ABCs of Steve
Jul. 29th, 2009 12:00 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
falcongrrlToday is ![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
shaterri's birthday.
Steve is one of my very best friends in the whole world and I completely adore him. This is fact, not hyperbole.
I wanted to do something very public and very cheesy for his birthday, so I came up with the following:
Anime - I've done a terrible job of watching the ones he's sent me, butshaterri always recommends terrific ones for me to watch. So far my favorite is R.O.D, of course, because of a fascination with...
Books - Our trip to Powell's books inspires this choice, of course. At the same time, he's always shipping me books if he thinks I just have to have them. And he got me started with comic books, which should maybe properly be listed under C, but I couldn't forget...
Chocolate - He shipped some from Montreal to Orlando for Christmas once, and I'll never forget it. He also made homemade (delicious!) chocolates with sake and then gave them away at a con. And there were those amazing chocolates from Donnelly's during that same convention, too. And I hope to share some Wild Woman Chocolates with him one day.
Dim sum - My first time eating dim sum was during a con in Philadelphia. He researched to find the best place ahead of time. At lunch, he patiently explained what everything was and showed me how to eat with chopsticks.
Encouragement - Whether it's to eat with chopsticks, try something else new, write, or just take care of myself,shaterri is always encouraging me. And it's not just me, either...I believe he's this way with everyone in his life. I've never heard him speak disparagingly of anyone. He's constantly seeing what others do well and then celebrating that with them, gently pushing people to do more than they thought they could.
Foxes - Mrrrrr.
Glasses - At a con in San Jose, Jeff and Steve and I were all trying on each other's glasses. It was great fun in that silly way that's hard to explain to other people. And I still have the pictures.
Herbfarm - This is one of the most amazing experiences I ever had, or probably will have, in my whole life. There were bunnies on the lawn between courses, and the slant of the light was gorgeous, and I have never eaten finer food or drunk finer wines or felt quite so pampered and cared for.
Ice cream - Steve is always experimenting with homemade ice cream, particularly mint varieties. He made a (non-mint) sakura sencha variety when I was in Seattle that was amazing.
Jeff - Jeff is Steve's partner and a kind, clever, amazingly neat person in his own right. I can't really convey here how glad I am thatshaterri lives and experiences life with someone wonderful who loves him as much as I do.
Kayaking - First, this was Steve to me because I knew he loved it and I'd seen pictures of scenery he'd taken out on the water. But now, I've actually gone kayaking with him and enjoyed it myself...so it's more of a shared memory as well as something that reminds me of him in and of itself. Another K is the kingfisher we saw on that kayaking trip. :-)
Love - Not easily defined, but always, always shared.
Music - from hiphop to J-pop, from Paul Simon to indie musicians, he's always sending me new songs and expanding my musical knowledge and taste. I love hearing the songs that he loves.
Notes - He appends notes to everything, whether it's brewing instructions for tea he's sent me, explanations of his musical selections, captions for photos, or just something quick to say hello.
Outspoken - Maybe not with everyone, I'm not sure. But he will always tell me his truth, even (especially?) if it's something hard for me to hear. I appreciate this so much. I love knowing that he will speak his mind with me and that I can trust his opinions as both honest and caring.
Puzzles -shaterri's amazingly good at puzzles. He's even better at sharing his love of them with me and getting me involved in solves. I love the predatory gleam in his eye when he's working on one and the light and joy there when he knows he's on the right track.
Quick - It's true what they say about foxes. (No, not that. *blush*) Steve walks fast, thinks fast, and his mind's always juggling several different things at once. When I think of him, I picture motion.
Rock Band - I can't play this without remembering the first time I played it withshaterri, quarrel, aprivatefox, and mufi. They were all so patient with me and it was so much fun. There was also pizza and homemade bread pudding and more puzzling that night. It's a terrific memory. R could also be for Rainier, where I saw...
Snow! - When I visited Mt. Rainier, it snowed. On my head. It was amazing, the soft sounds of it falling upon the ground (whichchipotle called to my attention), the crystalline beauty of it. I wore snowshoes and eventually figured out how to hike in them, too. Born and raised in Central Florida, it excites me more than maybe the average person, and it was a great moment to share.
