I seem to have better hearing than pretty much everyone I know. It's not so much that I would excel in a hearing test with those high-pitched sound frequencies -- it's just that I hear things that other people seem to not hear. And I hear things on top of other noises. I can be watching television, typing, and eating chips and I can still hear the bass of the person who lives below me while they listen to music with their sub woofer that probably belongs in a car. So it bothers me. There is no sound to cancel out that sound unless I buy a sub woofer that belongs in a car and obviously I don't enjoy bass because I can't even handle second-hand bass, so why would I torture myself like this just to listen to self-provided bass?
I acknowledge that I pay attention to sound too much so I try to give my neighbors a break. Woe is me to have moved into an apartment complex where the walls are so thin if I am in my bathroom or kitchen, I can basically hear word for word of my neighbors' conversations (which gives me cause to pause and wonder what sort of things they have been hearing from my apartment and how much they know about me and my life and my phone conversations that I thought were private in the seclusion of my apartment). I try not to blame them and blame the thin walls and hate my apartment management. But really, it turns into a general discontentment malaise at people in general, with me disliking both the complex and my neighbors.
But back to the point, I seem to be able to hear better than most (all) people. And I use it to know where people are. I listen to them walking around and talking and I know where they are. This does not help me not run into inanimate objects that I wasn't looking at, which explains why I constantly knock my arms, elbows, and legs on anything as I walk by and trip over things that I should have been able to step over. Am I clumsy or just visually unobservant? (Feel free to answer that question but I might just ignore you because I always know better.)
This sounded like an interesting thing to talk about when I started but it turned into me just ranting about my neighbors and thin walls. Eh.
Saturday, January 31, 2009
Friday, January 30, 2009
Books to Read This Year (part 1)
I have books lying around and I am determined to read them. I keep buying more and more, or, as the visiting workflow coordinator Carolina described, I buy four books for every one I read. The books accumulate -- you do the math.
But here is a list that I intend to read within the year 2009:
1. Glimpses of Grace by Madeline L'engle
2. Honeymoon With My Brother by Franz Wisneer
3. Veronika Decides to Die by Paul Coelho
4. The Valykiries by Paul Coelho
5. The Curious Incident of the Dog at Nightime
6. The Englightened Mind by Stephen Mitchell
7. Girl in Hyacinth Blue by Susan Vreeland
8. Love in the Time of Cholera by Gabriel Garcia Marquez
9. Memories of My Meloncholy Whores by Gabriel Garcia Marquez
10. The Year of Pleasures by Elizabeth Berg
11. The Freedomwriters Diary
12. The French Lieutenant's Woman by John Fowles
13. The Things They Carried by Tim O'Brien
14. French Women Don't Get Fat by Mireille Guiliano
15. Three Junes by Julia Glass
16. Four Spirits by sena Jeter Naslund
These are just the books hanging out in my office at work that I have yet to read....
At home:
17. Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell by Susanna Clarke
18. Angela's Ashes by Frank McCourt
19. The Mermaid Chair by Sue Monk Kidd
20. At First Sight by Nicholas Sparks
21. Wisdom of Forgiveness by the Dahli Lama
22. The Girl's Guide to Hunting and Fishing by Melissa Banks
23. Don't Look Down by Jennifer Cruise
24. What Remains by Carole Badziwill
25. Leaving Home by Anita Brooker
26. Running with Scissors by Augusten Burroughs
27. Confessions of an Ugly Stepsister by Gregory Maguire
28. Bridget Jones Diary by Helen Fielding
29. Life and Death in Shanghi by Nien Chieng
30. Dedication by Emma McLaughlan and Nicholas Krauss
31. Anna Karennina by Leo Tolstoy
32. Love Walked In
33. The Sun Also Rises by Earnest Hemmingway
34. This Lullaby by Sarah Dessen
35. Nights in Rodanthe by Nicholas Sparks
36. Learning to Breathe by Karen White
37. Gilead by Marilynne Robinson
38. Burning the Map by Lauren Caldwell
39. The Night Journal by Elizabeth Brook
40. Dreaming in Cuban by Cristina Garcia
41. My Soul to Keep by Tananarive Due
42. 13 Little Blue Envelopes by Maureen Johnson
43. The Secret of the Pink Carnation by Lauren Willig
44. The California Book of the Dead by Tim Farrington
45. Slow Man by J.M. Coetzee
46. The Last Days of Dogtown by Anita Diamante
47. Citizen Girl by Emma McLaughlan and Nicholas Kraus
48. Palestine Peace Not Apartheid by Jimmy Carter
49. The Mercy of Thin Air by Robin Dominque
50. The Pursuit of Happyness by Chris Gardner
51. The Poisonwood Bible by Barbara Kingsolver
52. Bel Canto by Ann Patchett
53. The House of Sand and Fog by Andre Dubois III
54. Certain Women by Madeleine L'engle
55. Thank You for Smoking by Christopher Buckley
56. The Other Boleyn Girl by Phillipa Gregory
57. Jarhead by Anthony Swofford
58. The Telling by Ursla K. Le Guinn
59. Playing with Boys
60. Matchstick Men by Eric Garcia
and.... that's when I got tired of listing them. My goal is a book a week so that I can get through most of these. Reality will hit at some point and we'll be looking more at a book every two weeks, which won't really cause that much of a dent. Especially since whenever I'm done with a book that I don't feel a need to hold onto I simply post it on paperbackwap.com.....
If you ever have any recommendations on books or authors, obviously I would be thrilled for the input....
But here is a list that I intend to read within the year 2009:
1. Glimpses of Grace by Madeline L'engle
2. Honeymoon With My Brother by Franz Wisneer
4. The Valykiries by Paul Coelho
5. The Curious Incident of the Dog at Nightime
6. The Englightened Mind by Stephen Mitchell
7. Girl in Hyacinth Blue by Susan Vreeland
8. Love in the Time of Cholera by Gabriel Garcia Marquez
9. Memories of My Meloncholy Whores by Gabriel Garcia Marquez
10. The Year of Pleasures by Elizabeth Berg
11. The Freedomwriters Diary
12. The French Lieutenant's Woman by John Fowles
13. The Things They Carried by Tim O'Brien
14. French Women Don't Get Fat by Mireille Guiliano
15. Three Junes by Julia Glass
16. Four Spirits by sena Jeter Naslund
These are just the books hanging out in my office at work that I have yet to read....
At home:
17. Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell by Susanna Clarke
18. Angela's Ashes by Frank McCourt
19. The Mermaid Chair by Sue Monk Kidd
20. At First Sight by Nicholas Sparks
21. Wisdom of Forgiveness by the Dahli Lama
22. The Girl's Guide to Hunting and Fishing by Melissa Banks
23. Don't Look Down by Jennifer Cruise
24. What Remains by Carole Badziwill
25. Leaving Home by Anita Brooker
26. Running with Scissors by Augusten Burroughs
27. Confessions of an Ugly Stepsister by Gregory Maguire
28. Bridget Jones Diary by Helen Fielding
29. Life and Death in Shanghi by Nien Chieng
30. Dedication by Emma McLaughlan and Nicholas Krauss
31. Anna Karennina by Leo Tolstoy
32. Love Walked In
33. The Sun Also Rises by Earnest Hemmingway
35. Nights in Rodanthe by Nicholas Sparks
36. Learning to Breathe by Karen White
37. Gilead by Marilynne Robinson
38. Burning the Map by Lauren Caldwell
39. The Night Journal by Elizabeth Brook
40. Dreaming in Cuban by Cristina Garcia
41. My Soul to Keep by Tananarive Due
42. 13 Little Blue Envelopes by Maureen Johnson
43. The Secret of the Pink Carnation by Lauren Willig
44. The California Book of the Dead by Tim Farrington
45. Slow Man by J.M. Coetzee
46. The Last Days of Dogtown by Anita Diamante
47. Citizen Girl by Emma McLaughlan and Nicholas Kraus
48. Palestine Peace Not Apartheid by Jimmy Carter
49. The Mercy of Thin Air by Robin Dominque
50. The Pursuit of Happyness by Chris Gardner
51. The Poisonwood Bible by Barbara Kingsolver
52. Bel Canto by Ann Patchett
53. The House of Sand and Fog by Andre Dubois III
54. Certain Women by Madeleine L'engle
55. Thank You for Smoking by Christopher Buckley
56. The Other Boleyn Girl by Phillipa Gregory
57. Jarhead by Anthony Swofford
58. The Telling by Ursla K. Le Guinn
59. Playing with Boys
60. Matchstick Men by Eric Garcia
and.... that's when I got tired of listing them. My goal is a book a week so that I can get through most of these. Reality will hit at some point and we'll be looking more at a book every two weeks, which won't really cause that much of a dent. Especially since whenever I'm done with a book that I don't feel a need to hold onto I simply post it on paperbackwap.com.....
