Babies, Babies, Babies

This post is something I just can't ignore. Too many random things have happened in the last few days that make me feel the need to write this expose.

I am not a baby person. Never have been, never will be.

Ok, I lie. I actually do hope, that one day, I may meet a nice fellow, settle down and pop out a few (no more than 3 MAX) kiddies at some point in time. My whole mindset is somewhat skewed but whatevs: I dont actually look forward to the baby through pre-teen years of the kids' lives. However, I think it would be nice to have grown children, when I am an old gieser. Judge me as you will, people have kids for all different types of reasons. This is mine.

Anyways, I guess I'm not really a baby person because I havent been around that many babies. I dont have that many cousins and none of them have had babies. So yea, there is that.

But lately, my life has been all "babies, babies, babies".

Ok, not really but babies/kid things have been occuping more of my time in the past couple weeks than has ever my entire life. Case in point:

Incident #1: This past weekend we went to meet our friend's new baby. Although slightly scared, I was excited to see what kind of offspring our goofy friend had produced. On the drive over there, Blackberry and I stopped at a stoplight and looked over to see the second cutest puppy ever (first being my parents') sticking his tiny little adorable head out the window and looking directly at us. Squeels of delight ensued and then Blackberry said the most honest quote of the day, nay, week.

"I wish we were going to meet a puppy instead of a baby."

I was thinking the EXACT same thing. We can pet a puppy and play with it with less fear of killing it or damaging it psychologically. In the end our friend's kid was pretty freakin' cute, but there was no petting or playing. And certainly no holding, on my part of least.

Incident #2: Yesterday during lunch I went to a coworker's place (aka her sister's sweet apartment that we jacked to watch TV) and watched a show called Little Miss Perfect. This show follows pagaent constestants as they compete. And the contestants are like 5-year old little girls with mostly (and i apologize this i mean but,) "ugly as sin" parents who are trying to live vicariously through their children. Or are just demented. Anyways, I found it appalling that the name of the contest is "Little Miss Perfect." WTF is this supposed to teach little girls. First of all, nobody is perfect, and you should not strive to be. However, that is the title you win if you win the "Little Miss Perfect" pageant. So, basically this is telling all these little immpressionable girls is that since they did not, in fact, win the coveted crown, they are clearly far, far from perfect. Actually, they are what we would like to call IMPERFECT. Gasp.

Incident #3: Last week I went to my volunteer reading. A couple of interesting things happened during this little visit. First, I needed the manager to let me into the room where we hold the readings because it was locked. We got to talking and when I told him my name, he seemed shocked. My last name is, weird and long, to say the least. The man looked at me and goes "Is that your married name??" Um, no sir, no it isnt. I've never seen someone look so relieved. "Well, we better get you married off with an easier name. There is still hope for you child!!" I looked at him and said dead seriously,"I know. That is why my future husband can only have 7 letters or less in his last name." He knew whatsup.

After he asked he tried have me relive my childhood by skipping around the room, to which i politely declined, I got to readin' to the little kiddos. Only two kids showed up and the one girl was intent on reading the My Little Pony book. I think I enjoy going to reading because the kids innocent delight in reading such a simple and clearly outlandish book still amazes me. I guess I loved My Little Pony at some point as a kid, but how did I forget the names of the characters in this!?

I read to them the story of Rainbow Dash and the costume party. All the other little ponies gave her their costumes when hers sadly ripped and she couldnt go on. And then there was Minty who had severe stage fright when she had to walk in Sew-and-So's fashion show, but of course Sunny Daze was their to encourage her and give her the confidence go on. And of course I'd be remiss if i didnt mention Sparkleworks and how she came across the magical Pegasus pony who granted her greatest wish. Ah, I could go on all day about Pinkie Pie and Kimono, but I dont wan't to spoil the endings.

Overall, I've had a big dose of baby/kid stuff this past couple weeks. And while it's all fun and games for now, I think puppy adoption is a little more up my ally for now. However, clearly I am great with kids and available for babysitting purposes. (Disclaimer: As long as the kid is above the age of 13.)

It's a Living Book

I stole this from another blog...but had to share:

"It's a living book, this life; it folds out in a million settings, cast with a billion beautiful characters, and it is almost over for you. It doesn't matter how old you are; it is coming to a close quickly, and soon the credits will roll and all your friends will fold out of your funeral and drive back to their homes in cold and still and silence. And they will make a fire and pour some wine and think about how you once were . . . and feel a kind of sickness at the idea you never again will be.

