Red Nose

Why I Love This Particular Friday

I haven't done a Love List in a couple -- okay, a few -- weeks, so it's high time I did. This particular Friday is a particularly nice Friday, so here's a list of things that I love about it.

• It's Friday. Seems obvious, but nevertheless, I love this day simply for that calendarish fact.
• The weather is perfect. Yes, perfect.
• Jeans Day at the office.
• Made a cameo appearance in a presentation at the All-Hands (aka big meeting for the whole department); it went quite well and I even got an arm pat from the SVP. I'm a Hot Tamale Baby let me tell you.
• No signs of ick from the recent water contamination scare. I guess I can stop clenching now.
• I'm caught up on the bills with money left over.
• The Black-Eyed Susans and daylilies are blooming.
• No traffic!
• Interview with Weird Al Yankovick on the radio this morning. Yes -- I like Weird Al. Shut up.
• Had a good night's sleep last night, pretty much.
• New purse. I think this one will last awhile; it has all the right pockets and a few extra hidey places.
• Big project done for the nonce.
• All smaller projects done too!
• Only five more days left in a Mercury Retrograde.
• Got a note that this shipped today; it's due to arrive on Monday. Even better? Used a gift card to cover most of the cost!
• It's pretty much lunchtime, which means a walk in the perfect weather.
• Tonight? Going to the beach!!!

I may even have to leave just a smidgen early this afternoon. Just a smidgen.

Return of the Love List

Washington is awash in pink, white, red, lavendar, and a host of other lovely colors -- a direct result of azaleas, irises, dogwoods, and other beautiful flora. It's enough to almost make like my commute into work, and definitely enough to totally make me enjoy my commute home.

Today is an almost perfect day. It would be perfect if it were not a work day, but it is late on Friday afternoon and that's close enough.

So...

I haven't done a Love List lately. It's time.

I love:

• Azaleas in bloom, especially when they're left to grow wild and ungroomed.
• The smell of freshly mown grass.
• Watching Joe sleep.
• The steaks from Trader Joe's.
• Not wearing a coat.
• New shoes that fit.
• Finding funky little charming things on Etsy.com.
• Buying funky little charming things on Etsy.com.
• Claritin-D.
• The Tudors. I know! Totally not accurate! Don't care! Guilty pleasure! Shut up!
• Snuggling.
• Hearing SonnyeBoy's voice.
• Triple word scores.
• Milkshakes.
• Being to bypass the post office line and using the stamp machine.
• Getting a great airfare to attend this.
• Feeling sleepy, except when I'm driving.
• Warm sunny days that follow cool damp days.
• Ayr Allergy nasal spray.
• Michael Caine.
• Meeting Joe for dinner.
• Pink dogwood trees in bloom.
• Sliced tomatoes (the baby romas from Trader Joe's are great) with bleu cheese vinaigrette dressing.
• Buttered bagels.
• My Godzilla ring.
• Party time! I must find an appropriate gift.
• The perfect birthday card. Now I must remember to send it when the time comes.

What are you loving this Friday afternoon?

Cherry Blossom Love List

This week has been interesting, weatherwise. The clear, cloudless days have been cold; the grey, rainy days have been warm. It's a classic glass half-full, glass half-empty conundrum!

Until today, which has been cold, grey, and damp. Pretty damn blah -- the perfect day for a love list. I love:

