because you might care

This came in an e-mail from a dear friend (who is far better at keeping in touch with me than I am with her, although I did meet up with her when our family went to Disneyland a couple of years ago. That may not have been her idea of super fun though...), it seemed interesting, and my list blog has been neglected.

If you would like to consider this a super fun meme, please feel free to copy and leave a note in comments so we can visit your version.

Random stuff I've done. Discuss.

( ) Gone on a blind date
( X ) Skipped school (to finish a paper...How lame am I ?)
( X ) Been to Canada (oh, long lost Canadian kind-of-boyfriend...)
( X ) Been to Mexico
( ) Been to Florida
( X ) Been on a plane
( X ) Been lost (literally and metaphorically, as a matter of fact)
( ) Been on the opposite side of the country
( ) Gone to Washington, DC
( ) Swam in the ocean (Does having a panic attack there count?)
( X ) Cried yourself to sleep
( X ) Paid for a meal with coins only (I don't remember specifically, but surely I must have at some point...I've been that tightwadded thrifty)
( X ) Done something you told yourself you wouldn't (Um. Daily?)
( X ) Made prank phone calls (GASP! Don't tell my kids)
( X ) Laughed until some kind of beverage came out of your nose
( X ) Caught a snowflake on your tongue
( X ) Danced in the rain
( ) Written a letter to Santa (Made lots of detailed lists - SURPRISE - but never wrote an actual letter)
( X ) Been kissed under the mistletoe
( X ) Watched the sunrise with someone you care about
( X ) Blown bubbles
( X ) Gone ice skating (It was disastrous. And cold. Not for me)
( ) Been skinny dipping outdoors (Sounds disastrous. And cold)
( X ) Gone to the movies alone (Once on Mother's Day and people kept looking at me with pity - I CHOSE to be without my kids, people!)


1. Any nickname? Well...Formerly "Frog," which spun out of control and was quickly regretted
2. Mother's name? Loraine (yes, only one R)
3. Favorite drink? Pepsi for anytime; raspberry lemon drop for grown-ups-only time
4. Tattoos? Negative. Pain = bad.
5. Body piercings? Doubles in my ears, but I rarely fill them.
6. How much do you love your job? So much it hurts. (I'm serious; it's my destiny)
7. Birthplace? Oak Harbor, Whidbey Island, Washington
8. Favorite vacation spot? Disneyland with family; Shanghai with my man
9. Ever been to Africa? Not yet...
10. Ever eaten cookies for dinner? Cookies, no. Cake? Yes.
11. Ever been on TV? Not on purpose.
12. Ever steal any traffic signs? That would be illegal and wrong.
13. Ever been in car accident? Sigh. Yes.
14. Drive a 2-door or 4-door vehicle? Only 4-door for this suburban hipster
15. Favorite salad dressing? raspberry vinaigrette or honey mustard
16. Favorite pie? Some kind of berry, or my own chocolate chip-walnut pumpkin (Yes, I have baked)
17. Favorite number? 28
18. Favorite movie? To make me choose one, that is crazy and mean. Princess Bride, When Harry Met Sally, Terms of Endearment come to mind first
19. Favorite holiday? Christmas, and my birthday
20. Favorite dessert? Nanaimo bar followed closely by the easier-to-find Oatmeal Carmelita
21. Favorite food? See "Favorite dessert" But also pepperoni & pineapple pizza and cinnamon toast
22. Favorite day of the week? Friday is most hopeful & exciting with prospects
23. Favorite brand of body wash? I usually use bar soap - Trader Joe's Oatmeal Almond is pleasant
24. Favorite toothpaste? Tom's of Maine Cinnamint
25. Favorite scent? Coconut or nutmeg, depending on the season
26. What do you do to relax? Read, listen to quiet music (Natalie Merchant, Chris Botti, Norah Jones)
27. How do you see yourself in 10 years? As blissful as today. Maybe still teaching, or maybe running a funky bookstore.

thirteen things i should have learned by now but...whatever

1. Cheese melted to a molten state in the oven will be hot and probably burn my mouth. (But I really wanted brie now!)
2. "The Girls Next Door" is a vapid, ridiculous waste of time & brain cells. (Yet I can't turn the channel).
3. Teenage boys do not genuinely care about creative writing. Ever. (But they will pretend, and write excruciating, interminable stories involving marijuana).
4. Mornings are a complete drag, especially when there are meetings scheduled during them.
5. Some people truly believe that kids with "piercings, weird hair, and you know, stuff like that" are not as reliable as preppy, 4.0 Key Club members. (There was a PTA committee meeting tonight and I had a moment...Of restraint, no worries.)
6. Preteen boys find moms invisible. (My best friend & I went to pick up her son at youth group tonight and he actually looked directly at us in the foyer, then walked into the game room)
7. Mornings are horrible. (Did I already mention that?)
8. If I take my coat in the horrible morning, it will be sunny & delightful by afternoon. Leaving a coat or sweater at home means the day will turn into a natural disaster.
9. I cannot be trusted with a credit card, especially one labeled GAP or Nordstrom. I lose my mind (and paycheck) over cardigans, cosmetics, and underwear.
10. Counting the days until vacation makes me feel guilty but I do it anyway, in my mind.
11. Listening to Queen, Squeeze, or ABBA almost always improves my mood.
12. Breakfast is important. Skipping it causes turmoil, for everyone.
13. There is no shame in OCD.

