My Bit of Earth

Observations, Curiosities, and a Question

1. In order to remain comfortable in my own skin, I typically have to exercise a degree of self-control about what goes into my mouth.  (We're not talking celery-for-lunch deprivation, more like picking the small doughnut over the gigantic one.)  It appears, however, that one of my magical pregnant super powers is the ability to gorge at will with no consequences.  

I'm under instructions (both from our midwife and my mother) to eat healthily--not really a chore at this time of year when produce is ample and delicious--and our midwife even told me I can pretty much eat all the cheese as I can stand.  (I've been waiting my whole life to hear those words!)  Within those guidelines, I've been eating as much as I want, whenever I want, yet the scale stays the same.

While it's a little disconcerting (pregnant people are eventually supposed to get fat, after all), it's also amusing in an Alanis Morisette, "Isn't It Ironic?" way.

2. I cannot stop accumulating yarn, even when I'm being good--my reputation as an adopter of abandoned fiber has grown too large.  Last weekend?  A skien of chocolaty-brown Lamb's Pride pressed into my hands by a weaver who was tired of it.  Wednesday?  Six-hundred-and-some yards of creamy, chunky wool left on my desk by a co-worker.  

While it's such a strain to adopt so much new yarn (*cough, cough--sarcasm*), I'll just have to deal with it all somehow....

3. Macy the Duck cracks me up.  Of all my ducks, she's the one that most still seems to think of me as "mama".  Whenever I come into the yard she quacks loudly in greeting and trails along behind me like she did when she was small.  But she won't come close enough to let me pet or touch her.  She'll come just outside of arms reach and look up at me expectantly, but if I reach out she runs away.  She obviously thinks I'm somebody she likes, but even the best bits of kitchen scraps won't entice her to come nearer to me. 

I'm starting to feel like I need a duck-y psychologist to explain what this behavior means.

4. The pregnancy superstitions people are sharing with me are also cracking me up.  I feel like I can't share most of them here (because, although they're, um...interesting, many are sincere and well-intentioned), but when laughing about it all with Nice Mom the other day she passed on another one that I can talk about.  

Apparently, when she was pregnant with me, her grandmother very seriously impressed on her that she had to be careful not to be scared by anything or I would be born with an ugly birthmark in the shape of the thing that scared her.  As it was storming when we were having the conversation, Nice Mom joked that I should run outside so that the Peapod could be born with Harry-Potter-esque lightening bolt.

5.  It's getting to be about the time of year when I consider booking a little Fall getaway to our favorite little cabin in the woods.  I love going, but I wish it was just a little closer.  Does anyone happen to know of a nice, secluded little cabin that's within a few hours of Kansas City?  One with pretty old quilts and views like this?  Anyone?

 

 

A Stormy Day

Saw this picture heading out of the coffee shop today, and just had to stop and take it, even though I only had my cell phone for a camera.  It just fit my mood so well.

Not a good day, I must admit.  In addition to having a friend that's going through some not good stuff, Fiona the chick is getting downright worrisome.  Sleepy, listless, still eating and drinking, but still so tiny compared to her sisters.  It's kind of a helpless feeling on both counts.  As a do-er kind of person, it's hard to be so ineffectual.

And then, bad news at work.  One of my favorite judges died last night.  I don't want to pretend I had some special connection with him--because, truth be told, he was just the guy that was really nice to all the clerks, and really just everybody in general--but I was sitting at lunch today and suddenly remembered when he was trying to learn to blog and kept calling down to my office for me to come up and help.  And how I was happy to do so because he was just the kind of guy that was so fun to shoot the shit with.  And how he was the first judge that really made me realize that judges are nothing to be afraid of.  Just a few months ago he was giving me hell at oral argument and now he's gone.  That fast.

After work, I went to the feed store to get some electrolytes for the wee Miss Fiona.  I put her in isolation (a shoebox), left her food, water, and a little hardboiled egg, and left for knitting--half expecting to come back and find her dead.  