If you ever have any recommendations on books or authors, obviously I would be thrilled for the input....
One-Minute Writer: Energy
With fossil fuels dwindling, create a plan (realistic or fantasy) for ensuring there is enough energy for generations to come.
Pessimists and ordinary people alike claim that big oil is too big of a foe to combat. I think they're looking at this the wrong way. It is about innovation and determination and a willingness to change. We don't have to combat big oil -- we just have to make this about change we want versus a power struggle for energy. We should take all of the various ways that we have come up with to harness energy and use them. If the oil companies want to be included in this effort and continue to be profitable in the energy business, they are more than welcome at the table. But the change needs to happen now.
Look at Brazil: 30-year-old ethanol fuel program uses modern equipment and cheap sugar cane as feedstock, the residual cane-waste (bagasse) is used to process heat and power, which results in a very competitive price and also in a high energy balance (output energy/input energy), which varies from 8.3 for average conditions to 10.2 for best practice production. Long story short? Sugar cane ethanol is available throughout the country. They've been working on this since the 70s and its paying off for them now, thanks to help from the government mandating increased ethanol percentage blends over the years.
Now, I'm not a big fan of corn ethanol but I'm a huge fan of sugar cane ethanol.
Let's harness the wind, water, sun, and other forms of energy we haven't even thought of yet. They're worth discovering and studying and making major impacts with. I don't have a concrete plan except that we should be open to this major sense of change. We have to be ready for it. We have to no longer be complacent with oil. It's not getting us anywhere. I was disturbed to find out that SUV sales have skyrocketed since the price of gasoline went back down. I wish I could find every one of those people and tell them that they're ultimately buying themselves an expensive problem. Gas prices will rise again, it's really only a matter of when. And without great initiatives, we will continue to be at the mercy of an unstable oil supply.
I'm ranting, I know, and I could certainly do my fair share of research and form a coherent plan for how to harness the world of energy (and perhaps I will).
The new question comes what can I do to further this?
Get involved with organizations working towards finding and implementing alternative forms of energy? Reduce my carbon footprint?
http://freeenergynews.com/Directory/Organizations/index.html
Alternative Energy Resources Organization
Ok, I'm running away until I can form a coherent thought about this. More research and an actual plan to come later....
Thursday, January 29, 2009
Social Calendar
I don't do as much as I wished, so I'm looking for new activities or pastimes to be involved with. More volunteering, being more physically active, expanding my mind -- whatever it is, I need to be doing more of it. I listen to the things that my friends are doing or have done and I'm a little jealous -- I wish I was a little more adventurous or took a little more initiative with my own activities, if you will. I jokingly call Beth my social director but it's true that I let her make plans and I join in, whereas in previous times in my life I was more of an instigator, up for whatever.
The point now was not to be self-deprecating or say I used to wonderful but just to think about what I want to do be doing now. It's a little ridiculous how much I love planning my trip to Boston to visit my sister. It's also a little ridiculous how much of a dork I am. There is the largest sculpture garden in new england -- I wanted to go! Of course, there are no outdoor tours available this time of year but you CAN tour the workshops and inside galleries. I want to visit the Harvard Library, the Harvard Bookstore, The Boston Public Library, The JFK Library, The Mugar Memorial Library (Boston University), Brattle Bookshop (one of the oldest bookstores in America), The Longfellow House (home of Henry Wadsworth Longfellow), The House of Seven Gables (which inspired the novel by Nathaniel Hawthorne), Orchard House (where Louisa may Alcott lived) -- did I mentioned I love books and writing? And stories and telling them and listening to them....
Plus, there's the Boston Symphony and the Boston Ballet and all sorts of neat concerts and events to go to. I was hoping that Sarah Tollerson might be playing a show while I was in town but she is sadly playing two nights before I get there.
There are a lot of things that are only available in the warmer months: The Boston Movie Mile Walking Tour, Duck Tours, baseball games at Fenway Park, and, well, generally anything that involves being outside. Perhaps the most disappointing seasonal venue that is not open in the dreary winter months is the New England Pirate Museum in Salem. COME ON! I could have gone to a Pirate Museum!!!! That's totally worth a return trip between May and November.
Of course I want to go shopping and I want to just TALK with my sister face to face. Seeing her is obviously the point of the trip. Losing a toe isn't so much a part of the plan, but it is the dead of winter in New England.
So the list of things I want to do are dorky and not so much exciting -- I'm pretty sure my sister can take care of that. She can be my interim social director. There are a few clubs that she likes and some sort of adventure place called The Tomb where you get locked in and you have to work together with the other people to get out. Think Estate of Panic from the Scifi Channel without the parts that are supposed to actually terrify you and the people work together to get out instead of competing against each other.
I guess I'm slowly taking control of my own social calendar with Eddie's Attic on Friday night and this trip to Boston and then the next weekend Brandi Carlile with the Louisville Symphony. But I can do better. This will have to continue. Perhaps it's time to learn rock climbing or backpacking or....
The point now was not to be self-deprecating or say I used to wonderful but just to think about what I want to do be doing now. It's a little ridiculous how much I love planning my trip to Boston to visit my sister. It's also a little ridiculous how much of a dork I am. There is the largest sculpture garden in new england -- I wanted to go! Of course, there are no outdoor tours available this time of year but you CAN tour the workshops and inside galleries. I want to visit the Harvard Library, the Harvard Bookstore, The Boston Public Library, The JFK Library, The Mugar Memorial Library (Boston University), Brattle Bookshop (one of the oldest bookstores in America), The Longfellow House (home of Henry Wadsworth Longfellow), The House of Seven Gables (which inspired the novel by Nathaniel Hawthorne), Orchard House (where Louisa may Alcott lived) -- did I mentioned I love books and writing? And stories and telling them and listening to them....
Libraries remind us that truth isn't about who yells the loudest but who has the right information. Because even as we're the most religious of people, America's innovative genius has always been preserved because we also have a deep faith in facts."
-President Barack Obama, speech to the American Library Association, June 2005
Plus, there's the Boston Symphony and the Boston Ballet and all sorts of neat concerts and events to go to. I was hoping that Sarah Tollerson might be playing a show while I was in town but she is sadly playing two nights before I get there.
There are a lot of things that are only available in the warmer months: The Boston Movie Mile Walking Tour, Duck Tours, baseball games at Fenway Park, and, well, generally anything that involves being outside. Perhaps the most disappointing seasonal venue that is not open in the dreary winter months is the New England Pirate Museum in Salem. COME ON! I could have gone to a Pirate Museum!!!! That's totally worth a return trip between May and November.
