Love Notes / Notes on Love, v 2.0

Wow, its been a hectic week so far, productivity has been at full-throttle. This morning, though, bad news. Minor arthroscopic surgery to observe the implant in my father’s knee unfortunately necessitated a full-blown knee replacement - his second within one year - that was performed suddenly and unexpectedly. And I’m not there to take care of him! Right now he’s hanging out in the recovery room, probably making room for the stacks of “Get Well Soon” drawings and notes I’ll be sending his way. With him in mind, I’m embarking on the second edition of my blog-stallment titled “Love Notes / Notes on Love.”

____________________________________________________________

To: Dad
From: Rachel
Re: Morphine

Daddy,

I’m so sorry your fake knee didn’t work out the first time around. I know it hurts like hell, but be tough! After all, you’re only part human anymore. Keep pushing that little red morphine button! Milk the hospital for everything they’ve got! If I could, I would bring you jello and soup to your heart’s content. I’m sorry I can’t be there but I’m thinking about you and will make Mom read my blog out loud to you until you’re well enough to get home and read it yourself. I MISS YOU.

XOXOXO,

Rach

___________________________________________________________

To: Ryan Adams
From: Rachel Harkai
Re: Heartbreaker

Dear Ryan,

Frankly, I can’t say I’m particularly fond of much of your music, but this week Heartbreaker has really fit the bill. Hammer-ons, harmonicas and southern croons had me reeling and really wishing that your lyrics were a little less lame. The corn in your verses confounds me since, from what I understand, you are as tiresomely longwinded as you are disappointing in your prolificacy. Remember, Ryan: quality over quantity. Nevertheless, Why Do They Leave? and, of course, Oh My Sweet Carolina shaped the soundtrack of the day, giving this landscape some strange logic. Make another decent record, will you?

Love,

Rachel

P.S. Can we just forget about that stuff you did with Counting Crows?

___________________________________________________________

To: National Geographic Magazine
From: Rachel Harkai
Re: April 1964

Dear National Geographic Magazine,

Listen, your articles aren’t super scholarly and your writing is sometimes downright formulaic, but I think we can both agree that your foldouts are AWESOME and you are generally one of the better periodicals of all time.

Case in point, an antique issue retrieved from my old apartment in Ann Arbor:

Seriously, guys. Let’s reiterate: MAP + COUSTEAU + CATS = BEST. ISSUE. EVER.

Yrs,

Rachel

____________________________________________________________

To: Owen Wilson
From: Rachel Harkai
Re: (no subject)

Owen-

Why did you do that? Don’t you know that I love you?

-Rachel

____________________________________________________________

To: Spartanburg County Public Libraries (Headquarters Branch),
From: Rachel Harkai
Re: Living Arrangements

Dear Library,

My darling, what would I do without you? Three months and you’ve not let me down once. You’ve given me Carver, Calvino, Capote, Murakami, Sontag, Leonard Michaels, Lorrie Moore, a slew of amazing anthologies, a better contemporary poetry selection than most bookstores, and even a French-English dictionary. I think it’s time we talked about moving in together.

Love,

Rachel

____________________________________________________________

Speaking of love, Derya, Nicholas and I had quite the dinner adventure this evening. We drove out to Cowpens in hopes of finding “Fish Camp,” a family-style restaurant where we could buy our dinner by the pound. Devastatingly, they were closed, but we somehow found our way to that big, red farm o’ burnin’ love - the Burger Barn. I ate a deep-fried Oreo. Every day, in every way, my life is getting better.