+ up at 6am, run 12 miles with my marathon training group
+ bike home, stopping for a bagel, to be eaten with the rest of my indulgent post-run breakfast, on the sun porch, coffee and new york times at hand
+ shower, ice my achilles tendonitis, do some paperwork for the play we are rehearsing today
+ rehearse said play all afternoon. it’s sunny out, 75 degrees, we are rehearsing on the back alley/porches of JP’s apartment building. it’s not exactly spending the afternoon in the park, but we are at least outside in the fresh air, and doing interesting work with awesome, creative people.
+ bike home through leafy, tree-lined ravenswood, stopping to pick up my organic vegetable share from a neighbor’s yard. bountiful lettuce and huge leafy stalks of kale, courgettes and cucumbers the diameter of baseball bats, spring onions streaked green and purple, fragrant tarragon, radishes, turnips, and beets still caked with mud from the field, crowns of broccoli and cauliflower wrapped in their own leaves.
+ put away the veggies, make a sandwich, then head right back out for a show call at BMG.
+ after the show, bike home through the madness that is wrigleyville on a saturday night, in summer, cubs game just letting out. feel smart about being on a bike, sailing thru stopped traffic and past buses inching thru the crowds.
+ when i get home, the last of the evenings fireflies are still hovering about the yard. the moon is full. my roommate is making french fries. we watch west wing.

following those ingredients, mix together:

+ 1 part gin
+ 1 part 100% cranberry juice
+ 2 parts ginger ale
+ 1/3 cup frozen berries (in place of ice)
+ squeeze of fresh lime

life is good here.
this is why i am not moving to utah.