Friday Snark

I’m feeling a little snarky today. So I'm going to vent about a few comments I seem to get all the time that annoy me.

One comment I seem to be getting more and more (three times today, in fact) is about my job. We had a group of high schoolers walk around our offices today so they could see what a nonprofit workplace looks like (there were three groups of about six kids, which is why I got the same comment multiple times, once from each group). My boss explained to them who I was and asked me to share what I do. Since I was working on a marketing postcard, I showed them, and said I was our Communications Coordinator. I do all of the writing, editing, marketing, and designing. And of course, as always, someone pipes up, “Oh, so like Mad Men.” Yes, exactly like Mad Men. Can’t you see the scotch on the small table in my cubicle?

And the number one comment that’s been driving me crazy is, “You don’t have kids—what do you do all day?” I know, it’s shocking that I’ve hit the ripe old age of 24 and I still haven’t birthed a litter yet. I mean, what am I doing with myself? Don’t I know that I should let my house be overrun by primary-colored plastic and baby puke? The sad part is, my real friends, my close friends who know me well, never ask me what I do all day. It's just the people who want to make me feel bad about my life.

Of course, I always answer nicely—things like, well I’m able to work at a job I love, I coach, I direct plays, I sleep as much as I want, I watch whatever I want to on TV, I work out, I take trips, I go to movies, I hang out with friends…but the short answer, the one I really want to say, is I DO WHATEVER I WANT. I do absolutely anything (or nothing!) I feel like doing—Walmart at 3:00 a.m.? Don’t mind if I do. Midnight movie premier on a Thursday, why not? I grocery shop—alone. I take walks. I walk aimlessly through stores for no reason at all. I sit on the couch and watch Netflix for five straight hours and don't even feel guilty about it. That oh-so-coveted “me time” moms are always pining for—I have that. I have oodles of that. Every moment of every day is “me time.”

In one of my favorite sitcoms, Rules of Engagement, there’s a wonderfully funny line, especially quipped in David Spade’s sarcastic deadpan. He's talking to his friends, one engaged and one married, who are giving him a hard time about being single. However, it applies beautifully to not having children as well. He says, ''I am a little bit jealous, you're right. Now if you'll excuse me, I have to go do whatever I feel like doing, all the time.''

And then there’s this shared look between his friends, who realize, oh yeah, remember when we could do whatever we wanted, all the time.  

THAT is exactly what I do all day.

Christmas List

Below is my Christmas List in photos. In truth, it contains nothing that I actually asked for when family asked for my Christmas list, but here are some things I’m really wanting right now. This may work as good suggestions if your wife or girlfriend has similar tastes to me.

1. The Tiny Book of Tiny Stories 2, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, HitRECord

Yes, the Joseph Gordon-Levitt is the mastermind behind HitRECord and the Tiny Book of Tiny Stories. This volume (2) just came out in November, and though I haven’t read much of it, I know it promises to be brilliant. This can be a great stocking stuffer gift, or a great gift for that hard-to-shop-for cousin or uncle. I’m a big fan of the “tiny stories” genre (I suppose in the snotty writing department at Northwestern we called it “flash fiction”). 

 2. Camera Bag

Brett and I finally bought a fancy camera, but the Woot deal didn’t come with a bag. Of course, I would love a something vintage and shabby for a bag, but I also don’t want to get stuck carrying it ALL THE TIME. He might be willing to carry this since it doesn’t look so much like a purse. And it’s not your standard marshmallow bag that cameras usually come with.

3. Vintage Birdcage

I love a good vintage birdcage. I’ve been looking for one like this for a while to hang in the dining room. Things I look for in a birdcage: hook (to hang, not stand); long shape, not boxy; and a good finish. I do like the look of wood, but I like the brassy finish on this one.

4. Canvas Art - Dandelions

I really want a large dandelion print for above our bed. I actually rearranged our bedroom to make this happen. This one is gorgeous; however, I will probably have my dad paint me one (once he finishes my pallet shelf and kitchen pantry…I keep him a little busy).