• Hockey, hockey, hockey! My Caps are On. Fucking. Fire! Ovie has 65 goals and about a zillion points, the team is on a winning streak that will surely result in a playoff berth, and so far the 'Canes are losing to the Panthers, which is very very very good. (Sorry, Chuck, it IS.)
• The red bud trees. They're in full bloom, pale lavendar glory, along with the various cherry trees, pears, forsythia, daffodils, crocuses, magnolias, and so on. They make even a grey day colorful.
• Hot Henry VIII. I've been catching up with The Tudors. I got a wee bit bored there in the middle, but the last few episodes of the first season have been great. Now, I know that liberties have been taken with the true, actual history, but hey. Hot Henry!
• Any movie that stars both George Clooney and John Krazinski, which would be Leatherheads. Clever and humorous and did I mention George Clooney?
• Joe in a tie. He really looks great in a shirt and tie.
• Playoff hockey.
• Zappos. Mom was on a tear about a pair of sandals that she lost last August when she in the hospital and assigned me to find a new pair for her. Zappos to the rescue! I ordered them the day before yesterday; they arrived today.
• Tucks. They are so cooling and relieving of pain and embarrassing itch. I know; I'm very ladylike and dainty.
• Etsy. I could browse for hours.
• Cheese.
• Tea rose essential oil.
• Electronic funds transfer.
• My pillow.
• Warm feet.
• Ayr Allergy nasal spray. It's like inhaling the ocean.
• Raspberry Lambic.
• Fresh towels.
• Cleanser that lathers up nicely.
• Popcorn.
• The Heartbreak Kid, Shawn Michaels, and The Game, Triple H. (Oh, shut up. It's a guilty pleasure.)
• Raw silk.
• Sleeping well.
• Rhymes with Orange.
• Hockey, playoff hockey, Stanley Cup hockey, Hart Trophy for Ovie hockey!

What's on your love list this week?

Love List for A Rainy Night

It's perfectly foul outside; dark grey skies belching cold nasty rain, the kind that worms its way down through your collar and around your neck, slicking down your hair and making you shiver and frown. It's the kind of late afternoon that seems like night already, even though it's not really dark, not really, honest. It's the kind of late afternoon that makes every problem seem insurmountable and every happiness miniscule and fleeting.

Which means it's the perfect afternoon to remember the good stuff.

I love:

• Meeting friends after work for dinner and laughs.
• Be Kind, Rewind. It's really sweet and funny.
• My mother's hands.
• Ovie's run up to 60 goals!
• The perfect pass that AO dealt to Nicklas Backstrom resulting in the ninth goal (well, it might have been the eighth -- or something) of their 10-2 drubbing of the Boston Bruins. We play again (in Boston!) tomorrow. Bring it on, boys!
• Segways. They are so dorky. I really want to try one.
• Thin Mints and Tagalongs.
• Egg salad.
• My crystal ball. I can't see anything in it, but it's beautiful.
• My fuffy slippers, handmade by an Inuit, that I bought in Vancouver back in 1998.
• Long drives on country roads.
• Stopping at Irish Pubs for lunch during long drives on country roads.
• Being alone in the cube farm. It's finally quiet!
• Doing this "yes it is, no it isn't" head nod riff from Eddie Izzard with Joe. (I know you don't know what the hell I'm talking about. Or do you? Hmmm.)
• The ice cream from Berthillon in Paris. It's the best ice cream I've ever had.
• Speaking of Paris, the view from the very top of Notre Dame cathedral. It's worth the climb.
• Speaking of views from the tops of cathedrals, the view from the very top of the Duomo in Milan is pretty spectacular too.
• Hawks.
• Redwing blackbirds.
• Daylight Savings TIme. I know it's a pain to lose an hour, but for me it's totally worth the adjustment to have it be light in the evening. Yay!

And now, I must brave the rain so that I can enjoy the first thing on this list. But since my car is equipped for it now, I do not fear the rain. Bring it!

Leap Year Love List

Two of the three projects that I was stressing over are DONE and DONE! I love that. And I love lots of other things on this Leap Day:

• Salt. I am a saltaholic, and don't give me any crap about it. The meds control the blood pressure, thanks. Salt bagels are the best, pretzels are no good without salt, and a good steak requires a liberal dusting of the precious mineral. I should just install a salt lick outside my back door and fight the goddamn deer for it. Or bring it inside where I'll have it all to myself.
• The deals that my Caps made this week. Welcome to Washington Monsieur Huet, Mister Federov, and Mister Cooke. May you bring the boys into the playoffs!
• My fancy sneakers.
• The yoga mat bag that I'm using to carry my juggling clubs and juggling balls. They fit perfectly.
• Blankets.
• Clark Gable.
• Getting the all-clear from my dentist.
• Reading the funny papers in the morning over coffee.
• Coffee.
• A nice sandwich.
• The Congress of Jugglers, which starts tonight!
• Puns, no matter how bad. SonnyeBoy had a little run-in with a bullet on the firing range last week (he's fine, but his hand is sore) and we sent him a goody basket containing apples, pears, chocolates, cheese, crackers, but the centerpiece of this raft of goodies is a baked ham. Naturally, I hope that he doesn't go to hell in a ham basket.

