osodecanela | Appreciating all that's right with life....

It's all too easy to focus on the negative and forget that which is good in life. Turning on CNN first thing in the morning and seeing what new crap our president and his minions are up to, or how many kids, both American and Iraqi, have been blown to bits in the last 24 hours can sour anyones day, or at least the day of anyone alert and sentient.

However, for once I'm focusing on the beauty of life and savouring it.

I slept well last night, both sets of doors open to the deck from our bedroom. The alarm awakened me at 8 in a cool room, filled with dazzling light, the sounds of songbirds in the trees and on the deck. A sleeping cat next to me, who entered full purr mode when I turned over towards him to admire the view of the trees and river valley below. The glory of living in a redwood forest! My husband came in from the sitting room, naked save for an open shirt, sipping his morning coffee and proceeded to rub my back and butt with hands cool to the touch. This led to to more spirited stroking, lips and tongues sliding over various body parts, and two rather earthshaking orgasms for us both, some twenty minutes later. Coming back down to earth, savouring the raw sensuality of our lovemaking, the delicious ache and stretch of muscles newly awakened, accommodating one another, well, lets just say its a damned fine way to start the day.

After dressing, I grabbed a basket of raspberries to breakfast on, as I drove to work at my office in the county seat. They were sublime! Still firm to the touch, yet just at that perfect state of mildly acidic, sweet ripeness, dancing on my tongue. I passed a neighbour walking down the road toward town and stopped to give him a lift to the market, garnering tidbits along the way of his handleplans for the coming weekend. Passing two others I know, lovers in fact, as they peddled about town on their bikes, handlebar baskets full from the morning marketing, they waved, smiling and calling out their good mornings. I'd sat in the hot tub at the local resort with them both a month or two back, listening raptly as they shared the lurid details of their recent trip to a leather sex party in Houston. How innocent they looked this morning as they rode their 10 speeds, but then that type of bike doesn't lend it self well to leather chaps.

The drive to town was not the automotive conga line its been as of late. The main road that winds from my rural-small-town part of the west county was open and lightly trafficked, with plenty of opportunity to relish the scenery going past. Hot air balloons were aloft as redwood forest gave way to bucolic vineyards. The trip to the freeway that bisects this county east from west was trouble free for once, and went by faster than I wished. My heart today wants to stop and smell the roses.

Mercifully, there was adequate warning that freeway traffic was about to grind to abrupt halt, in time for me to exit the mess and finish my journey on city streets. The county voters approved the plan to widen the freeway from 2 to 3 lanes in either direction, almost 2 years ago, and progress plods forward, completion due sometime in 2009. Bridging each overpass is the real culprit in dragging this project out and its created havoc not just for freeway users, but for cross town traffic around Santa Rosa as well. I will be so grateful when this whole thing is completed. It's added an easy 15 minutes to my morning and evening commutes. I arrived at my office still with the same sunny disposition I started with, as well as the smile my husband put on my lips this morning.

Life is good.