Attention

The true art of memory is the art of attention.

~ Samuel Johnson

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I don't know what dog memories look like. 

(pause)

That's it. That's the post.

Whisper

(Photo by someone with my dad's camera)

It isn't what they say about you, but what they whisper.

~ Errol Flynn

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When Doris whispered, "This is the worst shower I've ever been to," everyone heard her. Doris was quite hard of hearing and had actually screamed the comment at Zelia who was sitting next to her. Zelia wasn't sure how to respond, so she just kicked Myrtle's handbag into the center of the room. It distracted no one, but it didn't matter. That was just how Zelia got her kicks.

Places

It is strange how people seem to belong to places - especially to places where they were not born...

~ Christopher Isherwood

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I keep seeing this thing pop up on social media about how most people do not live in the right place. I'm not sure how anyone knows whether others live in the right places or not. Unless it's an article about squatting.

Messages

I never try to convey a message, I just want to tell a story.

~ Isabelle Allende

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Once upon a time I had a work meeting that I was dreading. I was right to dread it because it was a situation where one person just wanted to agitate other people without bringing solutions. You know the type. They come and flip over tables and then leave it to other people to clean up the mess.

Anyway, I had been dreading the meeting and it turned out to be exactly the kind of meeting I expected it to be.

But then, immediately after the meeting, I got a text from my brother. It reminded me that my job is my job, not my life. My life is made up of beautiful things and good people. His text made the ugliness of the meeting evaporate completely. 

Kirk wrote one sentence that lifted my spirits and reminded me of what really matters in life.

"If you get a minute will you create and send me a photo of me with mutton chops?"

And now all is well.

Cards

I don't turn to greeting cards for wisdom and advice, but they are a fine reflection of the general drive of the culture.

~ Susan Orlean

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An Email Exchange

Jenn: LOL- Love the card!

Sara: That masterpiece is from Michelle Boettcher. She thought it would be slick to send that grotesque picture of me on a card across campus. However, people that received it did not know it was a prank, and when they mentioned it to me (often just a thank you), I did not know what they were talking about and would just smile and nod. So I apparently foiled the prank with my dimness...

Jenn: OMG - this is even funnier. When I first got the card I wondered? I should have deciphered the handwriting. Then, on Sunday evening Soundoff! I saw a replica and died laughing.

I wonder who I could play on prank on over here in CHS... Well, nobody if I want to keep my job.

SO FUNNY!!!

Me: This is one of my favorite jokes I have ever played. Second only to the time I switched all the labels on my parents' canned foods.

Jenn: Do your parents still allow you to visit? 

Me: They do. But they always have the front door locked - even when they know exactly when I am arriving. True story. It annoys me, but it sort of makes sense.