Tea - I think maybe it's part of his plan to get me to relax and take more time for myself, butshaterri sends me interesting teas...the aforementioned sakura sencha, but also a special spicy-sweet variety from Pike Place Market, and another toasted green variety (hojicha?).
Understanding -shaterri is understanding. I can talk with him about any and everything. I've never met a better friend.
Vancouver - We spent a day there together, and part of it was spent arguing, in part because I hadn't slept well and I was really exhausted. I wish for a do-over, and yet, there's so much about that day that was wonderful and that I wouldn't change for the world.
Water - Water reminds me ofshaterri so much. Whether it's kayaking or canoeing or swimming or wading in the ocean, it's something that we both feel connected to on an almost spiritual level. We both spend a lot of time near water, even though it's water on opposite sides of the country. *wistful smile*
XY - The effects of testosterone are less of a mystery now. No, that's not as dirty as it sounds. ;-)shaterri has frequently tried to explain Boys to me, though, maybe with mixed results.
Yearning - There's a part ofshaterri that's essentially wistful, staring across the horizon and dreaming of other things. pyat might call it sehnsucht, or shaterri and I used to call it sundog. Regardless, it's a strong part of who he is - the poet in him, maybe - and it's something I get about him.
Z-trip - Did I mention he likes hiphop? Z-trip is an amazingly creative DJ he introduced me to.
Happy, happy birthday to a sweet man and dear friend. Thank you so much for all of the joy that you bring to my life.
(eta: If you knowshaterri, please feel free to expand upon any of these in comments, or - even better - to create your own journal entry. Let's make this a meme! :-) )
shaterri's birthday. Steve is one of my very best friends in the whole world and I completely adore him. This is fact, not hyperbole.
I wanted to do something very public and very cheesy for his birthday, so I came up with the following:
Anime - I've done a terrible job of watching the ones he's sent me, but
shaterri always recommends terrific ones for me to watch. So far my favorite is R.O.D, of course, because of a fascination with...Books - Our trip to Powell's books inspires this choice, of course. At the same time, he's always shipping me books if he thinks I just have to have them. And he got me started with comic books, which should maybe properly be listed under C, but I couldn't forget...
Chocolate - He shipped some from Montreal to Orlando for Christmas once, and I'll never forget it. He also made homemade (delicious!) chocolates with sake and then gave them away at a con. And there were those amazing chocolates from Donnelly's during that same convention, too. And I hope to share some Wild Woman Chocolates with him one day.
Dim sum - My first time eating dim sum was during a con in Philadelphia. He researched to find the best place ahead of time. At lunch, he patiently explained what everything was and showed me how to eat with chopsticks.
Encouragement - Whether it's to eat with chopsticks, try something else new, write, or just take care of myself,
shaterri is always encouraging me. And it's not just me, either...I believe he's this way with everyone in his life. I've never heard him speak disparagingly of anyone. He's constantly seeing what others do well and then celebrating that with them, gently pushing people to do more than they thought they could.Foxes - Mrrrrr.
Glasses - At a con in San Jose, Jeff and Steve and I were all trying on each other's glasses. It was great fun in that silly way that's hard to explain to other people. And I still have the pictures.
Herbfarm - This is one of the most amazing experiences I ever had, or probably will have, in my whole life. There were bunnies on the lawn between courses, and the slant of the light was gorgeous, and I have never eaten finer food or drunk finer wines or felt quite so pampered and cared for.
Ice cream - Steve is always experimenting with homemade ice cream, particularly mint varieties. He made a (non-mint) sakura sencha variety when I was in Seattle that was amazing.
Jeff - Jeff is Steve's partner and a kind, clever, amazingly neat person in his own right. I can't really convey here how glad I am that
shaterri lives and experiences life with someone wonderful who loves him as much as I do.Kayaking - First, this was Steve to me because I knew he loved it and I'd seen pictures of scenery he'd taken out on the water. But now, I've actually gone kayaking with him and enjoyed it myself...so it's more of a shared memory as well as something that reminds me of him in and of itself. Another K is the kingfisher we saw on that kayaking trip. :-)
Love - Not easily defined, but always, always shared.
