Oh, It's a Great Day - - -

for just about anything and everything. Murphy has left town. You know the guy -- if anything can go wrong it will go wrong! Well, he spent a considerable amount of time in my neighborhood this week! When I awoke this morning, I could just tell he was gone.

For starters, the sun was shining. (There hasn't been much of that lately -- I'm still wearing my winter coat, and it has been soaked more than once this past week.) To be certain I knew it was time to get up, there was a bird chorus under the window. I still don't know their names, but they have practiced well, and their music is lovely. Either they moved from Namesti Miru when I did or they sent their relatives to keep my company -- I do recognize the song. Whichever it is, I really appreciate their grace notes in my life.

It was such a wonderful morning to be lazy, to sort out and clean up all the papers of the past week and get a little jump on things that needed to be done for the coming week. It was also a great day for walking to the grocery store and coming home with lovely bread and really good radishes and apples, for riding the tram to the laundromat and coming home with everything clean except what was on my back, for getting acquainted with the shops and taking a few pictures of the graceful and colorful buildings in the neighborhood, for exploring the source of my "new" church bells, and for just enjoying a laid back day in this wonderful city.

About those church bells -- they come from the Church of the Sacred Heart, designed by the architect Plecnik, who also redid Prague Castle, and built in 1928-1932. One source says "ecclesiastical modernism reached new heights," another "one of the most inspiring pieces of modern architecture in the city," and yet another "it dominates a quiet square in the Vinorahdy quarter in Prague." That's my neighborhood, and I get to see the church with its enormous transparent clock and marvel every time I walk to the tram.

This would have been a very good day with only the bits and pieces of the ordinary. And yes, those everyday things do remain extraordinary to me. But it moved up to great about 4 o'clock. That's when I joined Toni, an American who's been here for nearly four years, at a terrific pub in Karlin, an area of Prague that was really devastated by the floods of a couple years ago. They have their own brews, as well as at least a hundred others. Of course I went for one (or two) of the house brands! And we talked and talked, ate some delicious soup and fried cheese, and talked and talked some more.

Definitely a great day -- and this is only half of the weekend!