When I came back, she was still sleepy, but she had eaten a little and pooped at least twice.  When I woke her, she almost immediately started craning her neck to rejoin her sisters, so I put her back in the brooder with them.  I'm still not sure if she's going to make it or not, but--for better or for worse--my optimism for her is starting to come back.  And, at the end of the day, that's something, right?

How 'bout those brackets?

Living in Lawrence, it's hard not to get swept up in March Madness.  As a friend of mine wrote the other day "filling out your NCAA bracket as a Jayhawk is an experience not unlike rolling around in a vat of gold while being told how beautiful and smart you are."  Our team?  Kind of a big deal.

And as long as the 'Hawks stay in it, my bracket will be happy and wonderful and lovely.  (And K-State, you'd better make it to the Final Four too.)  Also, please note that--although I failed at choosing many of the upsets that occurred yesterday--I somehow managed to nail the Georgetown/Ohio game, so whoohoo for that!

Any one else avidly following basketball for the next few weeks?  How are your brackets going?

Happy Things to Chase Away the Sniffles

I'm getting sick.  I'm high on NyQuil.  And Moe just left a big muddy paw mark on my freshly washed bedding.  It's time for some happy things.

1.  I want my back porch to look like this for the summer.

2.  One of my favorite quotes in the whole wide world.

3.  Setting aside the fact that I can't breathe through my left nostril, I have been very happy as of late.  And I think it probably has a lot to do with the fact that I have all three of these things.

4.  I got into a really fun conversation with my knitting girlies tonight about great books.  We were split, however, on The Catcher in the Rye.  One friend loved it.  One friend finished it, but only by forcing herself.  I have tried to read it several times, and can never make it through the first few chapters.  I'm curious--is this universally either a you-love-it or you-hate-it book?  Does anyone just feel lukewarm about it?

5.  We've made this tomato sauce recipe about once a week for the past month.  I know it doesn't look like much, but it's seriously incredible!

6.  Sweet Husband keeps playing these videos (here and here) of This Too Shall Pass by OK Go.  Creative music videos--how quaint!

7.  Dear Fergus' Mom just about has me sold on making some itty, baby calling cards.  I'm thinking something like these.

8.  Cold medicine induced dreams make the best stories to tell at work the next day.  G'night kids!

Things my Grandma Did That I Used To Think Were Silly

Isn't it funny how a few years changes your perspective on things?  My grandma did all these things when I was growing up, and my cousins and I thought she was so goofy.  Now?  Not so much.  In fact, I find myself doing and repeating some of the exact same things....

1. Saving aluminum foil.  Really, she would take the foil off of, say, a vegetable side dish, flatten it out, wipe it off, and fold it up neatly in a drawer to use again later.  

I don't actually do this.  (Not for lack of trying, but the foil always rips on me--I guess they don't make it like they used to.)  I do save and reuse glass jars and zip-top baggies though. 

2. Taking pictures.  My grandma is a picture taker.  Every year at Christmas and Easter and whenever else the family would get together, we would have a ritual lining up "in front of the fireplace" for a family picture or two...or ten!  

Me...well, you guys read this blog so you are all too aware of my picture taking problem.

3. Buying things secondhand.  My grandma volunteered at a thrift store for years, and as such, always had boxes of clothes set aside for me when I would visit her.  I'm told it's a Midwest thing, but even in my upper elementary school years "name brands" were the rage at my school, so thrift store clothes--no matter how cute--did not impress me.  I always pretended to love it all because I loved her, of course, but often the clothes ended up right back in the donation bin.  

Now I dream of having someone who gets "first picks" to set aside all the cute clothes in my size--I mean, wouldn't that be awesome?

4. The brusha-brusha song and dance.  In order to get us to brush our teeth at night, my grandma (and sometimes even grandpa too) would sing the brusha-brusha song.  It varied a bit by grandchild for rhyming purposes, but my version went something like, "Brusha-brusha pan, Brusha Meryl Brianne..." repeated over and over again with a sort of Elvis hip-and-head shake.  When I was five, it was hilarious.  When I was twelve, less so.  