So soon you will be in that part of the book where you are holding the bulk of the pages in your left hand, and only a thin wisp of the story in your right. You will know by the page count, not by the narrative, that the Author is wrapping things up. You begin to mourn its ending, and want to pace yourself slowly toward its closure, knowing the last lines will speak of something beautiful, of the end of something long and earned, and you hope the thing closes out like last breaths, like whispers about how much and who the characters have come to love, and how authentic the sentiments feel when they have earned a hundred pages of qualification.

And so my prayer is that your story will have involved some leaving and some coming home, some summer and some winter, some roses blooming out like children in a play. My hope is your story will be about changing, about getting something beautiful born inside of you, about learning to love a woman or a man, about learning to love a child, about moving yourself around water, around mountains, around friends, about learning to love others more than we love ourselves, about learning oneness as a way of understanding God. We get one story, you and I, and one story alone. God has established the elements, the setting and the climax and the resolution. It would be a crime not to venture out, wouldn't it?"

- Donald Miller, Through Painted Deserts: Light, God, and Beauty on the Open Road

Rocky Morning

All week I've been looking forward to this weekend. I have a lot of fun things jam packed into this tiny little 2-day weekend, but I've been so excited. Unfortunately, my morning didn't go as planned...nothing terrible happened, just minor technical malfunctions (such as my hairdryer dying) and other things left me in a rotton mood. But it's Friday and I have so much to look forward to, I need to pull myself out of this funk. Then I remembered a passage I read in Eat, Pray, Love just last night that reminded me I need to move past this crappy morning and not let it affect the rest of my day. Of course, what she is talking about is a litte deeper than my less than pleasant morning minor disruptions, but the point is that if you left something that is unhappy, or less than desirable affect you, it will not only disrupt your life, but the lives of those around you in unforeseen ways.

"As I focus on diligent joy, I also keep remembering a simple idea my friend Darcey told me once—that all the sorrow and trouble of this world is caused by unhappy people. Not only in the big global Hitler-'n'-Stalin picture, but also on the smallest personal level. Even in my own life, I can see exactly where my episodes of unhappiness have brought suffering or distress or (at the very least) inconvenience to those around me. The search for contementent is, therefore, not merely a self-preserving and self-benefting act, but also a generous gift to the world. Clearing out all your misery gets you out of the way. You cease being an obstacle, not only to yourself but to anyone else. Only then are you free to serve and enjoy other people."

Have a wonderful weekend!

25

My lazy blog tendencies continue, but I have an excuse for this past week...it was my birthday! Yes, I am officially a mid-20 something. Although I still am having fleeting quarter-life crises thoughts, my friends helped me ring in my 25th year in fashion! It was somewhat of a week long celebration. I went home the weekend before to celebrate with my parents = my mom took me shopping.  I had a work picnic that happened to fall on my birthday, so only had a half day of real work (yay). Then I went out for some delicious drinks with coworkers and friends. The real celebration took place on Saturday ... dinner, drinks ...and more drinks with great friends. All in all it was a great birthday. 

Unfortunately I was a little under the weather Friday (getting old ya know!) so I stayed home to sleep it off. I also had lots of time to finish reading one of the three books I've been working on Something Borrowed by Emily Griffin. I'm a little late getting to this series as well, but I snagged it from a friend when she told me she didn't want to read it. (Me: Really, why not? Friend: Because the girl has an affair with her best friend's fiance! Me: You read four chapters though, it says that on the back cover? Friend: Yeah, I didn't read the back cover until after I read those 4 chapters. Me: Um, it is called something BORROWED.) Anyways, one girls trash is another's treasure. I flew threw this book and really enjoyed it. It's a classic, summer read - no deep thoughts necessary. Now on to Something Blue! 

Pray = India

I've reached the India portion of Eat, Pray Love. I'm back in lazy blogger mode, so here is a quote from that section that seemed appropriate, especially as my 25 (I'll be old) birthday rapidly approaches:

"Life, if you keep chasing it so hard, will drive you to death. Time-when pursued like a bandit-will behave life one; always remaining one county or one room ahead of you, changing its name and hair color to elude you, slipping out the back door of the motel just as you're banging through the lobby with your newest search warrant, leaving only a burning cigarette in the ashtray to taunt you. At some point you have to stop because it wont. You have to admit that you can't catch it. That you're not supposed to catch it. At some point, as Richard keeps telling me, you gotta let go and sit still and allow contentment to come to you."

