diving for gems

today was a very lovely day.

i spent a good portion of the morning exploring the collection of ts eliot manuscipts at harvard via the internets. i may have found something really exciting for my own research pursuits.

then i met caitlin at athans for some brunch and study times. the best part of athans is that my breakfast cost 3.25. it's hard for me to even wrap my mind around that. but the joy it brought me is almost unparalleled.

in need of a study break, we went and got some boston kreme donuts from dunkins (bridal diet) and then went a-thrifting. there is something so pleasant about wading through a bunch of junk to find something just wonderful. we found these gems - her wedding day shoes. it is a brilliant find in my opinion. such character and grace in these shoes.

there were two other photos worthy of this blip - one is a close up the shoes and the other is caitlin on the couch reading villete (which she loves for some unknown reason) and wearing the shoes to try and break them in.

but i liked this one the best because i like the joy in her face.

also i feel like the ridiculousness of the photo captures our lives. what else would you be doing on a saturday night? nothing better.

indulge my sentimentality for a moment and let me tell you how blessed i feel to have found caitlin in boston and in grad school. she is a gift, a delight, a joy (look at that face), and constant source of encouragement. studying would be a bore without her. but more importantly, i would lose my sanity and my sense of reality if i did not have her as a companion. so thank god for her existence. she better not live in the suburbs once married.

. . . to talk and tell jokes; to indulge in courteous exchanges; to read pleasant books together; to be playful together; to be earnest together; to differ at times without ill-humor, as one might with oneself, and even through these infrequent dissensions to find zest in our more frequent agreements; sometimes teaching, sometimes being taught; longing for someone absent with impatience and welcoming the homecomer with joy.

[Augustine, Confessions]