Sweet little bumble bee...

I know what you want from me.
Sweet little bumble bee
More than just a fantasy...

DDR, what have you done to me?

Dup-i-dup-i-do la la
Dup-i-dup-i-do la da...

Throwing the Goat to the Blog

Thanks to a loyal reader for submitting this pic she entitled "Throwing the goat" to The Blog.

I Have a Problem

It's time for me to admit it: I have a problem.

I've tried to hide it for a long time. I've denied it, I've lied to myself and others, I've refused to acknowledge the depths to which I've been willing to sink to get a fix... I've even taken directly from the hands of my loved ones to stave off withdrawal.

I've whined and wheedled and pleaded and made promises I had no intention of keeping.

It's time to make amends.

Bon, I will never again ask if I can use your lip gloss. Hillary, I'm sorry for every time I dipped into your peach flavored beeswax balm. Mom, for all the lipsticks I've ever "borrowed"... forgive me. Tell me how I can make it up to you.

I'm taking it one day at a time. Easy does it. Progress, not perfection. I can stop using "just for today." I've narrowed my stash to one simple, utilitarian chapstick - it's pink and cherry flavored, but other than that, it's plain and no-frills. Gone are the glittered glosses, the shiny lipslicks, the buttery balms...

With the help of my higher power, the support of my friends, and Lip Balm Anonymous, I believe I can beat this hidden addiction that affects the lives of so many...

I ♥ my new pink Converse shoes with embroidered flowers!

A Prayer

God, break my addiction to anything but you.

Please be my only addiction.

Not to get all political, but...

Every time I pick up the newspaper and read about the exploits of our fair president and his administration, I think wow, it just can't get any worse than this. Bush sucks.

So you want to be an evangelist...

Live simply, love generously, care deeply, speak kindly. Leave the rest to God.

I don't know who said it, but I think it's good advice.

Hillary

Your shoes are like WHOA.

Dr. Bronner's Magic Soaps

They're simply magical! Dr. Bronner passed away in 1997, but his family continues to carry on his legacy. The labels make for fantastical reading material. The peppermint pure-castile liquid is my favorite.

Aubrey Organics

I adore this company. Their products are all-natural, organic, and compassionate (not tested on animals). And most - if not all - are vegan. I read this book when I was a teenager, and it was fantastic. I am convinced that using this cleanser, this astringent, this mask and scrub, and this clear skin complex kept my skin free from breakouts when I was younger.

Oh, and if you have dry skin, there's nothing like this moisturizer.

They're expensive, though, so to be honest, I don't use these products much anymore.

But, dear reader, I highly recommend them if you have the money, want to splurge on a luxury item, become a celebrity, or wish to send a gift to this blogger...

Replaceable You

Dear Irish Spring,

I have loved you for a long time - we have a long history together. I remember seeing the singing man showering in your TV ads when I was a little girl. He always seemed so happy, so clean, so carefree, so... in love. My mom bought budget brands so I didn't really get to know you until later, when you were my first boyfriend's favorite soap. I loved the zesty fresh smell of you when he leaned in to kiss me. I think I loved you almost as much as I loved his Mitchum Sport antiperspirant/deodorant. Your invigorating scent gave him the zing that he needed to get up and get going in the morning (he had the misfortune of not being a coffee drinker). After we broke up, I went a long time without seeing you. I missed you sometimes, but I was mostly able to put you out of my mind.

We rekindled our romance several months ago. I needed soap, and you were the only brand available in the campus market. I didn't realize that once we became close again, it would be so difficult to stop seeing you. You were irresistible - your spring-green color, your texture and foam, that unforgettable scent... I kept buying you, even when I had other options, even though you were outrageously priced. Little did I know that you would end up costing me far more than I ever imagined.

Dry skin. Flaky skin. Red skin. Irritated skin.

I know it wasn't entirely your fault. I used you in ways I shouldn't have, like the time I ran out of shampoo. You were all I had, so I turned to you, and you were there for me in my time of need. I took a deep breath, lathered up, and ran you through my hair. I know it was wrong, but it felt so right at the time. I didn't know you would rob me of my curls and strip away all my moisture and shine. I vowed that it would never happen again...

And I know you weren't designed to be a facial cleanser, especially not for sensitive skin, but you were just so convenient. I believed in a monogamous relationship. I didn't want to see anyone else. I thought it would be okay. I should have known better.

I guess this is my way of saying, "It's not you. It's me." I just don't think we're right for each other. I've met someone, and I think it's really going to work this time. I've fallen for an exfoliating cleansing gel with moisture beads. And my extra gentle 2-in-1 shampoo+conditioner with a burst of strawberry knows how to treat a girl's hair right. I'm sorry. I don't know how to tell you this, but I think it's time we let each other go.

Truly, from the bottom of my heart, I wish you all the best for the future.

Goodbye, dear Irish Spring, goodbye...

Shakira, Shakira

"Shakira is a weapon of mass destruction," I overheard someone at a nearby dinner table say. While I'm waiting for military intelligence to discover her, I'll ponder what exactly she means by "hips don't lie."

Ugh

Today, I woke up to James Blunt's "You're Beautiful" being played by one of my neighbors in an adjacent room. Full-blast. So loud that the walls of my room were shaking. On repeat. Three times.

Get better taste in music, people.

Strawberry Ice Cream

So I skipped the whole pretending-it-doesn't-hurt thing and went straight to the wallowing part, complete with strawberry ice cream. It worked. I feel better. I was never more than slightly bruised in the first place.

You Win

"How was your day?" he asked.

"Pretty dang crappy," said I.

"What happened?"

"Oh... you know. Just... guess I'd rather not talk about it."

"Bet it wasn't as bad as my weekend."

