dudemanflab's Diaryland Diary ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Week of Grapes This strange sleepiness comes over me whenever I move to a new place. I find myself a sonambulist, moving with heavy lidded eyes around new streets and greeting the fuzzy forms that move at various velocities but similar blurs about me. And the day empties out. Before the sun fully reaches noontime, it seems, I am back to my room, flicking the light switch for different--even, more colorful---dreams. Each morning in Eugene I've woken in my loft, looked at my bookshelf, and debated whether or not my food and drink stuffs belong near the ceiling. Each night until two nights ago I slept above my sheets--and now they are in a miserable linen lump at the foot of my bed. Some mornings I've read a Psalm; for several days I ate PBJ and granola bars for lunch, but then I thought my stash of Nature Valley's cannot last forever. I thought tonight that to live in such a way as to not spend money might be a good goal. I thought this because for the last week I haven't spent a lot of it, opting to make small adventures rather than pay for them. This week I interacted with grapes for the first time in my life. Nearly the whole process--picking them, trimming the vines, weaving the vines, juicing, canning, eating, drinking. I feel like it has set me to a different rhythm than the rest of my house, than the students arriving--cleaning supplies in one hand, matching curtains and bedspread in the other. Just by picking one box of grapes, I set myself on to a half dozen other default tasks. I woke up in the mornings feeling like there was so much to do, like cows were lowing for me to milk them. Would I like this for a lifestyle? I guess, what I'm working towards is that living focally--living without the vast majority of commodities--takes a good deal of effort and time. (I would never be a farmer without a wife or a friend. I couldn't do it all alone.) I really wouldn't have to spend money to keep busy, but would I be happy with my work? with my connection to others? How would it all change? 8:55 p.m. - September 23, 2008 ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
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