Warning: May Destroy Pleasant Childhood Memories

This is for you, Amy! :)

Lovin' This...

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Did You Know...

...that if I knit a pair of socks every other month (which is my 2009 goal), it will take me 5 years and 8 months to get through my current stash of sock yarn?

...that I have enough yarn in my stash for 13 different wraps/scarves?

...that I am a rediculously slow knitter that actually bought 11 skeins of some unknown (yet expensive) yarn at a horrible store in NYC because I was inspired to knit a blanket?

Clearly, I have issues. But I did finish my socks for Joe this weekend.

Kristin Knows Me Very Well...

So I got a note from Kristin on Facebook: "I have something for you and Joe that will make you laugh out loud and giggle to yourselves! Hee-hee!" And when I got home today (Lousy Day One of Five Craptastic Days filling in on a set of duties that I loathe), I noticed a box by the kitchen door.

It was a package from a favorite supplier of the heroin-for-me that is pottery (they are also friends of the Newbys). Inside that carefully-insulated box was a lovely, hefty coffee mug. On the front it says, "How 'Bout A Cup"

And the other side says - you guessed it:

Kristin, this is so very perfect. I've decided I get to keep it at work because Joe already has this hanging above his desk. You are the best, sweetie - and you have made me smile tonight, without a doubt!

Mwwaah! Much love to you!

There Are Perks...

...granted, I'd love to have Joe home more often, but here's one little treat to ourselves that was FREE thanks to his many Marriott points...

And in one day, we found a piece of furniture, and Joe set this bad boy up in our bedroom. Then Joe had to go to Buffalo. So I can watch what *I* want to watch. :)

I Stare At It All Day...

I recently had a conversation with a friend about spending time online at home. She mentioned that she stares at a computer all day and doesn't want to deal with it in her down-time. I began to think about this - as I certainly do stare at a PC all day - and I realized that my online time at home has become increasingly important to me.

I'm not a gamer. I'm not in an online romantic relationship with anyone. I do not sit at my PC (and new Mac!) like a veal, exposed only to limited light and communication. But I truly value my online friendships and conversations.

My best friends live 1,000 and 3,000 miles away from me. I've known a couple of them since I was five. We shared kindergarten. We shared CSHS marching band. We shared road trips that will be forever etched in my mind and heart (Sapelo! San Francisco!). We are closer now than we've ever been - because of email and blogs. How else would I marvel at the beauty that is the newborn Louis or pause for prayer and love at the most recent thoughts from Evan's Garden? I will gladly stare at a computer a little longer for that.

And then there are new friends. My freshman crush and ultimate heartbreak provided me with a friend for life. I just didn't realize how short his life would be. Rob Brese passed away in 2004, and while searching for some understanding, I found Snarkland. She and her friends knew and loved Rob as well. I stalked her blog for a while, and then we were friends. Just like that. We've met several times (and I've met many lovely people as a result), and that friendship continues to grow. I can't imagine not hanging around a bit online for that.

I get emails from my wonderful nieces. I get Facebook notifications from friends I'd always loved - just lost touch with. I get blog hits from strangers wanting to renovate their homes.

Yes, I do spend too much time online. But I wouldn't have it any other way.