"Bet it comes close." Why did I say it? What possessed me? Can I have a do-over please?

"Two of my friends died."

Oh.

You win.

Dude, I'm sorry.

On Second Thought

After several viewings, I have decided that Prince's "Black Sweat" video is actually quite riveting. Partly because it's subtly humourous (watch his facial expressions). The music ain't so bad either, I guess.

I Wish I Knew How to Quit You, Matisyahu

I am fascinated with Matisyahu. Hasidic Jewish reggae. Yes, you heard me. Hasidic Jewish reggae. With a fusion of rap and beatboxing. Mesmerizing.

More here, here, and here.

Interesting

This conversation, which I am having with this guy.

Try

It doesn't matter whether you succeed or fail, so long as you try.

If I actually lived my life that way, how different it would be! How often have I failed to try for fear of not succeeding.

Some Thoughts on Suffering

If no one ever suffered, we would never be compelled to help one another. If we never experienced suffering, would we ever have reason to turn to God for comfort, or struggle to learn to trust him, or desire to grow closer to his heart? Without suffering, there would never be true appreciation of real joy. Without suffering, we would never understand the reality that we live in a fallen world, that we are touched by sin, and that we need God; we would be like spoiled children unaware of anything outside our own comfort and ease.

The Stone Table

"You have a traitor in your midst, Aslan.... Have you forgotten the laws on which Narnia was built?... Then you’ll remember well that every traitor belongs to me. His blood is my property.... Unless I have blood, as the Law demands, all Narnia will be overturned and perish in fire and water." - the White Witch, accusing Edmund

"She has renounced her claim on the Son of Adam’s blood!" - Aslan, having agreed to sacrifice his life as a ransom for Edmund's

"Did you really think that by all this you could save the human traitor? You are giving me your life and saving no one. So much for love. Tonight the Deep Magic will be appeased, but tomorrow we will take Narnia forever! In that knowledge, despair... and die!" - the White Witch, moments before Aslan's death

"If the witch knew the true meaning of sacrifice, she might have interpreted the Deep Magic a little differently. When a willing victim who has committed no treachery is killed in a traitor’s stead, the Stone Table would crack and even Death itself would turn backwards." - Aslan, after his resurrection

- from the film The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe

Worms

I love the rain, but the worm carcasses on the sidewalks are really starting to depress me. Poor little guys.

It Sucks

It sucks when your boyfriend keeps telling you how beautiful he thinks your sister is.

It sucks when you really like a guy (not the boyfriend, who you've broken up with long ago), and he seems to like you too, and then you find out that he actually likes your sister, who has an easy-going, flirtatious personality and looks like a model.

It sucks when you like a different guy, and after spending hours hanging out together (because he "loves talking to you" and "you're a great listener"), he asks you if you will ask out your sister for him (the one who looks like a model, who he's never actually spoken to).

And it really sucks when the guy you like likes your sister and all you can think is déjà vu.

Don't

Don't eat an entire bag of Sour Patch Kids or Jolly Rancher Screaming Sours by sucking on each individual piece of candy until it disappears. Lemme tell you, it'll really do a number on your tongue.

Chopsticks

If you are eating with chopsticks and you are feeling really awkward because you don't really know how but you are doing your best but you are still really messy and your dining companions are looking at you funny, you shouldn't feel bad at all. You should embrace the messiness and just enjoy and not worry about what anyone thinks.

Don't apologize! You don't need to be sorry. You are still a good person even if you don't feel comfortable eating with chopsticks.

Chopsticks are good to wear in your hair.

Daylight Saving Time

It's just stupid.

We already have plenty of daylight in the summer. When we really need that extra hour of evening sunlight is in the winter, when the days are depressingly short anyway.

In the fall, when daylight saving time ends and a change is made back to standard time, the sun sets an hour earlier each day. So in the winter, instead of getting dark at six, for example, it gets dark at five - cheerful, isn't it? [note the heavy sarcasm]

The lost hour of sleep in the spring causes a rise in traffic accidents following the change; there is a corresponding cost in human lives.

People with sleep disorders find the time changes disruptive to their schedules and very difficult to adjust to.

International time zones are not synchronized with respect to daylight saving time. Even within the United States and its territories, there are differences in observance.

Frankly, it's just plain confusing.

I like what this writer had to say in 1947: "I don't really care how time is reckoned so long as there is some agreement about it, but I object to being told that I am saving daylight when my reason tells me that I am doing nothing of the kind. I even object to the implication that I am wasting something valuable if I stay in bed after the sun has risen. As an admirer of moonlight I resent the bossy insistence of those who want to reduce my time for enjoying it. At the back of the Daylight Saving scheme I detect the bony, blue-fingered hand of Puritanism, eager to push people into bed earlier, and get them up earlier, to make them healthy, wealthy and wise in spite of themselves." (Robertson Davies, The Diary of Samuel Marchbanks, 1947, XIX, Sunday.)

If we are to observe daylight saving time, why not reverse the time shift? It would make a whole lot more sense to "fall forward" and "spring back."

I understand that we currently "fall back" because the energy conservation advantage of daylight saving time is lost in winter months with the need for early morning lighting due to the later sunrise. So rather than ripping a conceptual hole in the fabric of time, why not wait until the sun rises to get up? Why not change the starting times of our businesess and schools rather than the clock? Are we trying to beat even the farmers? (Morning people, you conspirators, you!) Our entire schedules are organized - not around the natural rhythms of the earth and our bodies - but around an artificial construct imposed by the abstraction of time.

Do you ever wonder where that hour goes in the spring when the clock magically flips from 1:59 a.m. to 3:00 a.m.? I think it goes in my sock drawer to be stored until that time in the fall when the hour is retrieved and the clock flips from 1:59 a.m. back to 1:00 a.m.