17: Things For Which I Am Thankful

Okay, so Thanksgiving was yesterday, but I was busy cleaning my aunt's yard and then hanging with my family, so this post is a day late. I'm still very grateful for all of the following. And, we're talking broad-brush thankful list: nothing is too big or too small, too important or too inconsequential. And, there are plenty of things that didn't make the list, but are still very important to me (my cat, Wawa, etc.), but I didn't want to go on forever. Here goes:

1. My family. Since I mentioned I spent the day with them yesterday, they top the list. They're wacky and a bit nuts (so: I come by it honestly) and I absolutely adore 'em. Sure, there's drama sometimes, but when we're together we laugh to hard we cry, we eat great food, we share all the good and bad stuff. I love my family.

2. My mom. Yes, she's technically a member of my family and, thus, already been mentioned. However, I feel she deserves separate recognition. Yeah, she drives me crazy sometimes, but I honestly don't know what I'd do without her.

3. Goldfish (the crackers). I've always liked goldfish, but my obsession with them began in college, when I'd go to BJ's and get a big three pound box of them. I got one of those again the other day. I can eat goldfish as an entire meal. I dunno what it is, but...mmm, goldfish.

4. TV. I watch way too much TV, it's true. But, but...it's so awesome. Comedy, drama, dramedy, police procedurals. TV has 'em all, in half or one hour chunks. Glorious!

5. Cookies. I make it a personal mission never to say no to a cookie. (Hopefully I'm never assassinated with a poisoned cookie.) They're a couple of bites of awesome: sweet, chewy/crunchy, chocolatey/not, nuts/none, etc. Delightful!

6. Coffee. I promise, no other foodstuffs, but coffee needs a mention. I drink my coffee black, which I learned from my grandmother. I actually started drinking coffee with her because I liked the flavor. I'll admit to being addicted at this point--gotta have my morning cup--but I still enjoy the taste. It's never just about getting caffeinated, for me. If I wanted to do that I'd grab a Red Bull. Nope, I enjoy sitting with a hot cup of coffee, contemplating my day.

7. The interwebs. What did people do before Google and Wikipedia? I guess that's why the world had travelling encyclopedia salesmen back then. I can be happy without internet access for brief spurts of time (up to a couple of days, even), but not for too long. How else am I supposed to keep in touch with...everything?

8. Martin Luther. Or, really, any historic or current figure who has the will to do awesome things. And I don't mean awesome like totally cool, I mean awesome like absolutely awe inspiring. I don't think I've ever been tested in the same way that any of them have been, but I often wonder if I'd have the ability to do something big and important and world-changing if I needed to.

9. Snow. I'll lighten the mood a little bit here. Even as a fully grown adult (well, at least I'm told I've reached that point), snow still brings out the little kid in me. Yeah, it's annoying sometimes to have to clean off the car or shovel the driveway or sidewalk or deal with unplowed roads and all that inconvenient stuff. But: it's snow! Snow is pretty and serene and cold.

10. My job. It's good to have a job, just in general, but it's also nice to have one that is enjoyable. I think that no job is perfect, of course. But I dig mine.

11. Running. I didn't really start until college, or really, after college. And, I'm not a serious runner by any stretch of the imagination. But, I really like it. Sometimes I love to hate it, when I'm really pushing myself, but I enjoy it. Getting out and just...going. There's something powerful about that.

12. Baseball. If you know me, you know I love baseball. I'm not stats-obsessed and there are plenty of people who know the intricacies of the sport better than I do. But, I know my baseball, don't get me wrong. There's no better sport in my opinion. When I go to games and I sit in the stands and look around at everyone else there and the field and just take in the sport...that's one of my happy places. Oh, and the Phillies won the World Series this year. That was amazing.

13. Puzzles. Crossword puzzles, Sudoku, jigsaw puzzles, brain teasers, anything I love a challenge. Which isn't to say that I don't get frustrated sometimes; I certainly do. But when you finish it or finally figure it out...that's a great feeling.

14. Books/magazines. Along the same lines of a good think. Like The Economist advertisement: Great Minds Like a Think. When you curl up with a good book (or magazine) and just completely lose yourself in it, there's something about that. Of course, not all books and magazines are what you might call high-brow, but I enjoy those, too. Not everything can be deep and meaningful and weighty, sometimes it's nice to just enjoy.

15. Baking. I mentioned that I love cookies. I also love creating cookies. And muffins and bread and cakes and cupcakes and brownies and anything else baking-like. There's a rhythm, a pattern to it that just clicks for me. Like knitting or quilting, which I'll lump in here so as not to sound too much like an old lady by listing them all separately.

