can we all just agree that driving sucks?

i have to do it today for SO LONG.

/whining.

can we all just agree that, although it's unfortunate to be awoken before you have to be awake, there is something totally fantastic about going back

to bed for an hour or so?

i think that's one of the reasons i so rarely turn my phone off when i go to sleep. it happened this morning. don't misunderstand, i would really rather be asleep right now, still (sorry, don't take it personally), but oh man that extra hour was delicious.

can we all just agree that "emails" somehow seems wrong?

i've been sending them since way back when all email addresses looked like this: <483759284736-3019275837@compuserve.com>, (thanks for letting me use your email address, mom!) but somehow "emails" still seems incorrect. like saying "deers" or "cattles" or something equally erroneously pluralized. that is all.

can we all just agree that dinosaur, jr. is awesome?

ah, they are fantastic. i liked them in junior high, but a couple of years ago a nice boy named boris in berlin made me some cds and my junior high band crush has reawakened. and it's back with a vengeance. yes. i love them.

can we all just agree that nephews can be totally hilarious too?

nephew #1 loves cows. like loves them loves them. he gets to spend time hanging out with cows, too, so he has a more realistic idea of cows than other little dudes who might just read about them in books or something.

one of the manifestations of this superior understanding of cows in theory and in practice is that he's got a great "moo" going. it isn't "moo," necessarily; it's more like "mnuuuuuhhnh." also, it is awesome.

the other day we were all in the car together, and there weren't any cows in the field on his side of the car (which is a major bummer, of course). he kept mooing (or mnuuuuuhhnhing, as it were,) and his mama said, "[nephew #1], there aren't any cows right now. let's keep looking, and i think we'll see some pretty soon!"

nephew #1 replied, "mnuuuuuhhnh. pease*?"

*you know, "please" for the folks who haven't yet mastered consonant blends?

and it was awesome.

can we all just agree that nephews are totally wonderful?

yesterday i got back from a visit to the dudes. and they are great! nephew #2 is the happiest baby i've ever met. if you make eye contact with him, he gets a huge grin on his face and wiggles around with joy. and it's not just the first time you look at him. it's every time. so adorable! i have a lot of nephew stories. stay tuned.

can we all just agree that being an aunt is exciting! and that mamas saying things like this to you is also exciting!?

"Today I taught [nephew number one] how to say Auntie, because I think it will be a while before he can say Sarah!"

aw shucks, i am excited! also, i'm bringing him a copy of the very hungry caterpillar. this will be good times, my friends!

can we all just agree that news of the weird has some pretty fantastic stories sometimes?

here is my current favorite, filed under "can't possibly be true":

Our litigious, anger-fueled, dispute-intensive society took a break in a Folcroft, Pa., courtroom in March, as landlord Genevieve Zumuda, 77, was suing tenant La Tina Osborne, 32. In the middle of Osborne's defense, Zumuda started shaking and suddenly stopped breathing, but Osborne interrupted her argument and gave Zumuda CPR until paramedics arrived. "When people are down," Osborne said, "if you can help them, you help them." [Denver Post-AP, 3-14-07]

you can find this story here, and many more stories like it here.

can we all just agree that it is really important to make sure that the area where you plant carrots has well-loosened soil that goes pretty deep?

and these pictures show why. i grew this carrot in my garden, but when i planted it (along with a bunch of others), it was late winter. so it was cold, and really muddy and wet. i didn't pitchfork the soil up the way i should have before putting in the seedlings. oops. but you have to admire the tenacity and commitment of this carrot! even when faced with a challenging soil environment, it tried to grow in several directions. despite physical discouragement, it didn't give up. even though it was straining against compacted earth, it found the energy to grew a beautiful set of greens on top. (the compost says thank you.) it is also important to note that it kind of looks like it's breakdancing or something in those last two pictures (particularly when they are viewed together). furthermore, it has provided an excellent visual reminder of the importance of proper pitchfork action, a reminder that has already informed my further carrot planting. finally, and equally importantly, it tasted good. in conclusion, kids, use your pitchforks. that's what they're for.

can we all just agree that springtime is a pretty great time to be eating?

here are some things that i had for dinner last night:

broccoli
mango
strawberries
corn
raspberries.

can we all just agree that it's funny to receive mail addressed "attn: manager or owner meow meow* estate"?