Of course I want to go shopping and I want to just TALK with my sister face to face. Seeing her is obviously the point of the trip. Losing a toe isn't so much a part of the plan, but it is the dead of winter in New England.
So the list of things I want to do are dorky and not so much exciting -- I'm pretty sure my sister can take care of that. She can be my interim social director. There are a few clubs that she likes and some sort of adventure place called The Tomb where you get locked in and you have to work together with the other people to get out. Think Estate of Panic from the Scifi Channel without the parts that are supposed to actually terrify you and the people work together to get out instead of competing against each other.
I guess I'm slowly taking control of my own social calendar with Eddie's Attic on Friday night and this trip to Boston and then the next weekend Brandi Carlile with the Louisville Symphony. But I can do better. This will have to continue. Perhaps it's time to learn rock climbing or backpacking or....
Wednesday, January 28, 2009
One-Minute Writer: War
If you were all-powerful, would you stop all war? If so, how?
I find myself a bit puzzled wondering why someone wouldn't end wars if he or she was all-powerful. Perhaps my confusion lies in my interpretation of "all-powerful." I see it as something akin to God, with power that would equal man's version of magic, power that lies beyond what could be possible and perhaps goes the level of what should be. Though Love is all-powerful. I sound like a hippie saying it, I know, but it's true. Not a wimpy, wish-washy, generic sense of Love but Love with that capital L. A divine type not limited by any religion's dogma. It is the only thing that could save us from killing and hurting each other. It is demonstrable and practical and not something reserved for a utopia or perfect day.
I don't mean to talk about God so much. And when I say that, I mean, I don't set out to write about religion or God or spirituality. I'm just writing what is going through my thoughts and writing them down.
So Exciting (to me)
Tonight has been so exciting in its conversation and revelations and plane ticket reservations....
I just booked a flight to go to Boston in 3 weeks to visit my twin sister(!). I snagged a great deal and promptly called my sister to let her know I booked the flight and discuss plans and whatnot. Before I knew it, we'd been on the phone for over an hour. Just as I'm ending the call, I start chatting with Jordan. Jordan, after much talk and debate, has moved back to Georgia and gotten a new job and he's not very far away from me up I85.... I told him it was nice but a little strange to be able to make plans with him to do something this weekend. It sounded a little strange to him, I'm sure, to hear me say (or rather, read my typing of that) but I can explain. He's lived in Columbia, SC the last few years and wasn't so much possible. I got to know him better in Alaska and we chat online and such but I can't make plans that don't involve a good deal of driving. Not anymore! It hasn't sunk in yet, I don't think. And Beth is moving back this week, possibly to stay with me. And for most people, I would find that annoying but instead I'm elated that she might stay with me for a bit. And Dave H. just moved back to Atlanta (from...um, Athens?) and we're trying to make plans to get dinner next week.
I feel so spoiled. All these good things. And Chris S. and I making plans to play racquetball soon and hang out and how wonderful that he's getting married and I get to see it and be here. And, of all things, I just discovered that I was mistaken in thinking that Brandi Carlile performing with the Louisville Symphony was the same weekend as my Boston trip. It's not, it's the weekend after. I could still go! I'm elated about this. I have to go, even though it seems I shouldn't spend any more money but this makes me so happy.... That's when it all comes back to the idea of supply. We don't waste supply; but we're not constrained by it either.
And it seems doubly magnified, this sense of supply, with all these good things compounding on one another in my life. I'm making headway in my pursuit of a clean and organized apartment. I'm waking up earlier in the morning just to wake up earlier and get more done. I'm eating healthier and working towards being nicer to the environment and that's going well.
And I find myself just more and more grateful for the people in my life. I just have met and have known and know so many extraordinary people who come and go out of my life but I am truly better for it. And to have had so much time these last few months with Toby and getting to talk to her on the phone.
And making friends with other people's friends. There has been a long stretch where I shied away from new people -- it's nice to see me gaining, well, courage, I suppose. I'm not so sure what I was afraid of but I feel lighter without the fear of something I couldn't even name.
I'm rambling, I know. I'm happy. I'll have to keep working on praying about it because it would be just about perfect if I can also slip in a trip to DC in March to visit Lyndsey and hear Elizabeth Gilbert talk....
I just booked a flight to go to Boston in 3 weeks to visit my twin sister(!). I snagged a great deal and promptly called my sister to let her know I booked the flight and discuss plans and whatnot. Before I knew it, we'd been on the phone for over an hour. Just as I'm ending the call, I start chatting with Jordan. Jordan, after much talk and debate, has moved back to Georgia and gotten a new job and he's not very far away from me up I85.... I told him it was nice but a little strange to be able to make plans with him to do something this weekend. It sounded a little strange to him, I'm sure, to hear me say (or rather, read my typing of that) but I can explain. He's lived in Columbia, SC the last few years and wasn't so much possible. I got to know him better in Alaska and we chat online and such but I can't make plans that don't involve a good deal of driving. Not anymore! It hasn't sunk in yet, I don't think. And Beth is moving back this week, possibly to stay with me. And for most people, I would find that annoying but instead I'm elated that she might stay with me for a bit. And Dave H. just moved back to Atlanta (from...um, Athens?) and we're trying to make plans to get dinner next week.
I feel so spoiled. All these good things. And Chris S. and I making plans to play racquetball soon and hang out and how wonderful that he's getting married and I get to see it and be here. And, of all things, I just discovered that I was mistaken in thinking that Brandi Carlile performing with the Louisville Symphony was the same weekend as my Boston trip. It's not, it's the weekend after. I could still go! I'm elated about this. I have to go, even though it seems I shouldn't spend any more money but this makes me so happy.... That's when it all comes back to the idea of supply. We don't waste supply; but we're not constrained by it either.
And it seems doubly magnified, this sense of supply, with all these good things compounding on one another in my life. I'm making headway in my pursuit of a clean and organized apartment. I'm waking up earlier in the morning just to wake up earlier and get more done. I'm eating healthier and working towards being nicer to the environment and that's going well.
And I find myself just more and more grateful for the people in my life. I just have met and have known and know so many extraordinary people who come and go out of my life but I am truly better for it. And to have had so much time these last few months with Toby and getting to talk to her on the phone.
And making friends with other people's friends. There has been a long stretch where I shied away from new people -- it's nice to see me gaining, well, courage, I suppose. I'm not so sure what I was afraid of but I feel lighter without the fear of something I couldn't even name.
I'm rambling, I know. I'm happy. I'll have to keep working on praying about it because it would be just about perfect if I can also slip in a trip to DC in March to visit Lyndsey and hear Elizabeth Gilbert talk....
Tuesday, January 27, 2009
One-Minute Writer: Neighbor
Today's Writing Prompt: Neighbor
If you could pick any famous person to live next door to you, who would it be?
If I could call any famous person my neighbor, I would love to share a fence with the Dali Lama. Picture it: we would both be in our respective backyards taking care of our gardens and then we would stop to chat about life, spirituality, the universe, peace, or what have you. What an enlightening neighbor to have! (I apologize for how shallow that statement could sound, but I mean it. There would be so much to learn....)
Honorable Mentions are Richard Bach, Stephen King, Nicholas Sparks, Dana Gioia, Louise Gluck, Elizabeth Gilbert, Amy Tan, Paul Coelho, Stephanie Meyer, Cecelia Ahern. What can I say? I like writers.
