"Name six guilty pleasures no one would suspect you of having":
there are most certainly suspicious people out there, but here goes.
1: Aspartame. Love me some chemical sweetener. I used to love diet pepsi, but I try to have a glass of water now when one sounds good. I'm down to a quarter packet of sweet'n'low a day in my americano, but I relish it.
2: Educational Programming for Preschoolers. Sesame street, Between the Lions, Charlie and Lola, Teletubbies, you name it. Except for Mister Rogers' Neighborhood. I've always felt patronized by Mister Rogers.
3: Bacon fat. I've been using one or two slices of bacon in a recipe and then using the remaining fat in everything that follows. It's delicious, and using it instead of throwing it away feeds into my next item...
4:Using all of something. I find it particularly satisfying when there are leftovers, but they all get eaten. Or when I use the last card and envelope in a set of stationary. Or when every last bit of soap has drained from the bottle including the half-soap-half-water concoction that I use to get the bits out of the corners. So, freaking, satisfying.
5: Staying at home. My home. Lately, when I go out, I have a good time and I enjoy my friends, but I'm anxious to get back home again. I think it's because I'm having a particularly difficult time controlling...
6: Talking to myself. I like to spend a decent portion of time in conversation with myself. Reprimanding, encouraging, re-assuring, correcting, myself. Imagining potential conversations with others and trying them out for size. I think my neighbors have heard me shout "That's enough! Let it drop!" about 6 times this week already. Myself and I are tenacious when we get going on something, and we're kind of at odds right now.
I tag mister shoebox. he's mysterious.
It's broken, throw it away. Double plastic bags for everyone and an inch high stack of napkins to toast with disposable bottles of water "Hooray! Hooray! It's totally destroyed!" and there's nothing left to try for so burn it out, baby. Shove it all in your face before it goes bad. Flush flush flush Vroom vroom vroom vroom flush.
Today the clouds are mimicking snowdrifts and cliff faces. The sun hugging the southwestern edge of the earth makes the Olympics clear and jagged across the sound. They already have more snow than the last time they exposed themselves. I've seen my hummingbird friend twice this week. Once in his winter resting spot and once dive-bombing for territory in another favorite grove of his across the street. What does he eat all winter long? (Squashes and oatmeal chip cookies. Salt pork and rainbow greens. White beans with tomatoes. Frozen peas.)