Now that I'm old enough not to be self-conscious about such things, the brusha-brusha song occasionally slips into my bedtime routine.  The first time I did it with Sweet Husband in the room, he was very bemused.  Silly, yes--but that's the point!

5. Taking naps.  I fully believe my grandma has taken an afternoon nap every single day of her life.  When my cousins and I were little, we had to take naps also.  When we got a little bit older napping wasn't required, but our parents put the fear-of-god into us about being quiet while my grandma took hers.

My daily napping spot isn't quite as cozy as Grandma's.  It's typically with my head propped up against a window during my evening commute.  (Don't worry, I don't sleep and drive.)  All the same though, I always feel so much better--about my day, about my evening, about my life--when I get just that little half-hour snooze in.

(The pictures are two of my favorite shots of my grandma.  The first was taken when she was a teenager.  The second was taken by me when I was a teenager.)

Trying is...a Bit Trying

So, on the...well, I guess more personal side of things, Sweet Husband and I are trying to have a kiddo.

Only for a few months now, so we're still definitely having more fun than not (yes, that's a euphemism for "lots of strategically timed sex"), but nonetheless, a few things I'd like to get off my chest....

1.  I'm honestly a little surprised that it's taking this long.  Conventional wisdom (read: teh internets) says you should try for a year before you start worrying that something is wrong.  However, I come from a line of pretty darned fertile women, and have spent much of the past ten years petrified of getting pregnant before we were ready for it.  I assumed that without the magic birth control pill to protect me, it would be a matter of seconds.  I feel tricked and a little silly at all the times I--apparently needlessly--freaked out.

2.  It is so weird not to know what's going on inside your own body.  Like, seriously, I should know if there's something growing in my uterus.  Little lights should start flashing or a text message alert should start beeping or...just something.  The not knowing makes me nutty.  My freaking straightening iron has a "ready" light for goodness sakes--is it too much to ask for my lady parts to come similarly equipped?

3.  For as much as I thought it was a pain in the ass, I cannot wait to get back on birth control.  I never realized quite how much it kept me leveled out on the hormones.  This achy, weepy, bitchy, angry person that comes out once a month needs to go back to the depths from whence she came.  Moe and Porter are kind of afraid of her, and--although he's a saint--I don't think Sweet Husband's very fond of her either.

4.  But hey, you know what, if all else fails, there's always this option:

(Picture c/o Marilyn Jane / CC BY 2.0.)

Or even this one:

(Picture c/o Kendrick / CC BY-NC-SA 2.0.)

And those aren't so bad, right?  ;)

Living Without TV

OK, don't panic--we have do have a TV (the appliance).  But for about the past six months we've been living without TV (the activity).

Let me 'splain.

At the old house, we had free cable.  Don't worry, we didn't steal it.  We actually once told the cable company they might want to come shut it off, but they just never did.  

We debated whether or not we'd get cable for the new house, but were so busy dealing with home improvement all summer that it just never got done.  And by the time fall came around, we'd already been without it for three months, so it was like, "Wonder how long we can go?"

Turns out, quite awhile.  We watch a movie on Netflix once a week or so, and catch our favorite shows (mostly Grey's Anatomy and Burn Notice) on Hulu.  But we're honestly probably down to less than three or four hours per week.  The TV is never just on for background noise, and, actually, we don't even have an antenna hooked up, so unless you purposefully put a movie in, it's just static.

I really don't miss it.  I get a lot more done without it, and at this point I'm so used to the quiet that I think having the TV blaring at me all the time would be annoying.  Plus, I find that because I do have to actively seek out things to watch, I end up watching things that actually matter to me rather than just whatever happens to be on.  (We watched The Garden the other night--an awesome documentary, although the ending just sucked!)

