direct buy

i looked for a clip to do this quote proper justice, however...no luck. there is a commercial that frequents our television set for a company called direct buy. basically, it's a club that allows you to "save thousands of dollars" on home-related stuff (e.g. furniture, kitchen cabinets, carpeting). there is a man giving his testimonial about the company by stating the following:

"i'm not expecting to be rich; i'm going to be middle class the rest of my life. and direct buy is a good way to..." (wheels turn, searching for the right words) "live above my means."

too bad for direct buy that this economic crisis has hit americans so hard. in fact, just this morning i heard a financial expert on the news say that "the time to live beyond our means has passed." (seriously? i never knew it was an option/encouraged)

babysitting

my neighbor e-mailed me last week to ask me to babysit her 18-month old. i hadn't been so ecstatic to babysit since i was 12. i had offered (multiple times) to babysit anytime. i was just starting to feel depressed because nobody seemed to trust their children in my care (it's no wonder....when i was 16--after babysitting lost its charm, and the only reason i was being called to babysit was because all the other girls were out on dates--i once babysat a little girl who wanted me to read another story, so i totally faked reading to her. i said "blah blah blah" the whole time while occasionally turning the pages. yeah, i know. don't judge me, i have changed. now i just refuse to read to children*) when my neighbor called on me for help. little "a" and i had a blast. we played dress-up. she wore ladybug wings, sequined head scarves (belts for big kids like me, but it gave her such a charming, gypsy quality), and a lovely argyle belt. i wore a feather boa. she tried on all my shoes and paraded around the house. surprisingly fantastic at walking in high heels, that "a". i chased her around the house, along with the tickle monster (she pretended not to like it by running and shrieking, but anytime i caught up with her, all she did was laugh). we unpacked all my belts and scarves from the over-the-door case. and then she helped put them away. like i said, we had a blast. all was fine and dandy until someone came to our door begging for money for the boy scouts. we never have anyone knock on our door so i expected it to be her parents. i got her hopes all up, only to be dashed when i saw boy scout on the stoop (yes, i was still wearing feather boa). there was then a meltdown which lasted until her parents actually arrived about 15 minutes later.

it was still a success.


*to anyone who is reading this that has children and was considering me as your next babysitter (especially my neighbors...), please do not fret over this horrible tale of my babysitting days past. i have turned a new leaf and love entertaining children and will read to them as much as they want. this was just a "joke", trying to demonstrate to my blog readers i am clever and witty. ok? ok (whew).

sunflower market

we decided to go vegetarian at the right time. last week a new store rolled into town. i'm completely in love. the produce is gorgeous and the prices really are silly. i never thought the day would arrive that i would have a hay day in the produce section. but seriously, i bought everything (including six, yes six, avocados). we got freshly ground peanut butter, winter red wheat berries, and the coveted gluten-free blueberry flax granola (seriously. stop laughing. no, we're not on a strict diet and allergic to gluten. it's good, ok?) (at only $3.49/lb...eat that harmon's!). they have over 250 varieties of cheese. who even knew that many varieties existed? finally, my cheese book (with a section on the decadent world of olives) i got for christmas, like, five years ago will come in handy. i have made a vow to try as many types of cheese as humanly possible.

i heart you so, so much, sunflower farmers' market. i have a feeling this is the beginning of a long, beautiful relationship.

that i heart music

i love that i love music. it has played a pretty important role in my life. nothing takes me back to a period in my life quicker than hearing a song i listened to and loved at that time. that said, here's a list of some songs that have special meaning to me:

* "gettysburg" by ratatat = wedding theme song
* "outside your door" by the adorable jake hawken = proposal
* "samson" by regina spektor = dating jake and falling in love
* anything from "hot fuss" by the killers = when i first moved to seattle and felt so much potential in my life it was palpable
* anything from "sixpence none the richer" by sixpence none the richer = breakup #1 with boyfriend freshman year at ricks, specifically spending hours in the tub with the lights out while the cd played
* "tragic kingdom" by no doubt = doing geo/trig homework in high school
* "lion king" soundtrack = middle school years. yeah, i was a dork
* "i've a friend" in the "standin' tall" series of read-a-long books/musicals = childhood through probably third grade
* "mister rodgers" record = pre-school age
* this one is technically a movie, but the sounds in the background of the opening scene are very comforting to me. "mr. mom" = pre-school

as you can see, i have an extensive list of songs that really resonate with me. like i said, music is a very powerful force in my life.

bhb

ok, ok, i know this is going to sound like i'm just trying to promote members of my newly acquired family, but i really do enjoy my brother-in-law's blog. it almost makes politics entertaining, and the best part is that i can keep up-to-date on current events without actually having to do my own research. i just memorize blurbs from his blog and recite them as my own jokes and opinions. it makes me quite popular (and sometimes controversial) around the water cooler. it just usually poses a problem when people find me interesting and want to discuss these political topics in more detail. at which point, i usually just pretend to choke and exit the room with my arms up over my head.

p.s. ben, if you read this (which you should, since i'm planning on sending an e-mail with a link here), feel free to cut and paste at your leisure for a "testimonial" section on the bhb.