today was a good day.

on the bike ride back from minneapolis, i spontaneously stopped by the elouise butler wildflower garden in wirth park, one of my favorite places to geek out about/commune with plants.

bushwhacking along the steep steep banks of the mississippi, on a plant walk. summer sun filtered through maple leaves, a carpet of water leaf wit,h the occasional solomon's seal and columbine. dirt, bruises, heat, life, big water, a reprieve in the city eve if you can still hear the hum of the freeway.

i biked home from minneapolis at ten, with no lights. the city was sleeping, and i felt pleasantly safe and alone inside of it. the waxing moon watched over me, and i serenaded the shadows, singing as i went. it was a sultry summer sunday night. the loveliest part was the cottonwood chaff illuminated by street lamps, blowing.

i watched this video, and it turned my day around.

i crouched under a bridge as a slow train passed, screeching and grumbling and wailing like some unsatisfied american god. the sad songs of metal on metal, disappointed dreams. sometimes i find melancholy to be deeply enjoyable. my friend had laid quarters down on the tracks. one got flattened and came out shiny and irresistible, smooth and sharp, good to hold, transformed.

i made a glorious improvised shepherd's pie - potatoes and sweet potatoes with walnuts on top of ground turkey cooked with onions, ancho pepper, chipotle powder, thyme, and a tiny bit of cinnamon. i am grateful that food is delicious. it's so much better this way than if we just ate because otherwise we'd die.

whizzed past traffic on my bike during rush hour!

i love bike commuting.

the best thing i did today was restart this blog.

this time i mean it!