Sunday Stealing

Summer

1. What subjects lead you down a Wikipedia rabbit hole? Have you been watching me? I often click on a link in an article that takes me somewhere that takes me somewhere else. I'd tell you about the Wikipedia rabbit hole I crawled down this morning, but then you'd know what Sam has in store for you for Saturday 9.

2. How do you like to spend your birthdays? Being fussed over. I don't have anything particular that I like, I just enjoy being remembered.

3. Something you might take a little too seriously? I feel like I take everything too seriously. A gentleman once told me I have no gift for "small talk." I guess it's no coincidence that Katie from The Way We Were is one of my all-time favorite movie heroines.

 

4. Describe a time you made a good decision for yourself. When I chose to move down the corporate ladder. I do not like being a boss. I think it's because I don't like authority, and I was becoming what I don't like. Anyway, I've been happier making less money as a writer than I was as a creative director. (Though I admit I wish I could have a boss' salary without a boss' responsibility. I'd also like to be 5'10 and wraith thin. Neither is going to happen.)
 
5. Something you’ve improved/gotten better at. Letting myself cry. Does that sound stupid? One of my lifelong battles is accepting that it's OK to not be OK.

 

 6. What dish would you bring to a summer potluck? Berries and sliced bananas. Everyone likes fruit.

7. What do you miss about Winter? The lack of humidity. It's been freaking oppressive here lately.

8. Share a summer memory. At least once every summer, my dad took us to the miniature golf course not far from my grandparents' home. It was just 9 holes and pretty rudimentary -- no clown's mouth or windmill, just a water hazard. Anyway, my dad was endlessly patient with me when we were golfing. He'd even frame the hole, making a V with his shoes, so I could aim my putt. "Take you time, Tiger," he'd advise me. This stands out because my father was always in a hurry, and for him to tell me to take my time was something special. For once he wasn't complaining or angry or anxious. I also remember him running his fingers through my hair as we returned our clubs, balls and little pencils to the little whitewashed shack. At least once a summer, it felt like my dad enjoyed spending time with me.

9. Words you misspell or misuse the most. I can never remember how to spell "diarrhea" or "occurrence."
 
10. Things you love to do, that can only happen in summer. Having a rootbeer float at the little ice cream shop that's only open from Memorial Day to (maybe) Halloween.
 
11. How would you describe your sense of humor? Irreverent
 
12. Have you ever quit a job or career? Yes. See #4.

13. What are your favorite features of your cell phone? The camera.

14. What scents always make you hungry? I get hungry when I can smell my neighbors grilling hamburgers.

15. What are you working on right now? When I'm done with this, I'm going to put my laundry away.

August Happiness Challenge -- Day 14

Today's happiness -- Loving baseball. Or, to be more precise, having people in my life who get how much I love baseball.

This "happy" actually began Thursday night. I was really blue about the rather dismissive treatment I'd received from my friends Mindy and John, so I reached out to my friend Henry. He recommended I turn on "The Field of Dreams Game." I resisted. My favorite-most player Anthony Rizzo should have been playing that night, but he was out with covid, so I was afraid the game would just depress me. Henry insisted. "Turn on your TV," he commanded. "It is on Fox. We will watch it together." Damn if he wasn't right! It was very emotional for me. Especially seeing Rizzo's jersey draped over the railing, representing him. And it must be said Henry really doesn't care about sports at all. But, as he likes to say, "I know my sister."

Now for today: I just heard that Rizz is feeling well enough to begin official workouts on Monday. The moment I heard, I texted my nephew. He answered immediately, as though he was holding his phone and waiting for me. We went back and forth about the impact this will have on the Yankees' Luke Voigt, and what an asshole Jake Arrieta was in his last Cubs press conference. 

Talking baseball makes me happy. Even when I'm unhappy. I must remember this. And I'm so grateful that I have something in my life that lifts my heart like this.

Each day in August you are to post about something that makes *you* happy. Pretty simple. And, it doesn't even have to be every day if you don't want it to be. It's a great way to remind ourselves that there are positive things going on in our lives, our communities, and the world.

 

Saturday 9

 Saturday 9: Smelly Cat (1995)

Unfamiliar with this song? Hear it here.

 

1) Poor Smelly Cat lives with negligent humans who refuse to take it to the vet. Who is the last doctor you spoke to (vet, MD, dentist, PhD ...)? Probably the dentist. Lately it feels like I'm always at the dentist.

 

2) This song was introduced during the second season of Friends. Were you a fan of the show? Very much. When I battling covid, drifting in and out of sleep all afternoon, it was such a comfort to look at the TV and see the gang from Central Perk there to keep me company.

via GIPHY

BTW, anyone who acts like Covid is not a big deal is an insulting, ignorant ass. I base this on six (count 'em, 6!) weeks of fever, rash, diarrhea and fatigue. Does that sound like "just the flu" to you? Oh well, what do I know? I just battled the virus. I don't have the benefit of baseless conspiracy theories.
 

3) On the show, the song was performed by Phoebe Buffay (Lisa Kudrow), an amateur folk singer and a professional masseuse. There  was a debate on Reddit about massages -- some loved them because they are relaxing and therapeutic, others think it's "creepy to be undressed and handled by a stranger." How about you? Do you enjoy massages? I enjoy them very much, and could really use one right now.

 

4) During the run of Friends, Phoebe was roommates first with Monica and then with Rachel and finally with her true love, Mike. Tell us about one of your roommates. I've never had a roommate. Never went away to college. Never been married. Never even shared a bedroom with my sister as a girl. I've found as an adult that my oldest friend is the easiest one for me to travel and share a hotel room with. I think it's because we both snore.

 

5) Phoebe often performed for tips on street corners or at her favorite coffee shop, Central Perk. Where is your favorite place to go for a cup of joe? I don't drink coffee.

6) This song was originally called "Smelly Dog," inspired by a pooch named Gouda. The childhood pet of Friends writer Betsy Borns, poor Gouda could have smelled better. Is there an odor you'd prefer to never smell again? Vomit. Though I suspect I shall smell it again. Life is filled with such icky smells.

 

7) 35% of American households include a cat. Are there any pets at your house? These two -- Connie and Reynaldo. So I guess I do have roommates!

8) In 1995, the year Phoebe first performed "Smelly Cat," Steve Fossett became the first person to make a solo flight across the Pacific in a hot air balloon. Have you ever ridden in a balloon? No, but I'd like to try it. It looks so pretty, doesn't it? I've just never had the opportunity.

 

 9) Random question: Looking over your romantic history, have you broken more hearts, or had your heart broken more often? I think it's probably about 50/50. For me and for most of us. As the Beatles sang, "And in the end, the love you take is equal to the love you make."