The Great Remote Search

I'm not the lazy type that searches the entire house for the remote just to change the TV channels from the couch. Oh no. But for the past two days I've been in a real bind. I've wanted to work out to several different fitness DVDs, but I can't find the DVD remote. The actual box itself can only do so much. What about when I want to get to the third workout on that Turbo Jam DVD? I. just. can't. get to it! Ugh.

However, this did force me to pull out my old bundle of ripped-out magazine workouts and put them to darn good use. You should see the stack I have. You know those file envelopes with like 8 file dividers? I have two of those jam-packed about 2-inches thick with every type of workout you can think of from capoeira to back-to-the-80s leg warmer workouts to tae bo, you name it! And I always have good intentions of using them (otherwise I wouldn't horde them so), but somehow I just don't.

It's much easier for me to throw in a DVD and capitalize on the Chalene-style energy. Almost like I'm working out with someone else or in a class setting. I take less breaks and pump a whole lot harder. Those DVDs keep me a whole lot more accountable than a piece of paper I have to stop and read. But I did use the paper this time. And I liked it. Especially with my own music cranked up and the boys out of the house.

Post-Workout Shower

I have an odd conundrum that has to do with the post-workout shower. Ok, I admit I have gone places after a sweaty workout. I try to keep this social snafu to a minimum, but I assure you I never go to bed without a full lather-off. So, what do you do the next morning when your hair is all crazy kinked but you're still shower fresh? I know a lot of people who will take another shower in the morning. I have done that too, especially in the sticky summer heat, but it seems like such a waste--of water and extra time. They do tell you to even skip a day of showering for the benefit of your hair and skin moisture levels, which I just won't do. But double showering must do a real number on oil production.

So, if I take a shower in the morning and another shower post-workout that same day and don't take one the following morning, I still come out with my socially-acceptable one shower a day. Whew, at least I can keep my social standing. But I still don't know what to do about that hideous bed-head. It's not the cute Jennifer Aniston-esque-beach-wave-bed-head. It's the three-year-old-girl-after-a-day-of-craziness type.

Anyhow, so far, the only remedies I've come up with are clips to pin my hair back. It also helps if I wear a hat on my walk to work to flatten some of the bumps. Otherwise, cute pixie pigtails or a headband seem to do the trick. My hair's too short right now to resort to the oft-used ponytail. I may have to grow it out just for that reason. But then I'm afraid I'll get lazy and use the ponytail solution every day again like I've done before.

The Sketchbook Project

I am so excited to have found The Sketchbook Project during a recent bout of Internet "research." Ok ok, you caught me. I was in the market to buy a real artist's sketchbook and came across this cool new project to engulf myself in. You see, you get a sketchbook, fill it up with artwork and send it back in. Then, your art goes on a tour of the country. When the art tour is finished, the sketchbooks find a permanent home in the Brooklyn Art Library. They can be checked out like regular library books and the artist can keep track of how many times their book is viewed or "checked out."

I chose "make mine a double" as my theme. Although today I see that "Happy Thoughts" has been added as a theme, and that would've been downright perfect. Oh well. I've already done a brainstorm of doubles and hope to turn those ideas into wonderful works of art.

As I've stated before, I have this abundance of creative energy building up inside of me and am in dire need of an expressive outlet for it. So thank the stars, it's in the mail.

5JEST59FP358

The Stuffed Upper Crust

I've noticed more and more that people are being drawn to health foods when it comes to sharing snacks or meals with others. We're all getting a little scared of going to parties where there is way too much to eat. They write about it in magazines all the time--how to not sabotage your diet in one fell swoop of the buffet table.

Snacks at work in a health-conscious department and even work-provided lunches are taking on a health spin. Make a calorie-light cupcake and watch them disappear. Bring in a calorie-dense cake and frown as you take most of it back home again. At church, at birthday celebrations, more and more people are leaning toward healthful fare. And everyone mumbles about donuts--so enticing no one can resist yet oh-so-naughty for the waist. And I almost feel guilty serving that sort of thing myself. As if I'm a devil's advocate of sorts. Here, engorge yourself, until you're uncomfortably stuffed and guilt-ridden. How hospitable is that?

We recently invited some friends over for dinner. Something people generally jump at the chance to enjoy, right? Well, they weren't sure if they could make it because they're trying to lose weight. Well, it's a good thing I have a few healthy recipes under my belt and am sort of a health buff myself. Sort of. So, I can make them feel at home in my home and in their own skin. I know, it's a gift.