Also, I read the book Living Without the Screen not very long ago, and the statistics on brain activity while watching TV are a little scary--in summary your brain is more active when you're sleeping than it is watching TV.  (I additionally thought it was funny how this issue throws together both very liberal families ["We don't want our kids trained to be consumers"] and very conservative families ["We don't want our kids seeing smut"].  Really, if you're interested in the subject at all, or even just a social science nerd in general, you should go check out this book.)

But, all being said, there are some definite social implications to living without TV.  

For example, you will never notice how much people talk about TV until you stop watching regularly.  That doesn't mean you get left out of conversations though.  Most of the time someone in the room is always willing--or actually thrilled--to catch you up if it's necessary that you know what's going on on a TV show in order for you to get the point of their story. 

A bit more awkward are people's reactions when you outright admit that you don't watch TV anymore.  It's almost like it doesn't compute--I mean, everybody watches TV all the time, right?  What's wrong with you?  Why don't you watch TV?

Of course, it does make some things impossible.  Although we've figured out that we can watch KU basketball on ESPN online or listen to it on the radio, I don't think we'll talk our friends into coming over for that for March Madness.  Then again, after last year, I'm not sure we're allowed to host tournament parties anyway (the 'Hawks lost when everyone came to our house, bad juju, can't do it again) so that's not truly an issue.

One thing that really is becoming an issue is that sometimes it feels like we've just swapped the internet for our TV.  (Says the girl who's blogging, sitting next to her husband checking his Facebook.)  We're in negotiations for lessening that as well--limiting the internet to an hour a night?  a whole night with no internet a few times a week?--but it's been difficult to find a compromise because, a) while I'd be perfectly happy to sit and knit and chat all night, Sweet Husband has no similarly portable hobby, and b) while I'm near a computer all day at work (and thus have access to newspapers and the like) Sweet Husband is not, and feels understandably out of the loop without some time to find out what's going on in the world.  

It's definitely a situation in progress, but I think that figuratively tossing out the TV has been, on the whole, a really great thing for us.  

Is anyone else living without, or with limited TV?  If so, how's it going for you?  If not, have you ever thought about it?

(Picture c/o narisa / CC BY-NC-ND 2.0.)

Loving Right Now

1. This thrifted clothes photo set from Buttons McGee.  I really love the idea and the look of thrift store finds--they have more personality than my usual head-to-toe Gap--but I often don't know how to pull such an outfit together without, well, looking like I shopped at the thrift store.  (In the bad way, not the good way.)  Ms. McGee has looking cute on-the-cheap down pat, and I'm taking pointers!  (I really think it's the layering thing?)

2. My co-workers.  Not that this one hasn't occurred to me before, but it's so nice to work at a place where everyone is there because they want to be, and everyone pretty much likes each other.  I love the work, I love the people--it's pretty darned awesome really.

3.  Pickles.  Free cute knitting patterns.  I think I might have to make a Puff Mama soon.

4.  And speaking of knitting, I had to unknit five rows of a sweater tonight.  (Lesson: alcohol and knitting only mix to a certain point and no further!)  Miraculously, even though I thought that I had dropped stitches--I hate unknitting!--when I got back to rights, my stitch count was exactly what it should be.  Not only that, I'm adoring both the yarn and the pattern so much--details on my Ravelry page....I love it when knitting just works!

5. Giver's Log's 13 ounces or less category.  This website is a trove of thoughtful little gift ideas, but the fun thing about "under 13 ounces" group is that they can all be mailed for just a few bucks.  Can't wait to see what she comes up with for Valentine's Day!

6. Wee ones.  Chelsea just had a baby.  Aphrodite, Bird, and (in people I actually know) Stacy, have them on the way.  The cuteness and tiny toes and round bellies and nesting is delightful!

7. Acorn Pies' winter cookout and jek-a-go-go's adventures on the West Coast.  I obviously need some outside time this weekend.

8.  Vintage Heaven's living room.  Sixth picture down.  Doesn't it just look so cozy?  I love how she's incorporated the vintage goods--particularly the throw pillows, blankets, and tray in the background--without making it look frumpy or overly busy.

