Word games and stuff

A surprising email turned up in my inbox today. Seems I was playing email Scrabble! More fun than it should be. Good for trash talking, too.

Happiness at all costs...

Today on people.com, Mira Sorvino is quoted as saying, "I'd love it if I was independently wealthy and could stop acting and just focus on being a mom and activism." It seems like proof that we'll never feel like we have enough. What is "independently wealthy"? This begs comments about how our independence does not come from wealth as well as a serious question about how we understand activism today. Is the alternative to sketching or watercolors? When did activism become the hippest hobby in town?

Most importantly, though, it makes it very clear that even people who we might think have it all want more. So if becoming an Oscar award winning actress is still going to leave me feeling like I don't have enough in life, I might as well look around now and enjoy what I've got. At least my evenings are free - seeing as how I don't have to attend any gala functions, openings, or charity events. That time is time for doing something. Maybe I'll take up activism.

For fun, contrast Sorvino's comment with one of my favorite and most inspirational blogs, The Happiness Project. On this blog, Gretchen Rubin is recording her year of trying every happiness promising trick in the book. It's an inspiring story in part because it is not touchy-feely. Rather, Rubin suggests that happiness is something we can define, set as a goal, and work towards. Perfect for the make a list, check it off, check your calendar, email me age. There are important lessons in her story. Happiness is about not competing with someone else's idea of happiness and paying more attention to yourself and the most important people in your life. It's also about work. Turns out that nothing is as easy as we hoped it would be - except the things that are easier.

Slow News Day

My friend just emailed this article to me, "It was a nice day in Carrboro, but not for the emu."

What kind of headline is THAT? It so spiteful. Carrboro is nice. Furthermore, who names an emu Bill Clinton, and why?

At least there's this to make me smile this morning. "It's Carrboro" - the Carrboro rap. Play it by clicking the play arrow under The Song in the right column and enjoy!

Cobblestone Comedy

Today I wore sensible shoes to walk to town only to have my sensible shoes un-sensibly rub my toes the wrong way. It hurt. Luckily I had an extra pair of shoes with me and was able to change shoes. The extra pair of shoes have teeny tiny heels on them and heels and cobblestone do not play well together.

Or perhaps they play too well together. My heel got stuck between the cobblestones. I was walking and my shoe simply did not come with me. I stopped, took my foot out of the stuck shoe, and pulled the shoe out from between the cobblestones. It was funny. Even funnier the second time. Downright hilarious the third time.

On an entirely different note - you know you live in a biking kind of place when the man in the bike shop tells you his first opening for replacing the tube on your back wheel is in June. That would be at least ten days from now. Anyone want to fix my bike?

Counter Clutter

Start your list of things never to buy and put this one near the top: the Hot Diggity Dogger. A toaster just for hot dogs and buns.




Add this one as well: the Back to Basics TEM500 Egg-and-Muffin 2-Slice Toaster and Egg Poacher. They call it back to basics! Hilarious!

Amazon's "buy these two products and save" feature would probably lead one on a virtual adventure of closet clutter. No wonder I spend time lost on the internet. It's like going to a fun show carnival.

Eurovision joy!

One of the joys of life in Europe is my friend's annual Eurovision Song contest party. This is where all the European nations vote for amazingly cheesy acts to represent them, fight through rounds of competition to get the finals, and then vote in political and geographic blocs in the end. Then there's the case of Israel, which is apparently part of Europe. I knew my geography was bad, but it's not that bad!

Anyway - this was my pick for last night. Were it not for amazing block voting by Balkan countries, Ukraine would have won. Pardon the video quality, but enjoy enjoy enjoy!

Is that lettuce on your wall?

This is a genius idea that I read on my Inhabitat reader feed. Miele had developed a system for growing veggies in your kitchen! It's space efficient and even uses gray water, or used but not dirty, to water the plants. I know exactly where we could fit it into the kitchen...

Get on train. Take off pants.

This is the reality of living in The Netherlands.

I came home from lovely warm week in North Carolina only to find that a record breaking five week dry spell had broken and that we were getting drizzle and cool weather today. So, this morning it was rain pants for the bike ride to the train station. No one looks good in rain pants. Even fewer people look good in red rain pants with an orange jacket.

Almost missing the train, I run across the platform, in heels. Upstairs on the double decker train, there's a free seat across from a damp gentleman (no rain gear) sitting at the back. Approaching the seat, I put down my bag and pull down my pants. It's 7:31 in the morning and I am pulling down my pants on the train. They're rain pants, but still.

That's life in the Netherlands!

Nine reasons to visit home

Mom made a fantastic chinese food feast last night. I am still full! You can see all the food here. Bean sprouts, okra and chinese sausage, cucumber salad, some kind of choi with ginger, steamed sea bass, and amazing, wonderful, delicious, roasted pork. That's six reasons. Seven is mom's rice. It really is different. Eight and nine are mom and dad. Not bad, not bad at all!