Filed under: Snapshots
#1
The VIM and I are leaving from an early Christmas dinner with his family. As I pull on my coat, his mother gives me a big hug and kiss and whispers (not so quietly) that I should stick around. Her way of telling me she likes me, I think. I walk around the corner to see the VIM and Brother-of-VIM giggling like two little school boys, poking fun at their not-so-subtle mom. “Yeah Elle, Stick. Around. Be careful crossing the street. Watch out for falling rocks. Don’t get in a fiery blimp crash. Stick Aroooound.” I roll my eyes at the boys and decide that I really like the VIM’s family.
#2
My mother proves beyond a shadow of a doubt that we are closely related when she presents me with my Christmas gifts – a bag filled with all kinds of Philosophy goodies, slippers, and the perfect pair of pajamas for me, and a bag with two big coffee mugs, Starbucks Holiday Blend coffee, and a gift card for Barnes and Noble with a note that says”Take some time to enjoy some really good coffee and a good book.” My Mom. She Knows Me.
#3
The VIM and I are all settled into our rented cabin and take a short walk down to the lake. It’s a damp, chilly day, and everything looks almost like an old sepia-toned photo. The lake is perfectly calm. Not a ripple, and it offers a perfect reflection of the surrounding trees and cloudy sky. There is no one else around – no noise. I fully expect a Loch Ness Monster-like creature to pop it’s head up from the cold grey water.
#4
After the Walk. I step out of the cabin bathroom, freshly showered, in my new perfect pajamas and slippers. The heavy, warm air in the bathroom smells like my shampoo, and it wafts out into the living room where the VIM is lying asleep in the big comfy chair. I curl up on the couch with a glass of wine and a magazine. Every once in a while I look up at the sleeping VIM or look out the glass doors at the little hollow the cabin is built on. I am a little tired, clean, in love, perfectly content, and almost giddy with the fact that for at least the next 24 hours there is absolutely nowhere else to go, nothing else to do, no other way to feel than I feel right at this moment. I’m balanced.
#5
There was a little trash talking before the Scrabble game. I had lost 2 in a row, and quite frankly, was a little concerned that I’d lost the Scrabble magic. Then I layed down the tiles that brought my confidence back – ZILCH on a Triple Word Score Space. Oh Yeah, Baby. I’m back.
Filed under: Happiness is...
The last few quiet, selfish moments I’ll have for a few days. The coffee is hot and strong, I turned the heat up a few extra degrees so when I get out of the shower I won’t rush around just to keep warm (I’ll regret that when the gas bill comes). The last load of laundry for the morning is in the dryer, and I can smell the clean clothes smell all the way in my living room.
In a few minutes, I’ll get up and start moving toward the next scheduled activity, then the next, then the next. Right now I just want to slip into my pjs and fuzzy slippers and curl up with a book, but I know once I get moving I’ll get excited for what’s coming: Making cranberry relish with my grandmother, The Nutcracker with my best friend and her oldest daughter, dinner with family-of-VIM, Christmas dinner with my family, a few days out of town with the VIM (our Christmas gift to each other – a cabin-in-the-woods getaway), a Girls Day Out Shopping spree with best friend and BOTH daughters.
All these good things just waiting for me to get up and get in the shower.
Filed under: Web
Weird.
Weird weird weird.
So. I do web design stuff on the side. Strictly simple little sites. (I like the way that sounds…”Strictly Simple Little Sites.” I should make THAT my tag line.) Anyhow. It’s one of those things that I’ve never really gotten off the fence about – poop or get off the pot, you know? I’ve basically been sitting on the pot, tinkering here and there with the sites I’ve done, trying to decide if it’s something I really enjoy doing. The fact is, I REALLY enjoy the designing part. I like talking to people and getting a vision in my mind for what they want, then actually creating it and seeing how close I get, then changing little things until the vision and the creation meet up. It’s a very relaxing, zenlike experience. What I HATE is the updates. I know that’s the simplest part of it, I just hate it. What I need is a partner to take over the updates once I’m done with the design, but that’s a whole OTHER issue.
ANYHOW, I hadn’t had anyone new ask for a site in quite some time (and I wasn’t out there marketing myself), and I had pretty much decided that I would maintain the sites I’ve done, but drop the whole design/develop idea, which was sort of a bummer, since I was dropping the part I love and keeping the part I hate. Then someone who I’ve done a site for asked if I would create a second site for her. Then a week later someone else asked if I would consider doing their small-business site. Then a former co-worked if I would donate a small site to market an upcoming fundraiser. Then a former boss asked about a site for his work-related association local organization. Then TWO DIFFERENT NEW PEOPLE emailed on the same day and said that I had been recommended to them.
HOLY CATS! Holy cats holy cats holy cats. I was getting ready to take down the web design site and now – wow. Holy cats.
Is there anyone out there than can give me a crash course in Time / Project Management? I’ll barter a strictly simple web site for it.
Filed under: Snapshots
I would think that if you reserve the laaaaaaast room in a hotel on a busy weekend, chances are good that the room will be crappy. Apparently I’m a pessimist because right now I’m sitting in the laaaaaaast room available at a downtown Pittsburgh hotel and it’s The Statesman room. There is a giant conference table in our room, right beside the little kitchen/bar area. I’m looking out at the river, bridges, and skyline (and rain and gloom, but I’m trying not to think of that since we’ll be heading out to the football game in a few hours.) The giant flatscreen TV is tuned into the Weather Channel, and the VIM is catching a few ZZZZZs on the big fluffy bed. I’m on the couch in the little sitting area, feeling like a rockstar.
It’s cold here.
I have a hard time adjusting to the first few weeks of very cold (to me, 30s is very cold) weather. I have to force myself not to crawl into bed at the earliest possible moment and hibernate until spring.
Very much like this:
or this:
Warmth. Fuzziness. Fuzziocity.
