little things

This week was a tough one. My sweet granddaddy passed away early Thursday morning, and I would like nothing more than to be with my family right now. He was a quiet man who had grown even quieter in the last two years, but his most-often repeated phrase, said to us every time we packed up and left for Tennessee, "stay between the ditches," has been a quiet mantra in the back of my mind for as long as I can remember. A reminder to keep my eyes on the road and follow my path, even if I swerve a bit trying to stay there.

An unintentional theme this week - faces. Maybe because I'm missing all the ones of friends and family who are so dear to me, maybe because making good friends in a new city where you don't really know a soul is, as anticipated, tough shit. I've been lucky to meet several people - mostly friends of friends - who have been nothing but kind and helpful and fun, but I'm still feeling a little lonelier than I would like. Part of the reason I moved here was to get some space, but here's hoping I'll start a few friendships that feel a little more...effortless...soon. Cross your fingers?

In the meantime, five things that made my week a little sweeter:

I finally made it to Akazienkiez, one of the hipper districts in my neighborhood

springtime colors, wintertime temperatures

smiling cheese

mitte again...whoops

this little face, my favorite of all the faces