sat 09-04-99 Went to Harvard Square yesterday and found more Levertov and a biography of Glenn Gould, used. The swimming pool at Magazine Park is empty.
tue 09-07 My window at work overlooks the intersection of Longwood and the Riverway. Across the street are trees and the Emperald Necklace runs behind them. Today I saw a great blue heron fly by.
wed 09-08 Got the new generic enter results to calculate anion gap.
fri 09-10 Rained all day. Wore my yellow raincoat to work in the downpour. The hood worked and my shirt was dry but my legs and sneakers were soaked. When I got tired of squishing I wrung out my socks. Nearly dry by five.
sat 09-11
Designed another flag, with thirteen stripes on one third and
thirty seven stars symetrical on the other two thirds.
Walked to Harvard Sq and Davis Sq, didn't buy any books, had
a peanutbutter cookie and a falafel, and walked back through
Union Sq in Somerville and Central Sq.
sun 09-12
Walked to Jamacia Pond, looked at the sunlight shining through
the water to the rocks and sand sloping down. There were canada
geese, mallards, two swans on the other side, and cormorants. A
large flock of geese flew low overhead, strung out sideways,
headed downstream. I sat on a bench and read half a chapter of
Care of the Soul. People ran and walked and bicycled and
sailed by. As I was leaving, a crow landed near me in a tree
down the bank, so we were at eye level. We looked at each other.
He was large and almost brown. He ruffled his feathers, stepped
to another small branch and turned.
Walked through Jamacia Plain, up Green St, and took
the orange and red lines to Davis Sq. Bought a book by Jacob
Neusner and two on renaissance Florence. Valerie said her
daughter lived in Siena. They didn't have the one by Ficino.
Went to Mass House of Pizza. The Cambridge River Festival was
mostly people selling stuff, clothes and food. People were
dancing the tango in the little park on St Paul St.
sat 09-18
The sign on the parking lot gate said early a.m. users of Walden
Pond should park by headquarters from 5 to 8. This is new. A
man swimming was thrashing the water but making progress as I
walked the narrow fenced path. Someone had left their shorts and
shirt on a branch near where I stopped. I stood in the water a
long time. I counted five swimmers. The sun reflected in my
eyes. The water seemed warmer than the air. It didn't feel cold
after a minute each time I went deeper. I swam across the far
end of the pond. There was a heron under overhanging branches.
Five persons in a boat and he, fishing.
Drew a picture of the pond with a few earth colored pencils
and found a book of Maxine Kumin with "Morning Swim."
When I got home I had been invaded. Three men trying to fix
the leak over the siding door to the balcony. The screen door
leaning over my books, stuff and dust everywhere. John said they
would clean up. Went out to Bread and Circus for cashews and a
peach scone.
Walked down to Leverett Pond on Jamaciaway and up the Emerald
Necklace to the Fens. Bought a CD of five Mozart wind divertimenti
for two oboes, two horns, two bassoons.
sun 09-19
My CD's from Daedalus that I had been waiting for arrived. Two
were missing, one was a cassette, and I didn't like any of them.
mon 09-20
Found Levertov's "Thread" at the BPL. The two copies on the web
both had wrong words and wrong line breaks. Denny
quoted it at General Assembly when she spoke about her mother and
heritage at the UU's for Jewish Awareness Shabbos eve service.
The Boston Public Library is closed on sunday.
Something is very gently,
invisibly, silently,
pulling at me – a thread
or net of threads
finer than cobweb and as
elastic. I haven't tried
the strength of it. No barbed hook
pierced and tore me. Was it
not long ago this thread
began to draw me? Or
way back? Was I
born with its knot about my
neck, a bridle? Not fear
but a stirring
of wonder makes me
catch my breath when I feel
the tug of it when I thought
it had loosened itself and gone.