My commute

We played a new game the other night at game night at Joy's Cafe in Mountain View. The game is call Apples to Apples and it is an incredible amount of fun. It's fairly non-competitive and gets you paying attention to the people you are playing with.
The game involves matching words and making decisions. Every player is dealt a handful of red word cards. Then a green word card is play openly on the table. You have to look at your words and match the one on the table.
So the word in the middle of the table might be "Disgusting" and the players decide to throw "Chickens" "Hairballs" "John Travolta" "the Far Left" and what ever they have in their hand that might fit with the first card. Then the person who dealt that hand gets to decide which word fits the best. They may use opposites, a weird sense of humor and their own experiences to decide. So, you learn quite a bit about the people you are playing with.
At one point on my deal, I threw out the word "Relaxing". There were several responses that were good, but the one I chose amazed me. When I thought of my current life and it's circumstances - the most relaxing concept on the table was "my commute".
When I took the job at the Ozark Folk Center, I worried about the hour commute each direction. I get car sick and our roads make some roller coasters look tame. But as the year has gone along, I have come to enjoy that time on the road. When Shawn and I go together we talk and sing and connect with each other in a way we don't during our busy days. And when I travel alone, it is quiet and meditative. I can think and plan and relax. That funny word, relaxing. My two hours a day on the road to work are relaxing.
And I wouldn't have realized it if it wasn't for game night.

Game night

Yesterday was so much fun - it might put New Year's eve right up there on my list of favorite holidays.
I'm still sorting files at work. I'm half way through the C's. I've read interesting contract labor decisions, country kitchen aquisitions and lots of history on the blacksmith shop. It's a good thing I have most of a month for this project, it's gonna take it.
Amy, I think I found the instrument templates you wanted. They were filed under "Art" - not Leather, Instruments, Music or Design, where I had looked for them!
At two o'clock, Shawn and I went to a wonderful reception at Wright and Jo's house. Wright is the Executive Director of the Arkansas Craft School, as well as an uber-talented woodturner and an all around wonderful, visionary person. Jo is a warm, beautiful person and a fantastic cook! We had a very nice, short visit with lots of friends that we hadn't seen much recently. Topics ranged from photography, to shops at the Folk Center, the Holiday weekend in town, Dexter cattle, air filtration units, travel, Charleston and lots more. Our visit was short because I had to be back to answer the phones.
Most of the calls we are getting right now are from people wanting to come to the Folk Center and being very disappointed we are closed. I think we're averaging about 12-15 a day. After the holidays, I'll at least be able to let people know that some of our crafters are out working in their studios.
After work we went to game night at Joy's Cafe. It's hard to explain how much fun this is. We went planning to play for a bit and be home before midnight, but after a couple of rounds of Train, a domino's game and then some wild hands of Apples to Apples, a card game, Joy grabbed the sparkling grape juice and we all toasted the new year.
May your days be bright and the rains be frequent and gentle.
Hugs to all, Jen