5. Mustard Cardigan

I have been looking for a mustard cardigan for about three years now. I generally like to buy my cardigans from thrift stores so they have that soft, lived-in feel. New ones feel really starchy. And it’s hard to come by mustard sweater at our local Salvation Army (believe me, I look every couple of weeks!). This one from Target is the shape and style I want, so I may have to just break down and buy new.

So there’s my top five Christmas List for the vintage-loving, artsy, mid-twenties woman in your life.

Kindred Spirits

Over the Thanksgiving weekend, I was blessed to spend an evening chatting with one of my dearest friends, Emily. We have one of those relationships that's so hard to describe, but if you have a friend like her, you totally understand. 

Emily and I grew up as principal's kid and teacher's kid. We lived at school. We made up games. We buried secret notes in the church landscaping and dug it back up a year later. We made a fort in the trees. We secretly graffitied with Sharpies the crawl space beneath the bleachers. 

Emily is the kind of friend everyone needs. The friend that upon hearing about your death will immediately go to your home and destroy every journal and poor writing sample you own. She's the person you call when you can't think of another single word to add to your creative essay--and you're 700 words short--and panicking that you won't graduate. She's the kind of friend that will never judge you for ordering a Big Mac. With a side of fries. And two pies. And maybe a second Big Mac. 

Emily lives in Texas now, which is why our weekend chat was so special. We spent a few hours at McDonalds, and then a few more hours at our house. We discussed theatre, alcohol, writing, evolution, homosexuality, and baby names--you know, typical things. What's so interesting about how deep the conversation was, is that it really wasn't that strange for us. We've been talking about deep things since we were in fifth grade. It's who we are and how we've always related to each other. Despite the fact that we haven't had a conversation in several months, we just picked up exactly where we left off. Somewhere between Get Over It and Genesis. 

I'm always so inspired to write after a conversation with her. Or at least to start something new. If I can't make any progress on my book (or maybe it's just a short story), at least I have a few blog topics for the next few days. I hope Emily feels the same because she's such a fantastic writer. She really should have her own blog. That way I can keep up with the fabulous book she's working on.

I think it's probably pretty rare for most people to have your best friend when you're 10 be the same person who's you're best friend when you're 25. I feel incredibly lucky to be one of those rarities. 

The Season

Today I am making cutouts of my co-workers and drawing little green Santa hats on their staff photos for a team Christmas card. Yep. I'm basically doing an art project.

It's a good day. Relaxed at work. There are only a handful of us coming into tomorrow--the day before Thanksgiving. It will be quiet. I will play my Bon Iver Pandora station (still can't get enough of it. I find new artists I love every time it plays).

We'll put our Christmas tree up on Friday, and hopefully take our Christmas card photos. That's new for us, and I'm excited. I have a great photo planned--getting it to turn out how I'm imagining might be something different entirely.

We're going to my grandparents' house in Butterfield for Thanksgiving. I'm excited to see my family, though definitely a little sad. And nervous. This will be the first holiday together since my grandmother passed away last May. There will definitely be a hole at the table this year, and in our hearts. I miss her all the time and wonder when it will start to get easier.

I'm ready for a long overdue date with Brett at Olive Garden on our way to Butterfield tomorrow. I'm ready to sleep in and spend some time away from work. I'm ready to eat stuffing and pumpkin pie (but not too much--I'm planning to lose 20 pounds by my birthday in February!)

Soon it will be Christmas season. I already have planned for us to go visit the Macy's 8th Floor Christmas exhibit and see the Holidazzle parade. Brett and I are playing Mary and Joseph in this years' church Christmas Cantata (yup). This is our first Christmas in our own house (lights already up outside!) and I can't wait to make the inside a Christmas Wonderland.

It's a good year. I can feel it.

Today is a Good Day

Quiet office, sunshine in the window.

Bon Iver Pandora station humming in my speakers.

Making cutouts of Christmas bells, snowflakes, and candles for an invitation.

Thanksgiving only a week away. 

It's a good day.