More, more, more? Click.

signs

Things that indicate I'm getting better:

1. My eye sockets don't hurt.
2. The sitting up to lying down ratio is more socially acceptable.
3. No alternating feelings of being broiled alive & having shivering goosebumps.
4. Taking a shower & brushing my teeth don't seem quite so daunting.
5. I care deeply that instead of looking like this when I'm ill:

Unplucked eyebrows, yes. Pretty nightgown & flawless complexion? No.



...I look more like this:

Except I'm lying down, and not smiling. Plus my hair is shorter.

thirteen saptastic songs for your valentine

My 13 faves from the "lovey dovey stuff" playlist on my iPod:

• This Boy ~ The Beatles (I totally wanted This Boy, to save me from That Boy who only made me cry.)

• Endless Love

~Diana Ross & Lionel Richie (I used to have the 45 rpm and would listen to it daily. And cry.)

I Will Always Love You ~ Dolly Parton (More crying)

Wonderful Tonight ~ Eric Clapton (Rockers singing love songs? *sob*)

I Only Want to Be With You ~ Dusty Springfield (I love that I could actually sing along to this; if only I could dance like her.)

• Hopelessly Devoted to You ~ Olivia Newton-John (I can lip sync this one like no other, friends)
• Tender Love ~ The Force M.D.s (Love songs by rappers? *double sob*)
• Hey There Delilah ~ Plain White Ts (Shut up, haters; it's sweet)
• State of the Heart ~ Rick Springfield (There is an obsession; it's a bit embarrassing)
• Babe ~ Styx (What can I say? It takes me back to 7th grade. Crying in the bathroom.)
• Second Chance & Caught Up In You ~ .38 Special (Southern rockin' dudes & sweet love songs? *more sobbing*)
• Hard Habit to Break ~ Chicago (How could a lovey dovey playlist be complete without Chicago?)
• Endless Summer Nights ~ Richard Marx (Long dreamy story behind this one; someday I might tell)
• One of Us ~ ABBA (Precious song, but the video makes no sense - maybe they didn't understand their lyrics in English?)

___________________________

One of us is crazy...See more at Thursday 13

could i possibly be any more vanilla?

This is an assignment I gave my creative writing students this week. My only real intention was to get them to think figuratively - come up with unusual comparisons that tell something about a character (in this case, themselves). As individual statements, they seem innocuous & amusing. When read all at once? It's armchair psychoanalysis. Some of the patterns that emerged with kids were such dead-on personality profiles, I felt a little guilty for revealing them so. I think everyone owes me $95 for my hour of assessment.

Feel free to call this a meme (or whatever you prefer that doesn't sound so weird) and probe the depths of your own psyche. Zenmomma did a post like this, too (something in the air?) with variations and a song.

If I were a shoe, I'd be a shiny penny loafer.

If I were a city, I'd be London.

If I were a season, I'd be fall.

If I were a car, I'd be a Volvo.

If I were a vegetable, I'd be a carrot.

If I were a fruit, I'd be a strawberry.

If I were a color, I'd be plum.

If I were furniture, I'd be a loveseat.

If I were a song, I'd be something sappy. Or a show tune (but from a tragedy).

If I were a country, I'd be England.

If I were a beverage, I'd be black tea.

If I were clothing, I'd be a cardigan sweater.

If I were weather, I'd be sunny & mild.

If I were an animal, I'd be a koala.

If I were a dessert, I'd be apple crisp.

If I were a plant, I'd be a hydrangea.

If I were a word, I'd be practical.

things that please me lately

Because I can't seem to make Thursday Thirteen about anything other than me, here are my [occasionally shallow] blessings during the past week:

1. Lunch out & pedicure with my sweetpea daughter
2. Watching my Cub Scout boy proudly race his Pinewood Derby car
3. Best friend making delicious dinner for everyone Monday night
4. Warmth in my classroom (at least in the vicinity of the space heaters; midroom can still be rather chilly)
5. 32 short story students (23 male, aged 15-17) under reasonable control and actually participating in class for two days in a row
6. Finally cleaning up my secret hideaway/kids' playroom/Christmas gift-wrapping central
7. Continued awe about No Country for Old Men
8. Downloaded the soundtrack to Juno, an absolute delight
9. LOST resumes tonight! (Even though the title now refers to me and my grasp of the storyline...)
10. Good husband doing all of the dishes
11. Three new books to read
12. Being the Mystery Reader in my daughter's 2nd grade class
13. This. Sheer, hysterical brilliance: