Things I Love Thursday

It's Thursday. I love you, Thursday.  I love you because you are the appetizer to the weekend. Here's what else I love today:

(1) Cocoa Roast Almonds - For those of you without a nut allergy, your life is about to change.  Last time I was home, I found Mom and Dad munching on these between meals.  For some reason, I thought they were coffee flavored so I initially passed them up. I don't know why I waited because it was like a five-piece band playing jazz in my mouth. Seriously. Chocolate-flavored, roasted almonds, same calories in a serving as if you were eating plain almonds. It's music to my ears. And my waist. Downside: they're rather pricey. Upside: THEY ARE CHOCOLATE ALMONDS.

(2) Naps - Once there was a time when I spurned naps. For babies and old people, I said dismissively. What a foolish youngster I was.  I rediscovered the joy of napping when I was a senior in high school and since then I have taken great pleasure in a mid-day snooze. Twenty minutes is really prime, quite refreshing.  On good days, I let myself sleep for forty minutes to an hour.  Anything more and I wake up not feeling well and really confused about what day it is.  I know people who can knock out four hours and then still have it in them to sleep that night. ahem. Ariana.  People like that either need some sort of medal. Or perhaps a visit to the doctor.

(3) Dial Liquid Gold Hand Soap - I fully recognize that this seems oddly specific, emphasis on the 'odd'. Hear me out. I love this soap for what it reminds me of. No matter where I am, one little whiff of this soap makes me think of my grandparents' house. When I was younger, we would go to western New York every summer without fail.  Nana used to keep this soap in the bathroom.  The smell of Dial makes me think of freshly laundered sheets flapping in the wind, picking currant berries, playing in the creek, weeding the garden, hiding in the giant firs, riding bikes to the farm, and seeing the Milky Way at night from the pool deck.  All my memories of summers in Freedom are tinged with pure gold. Pun not intended, seriously.  It reminds me of what a beautiful childhood I had.  Thanks, Dial.

(4) Thank You Notes From My Boss - Before you accuse me of pandering, let me tell you I am 100% sure that my boss does not read my blog. It just feels really good when I occasionally find a sticky note or a card in my inbox, thanking me for my hard work.  Nothing makes me more productive than to know she notices all the time and effort I put into my job.  Her notes mean more than just seeing a little increase in my paycheck after my review (because let's be honest, it's not exactly moving me into the next tax bracket).  I only hope when I get a job in the "real world", I have someone as cool as this lady.


(5) Doodling - I endlessly amuse myself with how bad awesome I am at paying attention in class.  Quite truthfully, I have to keep my hands busy to focus on the lecture. When I don't have colored pens (see previous TiLT post), I have to draw epic scenes in the margins. These two photos are actual examples of my artistry:
Here we have a fierce caveman battling a T-Rex. His hair is on end because he can't believe that this dinosaur didn't die out 65 million years ago with the rest of his kind. The stegosaurus/cow can't be bothered to join because he is too busy reading about the mobilization resources of lobby organizations.





To our right, we have a friendly (if somewhat lopsided) dragon fellow, helpfully pointing out Chiang Kai-shek's Northern Expedition and how it ended the united front between the Nationalist Party and Chinese Communist Party in 1927.  Duly noted, dragon.

Probably the best part is looking over after completing a particularly intricate scene to see the guy next to me who has been watching the whole time and can't believe I'm drawing pictures like a seven-year old. Whatever dude. You haven't even seen the intergalactic alien adventure in yesterday's notes on Congressional leadership.

What do you love today?