Happy Memorial Day

I wish I had 4-day weekends more often. This past long weekend was wonderful, full of good friends and way too much food and drink. One of my friends and I like to do something called "recapping," so I'll recap my very long and fun weekend:

• I rarely make it into the actual city, but I went there two nights in a row! Nothing is better than going to happy hour knowing that you don't have to work the next day.
• If you live in DC, you must go to Lauriol Plaza. It's delicious and has great drinks. The frozen swirl margarita = yummy!
• Saturday and Sunday I went to two great BBQs involving, grilled shrimp, chicken, dogs and burgers. And yes, I ate all of the above.
• Playing drunk wiffle ball is harder than playing drunk kickball I think, but so fun.
• Night at the Museum 2 is just as good, if not better than the first movie.

On top of all my fun eating and drinking escapades, I also had some time to lay out. No, not at a pool, just in the small patch of grass outside my department. Despite not getting much of a tan, I did get through a lot of This Side of Paradise. This book is far different from many of the books I've read recently, but its I think I kind of like it b/c it is so different from many of the books I've read. There isn't really an apparent plot yet, just describing a young man's coming of age. More on this when I finish it up.

Happy Memorial Day!

Library Blunders

My trip to the library tonight was very eventful. I knew the library closed at 9, but I figured that would give me plenty of time to get there after my gym class ended at 8 and still browse leisurely. I was just looking for a book about the publishing industry, a narrative of someone's experiences, and then a regular, just for fun book to read over the long weekend.


I was dreading trying to find a parking spot, only to find that the library has an entire parking lot! This is something to celebrate in Northern VA/DC. However, my initial happiness quickly faded when I couldn't find any of the books I wanted. It is a crime to find out that a book I really want, that is supposedly in the library, not checked out, is actually not on the shelf. After this little setback, I realized I only had about 20 minutes to find my "fun" books. But, sometimes I like to just wander through the stacks and pull out random books. But this time I was in a rush. So, after my Harry Potter series, I decided I needed to read some more "classic" literature. I ended up with:

• John Updike's Seek My Face
• F. Scott Fitzgerald's This Side of Paradise
• Barbara Kingsolver's The Poisonwood Bible
  

Which should I start with? I tried reading Tender is the Night a year or two ago and never got through it. I cant even remember why now. Maybe I owe it to Fitzgerald to give Paradise a shot. Either way, I've got a long weekend of reading ahead!

I Cant Figure Out the Plot

Lately I've been thinking more and more about what my next step is. Do I stay in DC? How long do I stay here? I know I want to go somewhere else eventually, but am I too scared, or am I just not ready for that. Today my landlord asked us if we wanted to renew our lease for the next year. I thought we went month to month, but I guess not. She isn't increasing our rent, so I obviously agreed, since right now, I'm not planning on going anywhere. But, what about come next Winter? Will I still want to be here in Summer 2010? I guess if worst comes to worst, there is always Craig's list, but it made me think about the future.

Then I came across this quote I read on this great blog:

"My life has a superb cast but I cant figure out the plot."

I think this is possibly one of the greatest quotes...at least for my right now. And it rings so true! Tonight my best friend is coming in town and I look forward to a weekend enjoying the wonderful cast in my life...even if I'm not sure where the plot is going.

Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day

Last night at my volunteer reading the theme was based around Judith Viorst's Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day. Remember that one? I forgot how great (and funny) that book is until we read it yesterday. Maybe I liked it so much because I had a fine day yesterday....unlike today. The day started off fine, good actually. But as I sat at work and my throat and my head started to hurt worse and worse, the day went the same way.

On top of the increasingly sick feeling, I made a dumb mistake at work that I couldn't fix. I realize we all make mistakes, but at work, I am somewhat of a perfectionist and its still bugging me. Then, when I got home, too tired to go to the gym, the dinner I attempted to make didnt turn out so great (note to self, you are not a cook, dont try to be one). Now, although not a huge hockey fan, I'm watching the Capitals lose in a must-win play off game.

But I think back to Alexandar's day, and realize mine wasn't really that bad.

