Uhh, Don't Know What to Make of This

So one of my colleagues comes into my office and tells me that she and one of the older men in the department were talking, and that he said that back in his homeland, I am their idea of the perfect body.

All four of the following thoughts instantly crossed my mind:

1. Dude, that is really creepy. Do you think I should make note of the date and time in case he says something else? Is this going to escalate, and one day cadaver dogs are going to find my body in a shallow grave in the forest?
2. Wow, kind of flattering.
3. Duuuuuuude, this is creepy.
4. There are places where men like chunky women? Sign me up!

So yeah, not sure what to make of this.

Wedding Gift Ideas

I have three weddings to attend this summer, which means I will need to purchase three wedding gifts. I assume each of the lovely ladies has her own registry, which will make picking out something a snap, though it seems a tad cold and impersonal to be honest. This in turn has led me to dwell on what I would like to receive, should I ever be so fortunate as to find the love of my life and somehow convince him to want to marry me.

Here ya go:

• Plants for a garden (flower or vegetable)
• Offers to help with home repairs or yard work
• A donation to one of my favorite charities
• Collections of well-loved recipes
• Photographs of friends and family
• Your favorite book of all time (as long as it is not Kerouac's On The Road)
• Your favorite movie of all time
• Cooking lessons
• Offers to pet sit while we are on vacation
• Memberships to the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts
• Memberships to the Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden
• Memberships to the Science Museum of Virginia
• Memberships to the Valentine Richmond History Center

A Day in the Life: Weekend Edition

Tomorrow I plan to...

deliver Mother's Day gifts
take the nieces and nephew out to ride bikes
laundry
visit my cousin and his wife at their new house
work at the office on my public art commission presentation for Monday
church w/ the gmom
clean out the car

So much for a day of rest.

One day I will...

go to Italy
run a marathon
read Romeo and Juliet
enjoy red wine
be on top of everything at work
finish Jude the Obscure
make a road trip
get a facial
start a Roth IRA
camp

Easter 2009

My adorable nieces and nephews!

I won't subject you to my 25 things on facebook...

...but if you are interested, here are 25 random things you probably never knew about me.

1. I brush my teeth with my eyes closed
2. I am obsessive about washing my sheets every Sunday
3. Was thrilled when someone told me my name sounded like it came out of a Jane Austen novel
4. Have problems with self control, which is why I have never allowed myself to do certain things
5. Only wore makeup to school one day in my entire life (elementary school - concealer - because I cut my face up in a rollerskating accident and it was picture day)
6. I hate it when people spit on the sidewalk
7. Have probably paid well over a thousand dollars in library fines in my life
8. Paid for my own school supplies and field trips during elementary school (we was po)
9. Operated on worms as a little kid (not in a sick, sadistic way, but in an I'm going to heal you kind of way)
10. I am still angry that I was put in the next-to-best reading group in first grade. Meghan Knight was the only person in the Whales reading group, and to this day I believe I deserved to be in the same group. Oh, and I also hold grudges.
11. Read and love 19th century British literature and trashy romance novels
12. My dog sleeps in my bed every night
13. My grandmom told me that she thinks my future husband will have a problem with #12. She also told some family members that I don't need a man because the dog is keeping my bed warm for me. She has also told me that she is worried about my future because I am so opinionated, and that my future husband probably won't like the way I make my bed. She grates on my nerves sometimes.
14. I think I'm the only one in my immediate family who manages money well
15. Have never been in love
16. I park near a pond and sit in the car and read a book when I really need to get away from people
17. Was almost named Ruth
18. Adore my morning bus driver
19. Have never kissed anyone
20. Have an amazing sense of smell, but bad eyes and ears
21. Am not very approachable if I don't know you
22. Don't own any white underwear.(Is this too much information?)
23. Love magic tricks
24. Feel awkward in most social situations
25. Don't drink coffee

home is where you hang your cleats

I have been thinking alot lately about what it means to be content. Is it different from being happy? Is one automatically happy if one is content?

I like to bitch about having to live with my 91 year old grandmother. How it drives me crazy when she puts my rugby shorts in the dryer on high, how it rankles me every time I have to let her know where I am going, how I no longer get to watch tv in the evening because she stays glued to Fox News until it is time for bed. I create these laundry lists of grievances in my head, but then I feel bad for thinking such mean, petty thoughts. I mean hey, how awesome is is to live rent free and have someone to take your dog out for potty breaks during the middle of the day? She is a sweet lady, and I love her, but the house certainly doesn't feel like home, which is what upsets me the most.

The intangible feeling of home is elusive, and at times I don't think I'll ever experience it. I have never felt completely at ease in any of the places I have lived, and have wasted my daydreams building the fluffiest of castles in the air, places where I feel peaceful and happy. I care fiercely about family and friends, but no one has ever made me want to say this is where I belong.