I've never been really close to a neighbor, which is depressing. I always wanted to be friends with the people next door or across the hall. My current neighbors have no interest in socializing or, really, being polite or saying hi or parking between the lines in parking spaces (I'm not bitter.) Roger tried to get me to move into the apartment across from him, which in hindsight would have been a good idea and a cost saver in rent. Plus, since he is now officially a ninja, I would not only have a friendly neighbor but also a protector with a sword. It's something to think about for the future then. Be on the lookout for a good neighbor (and as a bonus, a good ninja).
But to begin, be a good neighbor. Love your neighbor as yourself. It always goes back to that, doesn't it?
Monday, January 26, 2009
One-Minute Writer: Ink
If you have tattoos, describe one of them. If you don't, what would your tattoo look like if you ever got one?
I'm hesitant about tattoos (and needles and choices and permanence, for that matter) but everyone should be able to pick something to emblazon on their body. Sort of the opposite of a birth mark, linked to identity. I'm never very good at picking one thing, so this is actually very difficult, but.... I would consider a crown on a cross but it would probably give an image to the world of religious showmanship as opposed to actual faith. It wouldn't be for anyone but me. It wouldn't be any sort of litmus test measuring my faith or my correctness in choosing something relating spirituality. It's something that I will always love. It's ingrained in me already, why not etch it on the surface as evidence of something within?
Obviously, this speaks to the fact that I am cautious with my spirituality at times. Other people give religion a bad name. They make it about everything it isn't supposed to be: judging people, condemning people, surface acts without real thought behind them, a caricature of piety, unloving, selfish, hateful, bigoted, prejudice, closed to thought.... I know all religious people aren't one or all of these things but it seems that way some times. I wait till people know me a little better before they know anything about me and religion. Given that, it's curious that I would choose to mark myself with a religious emblem. Despite the fact that I abhor the generalities and stigmas that follow spiritual hypocrites, I won't hide it either. I won't choose something that means less simply to seem like a better person. Which is funny, really, given that so many people use the rituals and emblems of religion to make themselves appear better to others.
Let me take this moment to apologize to all the people who aren't hypocrites. I should restate that while a lot of people give religion a bad name, there are so many out there who make religion a truly wonderful selfless, spiritual thing.
Perhaps I am too harsh on people. I did, after all, make these accusations of religious people everywhere without listing any evidence to support my supposition. But the appearance of faith not make us faithful. And this is still one of my favorite quotes:
"Going to church doesn't make you a Christian any more than going to a garage makes you a car."
-Laurence J. Peter
Sunday, January 25, 2009
An Update Since My Last Post
Since I last posted, I have turned 26 and sat on a large saddle while a group of people applauded.
I and found the experience more natural than I would have expected. I thought I would panic a bit at the thought of being in my late twenties as opposed to early-to-mid but here we are. I found myself almost telling people I was 26 last week, so I had unconsciously accepted the change in age before the actual date. Several friends accompanied me to the requisite steak dinner at Texas Roadhouse and made sure to embarress me by making me sit on a large saddle while the entire restaurant gave me a "round of applause," if you will. Ah, it's good to be the birthday girl.
The highlight of the week, however, was certainly going to Eddie's Attic with Sarah on Friday night. Just to hear Dean Fields and Mieka Pauley. Pictures to come later but we were literally one of the front row tables (a random stroke of luck when reserving a table) and could practicaly touch the musicians. In fact, for the final group, I could have reached over and held hands with one member of the band he was so close. I kept wondering throughout the entire performance if it bothered him to sit so closely to a stranger that was watching his every move, if he ever lost his cool. Not that I could tell, but I did my best to unnerve him ;)
Can't stop listening to Kate Tucker and the Sons of Sweden at the moment. Hopefully will not play them so much that I start to hate the sound of their band name.
I and found the experience more natural than I would have expected. I thought I would panic a bit at the thought of being in my late twenties as opposed to early-to-mid but here we are. I found myself almost telling people I was 26 last week, so I had unconsciously accepted the change in age before the actual date. Several friends accompanied me to the requisite steak dinner at Texas Roadhouse and made sure to embarress me by making me sit on a large saddle while the entire restaurant gave me a "round of applause," if you will. Ah, it's good to be the birthday girl.
The highlight of the week, however, was certainly going to Eddie's Attic with Sarah on Friday night. Just to hear Dean Fields and Mieka Pauley. Pictures to come later but we were literally one of the front row tables (a random stroke of luck when reserving a table) and could practicaly touch the musicians. In fact, for the final group, I could have reached over and held hands with one member of the band he was so close. I kept wondering throughout the entire performance if it bothered him to sit so closely to a stranger that was watching his every move, if he ever lost his cool. Not that I could tell, but I did my best to unnerve him ;)
Can't stop listening to Kate Tucker and the Sons of Sweden at the moment. Hopefully will not play them so much that I start to hate the sound of their band name.
Tuesday, January 20, 2009
Inauguration Poetry
I was eating steak and mashed potatoes while I watched the inauguration today. I watched from the office conference room with other coworkers, some working on their laptops and others, like myself, eating reheated leftovers.
We were serious in serious parts but sometimes we couldn't help but make comments and jokes about what was going on or a camera man's mistake or whatever. It was a good time and a good inauguration.
I was disappointed by the poem that was read, more so by the way it was read than the actual words themselves. The poem was lost in disjointed reading. It was sad, really, that an opportunity to get people who wouldn't read poetry to listen and it was wasted.
But for me, some good came of it, as I was under the misapprehension that the U.S. Poet Laureate was Dana Gioia. He is, in fact, NOT the U.S. Poet Laureate but the chairman of the NEA. Kay Ryan is the U.S. Poet Laureate and I'd never heard of her before.
I found this wonderful poem by her on the Library of Congress Website that I simply had to share:
Hide and Seek
It’s hard not
to jump out
instead of
waiting to be
found. It’s
hard to be
alone so long
and then hear
someone come
around. It’s
like some form
of skin’s developed
in the air
that, rather
than have torn,
you tear.
Isn't she fabulous? So simple yet so genius.
So inspiring.... makes me want to write poetry again =) (and few things do that for me these days)
We were serious in serious parts but sometimes we couldn't help but make comments and jokes about what was going on or a camera man's mistake or whatever. It was a good time and a good inauguration.
I was disappointed by the poem that was read, more so by the way it was read than the actual words themselves. The poem was lost in disjointed reading. It was sad, really, that an opportunity to get people who wouldn't read poetry to listen and it was wasted.
But for me, some good came of it, as I was under the misapprehension that the U.S. Poet Laureate was Dana Gioia. He is, in fact, NOT the U.S. Poet Laureate but the chairman of the NEA. Kay Ryan is the U.S. Poet Laureate and I'd never heard of her before.
I found this wonderful poem by her on the Library of Congress Website that I simply had to share:
Hide and Seek
It’s hard not
to jump out
instead of
waiting to be
found. It’s
hard to be
alone so long
and then hear
someone come
around. It’s
like some form
of skin’s developed
in the air
that, rather
than have torn,
you tear.
Isn't she fabulous? So simple yet so genius.
So inspiring.... makes me want to write poetry again =) (and few things do that for me these days)
Monday, January 19, 2009
Positive Change: Inauguration
*smile* a very uplifting thought to focus on as we usher in a new president from the Christian Science Board of Directors:
A New Day
Thank you muchly to Lyndsey Gore for finding this for me:
As a precursor to the HBO "We Are One" live concert special yesterday, there was a blessing from Bishop Gene Robinson; it was not televised. But you can go to video from the speech at salon.com:
Robinson's Blessing
The text from the speech is as follows:
"O God of our many understandings, we pray that you will bless us with tears -- tears for a world in which over a billion people exist on less than a dollar a day, where young women in many lands are beaten and raped for wanting an education, and thousands die daily from malnutrition, malaria, and AIDS.