Music - from hiphop to J-pop, from Paul Simon to indie musicians, he's always sending me new songs and expanding my musical knowledge and taste. I love hearing the songs that he loves.
Notes - He appends notes to everything, whether it's brewing instructions for tea he's sent me, explanations of his musical selections, captions for photos, or just something quick to say hello.
Outspoken - Maybe not with everyone, I'm not sure. But he will always tell me his truth, even (especially?) if it's something hard for me to hear. I appreciate this so much. I love knowing that he will speak his mind with me and that I can trust his opinions as both honest and caring.
Puzzles -
shaterri's amazingly good at puzzles. He's even better at sharing his love of them with me and getting me involved in solves. I love the predatory gleam in his eye when he's working on one and the light and joy there when he knows he's on the right track.Quick - It's true what they say about foxes. (No, not that. *blush*) Steve walks fast, thinks fast, and his mind's always juggling several different things at once. When I think of him, I picture motion.
Rock Band - I can't play this without remembering the first time I played it with
shaterri, quarrel, aprivatefox, and mufi. They were all so patient with me and it was so much fun. There was also pizza and homemade bread pudding and more puzzling that night. It's a terrific memory. R could also be for Rainier, where I saw...Snow! - When I visited Mt. Rainier, it snowed. On my head. It was amazing, the soft sounds of it falling upon the ground (which
chipotle called to my attention), the crystalline beauty of it. I wore snowshoes and eventually figured out how to hike in them, too. Born and raised in Central Florida, it excites me more than maybe the average person, and it was a great moment to share.Tea - I think maybe it's part of his plan to get me to relax and take more time for myself, but
shaterri sends me interesting teas...the aforementioned sakura sencha, but also a special spicy-sweet variety from Pike Place Market, and another toasted green variety (hojicha?).Understanding -
shaterri is understanding. I can talk with him about any and everything. I've never met a better friend.Vancouver - We spent a day there together, and part of it was spent arguing, in part because I hadn't slept well and I was really exhausted. I wish for a do-over, and yet, there's so much about that day that was wonderful and that I wouldn't change for the world.
Water - Water reminds me of
shaterri so much. Whether it's kayaking or canoeing or swimming or wading in the ocean, it's something that we both feel connected to on an almost spiritual level. We both spend a lot of time near water, even though it's water on opposite sides of the country. *wistful smile*XY - The effects of testosterone are less of a mystery now. No, that's not as dirty as it sounds. ;-)
shaterri has frequently tried to explain Boys to me, though, maybe with mixed results.Yearning - There's a part of
shaterri that's essentially wistful, staring across the horizon and dreaming of other things. pyat might call it sehnsucht, or shaterri and I used to call it sundog. Regardless, it's a strong part of who he is - the poet in him, maybe - and it's something I get about him.Z-trip - Did I mention he likes hiphop? Z-trip is an amazingly creative DJ he introduced me to.
Happy, happy birthday to a sweet man and dear friend. Thank you so much for all of the joy that you bring to my life.
(eta: If you know
shaterri, please feel free to expand upon any of these in comments, or - even better - to create your own journal entry. Let's make this a meme! :-) )
![[identity profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/openid.png){kind=small}
(no subject)
Date: 2009-07-29 06:09 pm (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2009-07-29 09:47 pm (UTC)And thanks. :-)
(no subject)
Date: 2009-07-30 01:44 am (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2009-07-30 12:12 pm (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2009-07-29 06:15 pm (UTC)Happy birthday to Shaterri!
(no subject)
Date: 2009-07-29 06:45 pm (UTC)Happy birthday, Shaterri. I don't know you, but I'm glad you exist.
(no subject)
Date: 2009-07-29 09:48 pm (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2009-07-29 06:20 pm (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2009-07-29 09:48 pm (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2009-07-29 07:08 pm (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2009-07-29 09:48 pm (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2009-07-29 07:16 pm (UTC)--Axiom, who thinks you're the bee's knees
(no subject)
Date: 2009-07-29 08:30 pm (UTC)Shaterri is indeed one of those people who makes the world a better place just by being alive. I'm really glad he's around. :)
(no subject)
Date: 2009-07-29 09:49 pm (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2009-07-30 01:45 am (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2009-07-30 01:51 am (UTC)