ritual = receptacle

Green Tea
Originally uploaded by Patrick T Power.
© 2007 by Patrick T. Power.
All Rights Reserved.

I wanted to write about this, just note it, briefly, how ritual = receptacle, how something about the funeral this last weekend -- the Mass, the Meal -- helped to wrap up the grief, make it manageable. Contain the soft, wet edges that kept spilling into everything before.

I needed a pic of course, and then Patrick T. Power posted this, which he shot last night as we wrapped up the meal that we shared before I packed it up and headed home from Ann Arbor. He was kind enough to participate in a usability study that we were doing, schelpping all the way down from Lansing, and kind enough to share stories and a little Teriyaki after.

Another important receptacle: Stories. How we tell them. Why we tell them. That we tell them.

How they shape our world.



p.s. do you see that glimmer of silver light on my hand in the left hand side of the frame? that's my Nini's birthstone -- a ruby -- in a pave setting. it was a gift from my family for coordinating her funeral. so unnecessary. such a tremendous treasure. with an inscription that reads: "you are loved."

favorite thing.

Slashes Of Light
Originally uploaded by Patrick T Power.

Night from a railroad car window
Is a great, dark, soft thing
Broken across with slashes of light.

Carl Sandburg

more fluff. in french.

Poéme
Originally uploaded by Patrick T Power.

”I love Paris.,” Zoe said as she studied the menu. “If I spoke the language, I’d live here.” She looked up at the waitress, who had appeared at the table. “Can you do crudité?” Zoe said. The waitress looked confused. “You did it yesterday. With cucumber. If not, I guess a salad, no dressing.” The waitress still looked confused. “You see,” Zoe said to me, “there’s just too much of a communication barrier.” Zoe took a sip of her English Breakfast tea. “I wish caffeine had vitamins in it,” she said.

Rachel Zoe, who commands $6,000/day as a stylist to the stars, as quoted in Sunday’s New York Times Magazine.

Flickrite Patrick T Power is having better luck in Paris -- language doesn’t appear to be a problem at all »