9.  This hilarious story from Sherando, wherein a defendant tells off a judge to good purposes.  A) It's just funny.  B) It reminds me of a few judges 'round my parts.  C) I think judges with that kind of plain old common sense are treasures.  (On an unrelated note, Sherando has also started a new wine blog--this is a girl after my own heart!)

10.  My lovely bed and pillows and snoring dogs and Sweet Husband.  Such a cozy little nest, that I don't think I can resist it any longer--g'night kids!

Wiping Off the Check Marks, Starting With a Clean Slate

 

When we were back with the family just before Christmas, Cutie Niece was excited to let us know that her teacher had wiped all their bad behavior check marks off before the holiday so they could start with a clean sheet next year.  

New year, clean slate--it's a nice thought really.

Actually, Cutie Niece reminds me of myself a bit sometimes, because--other than the normal mishaps that come with being a spirited little girl--she's a really good kid.  I'm sure she got about one check mark to the average kid's ten, but that one just rankles her little soul.  I was the same way.  

I am the same way.

I can file a hundred court motions on time, but I beat myself up for the one that gets missed and ends up late.  I can be a good friend day in and day out, but I remember the one time I fell through.  I can be smart and on top of it 97% of the time, but I replay the moments that I'm not.  The sins in my closet are tiny in the grand scheme of things, but sometimes I perceive them to be so big.

So this year, my New Year's resolution is to give myself a clean slate.  To do my best and then let it go.  To consciously work to tell that inner, self-doubting, naggy voice to just shut-up already.  To wipe the check marks off and start with a clean slate....It's going to be such a great year!

Happy New Year's everyone!

(Picture c/o aronski / CC BY-NC 2.0.)

Random 9/11 Thoughts

Sitting here...laughing with Sweet Husband about silly things...realized tomorrow is 9/11.

Ugh.

It's a little melodramatic, I know.  It's been...eight years now, and, I mean, after all, it's not like I knew anyone that died.  And further, although it was a big attack, it's not like it's the first time terrorists or similar have killed a bunch of people.  Why should it be any different just because some of them were American people?  Why should it be any different just because that time it--very, very marginally--inconvenienced me?

Or is it the things that have happened after that get to me?  The fact that, in many of the ways that count in my book, the terrorists did score a major victory that day...leading us to abridge the freedoms we hold sacred, bringing us down to their level with things like warrant-less wiretapping and torture....

Either way? Ugh.

And either way, I wonder...will there ever be a time in my life when the day passes without this weight?  Will it ever be like the anniversary of Pearl Harbor or the day Kennedy was assassinated?  A blip on the calendar that I notice every few years or so--certainly not something that makes my heart sink and my chest feel serious.  

And, more to the point, will there ever be a time where I would want it to?

Eight Random Thoughts for a Wednesday Night

1. I got a massage tonight.  I do not ordinarily splurge on things like that, but I had a gift certificate so, you know, I had to go.  It was nice, except that, um, she hurt me.  Like, seriously hurt me.  I probably should have said something, but I was afraid that maybe it needed to hurt.  Like, maybe there were knots in me that were so bad that they could only be purged by pain. 

2. I have a cool, new comment thingy on my blog.  I was reading SouleMama this morning and saw that she had it, and went all, "Wow! How do I do that?"  And she emailed me back and told me, and now I have a cool, new comment thingy.  Try it out, for reals--it's pretty awesome.

3. Sweet Husband and his "Scotch-night" friends taught Moe how to balance a toy on his nose last night.  I've been trying to do it forever, and they get him to do it when they're all half furshnickered--figures!  (Pictures soon though, I promise--it's so freakin' cute!)

4. But while that all was happening, I was at the first night of my Photo shop class.  Compared to what I knew when I walked in, I now feel like a Photo shop ninja master--and I've still got seven more classes to go.  I forget how much of a buzz I get out of learning completely new things until I just go do it.  It's a good drug.

