One Year Baby

Tomorrow will be the first anniversary of my marriage to Laurie. We often comment to one another that it feels like we've been married longer. Not that it's been a long year. I just find it difficult to remember what life was like without her. In all honesty I haven't really spent any time dwelling on it at all. Sure, I had some good times as a single guy, but I don't miss any of them.

If I feel anything, I feel richer. More balanced. Instead of being a solitary object hurtling through space, I now enjoy the gravity of another body. We are our own small solar system traveling through space and time in orbit around one another. Maybe its a silly analogy, but its the only suitable description I can come up with without becoming horribly maudlin.

We marked the advent of our anniversary with a wonderful extended weekend in Chicago. It truly was one to remember. From the incredible 57th floor condo we had overlooking the city to the amazing dinner at La Scarola, we had a blast. Laurie has already detailed it all in her blog, so head over there if you want to learn more.

While we were up there I spent just about every free moment I had trying to finish Crime and Punishment. I succeeded on our last day there. It truly is a classic. The setting may have been 19th century St. Petersburg, but Dostoyevsky's description of the human condition is still relevant today. While many may dismiss his overtly Christian point of view, I think you'd be hard pressed to say he didn't know what makes man tick.

I've Netflixed a 1969 Russian adaptation of the story that, by many accounts, is considered to be the most faithful despite the Soviet atheism that taints some of the screenplay. Like the novel, it's supposed to be pretty slow in spots. Still I look forward to hearing the characters speak in Russian. One of the frustrating things about being an English-speaking fan of Russian literature is that everything available to you is a translation. It always leaves you wondering how far from the real sentiments of the author your translator has taken you. Maybe I just need to quit complaining and take Russian. Or run knitting needles through my nipples. I hear both are equally painful.