16. Open spaces. I like cities and towns for their walkability and their people watching and all that jazz, but nothing beats a wide open space in my book. The peace and possibility of an open field or hilltop or creek bed is endless. It's one of the few things in the world that just is. There's no trying to be something or someone else in that space. There's no hustle or bustle or rush or pressure or anything. There's just....existence.

17. Friends. I'll start and end with the two most important things in the world: family and friends. I'd argue that neither is more important than the other: they're both insurmountable to me. I know that some people struggle with either or both, but I'm lucky enough to have incredible friends. I wouldn't trade anyone for anything. And I'm incredibly thankful for that.

3: Love, Hate, Love/Hate

Minimal preamble, the title's rather self-explanatory.

1. Love: ice cream cones for dinner when it's 35 degrees (Fahrenheit) outside. Being an "adult" is awesome. I get to pick my own dinners! And some nights I make my four-year-old self proud by reaching for the ice cream cones and mint chocolate chip ice cream. It's dairy and...bread? It's like a grilled cheese sandwich, right?

2. Hate: that I can't wear sweaters to work. The above-mentioned 35 degrees outside means it's a sauna in my office. And I love sweaters! My winter might be ruined. I'll have to make the choice between sweating all day and only wearing sweaters not at work. Sigh.

3. Love/Hate: the Killers' new song "Human." The album dropped today and I'm already in love, but they've been playing the single on the radio for a while. And the lines: "Are we human? Or are we dancer?" ...wha? Are we dancer? Does that make sense? Am I missing something?

2: Wacky Doormats In My Hallway

It's the weekend and I had absolutely no plans the whole weekend. Which means that I did lots of chores around the apartment: laundry, dishes, cleaning, baking, grocery shopping and taking out the trash & recycling. It's the last one that brings my latest observation. The easiest way to get to the trash/recycling area, is to go down the hallway the opposite direction I usually go to the stairs at the other end. I've done this before, it's nothing new, but I guess I was just... more observant this time around. There are about half a dozen doormats (side note: I've never understood why you need a doormat in a carpeted apartment building/hallway...). Only two have writing on them.

1. "Come Back With A Warrant" This gem is actually my next door neighbors (not that I've met them). I'm going to go ahead and give them the benefit of the doubt and assume that it's meant as a joke, but, still...classy (note: heavy sarcasm). I mean, they're quiet enough (although they did get a little rowdy with their Election Night party, but oh well). And I've never seen police around. It does make me wonder, though...would it stop the police from knocking on the door? How legally binding is a doormat?

2. "Welcome/(upside down)Goodbye" Heh. Like, when you're entering, it greets you. And, when you're leaving, it bids you farewell. What a sweet doormat. It would actually almost make me feel guilty to wipe my feet on it. Good thing I don't know those neighbors, either (or anyone else who lives in my building...). I do appreciate their doormat though, so maybe I should knock on their door and try to make friends. Would it be creepy to introduce myself like this: "Hi, I like your doormat, wanna be friends?"

5: Favorite Daily Routines

I am a creature of habit. I enjoy having a schedule, knowing what's coming next. Which isn't to say that I don't enjoy the occasional spontaneity (it's more spontaneous if it happens less often, right?) and I enjoy breaking routine for vacations and other stuff. I guess what I'm trying to say is: I'm not totally rigid, but I enjoy the everyday stuff. And, since it's the weekend, I'll try to convince myself of all the stuff I like about the week. (Maybe I can look back to it as inspiration on Sunday evening...)

1. My morning bowl of cereal, cup of coffee and email checking. I've become more of a morning person as I've gotten older and now I get up early, shower and have my breakfast routine. It's quite lovely. My desk in my apartment sits below a window, so I can look out an enjoy the sun rising (or, like yesterday, the lightly falling snow).

2. The walk to work. I walk past a row of townhomes that, for some reason, remind me of a mid-20th century British village (not that I was ever in a mid-20th century anything, let alone British village, but I've seen movies and stuff... I tried to explain the look to a friend once, as we were walking past...apparently it's just me that sees it that way). For some reason, I find the look comforting. Plus, I love being able to walk to work (as I'm sure many are sick of hearing about).

3. Feeding my cat when I get home from work. It's ridiculous, but she just gets so excited to see me and even more so when I feed her. It's hard not to smile. Plus, it's good practice for when I become a crazy old cat lady some day.

4. Checking the mail. Most days, I actually have mail, but not always. Still, I get a kick out of checking my mail. Even when I know something's coming (like my weekly magazines) or if it's a bill (PECO seems to want me to pay for my electricity) I still like getting mail.

5. Checking Facebook. I'll admit it: I'm rather addicted, so it's more than a daily routine, but...ah, the f-book.

2: Woah. Just... Really?

