Ahhh the mostly used candle as vessel for junk that’s too precious for the junk drawer (which is every drawer in our house). That candle is why all my quarters, hair clips and questionably empty metro cards have a slightly gummy feel and the scent of an ocean breeze.
Thank you for the junk drawer reference, it is where I found the warranty information, a month after expiration and 6 months after I needed it but couldn't remember where I put it...may as well have burned it in the candle. 😐
Oh gosh, that just gave me a flashback to when my kids got to Jr high and needed the vax cards from toddler years (?!) to sign up for sports, that's a whirlwind decade, I believe after showing it to enroll in kindergarten it should have been the schools responsibly to forward on but no, it all falls on us poor Moms, our junk drawers and piling systems!
Adam Grant sounds like a bummer. Even if he's right (not saying he is tho), its lame to call fun things bullshit. Because they're FUN, Adam. Because they give us special satisfied brain chemicals without hurting anyone and isn't that good enough for you!?? He needs to get his special brain chemicals without inflating his own know it all ego.
Your masterbation comment struck me. Specifically the end part, "...sounds a lot more like it describes a masturbation technique am I right ladies AND fellas AND theydees????" Your pronoun inclusiveness didn't reek of making-fun-of-it-ness. As a quinquagenarian, I grew up forced to make sure all pronouns matched the plurality of the subject. i.e. "Anyone can attend as long as he or she signs up." It had been grammatically incorrect to say "Anyone can attend as long as they sign up." But now that "they" can be singular, the latter phrase above should be considered grammatically correct. In making that so, it changes our language to remove the built in unconscious bias that perpetuates the soft bigotry of "I never really thought of it that way." I'm not sure who to contact. (Who polices the grammar police?) Do I call the dictionary? Grammarly.com? My high school English teacher died of Covid and I miss her dearly. She'd know what to do and we're still Facebook Friends. For now, I'll just thank you for the escalation of pronoun inclusion and the playfulness of "theydees." Sarah Silverman does a great bit where she talks about her struggle with the newness of remembering proper pronoun usage and equates the expectations with ordering food in France with broken French. You can f* up every time, but if people see you are trying, that is all that matters. I really like that take. Shawn Shawn he/him
Very glad to have you back. Hope the family is doing great.
1.I am generally someone who is happy although right now facing some physical difficulties, and being prevented from writing for a solid month is, in fact, making me slightly grumpy. But I know this, too, will pass, and in general, it isn't hurting me to learn to be patient with some of the difficulties that probably lay in my future as I age. Plus, this has forced me to learn to use the dictation option on my computer and phone (this is what I'm using right now) and I am finding this rather fun, particularly when I see what sorts of typos are popping up through Dictation. But that's me, I'm a silver-lining kind of person, which I know can be very irritating to many of my friends. But there you have it.
4. Never used astrology or taro cards, but I do tend to see things that seem too coincidental or unexpected positive occurrences as the strange workings of the universe. And I totally agree that whatever works for people to help them find meaning in their lives, is a good thing.
7. as for number seven, I am not a big one for returning purchases, because I don't like the inconvenience. When financially strapped in the past, I made do, but as finances became less of a problem, I've gotten pretty good at just shrugging my shoulders and putting things in the pile to give away to Goodwill, figuring someone else can benefit from my mistake.
Mostly you've made me worry that my own tiger's eye bracelet (tiger's eye is the warrior's stone, don't you know) will now also break and all the courage/strength/grounding/power/overwhelm your overwhelm (it literally says that on the little card it came with) will be gone, pfft. No more overwhelming my overwhelm.
I don't think you can return a gas powered generator after using it, because I'm pretty sure no shipping company will take it because the gas makes it dangerous - I suspect they'd still day "no," even if you drain out all the gas...
You're lucky you don't live out on the sticks! No easy way to return Amazon items out here. We have to do a 40 minute round trip to get to the photo shop that takes labeled Amazon returns or 1.5 hours round trip to the "local" Staples for the cool scan it and done return. And no Whole Foods 'round here. 😥
Emotions are like a river flowing through your life, sort of like time, so I don't think people can be happy all the time. Besides, they might pop. You have to work at being happy sometimes... or you could go out and buy some heavy-duty elastic string to mend your happiness bracelet... 😉
My mom was the queen of returning. She taught me well. When I was in HS she sometimes had me return an item and let me keep the refund. It was a like a part time job. Return stuff for mom. I opened a savings account.
So glad you are back Alex. Very delighted with this issue especially the first half which I think summed up (or maybe just showed) much bettter than anything I’ve read in a long while how odd life has gotten here in the US and maybe everywhere.
Also loved this: “Sad people nap too, god willing, but they never follow it up by buying the washington post.”
Reading that list of returns, and admitting that I haven't read you in a bit, I must ask, did the unthinkable befall you as it did me over 40 years ago? You can return the baby items but the infant never leaves us. Hugs.
Ahhh the mostly used candle as vessel for junk that’s too precious for the junk drawer (which is every drawer in our house). That candle is why all my quarters, hair clips and questionably empty metro cards have a slightly gummy feel and the scent of an ocean breeze.
Thank you for the junk drawer reference, it is where I found the warranty information, a month after expiration and 6 months after I needed it but couldn't remember where I put it...may as well have burned it in the candle. 😐
Funny you should say that. I just found my kids’ Covid vax cards floating in the kitchen drawer under loose staples, rubber bands and take out menus.
