today i walked outside and it was sunny. and the seven inches of snow we got on sunday night started to melt. the branches of all the trees were covered in ice from yesterday's freezing rain. which means that when you drive down elmhurst road, the sky is lit up with glittering trees. they sparkle. and if you stood in the middle of the sidewalk between my apartment and my car, you would notice the sound of... well... it sounded like rain. but there's not a cloud in the sky. so you realize that it's not rain, it's the branches of all the bare trees shedding the ice that has accumulated on them. and you drive down the road and you realize that this is happening everywhere this morning. it looks like crystals are falling from all the trees. occasionally they fall on top of your car when you drive under them, but mostly they just fall into the melting snow. and you realize that things get better. the weather gets better, situations get better. life gets better in the morning. mercies are new every morning. God i am thankful for that. that mercies are new every morning.

thanks helen, jeanna, jake, sarah, parental units... love you guys. maybe we should all become smokers.

it's a better day. i don't have to make decisions all at once. i can make them one at a time. and i know where i need to start.

the answer is no.