So, my intentions aren't to make this a regular roundup of interwebs links that amuse me, but...the news is wacky. Well, here we go:

1. Gremlins! There are gremlins, for real. Out there, little _gremlins_ are running around. http://news.yahoo.com/s/livescience/20081118/sc_livescience/gremlinsthoughtextinctfoundafter85years;_ylt=Am5mJ1B9Kh8sdthoeJlzKams0NUE

2. TV does not make me unhappy. Not even in the tiniest little bit. I'm not an unhappy person. Well, I mean, everyone's unhappy sometimes, but I don't think I'm an overly unhappy person. I call shenanigans. http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20081118/tv_nm/us_misery;_ylt=AsE1jPc8dPEo.msPzcPCfe.s0NUE

5: Shows You Should Not Watch While Eating

I'm just trying to help, here. Learn from my mistakes and all.

1. Fringe. I'll start with the mistake I made last night at dinnertime: Don't watch Fringe while you've got a plate full of crab cake, asparagus and baked potato sitting in front of you. It could make that delicious crab cake slightly less appealing.

2. Bones. It's a show about a forensic anthropologist. So, it's all about nasty crime scenes and blood and gore and...well, bones.

3. CSI. Again with the crime scenes and the blood and gore. And the CGI makes it very...graphic. Not dinner fare.

4. House. Not quite as bad as the above, of course, but I don't do medical stuff very well. Surgery--cutting people open is probably my biggest issue. People puking, bleeding, other unpleasant things. Mysterious medical conditions don't mix with food.

5. The Food Network. Okay, not technically a show and not really upsetting, but... For some reason I don't enjoy watching other food being made while I'm eating something else. Perhaps that's just a quirk of mine.

3: Things That Baffle Me

I spent most of the week in kind of a funk. One of those nothing's-really-wrong-but-nothing's-all-that-great-either sort of moods. It was rainy all week and, while I love the rain, I think that has some deeper psychological effect. I didn't get to sleep in or stay home and watch movies to enjoy it (which is how rain should be enjoyed, I think). And, work was kind of blah. But, when I got home from work on Friday and checked my mail, there was a package. Hmmm, I thought, I didn't order anything...wonder what it is. So, I went to the office to pick it up. It was from my uncle, which made me smile. I rushed back to my apartment and opened it. It was a Phillies World Champs t-shirt. Totally awesome. And it broke through my funk and allowed me to observe these things last night:

1. A bizarre looking car that was...and ugly new Jaguar. Seriously, people? Aren't Jags supposed to be sleek and prestigious? This was just...sorta fugly. Well, the trunk/back half anyway. I didn't get a good look at the front, but the car just looked like a non-descript/sorta ugly sedan. So much for the Jaguar.

2. This one requires a little setup: I volunteer as an ESL (English as a second language) tutor. I was tutoring last night and we started by going over a list of short vowels/long vowels words. It's a stumbling block for him--understandably so, I think--and something we'll keep working on. That's not the baffling thing, though. Later we were going through a list of things that required identifying people and writing "the lady in picture c" or the kid in picture a," etc. So, he's writing this list and starts using the " notation for the-same-as-above. Which was kind of awesome, but I find it amazing the things we pick up on and remember and the things that can be more complicated. Learning is weird.

3. Then I went to the grocery store and walked through a solid aisle of Christmas candy. It's November. Mid-November, not post-Thanksgiving November. I know that there's not generally a lot of Thanksgiving candy, but c'mon people. It's still a little early for Christmas stuff. And, we just got over the glut of Halloween candy. Plus, I didn't know there was so much Christmas candy out there in the first place. I mean, you've got red/green M&Ms and red/green wrappers for all the traditional candies and maybe Christmas tree shaped Reeses Peanut Butter Cups (mmmmm, yummy), but...this was more. Like a variety back of mint-themed Hershey's Miniatures. And all sorts of bell-shaped candies. And...I don't even know. I was a little overwhelmed.

2: Work-Related Blogs that Amused Me Today

I'll be the first person to admit that I have a bizarre sense of humor. And I enjoy finding the humor in things, even if others, well...wouldn't. Now, these are meant to be humorous, albeit rather dry. But for some reason, today I thought both were laugh-out-loud funny. Thankfully, I didn't actually, though, as it was quiet in cube-land at the time.

1. A haiku. I tend to think haikus are...weird. They're rarely well done, in my opinion. This one, though? Teh awesome.

Fannie and Freddie
Private Gains. Public losses.
Whose idea was that?