Bless this nation with anger -- anger at discrimination, at home and abroad, against refugees and immigrants, women, people of color, gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender people.
Bless us with discomfort at the easy, simplistic answers we’ve preferred to hear from our politicians instead of the truth about ourselves and our world, which we need to face if we are going to rise to the challenges of the future.
Bless us with patience and the knowledge that none of what ails us will be fixed anytime soon and the understanding that our new president is a human being, not a messiah.
Bless us with humility, open to understanding that our own needs as a nation must always be balanced with those of the world.
Bless us with freedom from mere tolerance, replacing it with a genuine respect and warm embrace of our differences.
Bless us with compassion and generosity, remembering that every religion’s God judges us by the way we care for the most vulnerable.
And God, we give you thanks for your child Barack as he assumes the office of President of the United States.
Give him wisdom beyond his years, inspire him with President Lincoln’s reconciling leadership style, President Kennedy’s ability to enlist our best efforts, and Dr. King’s dream of a nation for all people.
Give him a quiet heart, for our ship of state needs a steady, calm captain.
Give him stirring words; We will need to be inspired and motivated to make the personal and common sacrifices necessary to facing the challenges ahead.
Make him color-blind, reminding him of his own words that under his leadership there will be neither red nor blue states but the United States.
Help him remember his own oppression as a minority, drawing on that experience of discrimination that he might seek to change the lives of those who are still its victims.
Give him strength to find family time and privacy, and help him remember that even though he is president, a father only gets one shot at his daughters’ childhoods.
And please God, keep him safe. We know we ask too much of our presidents, and we’re asking far too much of this one. We implore you, O good and great God, to keep him safe. Hold him in the palm of your hand that he might do the work we have called him to do, that he might find joy in this impossible calling, and that in the end, he might lead us as a nation to a place of integrity, prosperity, and peace.
Amen."
Such wonderful thoughts about this shift of power, politics, and thought. I was troubled last night as I was talking with my mom about her students -- multiple ones have told her that President-Elect Obama (ha, the last time I will get to say that) should be assassinated because he is the devil. I cannot vouch that he will be the president that we will ever have but certainly he has done nothing thus far to be likened to the devil. (Though this troubles me on another level because I don't believe in the devil....) We need to hear more voices such as those above to uplift thought. This is not a time to stick our heads in the sand and blindly trust a new president but it is a time to be supportive. So often it seems in the past 8 years I've heard defenders of President Bush reprimand people for questioning the president, claiming that such questioning was unpatriotic. It seems that the same group of people are the ones doing the questioning now....
The President is the President is the President, regardless of his policies or actions. It commands a certain amount of respect and also a healthy amount of criticism and watchfulness from the citizens. I will admit that while I did not go to the lengths that others did in mocking President Bush, I certainly said my fair share of derrogatory comments. And for those, I wish I'd done more research and been more watchful to form my own opinions outside of the bias of any media outlet, my friends, and family. I am thankful to have always kept the viewpoint that however much I disagree with President Bush's actions and policies, I cannot know what he knew in carrying out his decisions. There is surely so much that we do not know about the presidency and the demands and the weight of this country on presidents' shoulders. Perhaps the only indication is the amount they age in a very short time, coming in spry and leaving as old, weary men. (Yes, I used the word spry.)
The point of my long rambling is that I'm so very glad to see support and optimism that aren't blind.
A New Day
Thank you muchly to Lyndsey Gore for finding this for me:
As a precursor to the HBO "We Are One" live concert special yesterday, there was a blessing from Bishop Gene Robinson; it was not televised. But you can go to video from the speech at salon.com:
Robinson's Blessing
The text from the speech is as follows:
"O God of our many understandings, we pray that you will bless us with tears -- tears for a world in which over a billion people exist on less than a dollar a day, where young women in many lands are beaten and raped for wanting an education, and thousands die daily from malnutrition, malaria, and AIDS.
Bless this nation with anger -- anger at discrimination, at home and abroad, against refugees and immigrants, women, people of color, gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender people.
Bless us with discomfort at the easy, simplistic answers we’ve preferred to hear from our politicians instead of the truth about ourselves and our world, which we need to face if we are going to rise to the challenges of the future.
Bless us with patience and the knowledge that none of what ails us will be fixed anytime soon and the understanding that our new president is a human being, not a messiah.
Bless us with humility, open to understanding that our own needs as a nation must always be balanced with those of the world.
Bless us with freedom from mere tolerance, replacing it with a genuine respect and warm embrace of our differences.
Bless us with compassion and generosity, remembering that every religion’s God judges us by the way we care for the most vulnerable.
And God, we give you thanks for your child Barack as he assumes the office of President of the United States.
Give him wisdom beyond his years, inspire him with President Lincoln’s reconciling leadership style, President Kennedy’s ability to enlist our best efforts, and Dr. King’s dream of a nation for all people.
Give him a quiet heart, for our ship of state needs a steady, calm captain.
Give him stirring words; We will need to be inspired and motivated to make the personal and common sacrifices necessary to facing the challenges ahead.
Make him color-blind, reminding him of his own words that under his leadership there will be neither red nor blue states but the United States.
Help him remember his own oppression as a minority, drawing on that experience of discrimination that he might seek to change the lives of those who are still its victims.
Give him strength to find family time and privacy, and help him remember that even though he is president, a father only gets one shot at his daughters’ childhoods.
And please God, keep him safe. We know we ask too much of our presidents, and we’re asking far too much of this one. We implore you, O good and great God, to keep him safe. Hold him in the palm of your hand that he might do the work we have called him to do, that he might find joy in this impossible calling, and that in the end, he might lead us as a nation to a place of integrity, prosperity, and peace.
Amen."
Such wonderful thoughts about this shift of power, politics, and thought. I was troubled last night as I was talking with my mom about her students -- multiple ones have told her that President-Elect Obama (ha, the last time I will get to say that) should be assassinated because he is the devil. I cannot vouch that he will be the president that we will ever have but certainly he has done nothing thus far to be likened to the devil. (Though this troubles me on another level because I don't believe in the devil....) We need to hear more voices such as those above to uplift thought. This is not a time to stick our heads in the sand and blindly trust a new president but it is a time to be supportive. So often it seems in the past 8 years I've heard defenders of President Bush reprimand people for questioning the president, claiming that such questioning was unpatriotic. It seems that the same group of people are the ones doing the questioning now....
The President is the President is the President, regardless of his policies or actions. It commands a certain amount of respect and also a healthy amount of criticism and watchfulness from the citizens. I will admit that while I did not go to the lengths that others did in mocking President Bush, I certainly said my fair share of derrogatory comments. And for those, I wish I'd done more research and been more watchful to form my own opinions outside of the bias of any media outlet, my friends, and family. I am thankful to have always kept the viewpoint that however much I disagree with President Bush's actions and policies, I cannot know what he knew in carrying out his decisions. There is surely so much that we do not know about the presidency and the demands and the weight of this country on presidents' shoulders. Perhaps the only indication is the amount they age in a very short time, coming in spry and leaving as old, weary men. (Yes, I used the word spry.)
The point of my long rambling is that I'm so very glad to see support and optimism that aren't blind.
Sunday, January 18, 2009
I'm going through my veritable movie collection at the moment, watching my favorite scenes from my favorite movies and then moving on to others. I just watched the end of A Beautiful Mind, which always makes me cry a little bit (which may be lame but true). Now I'm onto Dirty Dancing Havanah Nights, which should be an awful movie but isn't. I remember Philip bought it and made me watch it in college, so Philip I have to thank you for forcing me to love this movie. Makes me cha cha in my living room. Thank you muchly, UGA, for letting me take ballroom dance for my Physical Education credit =)
Today was a good day. Church, then ChuckECheese with my parents as well as Asher and David, from church. Mom and I played game after game of skeeball and then handed our tickets over to Asher. I desperately wanted my picture taken with ChuckE but was unable to be photographed with even the anamatronic one, thanks to a horde of small girls.