5. And speaking of learning new things (via Janet at foodperson) the University of Missouri Extension is doing food preservation classes this summer.  They've got pressure canning and dehydrating and freezing and pickling and all kinds of stuff.  I already know how to do some of those things, but a) even with the things I think I know how to do, I always wonder if I'm doing it "right" and b) I'm scared of trying learn to use a pressure canner without a real live human supervising me.  So, I think I'm going to sign up for a few!

6. Have you all played around on Tumblr at all yet?  Random, yes, but the easy-posting format is just a lot of fun.  Some of my favorites are [oneshouldreadeverything], death by chocolate is a myth, it's mary ruffle, and infinite Wisdom springs from infinite Love.  Oh, and, of course, Tumledore.

7. Speaking of which, did you know it's 113 days until the Half-Blood Prince movie comes out?  Almost time to start a 100-day countdown.  And the trailer looks soooo good!  I think this is my favorite of the books, so I'm crazy excited to go see it.  (And it's [mostly] the end of Michael Gambon as Dumbledore...oh Richard Harris, why did you have to leave us?)

8. What is Sweet Husband doing as I type this?  Coming up with his own internet randomness.  Example, weird test answers: "What is a Hindu?  It lays eggs."  

And with that, I think it's officially time to put the internet to bed for the night!

Random (Almost) Spring Thoughts on Sleeping

We had to leave town for a little family emergency on Monday (everything's OK, no worries), so blogging and everything else this week has gone all topsy-turvy.

But, briefly....

Does anyone else get all conflicted about their sleeping habits in the Spring?  Some mornings I want to leap up as if I might "hear golden trumpets".  (Props to anyone who knows what that's from.)  But some mornings (like today) when it's just the perfect temperature (cool enough to snuggle under blankets, but not cold), and a yummy smelling breeze is coming in through the window, and there's a bird chirping idyllically outside....mmm, it would have been such a perfect day to stay in bed for awhile!

What is this day again?

Ya know how, when you're dating someone, you have all these little anniversaries....the first time we met, the first time we kissed, the first time we ate cheeseburgers on the hood of a car.  It's all very romantic, even if it is slightly cloying to outsiders--a sort-of inside joke that always makes you smile.

But then you get married, and it becomes less so.  Although, I'm told there are some couples that do keep celebrating those little days, it's always seemed too sugary-sweet to me.  Because once you're married you have the BIG anniversary.  The day you promised the be-all-end-all-forever.  And suddenly celebrating cheeseburgers seems superfluous.

However, be that all as it may, today Sweet Husband and I have been together for ten years, and I can't let that go without mention.  

But, in thinking about the fact that this day was coming up--although I remember we decided a long time ago that "March 3rd" was the day we "officially" got together--for the life of me I couldn't remember what actually happened on March 3rd....  

It was making me a little crazy actually.  It's just that, there were a few weeks there where things were kinda fuzzy.  He liked me.  I liked him.  But, being awkward teenagers, we were both kind of dancing around the idea of actually discussing it.  This resulted in three potential events, all of which happened on or about March 3rd; all of which could have been our "starting point".

First, it could've been that it was the first time we hung out together with a group of friends.  We were at a restaurant before a school basketball game, and a few people were joking about stealing the silverware, just to be funny.  I (goodie-two-shoes) opined that would be terribly wrong, so Sweet Husband (practical joker) secretly slipped a spoon in my sweatshirt.  And, to my credit, I did laugh when, with mock horror that I would commit such a transgression, he pulled the spoon out of my pocket later.  And, of course, a boy that makes you laugh is always worth getting to know better....

Which leads to the second possible event.  On what I think was the following weekend, I had my friend set us up on a double date with her and her boyfriend.  Chinese food and "Raiders of the Lost Ark".  During the movie, Sweet Husband slipped me a note, "Hello.  I like you."  For several years, I honestly thought that was what we were celebrating on March 3rd.  