Worldess Wednesday - View from my Desk

Laundry Soap

I'm often asked about my homemade laundry soap. And by often, I mean anytime I mention to someone that I make my own laundry soap, they ask about it. They ask why. They ask how. But mostly why. I'll answer both questions here.

Why I make laundry soap. Mostly, because of the cost. For all the supplies, it costs about $20. And that will make multiple batches. One batch lasts me about a year. Disclaimer: I don't do very much laundry. Since it's just Brett and me at home, I do 4-5 loads a week. Sometimes less. Someone with children (especially small children) probably will go through this much faster.

I also make my own soap because of the chemicals. I know exactly what goes into my soap and what doesn't. I don't have to worry about all the scary chemicals and additives in store-bought soap. So if this is important to you, this is a good recipe.

How I make laundry soap. This is really easy, I promise. I don't make many things homemade and even I can handle this. Here it goes:

These are your ingredients. I box Borax (approx. $6), Arm and Hammer Super Washing Soda (approx. $6), and bars of Fels-Naptha bar soap ($1/bar). All of these can be found in the laundry soap aisle at Walmart, and probably most other stores that sell laundry soap.

 
First step, unwrap your soap and cut it with a knife.

This is not an exact science. Cut however large of chunks you trust your food processor to blend.



Throw the chunks of soap into a food processor. If you do not have a food processer, you can use a handheld cheese grater. I did this before I had a food processer. It works fine, but it's a lot more work. Food processor made this all much easier.

 
Blend it until the chunks are small and fine.

 
Should look about like this.

 
Dump the soap into your bucket. I only made a small amount for this How-To blog, so I put it in an old Sherbet container. I usually use an ice cream pail.

Now add equal parts Super Washing Soda and Borax. For every one bar of soap, use one cup of each. Each batch I make is generally three bars of soap, and 3 cups each of Super Washing Soda and Borax.

 

 
Put your Super Washing Soda and Borax in your bucket.

 
Find a big spoon.
 

 Start mixing.

 
It should look about like this once it's all stirred together.

Find a scoop to keep in your bucket by your washer. My scoop actually came from an old Slim Fast mix. I use half a scoop of this per load. You don't need to use very much because the formula is so concentrated. If you're washing really dirty clothes (like if you have children), you may want to use a little more.

 
See? Really easy and fast. I made this whole recipe while also baking homemade rolls.

 That's right. I said homemade rolls.

Happy soap making!

Election 2012

I'm not a very political person. I voted yesterday--some of my choices won and some lost. I voted for both democrats and republicans. I didn't even fill out most of the local bubbles. Brett and I watched the election results roll in, but we were both fairly passive. We both predicted that President Obama would be re-elected, and he was (I mean, we're no Nate Silver. Seriously, is that guy available for fantasy football?).

I went to bed last night not sure what to feel. It didn't really matter to me which candidate won--what concerned me was that either way, America would be divided in the morning. My Facebook newsfeed is a crazy mix of:
OMG OBAMA WON!!!! YESSSSS!!!!
America is ending.
YAAAAY FOR OBAMA!!!
I'm moving to Canada.

I don't like when people don't get along. I don't like when people spew hate at each other. I'm not trying to say people shouldn't be happy or upset about who won. That's sort of the beauty of America. You got to vote. You get to have whatever opinion you want. And you have the right to be totally obnoxious about it. And that right is being exercised all over the place today.

I couldn't help but feeling a calm disconnect from it all last night. There was something bigger at work in my life and in my family. My dad had surgery a few weeks ago, but ended up back in the hospital last Friday night with pneumonia and a bad reaction to multiple antibiotics.

Yesterday, three young men from church came to my parents' house and helped Brett and me rake the lawn. In the rain. It's a small act, but one that meant a lot to me and my family. And that's what I kept thinking about last night. It doesn't matter who gets elected to the school board or mayor or city council. It doesn't matter who has control of Congress or the Senate. And really, it doesn't even matter who's president.

What matters is kindness. When someone needs help, you help them. If they are hungry, you feed them. If they can't get outside, you rake their leaves for them. Maybe that doesn't mean much for everyone in the country; but for one family, it means everything.