Then off to the North GA outlet malls with Russell. We did not find him his coveted vest but we did find other retail steals. It was good to get out and a relaxing shopping experience, which hard to come by. Shirts for $8, a Ralph Polo sweater for $15, Hilfiger polo dress for $6.50.... my wallet totally won.
This is a boring recap of a day that was much more enjoyable than described. This week is Mieka Pauley at Eddie's Attic, hanging out with Catherine, dinner at Texas Roundhouse, and other things. Toby gave me an awesome cookbook for Christmas that I will begin to utilize. My apartment is looking much better; next thing to tackle is my car (good grief).
. . .
Just talked to my mom on the phone for an hour and a half. It was a surprising conversation about... well, everything. Her students, politics, religion, our adversity to the fusion of religion and government, the inauguration, recycling, the economy, our family, and all sorts of things. It was a good conversation, the kind that you don't realize an hour and a half has gone by and you've already missed your internal bed time.
I'm sure there were all sorts of things that I wanted to say before the phone rang but now I'm tired and it's time to go to sleep. Busy day tomorrow and all.
"What truly is logic? Who decides reason? My quest has taken me to the physical, the metaphysical, the delusional, and back. I have made the most important discovery of my career - the most important discovery of my life. It is only in the mysterious equations of love that any logic or reason can be found.
[looking at and speaking to his wife Alicia]
I am only here tonight because of you
You are the reason I am. You are all my reasons."
-A Beautiful Mind, movie
Today was a good day. Church, then ChuckECheese with my parents as well as Asher and David, from church. Mom and I played game after game of skeeball and then handed our tickets over to Asher. I desperately wanted my picture taken with ChuckE but was unable to be photographed with even the anamatronic one, thanks to a horde of small girls.
Then off to the North GA outlet malls with Russell. We did not find him his coveted vest but we did find other retail steals. It was good to get out and a relaxing shopping experience, which hard to come by. Shirts for $8, a Ralph Polo sweater for $15, Hilfiger polo dress for $6.50.... my wallet totally won.
This is a boring recap of a day that was much more enjoyable than described. This week is Mieka Pauley at Eddie's Attic, hanging out with Catherine, dinner at Texas Roundhouse, and other things. Toby gave me an awesome cookbook for Christmas that I will begin to utilize. My apartment is looking much better; next thing to tackle is my car (good grief).
. . .
Just talked to my mom on the phone for an hour and a half. It was a surprising conversation about... well, everything. Her students, politics, religion, our adversity to the fusion of religion and government, the inauguration, recycling, the economy, our family, and all sorts of things. It was a good conversation, the kind that you don't realize an hour and a half has gone by and you've already missed your internal bed time.
I'm sure there were all sorts of things that I wanted to say before the phone rang but now I'm tired and it's time to go to sleep. Busy day tomorrow and all.
"What truly is logic? Who decides reason? My quest has taken me to the physical, the metaphysical, the delusional, and back. I have made the most important discovery of my career - the most important discovery of my life. It is only in the mysterious equations of love that any logic or reason can be found.
[looking at and speaking to his wife Alicia]
I am only here tonight because of you
You are the reason I am. You are all my reasons."
-A Beautiful Mind, movie
Saturday, January 10, 2009
All's Quiet on the Alison Front
Today was a quiet a day. A good day but a quiet one. I didn't leave the house until about 5:30 pm, and only then it was to run a few errands and do a little grocery shopping. But since grocery shopping relaxes me.... =)
While I was out, I heard from Jordan that he found a new place to live, which is exciting. Also heard from Beth, newly transplanted in Texas. It seems I'm losing a Beth but gaining a Jordan, inadvertently.
I felt silly not doing much today but sitting around and leisurely cleaning and watching tv/movies/writing stuff in notebooks but I guess I haven't had a Saturday to do that in quite some time. Tomorrow will be busy with church, lunch with my parents, then a meeting about a youth summit, then the cat shelter, then.... well, then the day will be almost over. It will be time to eat dinner and get ready for the week.
Today felt good. It was a good day. Good prayerful work, good loving of fellow man from the quietness of my apartment. I watched The 11th Hour, the global warming documentary by Leonardo DiCaprio.
It's raining again. Rain is only fun when it's warm and there's someone else to play in the rain with....
While I was out, I heard from Jordan that he found a new place to live, which is exciting. Also heard from Beth, newly transplanted in Texas. It seems I'm losing a Beth but gaining a Jordan, inadvertently.
I felt silly not doing much today but sitting around and leisurely cleaning and watching tv/movies/writing stuff in notebooks but I guess I haven't had a Saturday to do that in quite some time. Tomorrow will be busy with church, lunch with my parents, then a meeting about a youth summit, then the cat shelter, then.... well, then the day will be almost over. It will be time to eat dinner and get ready for the week.
Today felt good. It was a good day. Good prayerful work, good loving of fellow man from the quietness of my apartment. I watched The 11th Hour, the global warming documentary by Leonardo DiCaprio.
It's raining again. Rain is only fun when it's warm and there's someone else to play in the rain with....
Friday, January 9, 2009
Music I Plan to Listen To
I've been listening to Pandora lately and writing down artists or other music I need to acquire for my music library.
My newest list:
Kris Delmhorst
Missy Higgins (Peachy, Sugarcane)
Timmy Curran (Word of Mouth)
Adele (Hallelujah)
Scrubs soundtracks [thanks Phil!]
Ray LaMontagne
Chris Pureka (Burning Bridge)
Rachel McGoye (Try Try)
Kim Taylor (I Feel Like a Fading Light)
Soundtrack to The American President
Sarah Tollerson's newest album
Vampire Weekend (Oxford Comma -- how cool is that? they named a song Oxford Comma!)
Colin Hay (Going Somewhere)
Joshua Radin (We Were Here)
Pink Floyd (Dark Side of the Moon)
Joshua Bell old albums
Crash Soundtrack
Tina Dico
Andrew Bird
Eileen Ives
Bird York (In the Deep)
Love Again (Dirt Poor Robins on the Cage)
Told you So (The Guggenhim Grotton on Walting Alone)
Any other suggestions anyone? Any latest music finds? I know I'm a bit late on the Pink Floyd but I've never really sat down and listened to him before.
My newest list:
Kris Delmhorst
Missy Higgins (Peachy, Sugarcane)
Timmy Curran (Word of Mouth)
Adele (Hallelujah)
Scrubs soundtracks [thanks Phil!]
Ray LaMontagne
Chris Pureka (Burning Bridge)
Rachel McGoye (Try Try)
Kim Taylor (I Feel Like a Fading Light)
Soundtrack to The American President
Sarah Tollerson's newest album
Vampire Weekend (Oxford Comma -- how cool is that? they named a song Oxford Comma!)
Colin Hay (Going Somewhere)
Joshua Radin (We Were Here)
Pink Floyd (Dark Side of the Moon)
Joshua Bell old albums
Crash Soundtrack
Tina Dico
Andrew Bird
Eileen Ives
Bird York (In the Deep)
Love Again (Dirt Poor Robins on the Cage)
Told you So (The Guggenhim Grotton on Walting Alone)
Any other suggestions anyone? Any latest music finds? I know I'm a bit late on the Pink Floyd but I've never really sat down and listened to him before.
We should remember that we forgot them or something
"Not the power to remember, but its very opposite, the power to forget, is a necessary condition for our existence."