Happy Leap Day!

Another Long Weekend Love List

The day started early -- an 8:00 meeting, f'cryin' out loud -- so I'm winding down the day and getting ready to head into the sunset and a three-day weekend (thanks, presidents!). I love three-day weekends, and I also love the Friday love list:

• My new windshield miracle wipers -- the combination of Rainx windshield treatment and the Rainx wipers make for a clear, clear view of the road no matter the weather. I will now officially shut. up. about the Rainx.
• Pulled pork with Mojo Mild sauce.
• Fage yogurt with honey. I tried this for the first time today, and Oh Holy Dear Sweet Jesus it was good. Then I perused the nutrition information and know why. Glorious, glorious whole milk. And honey.
• Warmth.
• My new sneakers. They make my feet want to walk.
• The pretty deep pink rose on my desk. The guys in my group handed out roses to all the women in the department yesterday. Nice work, fellas!
• My iPod.
• Baked beans.
• Chocolate-covered almonds.
• The fact that I scored tickets to the new version of The Scottish Play at the Folger Shakespeare Library. Teller co-directed and it's got special magic effects, so it's sure to be surprising and bloody and wonderful.
• My haircut, mostly.
• The mild weather today.
• The new Asian restaurant across the street from my office.
• Easy, postage-paid returns.
• Bonuses.
• A nice big tax refund.
• The laid back acoustic version of "Bobby McGee" by Janis Joplin that Joe has on his iPod. It will soon be on my iPod.
• Richard Zednick, for getting up and skating to the bench after getting his carotid artery sliced by a skate blade! I mean, the dude lost 5 pints of blood -- and there's only 8 to a customer. Get well soon, Zed.
• Winning the Evil level of Snood.
• Colin Firth as Mr. D'Arcy.
• Funny Valentines.

What do you love this week?

Love List In The Snow

Friday!

Here's a very specific Love List. I love:

• cold weather
• lots of snow
• sleigh rides in the cold and snow
• The Doctor (McGillicuddy, that is)
• brats
• booyah
• The Bad Bar
• dancing at the Bad Bar
• the $10 rule
• St. Brendan's Inn
• a whole bunch of lovely people
• our host and hostess
• ice sculpture
• chili cook-offs
• kettle corn
• cheese curds
• The One True Wine
• rainforest showers
• Irish pubs
• big breakfasts
• pretzel fluff
• Ward and June
• high-maintenance hamburgers
• frozen custard

And that, my friends, is why I am off to Green Bay this morning. See you Tuesday!

Love in 2007

Marvelous Meg has done it again! It's the first love list of the year, and she's made it very easy. We all need to keep remembering the things and people we love; otherwise...

Well, who wants to dwell on the otherwise? So here we go:

THINGS OF LOVE FROM 2007

Movie of Love: The Simpsons Movie - Spider Pig, Spider Pig; does whatever a spider pig does...

Song of Love: Love and Mercy by Brian Wilson

Book of Love: Grace, Eventually by Anne Lamott

Album of Love: Hurricane Relief, various artists - Great songs, great musicians, great music.

Place of Love: Mackey's, sitting by the bay on a perfect day

Month of Love: June (two weddings and our anniversary)

Best Day of Love: Christmas Eve, when SonnyeBoy was here, and we were with our family, and eating and drinking and laughing.

Best Moment of Love: When Joe and I danced to Queen Latifah's version of Poetry Man on New Year's Eve

Word of Love: Coffee?

Purchase of Love: The URL for Joe's blog

City of Love: Ocean City, or maybe Tampere, Finland

Food of Love: Peppermint ice cream

Beverage of Love: Grande gingerbread latte, of course

Person of Love (someone who made a difference for you this year): Joe, of course, who kept me from freaking out completely this summer.

Spot of Love (the best place to go to just be): The Azalea Garden at Brighton Dam when the azaleas are in full bloom.

Clothing Item of Love: My big ol' hoodie is my favorite comfy comfy comfy warm snuggly item of clothing.

Random Thing of Love (anything you want): This. Go on, improve your vocabulary and feed the world!