From: http://cafehayek.typepad.com/hayek/2008/11/fannie-and-fred.html

2. This from the department of "Funny 'cause it's true"/"Sad, but true." Sorta like the first one, I guess.

With apologies to Michael Myers’ “Coffee Talk” character Linda Richman, we’ll give you a topic: the Troubled Asset Relief Program no longer involves Troubled Assets, does not provide any Relief, and does not seem to be a Program. Discuss.

from: http://blogs.wsj.com/marketbeat/2008/11/12/paulson-punts-and-short-term-yields-fall/

11: Time Travel (Sort of...Well, Not Really)

Okay, so, here's the setup: Yesterday, I was in a small, quiet room, tutoring. And there was a clock on the wall. A clock that has not been working for several weeks, at least. But last night, I could hear a (rather loud, I thought) ticking coming from behind me. I turned around. The clock: it moves. But, it said something in the neighborhood of 4:30. It was about 7:45pm at that point. Did I mention I also found the ticking annoying? So, I pulled the battery out of it. All well and good. I went about tutoring. Then, as I was leaving, I decided to do the right thing and put the battery back in the clock and set it to the appropriate time. So, I stuck the battery back in and the clock...it took off! Just started ticking away. I turned it over and saw: a small digital readout on the back. The clock was catching.up.to.the.right.time. Freaky. (Although, if that were the case...why was the time incorrect in the first place? I do not know.) And it got me to thinking: it's like a mini time machine. I know where I was at 4:30pm yesterday, and it wasn't in that room. But there I was. Reliving 5pm and 5:15pm and 5:30pm and...you get the drift. For some reason that amused me and got me thinking about time pieces. So, the following is a list of time tracking devices without which I would flounder.

1. My wristwatch. My mom gave it to me as a high school graduation present. It took me an inordinately long time to figure out how to read it and it still catches me up sometimes, but I love it. (It only has tick marks at 12, 3, 6, and 9.) When the battery dies, I still wear it, sometimes for weeks, until I get a new battery. It's an accessory. It's useful.

2. My iPhone calendar. I know, it sounds a little ridiculous to me, too. But, I take my phone everywhere with me, so I always have my calendar. It's very useful for the scheduling of thing. On several occasions it's saved me from double-booking myself. That's worth something to me.

3. My grocery store calendar. It's just a regular 12-month wall calendar that I got from the grocery store around, well, probably this time last year. It's got grocery store promotional stuff on it and it's nothing spectacular. But, it's what hangs on my wall by my desk in my apartment, reminding me of important life events (weddings, family gatherings, etc.). I only put the big stuff on there, so it's just the highlights. Forgetting to go to a wedding would be bad, right?

4. My work desk calendar. About two months ago, I spilled coffee on it. So, I get to remember that morning for the rest of the year. (It was a morning I'd rather forget and not just because of the spilled coffee.) But, it reminds me of when stuff is due. That, too, is rather important.

5. The clock on my VCR/DVD player. (Yes, I still have one of those.) I've had it for about six years now, so it's still programmed to the old daylight savings calendar. It switched over early this year. I just let it go, like a parent letting their kid wander, knowing they'll pay attention eventually. And now, it reads the right time. It reminds me to go to bed at a reasonable hour. (Well, it doesn't actually remind me, but seeing it is a reminder.)

6. My radio alarm clock. It lulls me awake to the dulcet tones of KYW 1060 every morning. Until my other alarm clock starts beeping rudely at me and forces me out of bed to shut it up.

7. My coffee maker clock. Because it's the most accurate clock in my kitchen (the microwave thinks it's in a race to win the fastest time device and the stove clock is broken altogether). I spend a decent amount of time in the kitchen, so it's important to know what time it is. Plus, it allows my coffee maker to start making my coffee in the morning, so it's ready when I get up. Gotta love that.

8. The birthday calendar. It's an old calendar in which I wrote everyone's birthday (so: exactly what it sounds like). I try to keep it up to date, and use it to remember to wish people happy birthdays. Yep, that's pretty much the sum of it.

9. The computer clock. Mostly, I suppose, the one on my work computer. It marches through the day (sometimes not fast enough, though) and takes me to leaving time. Again, simple, but useful.

10. My cat. Seriously, I'll never oversleep with her around. It's is of the UTMOST importance that she be fed in the morning. And, if I try to oversleep, she makes sure I'm aware of that. She's like my third alarm clock. Unfortunately, she's a little delayed, so if I wait for the cat-alarm, I still might be late for work or rushed or whatnot, but, I'll never waste the day away with her around. Well, it doesn't prevent me from crawling back into bed and wasting the day away, but at least I had the option to get up.

11. The sun. Corny, I know, but wasn't the sun the original time-tracking device? It's in the east? Morning. Straight above? Noon. In the west? evening. Simple, accurate, useful. Plus, it provides warmth and helps plants grow and all that jazz. It's the ultimate multi-tasker, and that's a job I can appreciate.