The Person I Admire Most

I was thinking today about my husband and how much I admire him. He has loads of good qualities that I lack. One of the things I love the most about him is that he likes to challenge himself, and he perseveres. I, for one, really dislike hassle, and I dislike that I dislike hassle. There is much to be gained by trudging through inconveniences. I'm really impressed with how he has taught himself to play piano, and taught himself so much about computers, video game design, and all kinds of other things. He's really done a great job in his doctoral program in school psych. He's got publications coming out, he's presented at conferences, he won an award at school... I am just so proud of him! I wish he could see himself as I see him. He is such a good person, with a kind heart and generous spirit. He always tries to help people. I'm so grateful. ♥

Sad

Tonight I had dinner with some friends/former coworkers, and found out that someone I knew killed himself. I won't say his name because it's not my place to go around telling someone else's business, but it really bothers me. He was a very nice man, and gave me good advice about becoming a librarian while I was still in library school. Apparently he wanted to avoid being a burden on his wife. This makes me so sad for him and for his wife. I don't really know what to think, I just wish I could have told him that I really thought he was nice, and cool, and worth knowing, but now it's too late. God bless him, and God bless his wife.

Excuse my French...

It's been a crappy couple of days. I actually had a very productive and restful weekend but things in general have been hard lately. I've been trying to stretch myself and step out of my comfort zone and it just really takes a lot of energy to try to make a change. My ego has really been put to task, too. It's very humbling to try to make a change and make it stick. I'm not handling it very gracefully. I guess I just need to buck up and deal with change head-on. I've also been reminded this week that everyone is going through something; we all have our problems, and you can't always tell just by looking at someone what their problems might be. I need to be patient. Patience seems to be a recurring theme this week. I always like to end on a good note, so I just want to say I had a great time watching the Super Bowl with friends this past Sunday. I was hoping the Giants would win, although I confess I don't feel very strongly about the Giants or the Patriots. I happen to not be a Tom Brady fan, so that was why I was cheered the way I did. The company for the game was great, though. Where would we be without friends, eh? :)

True Grit

The other night, the hubby and I watched the 2010 version of "True Grit" on Netflix. WOW. I've never seen the original film, and didn't know much about the story. I'm actually not big on Western-themed stuff, but I knew this was a Coen Brothers movie, and I'd heard it was amazing, so we gave it a shot. I *loved* the movie! The main actress, Hailee Steinfeld, was totally charming. I didn't realize Matt Damon was gonna be in the movie, so that was a pleasant surprise. It was very funny at times, but could also be serious. It was very, very enjoyable. If you haven't seen it, I'd recommend it. I've also been watching the 1979 series "Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy." A friend at work loaned it to me-- 6 episodes at 1 hr each. I only have one episode left to watch. This series is very good but I honestly found it a little difficult to follow. I really enjoy watching British stuff and have seen a lot of it, so I don't think it's the accents or speech that confused me, but for some reason I found it difficult to understand what's going on. So I did what I always do-- I read a synopsis on Wikipedia. So now I know the resolution of the mystery, but it doesn't deter me from wanting (needing!) to finish the series. I've just got to see how it all plays out. This is a mystery about a mole in the British secret service. Alec Guiness is in it, and I could just listen to him talk all day. This was recently made into a movie, too, starring Gary Oldman (love him!), so I expect that a viewing of the film is in my future. Worth checking out if you like British spy stuff. Bonus points for Obi-wan Kenobi and Jean-Luc Picard in the same scene. :)

Snow

The weather folks are calling for snow; I really hope it doesn't snow while I'm at work. Actually, to be more specific, I hope snow doesn't interfere with my ability to leave work or come to work. Snow is beautiful and it can be fun, but I really don't want to get into a car accident or miss work. So hopefully any snow will just rest on the grass and melt on the road. Fingers are crossed! :)

Things I wish I could wear

Yesterday on the way to lunch, some of us were talking and I expressed that I wished capes would come back into style. Some coworkers tried to tell me that a cape would be just fine, as long as I didn't wear it ALL the time (e. g. wear it to work but take it off while in my office). I think wearing a cape would get me labeled as a crazy person, so I'm not going to risk it. It made me think of all the things I wish I could get away with wearing in good conscience, but can't. So here they are, with the reasons they would be unacceptable. capes- they make you look crazy knee high boots with skirts- my legs are too chunky for the skirt AND for the boots pretty dresses (think: zooey deschanel)- chunk factor cute hate- they are pretentious and I don't have the right attitude to pull it off head bands- I don't know how to wear them correctly. they are too foreign to me and I couldn't pull it off high heels- I can't walk in them. I look like Frankenstein's monster when I try cowboy boots- they are associated with country music and country lifestyle cute sunglasses- my regular glasses get in the way. can't do contacts. maybe I could get some prescription ones? What about you, dear reader? Are there things you wish you could wear but just can't? Why?

Thanksgiving

The long Thanksgiving weekend was full of lots of great fun. I got to see Charles's mom's side of the family on Thanksgiving Day (they are always so welcoming and warm), then we had my Dad and sister over for dinner that evening (I 'cooked' Stouffer's lasagna, garlic bread, Caesar salad, and my sis brought delicious cookies and ice cream!). Both events were nice, and it was great to think of family. We also put up our Christmas tree for the first time. We bought the tree and lights and some ornaments after Christmas last year. We decorated in the past with garland, but this is our first tree as a couple. Luckily the animals haven't knocked it over or climbed it yet. :) On Friday we saw some good friends, and I braved a little bit of afternoon shopping, but returned empty handed. We pet-sat for our friend, and the cat (Harlock) was the sweetest I had ever seen him! Full of affection and playfulness. Saturday we went to a party at a friend's place (some classmates of Charles's and their significant others). I had some fantastic food, tried tofurkey for the first (and last? meh...) time (OK it wasn't as bad as I feared; the taste was quite good since it was cooked with stuffing and veggies). Had some great peanut butter pie that I got a recipe for, and we played Charades (boys v. girls)! I had actually never played charades before and it was a lot of fun! The boys made things really hard on us girls. I totally flopped when presented with "clandestine agent" but was not too terribly bad with "post modernism." On Sunday we saw Char's Dad, Stepmom, and Step-aunt (is that really a word?); all of whom are fantastic people. We ate a great meal at Sunspot and got to catch up and make Christmas plans. Then we had dinner and watched football with some other good friends. Wow, we really did a lot, but it was a great time! Thank you to everyone that hosted us and celebrated with us. This holiday season is filling up with lots of things to do, but it's all a great reminder of how much I have to be thankful for. ♥