The less you do

On my walk to yoga this morning a Mexican guy pointed at me and noted to his friends that I was "gordita" (translation: "a bit fat"). I am assuming this is meant as an endearing term for pregnant women, the way Mexicans use the word for midget ("enano") to refer to children. I suppose I should just be glad he didn't call me a chalupa.

There were other things that happened this past week, too.

I went for my second ever acupuncture appointment this past Friday and the acupuncturist somehow managed to hit a blood vessel in my face. When I mentioned something didn't feel right she looked at it and got that look that you really don't ever want someone who has just stuck a needle in your face to get. She immediately grabbed a special cream which she rubbed on it and got me some ice to hold against it. In spite of these efforts, I ended up with a dramatic bruise which runs along my left smile line from the nostril to the edge of my lips. It's a nice dark black and blue, and in the right light it appears to be a shadow that makes me look like I am sneering quite emphatically. It continues to startle me every time I look in a mirror so I'm just avoiding mirrors now.

Eric and I started a 1,000 piece jigsaw puzzle of a summer scene featuring a house on a lake at sunset. This is the first time I've tried to do a jigsaw puzzle on a glass table with a patterned rug beneath it and I am enjoying the added challenge. I bought two puzzles to use as "early labor" projects when you need to do something that is engrossing but not too intellectual. I don't seem to be anywhere near early labor but we broke it out anyway. We're making good progress on it but at the same time trying not to finish it too quickly.

For St Patrick's Day I got together with a couple of girlfriends for a girls' evening adventure. We started with free pedicures at the local nail spot* and I got my toes painted a bright blue which the bottle said was called Aruba Blue but I am quite sure is actually Belvedere Blue. From there we went to dinner at a delicious crepe restaurant in the Mission with a huge photo of a sinking ship on the wall and then we went to go see a gypsy jazz band playing at a nearby bar. It was really fun music, at least partly because there was an accordian player, but the hightlight was when a guy left without paying and the bartender, who looked like a steampunk Super Mario**, leapt over the bar and chased him out the door.

And finally, more beer was brewed! I was at a baby shower for another friend using fabric markers to color a white onesie when the brewing actually occurred but I feel I played a key role in its creation nonetheless. It is a Belgian Strong Ale style beer with very authentic ingredients such as Trappist yeast and Belgian rock candy. One idea Eric had for the name (which I think he quickly regretted saying out loud) was "Monk Robe Ale" to commemorate a special chapter in his high school experience. Apparently, he decided that he wanted a robe but not a typical bathrobe - no, he wanted a monk robe, complete with a hood and a rope belt. It is my understanding that Ginger, frequent commenter here, very generously handmade it for him. He swears to me he only wore it to school a couple times. Apparently it was also the centerpiece of an Obi Wan Kibobi costume on several occasions. If a photo of Eric in said robe could be secured, I think he would have no choice but to use it on the labels for Monk Robe Ale.

This week I am moving from "relaxation" mode to "distraction" mode. If nothing else, it should make for more interesting blogging.


*They did a promotion a few weeks back offering a free pedicure to anyone who became a fan on Facebook. I can't imagine how that works out for them but I'm glad it worked out for me!

**He was wearing a shirt and tie under overalls (all neutral tones), had sideburns and a paintbrush moustache and was wearing a bowler. And when he jumped there was a "bo-ing!" sound effect.