I guess I'm just not a fan of holidays, because it seems that every time one occurs I get grumpy about it. Today is Halloween, and I'm just not interested. I really don't see the point of Halloween for adults. As a kid, I enjoyed dressing up and getting candy handed to me. Halloween was one of four times a year that involved loads of chocolate, a huge deal for any child. Santa brought some, as did the Easter Bunny and Grandmom when she came to visit, but Halloween brought the mother-load. I used to have a huge stash that I savored for months, and I don't fault any kid for wanting that.
Once you become too old for the trick-or-treating, though, I just don't see the draw. I don't like scary movies (thank you, Jack Nicholson) or haunted houses. I definitely don't seek the attention that wearing a costume to work would bring. The last time I dressed in a Halloween costume, I was eighteen and naive enough to give a Halloween dance a try. I went as Laurence of Arabia in full robes and ended up bored and overheated. I outgrew Halloween, and I don't understand why others haven't.
But maybe I'm just saying that because I've never been invited to a bitchin' Halloween party.
Next up, Thanksgiving. Stuffing: yuck. American football: yawn. Baking a turkey: yeah, right. I guess Tyler and I will just have to gather round the pecan pie.
Tuesday, October 31, 2006
Wednesday, October 18, 2006
Rompecabezas and Todi-Coltex
Upon the advice of the highly-respected Johnny-on-the-Spot Dr. Slojak-Pittman, I have decided to write a blog about some of my favorite things. Although I am a fan of raindrops on roses and whiskers on kittens (and numerous other things about cats--have you seen the pictures of the two precious creatures that share my home?), I thought I'd focus on slightly less cutesy joys.
I like puzzles. The word has two z's, which obviously makes a good fizzy topic, and it's even better in Spanish. Doesn't "rompecabeza" just flow enjoyably off the tongue? Crossword, logic, jigsaw--it doesn't matter, as long as there's some challenge to it. (My cats present an additional challenge to jigsaws, because they like to play with the pieces during the night and leave them scattered around on the floor. Yes, I'm talking about my cats again.) The newly-popular Sudoku games are too easy (no z there, either), and I can do word searches with my eyes closed (try it--it's a blast). I once won a word search contest in the fourth grade, so I've achieved all I can there (the prize was a Snoopy sticker album--try to top that). So far, I'm only really stumped by the odd puzzles in Harper's Magazine--they're overloaded with puns, anagrams and other weird clues. Maybe someday I'll work up to that.
As for Todi-Coltex, I don't so much like the object as much as how it sounds and what it signifies. Try saying it with umlauts and a fake German or Swedish accent, and you may understand. Anyway, Todi-Coltex is a type of tread to put on the bottom of your cross-country skis to help you go uphill without sliding back down (it's quite embarrassing to slide backwards down a hill you are trying to ski up). My cross-country skis and the aforementioned Todi-Coltex are hiding in the closet, waiting for the right opportunity to emerge.
Other words that I like: Kake. Lava bombs. Alstublieft. Medulla oblongata. Griggle and glayfer (nicknames for my cats. I can't help it). Melkesjokolade. Conundrum. Afromox.
I like puzzles. The word has two z's, which obviously makes a good fizzy topic, and it's even better in Spanish. Doesn't "rompecabeza" just flow enjoyably off the tongue? Crossword, logic, jigsaw--it doesn't matter, as long as there's some challenge to it. (My cats present an additional challenge to jigsaws, because they like to play with the pieces during the night and leave them scattered around on the floor. Yes, I'm talking about my cats again.) The newly-popular Sudoku games are too easy (no z there, either), and I can do word searches with my eyes closed (try it--it's a blast). I once won a word search contest in the fourth grade, so I've achieved all I can there (the prize was a Snoopy sticker album--try to top that). So far, I'm only really stumped by the odd puzzles in Harper's Magazine--they're overloaded with puns, anagrams and other weird clues. Maybe someday I'll work up to that.
As for Todi-Coltex, I don't so much like the object as much as how it sounds and what it signifies. Try saying it with umlauts and a fake German or Swedish accent, and you may understand. Anyway, Todi-Coltex is a type of tread to put on the bottom of your cross-country skis to help you go uphill without sliding back down (it's quite embarrassing to slide backwards down a hill you are trying to ski up). My cross-country skis and the aforementioned Todi-Coltex are hiding in the closet, waiting for the right opportunity to emerge.
Other words that I like: Kake. Lava bombs. Alstublieft. Medulla oblongata. Griggle and glayfer (nicknames for my cats. I can't help it). Melkesjokolade. Conundrum. Afromox.
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