other people go through the door first, there's holding the door open for people, there's all sorts of funny little things that make the wheels go round as we get through the day.