But, the thing that was tripping me up was that I know we still didn't really talk about it.  And he did not--as he will never live down for the rest of his natural life and possibly into the afterlife--kiss me goodnight.  (Yeah, I know.  Completely sexist of me, I could've kissed him too, blah, blah....I've been holding this grudge for ten years and I'm not letting go of it now.)  And, on top of all that, as aforementioned, I was 99% sure that night was a weekend.  March 3rd was a Wednesday in 1999, so that didn't work.

The third possibility was that March 3rd could have been the night that he actually did kiss me--or maybe I kissed him?  Can't remember that part, but I know it was a few nights after the note, on a school-night, in the park by the lake.  And his hat was on backwards, which--while I'm ordinarily not a fan of--seemed terribly charming at the time....

After trying to figure this out for the last few days--and deciding it's a really good idea that they give you a piece of paper with the date on it when you get married--I finally decided to own up, and, last night, sheepishly asked Sweet Husband, "Soooo, what exactly does tomorrow signify again?"

Turns out, he's not positive either.  He thinks it was the night at the park--"It was our first date by ourselves"--but can't be sure.

 At any rate though, it's been ten years since something-or-other that was good. :)   

Poll: Zits

I have a zit on the side of my nose.  I'll spare you the photograph, but, suffice to say, it's one of those under the surface buggers that hurts like hell and you can't even squeeze to hurry along because it's so far buried.  (Yes, I'm not above picking.)

Although even as a grown-up I've never had perfect skin, this particular zit is bringing back memories of my teenage years.  While, looking back, I didn't have acne as bad as some people did, at the time I thought it was tragic.

Age has fortunately given me perspective, and now I can laugh about it....

...all the silly remedies...Japanese sand scrub, funky smelling homemade masks, no chocolate, no soda...

...the time my baby brother told a caller that I couldn't come to the phone because I was dabbing Clearasil on my face...he was 7 and thought it was hilarious, fortunately it was only my aunt--but I didn't know that until later!

...the time a friend--who was ordinarily actually a nice person--commented that both I and a boy that I liked had matching zits....

Ahhh, good times, good times...I'm laughing my ass off, really....

Anyone else want to commiserate with a good zit story?

Poll: What Pisses You Off?

I am generally an even tempered girl.  Long fuse.  Will de-fuse rather than exploding.  Peacemaker.  Arbitrator.  So on and so forth, etc.  

(Truly, it's almost pathological the lengths to which I will go to avoid a fight.)

But today, I am pissed.

Wanna know what makes me so angry?  When prosecutors other attorneys try to raise procedural bars to a claim that just needs to be heard, and in all fairness, should be heard.  Like, not a case where a defendant sat on his hands for two years or is just making shit up, but a case where it should be obvious to anyone with half a brain that this guy wanted to appeal and the court system has just completely failed him.

'Cause the thing is, I don't really mind losing cases.  Of course, winning is better, but there are some cases where you just know going in that it isn't going to happen.  But to not even let my guy have his day in court?  Over a complete technicality?  Urgh, urgh, URGH!  It's so unfair and unjust, that it makes me want to just....spit!

Keep me company here--what pisses you off?

The Boy Makes Eggs Too

When Sweet Husband and I first were married I had this silly idea that we should divide the household labor exactly down the middle, tit for tat, he cleaned half the toilet, I cleaned the other half.  (Not really on that last one, but you get the idea.)  It was most certainly related to my childhood, I'm sure.  Seeing my mom work more than full time and come home and do all the household chores too.  Not me, I vowed.

Yeah, that didn't last very long.  Not because Sweet Husband's a slacker--because he's absolutely not--but because keeping score like that is not practical or even--as I quickly figured out--really even healthy.  Instead, we've gradually evolved into a pattern that may not stay perfectly equal every second of every day, but does equal out over time.  Meal planning and recipe hunting, my job.  Weekend breakfasts, his.  The result?  The lovely plate of eggs and goodies you see before you.  I think it's a pretty good deal.

(And the perfectly round eggs?  Egg rings--absolutely gorgeous!)

Poll: By Any Other Name

I'm a name collector.  On any given day, I have a little running list in my head of fun names, silly names, puppy names, names I love, whatever.  I didn't know this was an official hobby until J.K. Rowling declared that she does it also, at which point I decided I could come out as a name collector too.