Oh gosh, that just gave me a flashback to when my kids got to Jr high and needed the vax cards from toddler years (?!) to sign up for sports, that's a whirlwind decade, I believe after showing it to enroll in kindergarten it should have been the schools responsibly to forward on but no, it all falls on us poor Moms, our junk drawers and piling systems!
Adam Grant sounds like a bummer. Even if he's right (not saying he is tho), its lame to call fun things bullshit. Because they're FUN, Adam. Because they give us special satisfied brain chemicals without hurting anyone and isn't that good enough for you!?? He needs to get his special brain chemicals without inflating his own know it all ego.
honestly yeah I am happy and trying to be okay w it bc it's a very quiet calm type of happy instead of the intense but fickle mountaintops!!!!
Your masterbation comment struck me. Specifically the end part, "...sounds a lot more like it describes a masturbation technique am I right ladies AND fellas AND theydees????" Your pronoun inclusiveness didn't reek of making-fun-of-it-ness. As a quinquagenarian, I grew up forced to make sure all pronouns matched the plurality of the subject. i.e. "Anyone can attend as long as he or she signs up." It had been grammatically incorrect to say "Anyone can attend as long as they sign up." But now that "they" can be singular, the latter phrase above should be considered grammatically correct. In making that so, it changes our language to remove the built in unconscious bias that perpetuates the soft bigotry of "I never really thought of it that way." I'm not sure who to contact. (Who polices the grammar police?) Do I call the dictionary? Grammarly.com? My high school English teacher died of Covid and I miss her dearly. She'd know what to do and we're still Facebook Friends. For now, I'll just thank you for the escalation of pronoun inclusion and the playfulness of "theydees." Sarah Silverman does a great bit where she talks about her struggle with the newness of remembering proper pronoun usage and equates the expectations with ordering food in France with broken French. You can f* up every time, but if people see you are trying, that is all that matters. I really like that take. Shawn Shawn he/him
This is such an accurate read of UPS vs Amazon returns lol. Also, Adam Grant should work at the UPS store as the king of fun suckers
One of my new favorite sayings is “Wanting is the enemy of happiness.”
Love this line: Happiness is a fickle flirt.
This line made me laugh:
"Given that my whole brand is "always worried," this was strange." I know that brand well.
Very glad to have you back. Hope the family is doing great.
1.I am generally someone who is happy although right now facing some physical difficulties, and being prevented from writing for a solid month is, in fact, making me slightly grumpy. But I know this, too, will pass, and in general, it isn't hurting me to learn to be patient with some of the difficulties that probably lay in my future as I age. Plus, this has forced me to learn to use the dictation option on my computer and phone (this is what I'm using right now) and I am finding this rather fun, particularly when I see what sorts of typos are popping up through Dictation. But that's me, I'm a silver-lining kind of person, which I know can be very irritating to many of my friends. But there you have it.
4. Never used astrology or taro cards, but I do tend to see things that seem too coincidental or unexpected positive occurrences as the strange workings of the universe. And I totally agree that whatever works for people to help them find meaning in their lives, is a good thing.
7. as for number seven, I am not a big one for returning purchases, because I don't like the inconvenience. When financially strapped in the past, I made do, but as finances became less of a problem, I've gotten pretty good at just shrugging my shoulders and putting things in the pile to give away to Goodwill, figuring someone else can benefit from my mistake.
Mostly you've made me worry that my own tiger's eye bracelet (tiger's eye is the warrior's stone, don't you know) will now also break and all the courage/strength/grounding/power/overwhelm your overwhelm (it literally says that on the little card it came with) will be gone, pfft. No more overwhelming my overwhelm.
hi in the comments idk
hi
I don't think you can return a gas powered generator after using it, because I'm pretty sure no shipping company will take it because the gas makes it dangerous - I suspect they'd still day "no," even if you drain out all the gas...
You're lucky you don't live out on the sticks! No easy way to return Amazon items out here. We have to do a 40 minute round trip to get to the photo shop that takes labeled Amazon returns or 1.5 hours round trip to the "local" Staples for the cool scan it and done return. And no Whole Foods 'round here. 😥
Emotions are like a river flowing through your life, sort of like time, so I don't think people can be happy all the time. Besides, they might pop. You have to work at being happy sometimes... or you could go out and buy some heavy-duty elastic string to mend your happiness bracelet... 😉
Oh, and make sure you get a needle, too - it'll make threading the beads back together into an easier peasier job....
"sometimes we are happiest when we do not notice all that there is to be unhappy about"
took awhile but there ya go 👍💪🤣
My mom was the queen of returning. She taught me well. When I was in HS she sometimes had me return an item and let me keep the refund. It was a like a part time job. Return stuff for mom. I opened a savings account.
So glad you are back Alex. Very delighted with this issue especially the first half which I think summed up (or maybe just showed) much bettter than anything I’ve read in a long while how odd life has gotten here in the US and maybe everywhere.
Also loved this: “Sad people nap too, god willing, but they never follow it up by buying the washington post.”
"Ha! It was there the whole time. Is this part important? I doubt it! "
My entire life summed up in four sentences, istg.
All the stress and suffering was kinda pointless in the end but you definitely still experienced and processed it and it changed you as a person. lol
Reading that list of returns, and admitting that I haven't read you in a bit, I must ask, did the unthinkable befall you as it did me over 40 years ago? You can return the baby items but the infant never leaves us. Hugs.