things i've enjoyed the past few days --

amazingly colored leaves littering the sidewalks .. and the looks people give me when i stop to pick up said leaves

listening to worship music in english

waiting for my teammate near church (a location i hadn't been to before so needed help to get the last leg of the journey), and having 2 people who passed ask me if i wanted to walk with them. they knew my face and stopped to ask. was somehow very encouraging

seeing the names in my email inbox

the chaos of the weather. dark by 6.30 pm. warm enough this afternoon i would have been comfortable in shorts, a t-shirt, and sandals. humid enough it takes my jeans at least 3 days dry. cold enough in the evenings i sometimes wear wool socks and a couple layers including a sweatshirt. drinking lots of tea to keep warm in the apartment (since they haven't turned on the central heating yet.) seeing my breath most mornings -- even sometimes in the late morning ..

the look on a friend's face when i said i was walking home. an hour at a comfortable pace. seems usual to me, but he thinks i'm a bit crazy.

the lentil soup i made all by myself. found the recipe online. bought the ingredients. chopped the vegetables. cooked everything. and am eating it once a day or so. tastes good, and has the extra flavor of self-accomplishment. or something like that.. -- if anyone wants to share yummy recipes with me, i'd enjoy that (as long as i can find the ingredients here ..)

drinking coffee every morning as i sit in the same chair with my Bible and breakfast. even know how to describe my ritual in romanian! but mostly enjoy the peace and comfort of sitting down with a yummy drink and God's Word.

learning how to read psalm 27 in romanian. so far i'm to verse 8 and can read it without making romanians cringe. that's the goal at least. and perhaps some memorization as well, since i'm repeating it so much (and have it memorized in english).

kathleen norris' book "the cloister walk". makes me think. in a really good way.