I was doing a little research for this hobby the other day (on the social security website) when I discovered that both my brother's name and my sister's name have broken into the top 100 baby names.  As my name--Meryl--is not even in the top 1000 and hasn't been forever (there were only nine babies given my name in 2007), I sent my Mom a teasing email--something about loving them more, etc.  (She wrote back that it really means she loves me most--so see Nice Sister and Brother, I am her favorite!)

 

Actually, although I've had a love/hate relationship with my name over the years, I've always been proud that I was named after my Dad.  And I've always loved what my name means--blackbird--because I like names to that have good meanings and with "blackbird" I get a song and everything.  I also recently found out my name was somewhat popular in the 50's, which I really like.  Because old-fashioned names are cool now, after all, so maybe there's hope.

What about you?  Do you like your name?  Have you always?  Is there a story behind your name? What are some of your favorite names and why?

Seven Things That Are Making Me Very Merry On This Christmas Eve Eve

1.  It's the last day of working before the loooong holiday weekend--yay!

2.  Tomorrow at this time-ish I will be heading towards family and presents and one of Sweet Sister's so-hard-it's-almost-painful welcome home hugs.

3.  Maine Momma's beautiful odes to snow and light. 

4.  This article--"The Joy of Celebrating a Godless Christmas"--on Slate that echos my feelings about the holidays completely.  In short, Jesus isn't "the reason for the season" for all of us and that doesn't make our Christmas any less meaningful.  Very nicely done in a way that speaks up for us atheists and agnostics without denigrating those who are religious.

5.  That Nice Mommy just called asking me to bring some freezer jam for Christmas breakfast.  I feel like a wise little chipmunk pulling out my carefully stashed summer berries for winter feasting. 

6.  Dear Veens who ever so sweetly named me "The most awesome pic taking Girl" on her blog.  I'm abysmal at doing the "pass it along" things, but I do so appreciate the nice thought.  (And congrats on the upcoming wedding--I can't believe you're still managing to blog and comment on blogs and not be going crazy and stuff!)

7.  The thought of a possible road-trip adventure.  I haven't decided for sure if I'm up for it yet, but I'm considering busing it to DC for inauguration and some Supreme Court argument (one of my co-workers has a case there on the 21st).  Any bus riders out there have thoughts?

And, while you're thinking, what's making you merry today?

To My Very Dear Non-Lawyer Family, Friends, Random Acquaintances

While I'm very fond of most of you already, our future interactions will be much better if you read and understand this:

What It’s Like Defending ‘The Guilty’: Thoughts From a Criminal Defense Attorney

(Go now please.  I'll wait.)

Yeah, and I just have to reiterate this one bit 'cause it cracks me up:

“So, you try to get them off on technicalities?”

“Otherwise known as constitutional protections.”

“Tomato; to-mah-to.”

“More like tomato; garbanzo.”

“Wait a minute. Tomatoes aren’t the same as garbanzos.”

“Exactly.”

(Via S.)

Because You Really Aren't Working Today Anyway, Right?

So you can help me shop instead!

For those of you who have dogs/kids/other messy stuff:

What kind of bedding do you have?  We're about due for new, and I'm trying to scout out something fun.  I keep seeing all these pictures of pretty-pretty white beds, and I love how crisp and modern they look.  But then I think about how dirty they would get after even one run-in with the Wee Welshman's paws, and reach the inevitable conclusion that we are not white bed people. 

I don't want to do a bed-in-a-bag per se (because it sucks when one piece gets shabby and then you have to replace the whole thing because nothing else matches it)--more like something that matches, but isn't match-y?  Maybe a solid color comforter and some fun pillows?  A printed comforter and plainer pillows?

Clearly, I'm befuzzled.  If you've seen something cute or have a good suggestion, leave me a comment pretty-please! 

(Here are a few others that I like:  luxurious fabrics, leslie's blue room, minor details.)