-Sholem Asch
I came across the above quote today, and, while I found that it was profound in its own way, I also discovered that I mostly disagree. Now I suppose I could be taking this quote from a different context than than Mr. Asch's original intent, but hear me out.
Memory is incredibly important to me. I revel in memories and reliving events that have happened. I love that I can remember multiple dreams from each night. For me, memory is a solace. In comparison with writing, it is the non-fiction work of imagination and comforting in that it is at least partly true. No memory is unbiased but neither is it untrue.
I am who I am because of what I remember. True, I may employ my own selective amnesia to remember only those things that I want to remember, but I certainly do not only recall pleasantries. I compartmentalize but eventually the compartments are opened; delayed reactions or emotions but certainly they are not forgotten.
In a grander, larger sense, the world is what it is today because it chooses to remember rather than forget. We learn through living. Forgetting that we've lived and how makes it impossible to do grow, either individually or collectively. I took a wonderful class in school, Writing for the World Wide Web. It sounds like a contemporary writing class with uncharted territory, and in a way it is, but it also gave a look at what writing has done and what it will do in the future. Man began forming a language to communicate and he wrote things down to remember them. But he wrote them down so that that memory existed outside of himself so that he could contain other knowledge without losing knowledge. In essence, man learned to write things down so that he could forget them and remember them again.
I remember finding this so interesting at the time, because I'd never really thought of writing as that way. I adore writing and scribbling in little notebooks and writing down random thoughts here. It never occurred to me that I was trying to remember everything but writing it down to forget it and remember it later. Wouldn't it be fun if life was that way? If we lived lifetime after lifetime on various planes of existence, forgetting for a while the things we've learned to learn other things, to gain other experiences, but, in the end, remembering the entire lot of experience collectively? Our own breathing autobiographers....
It seems this subject has come up often lately among old and newer friends (including Lyndsey and Mike) in terms of the contemplation of the purpose of life or the way it comes about. What is comforting is that it is not, or so I hope it is not, a pretentious type of philosophising. We are not discussing the simple meaning of life but the meanings in life (or so I think). Certainly I am aware that so many people over so many periods of time have contemplated the same and perhaps reached different conclusions. We are not necessarily original thinkers.
I've always wondered about religion in general. Do people believe things that they want to be believe or do they believe things because they're true? Everyone believes that their religions are correct and that everyone else is in some way wrong. Are we all wrong? Is there ever a way to prove anything? As a practicing Christian Scientist, I am at least comforted by the fact that I can demonstrate what I believe on a daily, second-to-second basis. Demonstrations are, in fact, what drive the religion. Love is what drives divine Science.
[For those of you who don't understand that statement, I apologize. I will not stop to explain it at the moment but perhaps in future posts an explanation will come]
Christian Science says that man is not material, he is spiritual. That God is Love. And that man is the reflection of God. In my 25 years of study, it seems everything else in the religion follows these ideas. As a result, we seek to remedy problems by seeing their spiritual reality. Healing is always eminent, always occurring, always possible. I will not tell you that Christian Science is the way or the only way to reach God or it is only truth that you're going to find in this world. I know it works for me. One of the main arguments against it comes from an objection to the idea that there is no matter or material world. The objection is that if there is no material world, then why does one appear to exist at all? If it is not real, then why does it appear to be the only reality we know? One of my Sunday School teachers gave a quiet response. He said that he couldn't prove that what he knew to be true was true. But that he knew that he was doing something right because he was seeing the healing.
That's the way I feel. I know I'm doing something right, even if it's only loving my fellow man. Even if it's only recognizing God as Love. People get so caught up in who is right and who is wrong and who is going to burn in hell and who won't and saving people. To share part of another one of my favorite quotes, we have to rescue ourselves from ourselves. Salvation is an individual experience.
I'm rambling, I know, and responding to so many questions and conversations that I've had with others over time about life and the world and religion and spirituality. This post probably doesn't follow very well without being able to get into my mind and see the color of my memory that tints this entire collection of thoughts. But, in the end, that is what this is all for. To put down in words what I remember so that I can forget it and remember again. And so that others can hopefully one day understand.
Editor's Note: A cookie to the person who can name the origination of the quote that is the title of this post.
Wednesday, January 7, 2009
Diet Dr. Pepper Challenge
No, I'm not challenging anyone to anything, fantastic feat or otherwise. I'm watching the new episode of Top Chef and they have a Diet Dr. Pepper challenge.
For those of you who are tragically unaware, I LOVE Diet Dr. Pepper. My zeal to reduce my sugar intake because I'm tired of tasting sugar in everything caused me to try the aforementioned beverage in an effort to find a softdrink that is not so heavy with sugar. I'm the person who loves those Diet Dr. Pepper commercials. I do a little dance when I discover that Chick-fil-A or Arbys now have it "on tap." I tell everyone they have to try it. I'm blown away by how it is a diet drink that still has the basic taste of the drink that it imitates.
So you can imagine how thrilled I am that there is a Diet Dr. Pepper challenge on one of my favorite tv shows.
(I know, I know, I'm a dork....)
For those of you who are tragically unaware, I LOVE Diet Dr. Pepper. My zeal to reduce my sugar intake because I'm tired of tasting sugar in everything caused me to try the aforementioned beverage in an effort to find a softdrink that is not so heavy with sugar. I'm the person who loves those Diet Dr. Pepper commercials. I do a little dance when I discover that Chick-fil-A or Arbys now have it "on tap." I tell everyone they have to try it. I'm blown away by how it is a diet drink that still has the basic taste of the drink that it imitates.
So you can imagine how thrilled I am that there is a Diet Dr. Pepper challenge on one of my favorite tv shows.
(I know, I know, I'm a dork....)
Toby's Family
Last night I went to dinner with Toby and her parents at Pappadeaux. Wonderful fish, wonderful atmostphere. But the most wonderful part of the evening was the company.
[I've been spoiled the last week or two to have so many people I love here in Atlanta. My sisters and brother in law, Toby, Phil, Jordan, and others. Elspeth will be here on Friday from Germany in her yearly return home. I've also been spoiled by having Beth here for an extra six months.]
Toby sadly left for Ann Arbor this morning but I am so thankful to have that dinner with her family last night. Sadly, her brother Mark had already left for Athens but we managed to carry on a conversation without him =) It's such a simple thing, really, eating dinner with old friends that are like family, their family like your family. But I suppose I can't seem to get over the beautiful simplicity; I stumble trying to write about it but it means the world to me.
Toby, thank you for thinking of including me on the night before you left. Thank you ever so much to your parents for always including me in important family nights, always welcoming me.
It feels like every night I have something to do, someone to see, something to take care of, something to clean. I'm frankly exhausted and I won't get a break for another week or so. But it's worth it. Having all these wonderful people in my life is worth it.
[I've been spoiled the last week or two to have so many people I love here in Atlanta. My sisters and brother in law, Toby, Phil, Jordan, and others. Elspeth will be here on Friday from Germany in her yearly return home. I've also been spoiled by having Beth here for an extra six months.]
Toby sadly left for Ann Arbor this morning but I am so thankful to have that dinner with her family last night. Sadly, her brother Mark had already left for Athens but we managed to carry on a conversation without him =) It's such a simple thing, really, eating dinner with old friends that are like family, their family like your family. But I suppose I can't seem to get over the beautiful simplicity; I stumble trying to write about it but it means the world to me.
Toby, thank you for thinking of including me on the night before you left. Thank you ever so much to your parents for always including me in important family nights, always welcoming me.
It feels like every night I have something to do, someone to see, something to take care of, something to clean. I'm frankly exhausted and I won't get a break for another week or so. But it's worth it. Having all these wonderful people in my life is worth it.