It was a Terrible, Horrible, No good, Very bad day. There were lima beans for dinner, and I HATE limas. There was kissing on TV, and I HATE kissing. My bath was too hot, I got soap in my eyes, my marble went down the drain, and I had to wear my railroad-train pajamas. I hate my railroad-train pajamas. When I went to bed Nick took back the pillow he said I could keep and the Mickey Mouse night-light burned out and I bit my tongue. The cat wants to sleep with Anthony, not with me.

After each bad thing he describes, Alexendar resolves to move to Australia, because he doesn't think bad things would happen there. But at the end of the book, his Mom reminds him, and any readers having a crappy day, that everyone has Terrible, Horrible, No good, Very bad days every once in a while...even in Australia :)

Irish Trash Can Meets Voldemort

I think I've been reading too much Harry Potter. Or, I'm just going crazy. Last night, due to all the rain mentioned in yesterday's post, our Thursday night kickball game was canceled. But that did not stop us from heading to our sponsor bar anyways. This was after I had already shared a bottle (or 2) of wine with teammates at another bar. By the time I got into the city, I was feeling pretty happy.

Mere hours later I was a complete drunken fool. I've never in my life "blacked out" or completely forgot parts of an evening. I always thought people who said that were lying. Yes, there have been fuzzy nights, but I've always remembered parts of it. Last night after a certain point I remember nothing! Luckily I was with good friends who made sure I made it home safely (physically). However, after hearing a recap of my antics last night, I really feel ashamed and embarrassed for losing control and not realizing I'd hit my tipping point. The feeling of not remembering is scary!

I didn't DO anything stupid, I was just talking nonsense (or so I was told). Apparently, among other things, I started acting like I was living in Harry Potter world, calling people The Dark Lord. At one point (as retold by my friend) I said something like "Don't you dare bring him up!" My friends assumed I was talking about some heart breaker guy, to which I responded very seriously "No, Voldemort!"

I mean, really, who starts talking about novels when they are three sheets to the wind? Apparently me. Why couldn't' I have been quoting something more legit, like Shakespeare or something. Why is this how my subconscious works?

Lesson of the evening: NEVER drink an Irish trash can.

Exactly Where I'm Supposed to Be

Will it ever stop raining? I think it's been raining here everyday for over a week now. Occasionally, I like a rainy day. Not to be a pessimist, but a break in the sunshine every now and then is nice. But 7 straight days with rain? No thank you. Last night, though, it thunderstormed. I really love those first thunderstorms of the season (before you get sick of them b/c you've lost power for the 3 day in a row, or you are caught outside in one).

Last night, I was reading the last Harry Potter and listening to the thunder and torrential downpour of rain, and I just felt very content. I know that I'm in a transition period right now. I've been in DC long enough to get somewhat adjusted, but to also question my desire to live other places, experience other things. But last night sitting in my room, listening to the rain, I knew I am exactly where I'm supposed to be, for now.

So far the seventh HP book has been an emotional roller coaster (especially after another shocking death, that I am still very upset about). Harry keeps experiencing highs and lows, break throughs and set backs in equal measure. But last night, I think I got to a turning point in the book where he realizes he needs to stop the ups and downs, and accept what lies ahead, although it might not be completely clear currently.

Toilets and Phones Don't Mix

So my raucous May Day celebration to occur Saturday night....didn't quite happen the way I'd planned. I did still have an excellent evening, eating amazing German food (how have I never had German food before? ) and sipping German wine. However, trying to do too much too soon is never a good thing. I was also trying to meet up with a friend in DC later in the night, but my plans changed suddenly when my cell phone inadvertently slipped from the back pocket of my jeans, into the flushing toilet.

Despite the loss of my dear cell phone, I had a great time. And it's been almost freeing not having a cell for the past day and a half. But I can't continue phone-less forever, so I am off to brave the Verizon store tonight. I don't need any fancy gadgets, just a phone that's not water-logged. RIP old phone. 

I'm not sure how this incident on the dawn of May bodes for the rest of this month. Maybe my phone had been contaminated by Swine (b/c I forgot to wear my mask on the subway that day) and this was nature's way of protecting me! Always look on the bright side.  

(Danke Schoen to a great friend who put on an amazing dinner party Saturday...curse your toilette) 

May Day

Due to the disgusting pollen that has blanketed my world lately (my car, my window sill, my throat), I am staying home on a Friday night. This is unheard of by me, as I like to really soak up the weekends. However with the threat of swine flu floating around, I think it's best for myself and everyone else that I stay home, rest and wake up healthy tomorrow. Granted, I went out Wednesday and Thursday, so a night of good sleep is necessary.