As a side, would it be weird to host Thanksgiving this year and make it a health food affair with pre-portioned plates? I'm also fantasizing about that energized feeling after finishing a Turkey Trot on Thanksgiving morning, starting my day off on the right (and left) foot. But what's with the parting gift--a fresh pumpkin pie? Shouldn't we slim that down to a sugar-free, low-fat pie of some kind? We all know we'll ruin our efforts later in the day, but why help us take an unhealthful turn right away?

Wabi What-y?

Turns out my love of imperfect things dates back to ancient Japanese tradition. Who knew? You see, I had this doll when I was in third grade. I remember how all of our backpacks were lined up on pegs outside the third grade classroom. With the scarcity of homework back in those wee days, my backpack often held other schoolgirl treasures. For awhile, I carried this plastic doll with me everywhere. I was so worried that one of my arch nemeses would weasel their peanut-butter fingers into my bag and out me and my closet doll fetish.

You see, I found this plastic doll in the little attic offshoot of my bedroom. She was a bit bedraggled. Her hair not as luscious as Barbie's. Her moving eyes were a little creepy and she sort of had that musty antique doll style to her. But those little worn patches on her skin and the permanent dirt on her knees endeared me to her even more. She and I together made a complete package of misfits. A little off-kilter, a little sloppy, a little defective in manner, if only to the naked eye. She belonged with me.

Turns out there's this ancient philosophy called Wabi Sabi that celebrates the imperfections, the worn-out places, the dirt in the cracks. This Whole Living article turned me on to the whole idea and it completely clicked with me. It makes sense that I was repelled by perfection. Nothing bothered me more in school than copy-cats who strove to be closer to the cool girl's idea of perfect. The pretentious, the trite, the mainstream--all of these things bothered me to no end. And for good reason. Perfection is delusional and denotes a lack of character. Striving for perfection is a fruitless endeavor, while celebrating flaws encourages us to take pure delight in our own and others' idiosyncrasies.

Now I have an excuse to not get rid of my little teapot with the crack through the lid. Oh happy day! XOXOXO Baby Doll.

Sentimentality is Never Stationary

I bought me some stationery yesterday with that bonus check I was talking about.

I just love the sentimental glamor of having a stash of expressive stationery on-hand on which to pen personalized "correspondence" like someone out of a Jane Austen novel. I'm a sucker for handwritten notes that actually come in the mail. A tactile demonstration that someone was thinking enough about you to break out the pen, ink, and stamp. Something that can be returned to with reminiscent pleasure.

Now, I'm trying to think of who the first lucky recipient will be. I know of a few folks who would raise their eyebrows at the old pen-and-ink way to communicate. I know of a few more to whom I talk quite frequently online and to whom it makes no sense to drop a letter in the mail.

But at least I have the pretty, graphic, delicate stationery to start with.

Past Tense

I went through a phase in my life where I couldn't quite understand how the world could be a whole different place when my parents were young. I wanted badly to travel back in time and watch how they interacted with their high school friends and hear their groovy child voices. I'd watch Brady Bunch reruns and wonder if my mom wore her hair like Marsha or Jan or if her feet walked on mustard-colored shag carpeting. I envisioned my dad living in a wood-paneled Main Street apartment, listening to Journey, surrounded by latch-hook wall decor and macrame pot holders, and getting around by hitchhiking.

Nowadays, I'm so far behind on technology, I might as well be frolicking with the Partridge family. As a copywriter, I sometimes have to write product descriptions for technological gadgets that leave me feeling a little uneasy. Have I used some ancient terminology? Do I even know what all those abbreviations stand for? My husband and I just bought the original Mario and Pacman games, do I look like I know anything about Bluetooth technology?

But I'm learning. I find updating my personal hard drive an asset to society. There are so many advantages to being instantly connected and accomplishing tasks much more quickly. Sometimes, when I sneak peeks of other peoples' flat screens in their open lit windows, I think we should get one as much as my deep-seated nostalgic sentiments want to balk in opposition. I don't want to grow up to be old and afraid. I want to be energized by advances, not intimidated by them.

I, however, solemnly swear that I will never relinquish my love for Three's Company, paisley patterns, shirt dresses and gaudy hair flowers.


On another subject, here is a list of some of my favorite things today:

Licking the yogurt off the cover.
The Contemporary Folk station on Pandora.
Bonus checks that allow you to spend on girly pleasures like shoes and face cream where the family budget doesn't comply.
Reading A Streetcar Named Desire in the sun on my lunch break.