One-Minute Writer: Senses
If you had to lose one of your five senses, which would you choose?
* * *
If I had to face the world with only four senses, I would choose to lose my sense of taste. This could be detrimental in terms of me not eating rotten food or not eating non-rotten non-food items, but it would be a risk I'm willing to take. As much as I love food and eating and savoring the things I eat, I couldn't deal without the other four senses. I couldn't imagine not looking people in the eye or seeing all the beautiful things out there. I certainly couldn't lose the ability to hear -- I depend on it too much and couldn't bear to live without music. Touch is another huge one and fairly self-explanatory. It was down to between taste and smell and smell won because I love the way men's cologne smells and I don't think I'd want to do without it. People smell unique. At the end of the day, I chose the 4 senses that allow me to communicate with other people. And while yes, people do taste like something, I'm putting that communication method at the bottom of my list....
* * *
If I had to face the world with only four senses, I would choose to lose my sense of taste. This could be detrimental in terms of me not eating rotten food or not eating non-rotten non-food items, but it would be a risk I'm willing to take. As much as I love food and eating and savoring the things I eat, I couldn't deal without the other four senses. I couldn't imagine not looking people in the eye or seeing all the beautiful things out there. I certainly couldn't lose the ability to hear -- I depend on it too much and couldn't bear to live without music. Touch is another huge one and fairly self-explanatory. It was down to between taste and smell and smell won because I love the way men's cologne smells and I don't think I'd want to do without it. People smell unique. At the end of the day, I chose the 4 senses that allow me to communicate with other people. And while yes, people do taste like something, I'm putting that communication method at the bottom of my list....
Sunday, January 4, 2009
High and Low Points
The high point of my day was hitting myself in the face with a celery stalk while cleaning up after dinner.
The low point was saying goodbye to Beth (I will miss you muchly!)
Another high point was getting to sit down and talk to Sarah. Various other points existed today, some worth mentioning and others mundane.
Lunch was an unexpected church affair at Phoebe's house with most of the church members in attendance. The spread was amazing -- a veritable smorgusborg of homemade foods and desserts. If I indulged a bit too much on the dessert portion, may my body forgive me.
I'm listening to Stranger Than Fiction while I busy myself with getting ready for the week, straightening things, doing dishes, writing a blog entry, etc. Toby came over yesterday to help me organize and she was a tremendous help. Certainly the task was too great for one afternoon but we made tremendous progress. Thank you chum =)
Eh, this is a boring entry. Go amuse yourself with something amusing....
The low point was saying goodbye to Beth (I will miss you muchly!)
Another high point was getting to sit down and talk to Sarah. Various other points existed today, some worth mentioning and others mundane.
Lunch was an unexpected church affair at Phoebe's house with most of the church members in attendance. The spread was amazing -- a veritable smorgusborg of homemade foods and desserts. If I indulged a bit too much on the dessert portion, may my body forgive me.
I'm listening to Stranger Than Fiction while I busy myself with getting ready for the week, straightening things, doing dishes, writing a blog entry, etc. Toby came over yesterday to help me organize and she was a tremendous help. Certainly the task was too great for one afternoon but we made tremendous progress. Thank you chum =)
Eh, this is a boring entry. Go amuse yourself with something amusing....
Saturday, January 3, 2009
So Long, Farewell.... Beth
Tonight was Beth's farewell dinner. Or, as she aptly named it, Beth's Moving to George Bush Land Dinner. It was a great group of people that I mostly knew. Pappassitos was a wonderful dining experience (wait, that food is still sitting in my car....) and there will be corny pictures of the evening to post later.
Good times afterwards at Ashley and Ross's house. More pictures. More silliness.
I'm in one of those moods now at almost 2:30 in the morning where I honestly don't want to go to sleep. I'm tired but not overly so.
******
Sleep ensues
******
I stayed awake for almost another hour or two last night, watching the last hour of The Wedding Date and then reading in bed. It wasn't that I wasn't physically tired; it was that my mind had become remarkably, acutely awake. I was invested in The Wedding Date, noticing details and understanding moments that I'd never seen before. Whole new layers of emotion and story were unearthed for me just by paying attention at a late (or, depending on how you look at it, early) hour.
I've been re-reading parts of "Eat, Pray, Love" in bed before I go to sleep lately and I couldn't stop myself last night, wanting to relive Elizabeth Gilbert's experiences in Indonesia in the third section of the book. Such a storyteller, that one. Lyndsey told me that she is going to be giving a talk/lecture/whatever in DC in March and I am ravenous to hear her speak outside this simple book that I love. I want more....
Dare I make the trip? I already need to visit my sister in Boston. I want to go to KY in February to hear Brandi Carlile with the Louisville Symphony. Lyndsey is teasing (in the most delectable way) me with a possible trip to Europe this summer. Other friends are already planning a return trip to visit Philip in Alaska in August. There's always Christy and Alden in Houston. Beth will be in Denton/Dallas/Ft. Worth. I want to visit Toby again in Ann Arbor. Phil is in Durham, perhaps the easiest of all these trips. What a lovely problem it is, really, to have places to go and people to see. Every time I start to think I'm lonely or alone or been left behind by everyone's goings and rare comings, I'm surrounded in good company. God and the Universe refuse to leave me alone. The cost of these journeys, however, arrives at issue.
In a way, I'm glad I don't have endless amounts of money making all travel possible. At this point in my life, I need the grounding of having to make choices; otherwise I might not be so grateful. Otherwise the trips might not be wasted on me. I'm not a person who takes things for granted naturally but I savor these trips more knowing the opportunity cost of taking them. And oh, baby, is it worth the cost of the opportunity....
Good times afterwards at Ashley and Ross's house. More pictures. More silliness.
I'm in one of those moods now at almost 2:30 in the morning where I honestly don't want to go to sleep. I'm tired but not overly so.
******
Sleep ensues
******
I stayed awake for almost another hour or two last night, watching the last hour of The Wedding Date and then reading in bed. It wasn't that I wasn't physically tired; it was that my mind had become remarkably, acutely awake. I was invested in The Wedding Date, noticing details and understanding moments that I'd never seen before. Whole new layers of emotion and story were unearthed for me just by paying attention at a late (or, depending on how you look at it, early) hour.
I've been re-reading parts of "Eat, Pray, Love" in bed before I go to sleep lately and I couldn't stop myself last night, wanting to relive Elizabeth Gilbert's experiences in Indonesia in the third section of the book. Such a storyteller, that one. Lyndsey told me that she is going to be giving a talk/lecture/whatever in DC in March and I am ravenous to hear her speak outside this simple book that I love. I want more....
Dare I make the trip? I already need to visit my sister in Boston. I want to go to KY in February to hear Brandi Carlile with the Louisville Symphony. Lyndsey is teasing (in the most delectable way) me with a possible trip to Europe this summer. Other friends are already planning a return trip to visit Philip in Alaska in August. There's always Christy and Alden in Houston. Beth will be in Denton/Dallas/Ft. Worth. I want to visit Toby again in Ann Arbor. Phil is in Durham, perhaps the easiest of all these trips. What a lovely problem it is, really, to have places to go and people to see. Every time I start to think I'm lonely or alone or been left behind by everyone's goings and rare comings, I'm surrounded in good company. God and the Universe refuse to leave me alone. The cost of these journeys, however, arrives at issue.
In a way, I'm glad I don't have endless amounts of money making all travel possible. At this point in my life, I need the grounding of having to make choices; otherwise I might not be so grateful. Otherwise the trips might not be wasted on me. I'm not a person who takes things for granted naturally but I savor these trips more knowing the opportunity cost of taking them. And oh, baby, is it worth the cost of the opportunity....
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