Things I Love Thursday

Ok clearly these are not happening on Thursdays anymore but I'm still awake so technically it's not Friday until I go to bed.  Stop judging me.  I had a really busy daaay-whine whine, etc.


(1) Reminiscing about school days. It's been on my mind lately (see middle school post) but various chats with friends have had me thinking of the days of yore.  Like the unfortunate fashion choices that were made in elementary school.  Think bright culottes and prairie boots. It was like Laura Ingalls Wilder time travels to 1992, minus the bonnet.  I shudder to think of the terrible dictatorship of clothing choices I was subject to.  It's fine, I'm over it, whatever.  Love you, Mom.

 

And then the things we did in high school because we thought we were the bomb diggety.  Like when my sole extracurricular activity was joining the literary magazine because I thought I was basically a modern day Virginia Woolfe. It was called the Erendrake, an old English word for messenger. The fact that I even know that makes me shake my head and laugh at my 16 year old self.  Did I mention that the rest of the Erendrake staff consisted of three of my friends and both of my siblings? To this day, I am quite sure the only reason Eva and Sam joined was because I was their ride home...

Anyway, one winter the deadline was drawing close and we were low on submissions (giant surprise there) so we got it in our heads to advertise on the morning announcements.  Of course I would not allow just a simple statement to be read. No, I had to write a song.  Since it was near Christmas, I rewrote the lyrics of Jingle Bells to fit our needs. And then added about six verses.  And then sang it with my sister and our friend Sarah to the entire school over the intercom.  What I thought was a humorous and beautiful song turned out to be nearly 10 minutes of a really bad rendition of a beloved Christmas carol.  I returned to class expecting to receive a round of applause and instead got a room full of this:

 

I blame it on the poor sound quality of the intercom system.

(2) The J. Crew Summer 2010 Collection.  Such as This dress  and this cardigan. Clearly this is an attempt to redeem myself of my sordid past with clothing.  Clean lines, classic colors, yes please.  And enough cardigans to send the crotchety old woman in me into fits of delight.  Not that I can afford any of it.

(3) Oranges.  Never really been a huge fan of this fruit until recently.  When I was a child, I had to take medicine mixed with orange juice every day for 6 months or so.  It took me a long time to disassociate the awful taste of that medicine with oranges.  Sense memory is a powerful thing. Anyway, I've recently come to love eating an ice cold orange before bed. It's a rather strange habit and I don't know why I started it but it keeps me from eating junk food at night.  Smarter food choices = win.

(4) SPRING. I love spring. It's quite possibly my favorite season.   I love that it's pleasantly warm without a breath of humidity but still cool in the evenings. I love the heady smell of flowers everywhere. With the exception of the dogwood trees. Why a tree with such beautiful white flowers insists on smelling like rotting fish carcass is beyond me.  I love the days when the wind is a mere breeze that causes the gentle rustling of leaves.  I love the days when the wind is a gale, impatiently jerking my skirt against my legs and then furiously changing direction.  I even love the spontaneous deluge of rain that leaks through my decrepit umbrella and drips into my school bag.  I love the grinning smile of the blue sky after such a long winter. I love the promise of summer that hangs in the air.  And my soul waxes poetic...

(5) Switzerland. No particular reason. Except that they have a strong economy while managing to remain politically neutral in the 21st century.  And their country is almost entirely carbon-neutral. 56% of their energy comes from hydroelectricity and 39% from nuclear power. Yes I got those stats off Wikipedia.  The environmentalist in me weeps with happiness. Why else is Switzerland awesome? Hmm, is it their amazingly efficient health care system? That they have not one, but four national languages? The beautiful landscape? Nope, it's the chocolate. Although those other things don't hurt either. 

(6) The Fruit Game. Try and think of a fruit that describes you. Then think of fruits that describe your friends. That's it. I don't know if you were waiting for a point to this game but there is none. It's just an amusing way to pass the time. And it's interesting what other people think you are. For example, according to Hattie, I am a pomegranate: interesting and surprising. This pleases me.  Other variations of this game are the Animal Game or if you want to be oddly specific, the Baked Goods Game.  FYI, It is the highest compliment if you are considered to be a scone.  I have been kind of obsessed with comparing my friends to fruits lately, entirely in my head of course.  There's no unawkward way to approach the subject. "Lauren, you would make the perfect pineapple."

Ok you delicious kiwis and mangoes.  Time for me to get back to the homework at hand.  Leave me some love.  And tell me what kind of fruit/animal/baked good you think I am.