On a happier note, it's May! Did you know that May Day is an actual holiday? I had no idea either, until I was bored at work and googled it. "May Day marks the end of the uncomfortable winter half of the year in the Northern hemisphere, and it has traditionally been an occasion for popular and often raucous celebrations, regardless of the locally prevalent political or religious establishment."

Alright, so I'm not having a raucous celebration, but I will rectify this situation tomorrow night. Happy May Day!

April Showers Bring May Flowers

April is rushing out on a rainy note here in DC. I still can't believe it is the last day of April. Where did this month go? But I'm looking forward to May, warmer temperatures (though please not in the 90s yet!) and days spent at the pool. I'm really looking forward to this summer. I'm not sure how long I will stay in the DC metro area, but the spring/summer is definitely my favorite part of the year here. I want to soak up every moment, in case I do find myself elsewhere come next summer. 

Last night I walked from my house to meet up with a friend for a late happy hour. Armed with my umbrella I started the 20 minute walk to my destination, hoping my IPOD would keep me entertained. But I walked on a different side of the street than I usually do and noticed the most interesting things - an all female martial arts class, a lovely looking ice cream/gelato store, a Santa Claus look alike on a bike who almost ran me over.  Just little things I never notice in my usual rush to work or home. 

Even though I've walked up and down that street countless times, this time I had nothing on my mind and actually paid attention to these little simple things (Ok Santa Claus bike man was a little abrupt). But I think we sometimes take for granted the little pleasures we can get out of the simplest things. I hope to embrace that more here this summer. 

Photo Credit: BBC News

May The Road Rise to Meet You

This weekend was one of the best, I wish it could last longer!. It's starting to get warmer, which is always a good thing, and I got to spend time with lots of good friends. As previously mentioned, I was a little anxious to attend my coworkers wedding solo on Saturday...however I ended up having such a great time! My other coworkers and their husbands are awesome. Another single coworker showed up, and another was hanging out with us because her husband was the Deejay. Despite the rainy day, the wedding took place (inside) overlooking the water and it couldn't have been more beautiful. The ceremony itself was short and sweet and then we enjoyed lots of cocktails, great food and lots of of dancing!

During the ceremony, there was a reading of the traditional Irish Blessing. I think I've heard part of this somewhere before, but it was so sweet hearing it read at the wedding and I wanted to share:

May the road rise to meet you,
May the wind always be at your back.

May the sun shine warm upon your face,

The rains fall soft upon your fields.

And until we meet again,

May God hold you in the palm of his hand.

May God be with you and bless you
May you see your children's children.

May you be poor in misfortune,

Rich in blessings.

May you know nothing but happiness

From this day forward.

May the road rise to meet you

May the wind always be at your back

May the warm rays of sun fall upon your home

And may the hand of a friend always be near.

May green be the grass you walk on,

May blue be the skies above you,

May pure be the joys that surround you,

May true be the hearts that love you.

The bride definitely came from Irish heritage because her uncle followed up later with a toast including another lovely Irish wedding blessing:

May your mornings bring joy and your evenings bring peace.

May your troubles grow few as your blessings increase.

May the saddest day of your future be no worse than the happiest day of your past.

May your hands be forever clasped in friendship and your hearts joined forever in love.

Your lives are very special, God has touched you in many ways.

May his blessings rest upon you, and fill all your coming days.

Expectations

Expectations...they're a funny little thing thing. I went to New York expecting to have a great time, and I met my expectations, with a few little quirks along the way. Without going into too much detail, I got a lesson in expectations while there. Looking back, I'd have to say that expectations have a lot to do with how we reflect or even make decisions - and expectations can be tricky. I was going to recap all the small details and funny intricacies of the trip, but it really came down to dealing with expectations. I have a "friend" there, who in the course of the weekend, both exceeded and missed reaching my expectations.

It's funny and ironic to me that when you enter something with little expectations, many times the reality of the situation far surpasses them. And then, when you hold out with your expectations, that you never intended to have in the first place, mind you, inevitably you are let down. 

I'm not saying expectations are good or bad. I think its necessary to have hope, and equally wise to set your own limits. But even in books, the best experiences tend to happen when you go into reading them with little expectations or preconceived judgement. Letting those go can be freeing. And that's exactly what we need, freedom with no expectations.