Grandma and Other Beans

Busy at work today. Non-stop. I took time out, however, to explain in an e-mail message to my grandma the CPAP and device used to treat sleep apnea, which I've learned from editing various manuscripts on the topic, after she wrote to me that her doctor said she might suffer from it. Dr. S. at her service. Feels good.

Today I lack blog-spark but don’t want to leave a blank. Up, up, and away.

I think I’ve been consuming toxic levels of gummy bears containing Vitamin C and Echinacea, both for health reasons and to feed an oral fixation complex. Thanks, Kate and Melissa, for the supply. I will be one healthy motherfucker. Now cinnamon gum. Next: fingers and rubber erasers. Then the dictionary itself.

If ever I start a band I will call it Space Asians Exploding, or Exploding Space Asians. I can’t decide. If anyone out there has a preference, send it on. I’ve already got cover art in the works.

Cereals I get excited about:
Grape Nuts
Cracklin’ Oat Bran
Smart Start, with raisins which I add myself

Vegetables I get excited about:
Brussel sprouts
Frozen peas
Red peppers

I am also fond of beans. A bean here, a bean there...

I’ve begun collecting stories about my grandma. She’s one of those who excessively sacrifices herself in order to please others. Perhaps if it’s what she enjoys then it isn’t really sacrifice. Nevertheless, as a result, nothing ever is revealed about her inside, no stories, no likes, no dislikes. I know she's got fantastic stories; I've heard a couple. They can't be the only ones. I couldn’t tell you what kind of music she likes, or if she even likes music at all. My boyfriend’s dad recently gave me a book full of questions to ask a grandma. Yesterday I gave her the first one: tell me the names of your grandparents, how close you were to them, and at least one story about them which includes you. Today, the same question, but about her siblings. What I do know about my grandma’s past is that she's dealt with a difficult gamut of deaths, including her brothers, one in WWII, and a guy she dated when she was younger, which might contribute to her deceptive pessimism--and maybe to her unchecked threats of violence to every guy I’ve brought to her house. I'll kill you if you don't bring her back safe.

More later after the ground thaws.