The Myth & The Majesty

It's a slow day at work (shockingly) so I've been cleaning off my desk and thinking about -- you guessed it -- the new year. It's crazy. New Year's Eve through the years ... 2002 -- Went to my high school best friend's place for a reunion bonfire. Much fun was had by all. 2003 -- Went to the house of a good friend from college with my boyfriend at the time. It was couples plus Barb (which couldn't have been much fun for her, although she put her best face forward) and altogether a very quiet, nice night. 2004 -- Went to a party in Mitchell (one of the best house parties I've been to) with my (different) boyfriend. It was the first time I had met most of his friends ... They were pretty psyched to meet me, too. I was his first serious girlfriend in quite awhile, and a transplant to his crowd. Let me tell you -- an engineer is a bit of a mystery to thespians, and vice versa. A lot of fun, and a lot of really random stories came out of it. 2005 -- R

Went shopping today -- until I realized my worst nightmare was coming true. 4 days after Christmas and Valentine's Day stuff is already hitting the shelves. When I also spotted St. Patrick's Day decorations, I started laughing. I think I frightened a couple other shoppers. Anyway, after shopping, I came home and started cleaning my apartment. It's interesting to me that I can be such a slob ... Egads. The catch is that I've always been messy -- but until college it never bothered me. Then it only bothered me when I had a roommate. Now it's starting to get to me because hey, I have a cool apartment, but I'm not quite willing to let anyone see it. So now I'm cleaning my apartment. In the super-comfy flannel shirt that my mother hates and my nerdy fun straw hat while watching "Under The Tuscan Sun." I love Saturdays.

A year ago today, I was in St. Louis. It was the first full day of Urbana 2006.

Seems I left Katie out of my last post. So she gets her own. Merry Christmas, Katie! I hope Billings is (was?) refreshing and relaxing, and I hope you have an awesome New Year's. Say hi to Joe for me!

To all my readers ... Darren, Ashli, Andy, Matt, Justin, and Chris -- I miss you guys! After putting up with each other for so many years, it seems odd to have to say this from a distance. Andi -- I think I can safely say hi and merry Christmas to your entire family from mine! Brandon, Jen, Megan, Jim, Paul, and Brooke (and the other FSCCers that I've forgotten -- sorry) ... I hope you're loving your Christmas wherever you are right this moment. My random readers ... Abby, Paul, Eric, Dustin, and Jeff, wherever you are, whatever you're doing, I hope that this Christmas is amazing for you and that you're looking forward to a bigger and better year than you've ever experienced. And to everyone else that may stumble across this -- Merry Christmas!

Hmmm ... That doesn't quite have the right impact as a title. Happy 400th post to me! It's been 4.52 years since I started this blog. At post 300, I was still in Rapid City. At post 200, more of the same. Today, I'm technically at my parents' house back in SoDak, but that's a rarity. Made it back right at midnight last night ... Weather was good until I was within half an hour of home. Got to sleep in this morning which was wonderful. It's been mildly busy since then, including some shopping, three trips to grocery stores, and a four-store search for a candy thermometer. Add to that a minor incident involving coffee beans that caught fire and you have an amusing day. Kind of a lame landmark post, but here's me caring. Have a great weekend, folks!

A year ago today was my first full day as a college graduate.

Okay. Long ago I claimed first groupie status, and whether or not I've kept it (I haven't been a very good groupie), I want to put in a plug for a very fun band ... They're JuteBlue , and they have a CD coming out soon. They're admittedly not something all of my readers will necessarily like (well, 2 of you probably would -- it's the third I'm not sure of), but I highly recommend giving them a try. Some of my more music-savvy friends could probably give you a "sounds like" to narrow down their style -- as for me, I can say they don't sound much like the rest of my playlist, at least not consistently. Tidbits: If I remember my musical lore correctly, they recorded "So We Dug" in one take without having played it together previously. They don't play it the exact same way twice. I heard "Creek" for the first time while standing in the kitchen of a cabin at a welcome back party for another friend ... And, to quote one of the guy

"People seem normal until you get to know them." True statement. Corollary: People's lives seem uncomplicated until you really talk to them. Egads.

This has been in the works all week -- here you go. ------------------------------------------------- Listening to: Rilo Kiley, Nickel Creek, and Lemon Demon Reading: A description of Anna Karenina Thinking about: Wait, that’s the point of blogging, isn’t it? What do you want from your life? I'm not a big fan of motivational jargon. I don't read self-help books or watch TV talk shows. Some people might suggest that I should (please don't), but the full truth is that I don't put much stock in someone who makes their money by giving the masses six steps to fix whatever life problem it is they have. I don't like blanket cures (except maybe penicillin). But I thought today I could irritate myself long enough to kick off this post. The full truth is that my opening question can reveal a lot more to you if you can actually be honest with yourself -- alas, that's not a talent many of us have, myself included. Let's try it for a moment anyway. Simplify things -- w

It's snowing! Okay, so that's not entirely true. It was snowing. I don't think it is anymore. I slept in today, for the first time ... well, since last Saturday, but not counting that, since September. (Hey, it's easy to sleep in when your room is in the basement -- therefore really really dark -- and you don't have an alarm clock. Or any other working clock, for that matter.) It was nice. But then I ventured out into the snow, for a few reasons. 1. I was short on groceries. 2. I was still looking for a shirt and a pair of close-toed dress shoes for next Saturday's company Christmas party. 3. I'm nowhere near done with my Christmas shopping. 4. Snow usually keeps the huddled masses away. And for once, it was successful on all counts. Yay! Alas, on more than one occasion, I thought I might get stuck in a not-quite-plowed-enough parking lot. Thankfully, the one time this was a real risk, I was at a coworker's apartment and he, in all his awesomeness, pushe