*where meow meow=my full name.

can we all just agree that repeatedly insisting that you really enjoyed meeting someone and you really enjoyed chatting with them and you really

enjoyed getting to know them every time you leave them a voicemail message or write them an email message is at best, meaningless, and at worst, insulting, when you were actually totally, unacceptably rude to a person during the first and only time you ever spent any time with them?

it is not a coincidence that i occasionally NEVER ANSWER MY TELEPHONE when certain people call. that is what caller id is for.

can we all just agree that having a gardening callus can make a person feel (justifiably) kind of tough?

and no, it's not even from using a pitchfork or a shovel or a hoe...it's from weeding.

can we all just agree that it's kind of amusing when someone finds c.w.a.j.a.?. by searching for "why can we be just together baby why can we be just

forever"?

i really hope that works out for you, kind lithuanian reader!

can we all just agree that sometimes, the dad is unreasonably cagey?

while chatting last night:

dad: "ah, yeah, i'll be gone for about three weeks in june."
me: "whoa! where are you going?"
dad: "oh, i'm going to go look at new hampshire."
me: "um, okay."
...[silence]...

can we all just agree that 12 hours is a long time to wear padded bicycle shorts?

see below for explanation. but i guess that this dispels any lingering worries i had about proper fit and comfort. i had plenty of opportunities to change out of them, but i just didn't. they are cozy.

can we all just agree that 20+ miles en cykel makes for a pretty nice saturday?

because it does.

¿podemos estar de acuerdo que la expresión <¡media naranja!> es fantástica?

la amo. (disculpe por ser tan emocionante, pero por alguna razón, no puedo escribir nada entre estas marcas: <> sin puntuación por ambos lados. no se por que.)

can we all just agree that it can be really satisfying, sometimes, when someone else gets something you really want?

not always, certainly, and maybe not usually even, but sometimes it is. that is all.

¿podemos estar de acuerdo que es un poco extraño tener resultos de buscar de méxico, preguntando, <¿qué es una quesadilla?>?

obviamente, alguien en méxico está preguntando esa pregunta, pero siempre me sorprendí. (y me hace esperar que esa persona puede comer una quesadilla prontito.)

[hint to english-speaking amig@s: quesadillas are tortillas with cheese melted inside. they are pretty much one of the most delicious foods ever invented and you should go eat one immediately.]

can we all just agree that perhaps i have spent too much time reading things on the internets?

because the title of the hymn which was written in 1747 is not "Lol I come with joy." that's an exclamation point, silly, from back when things were properly punctuated and people used the word, "lo," and from back before abbreviations had been invented.

can we all just agree that the three hundredth post is kind of cool?

i don't want to get all sentimental or anything, but wow! three hundred posts! you know, when i started this blog, way back in 2005 (yes, i am that old!), i never dreamed that it would reach 300 posts. excuse me, i need a moment...

can we all just agree that the democrats need to have some backbone right now?

no compromise. the will of the people is behind ending the war. they need to stand strong and not cave, and see who will blink first, instead of giving in.

i'm too tired to write much more than that. it's late, and it's been a long seven years.

can we all just agree that sometimes, the best way to respond to a potentially emotionally volitile, politically charged, somewhat nuanced situation

of slight national import is to just post a profanity-laden instant message transcript?

yeah, i totally did that.

me: "o.m.f'ing.g. do you know what day this was?"

brother bear: "sorry, i always forget that signing out of gmail closes google talk. anyway, i was going to say 'the day after the day that the freeway melted?'"

me: "no, that was yesterday [sic] (btw wtf!?!) today was may day. i.e. 'thank you labor movement for working so damn hard and often giving your lives so that children don't have to work 14 hour days 7 days a week in mills day'. and also let's fix immigration day (¡viva la causa!) BUT...check this shit out: http://www.whitehouse.gov/news/releases/2007/04/20070430-3.html"

bb: "that's the biggest load of bullshit eeeeeeeeVAR."

me: "shut up, freedomhatertraitorsadddamosamaobamalovertroopmurdererer!!eleventy-one!"

bb: "if people observed that day the way it's described in the press release then michigan would be annexing wisconsin all uber-militia style."

me: "or fucking ALL OF CANADIA!!!"

bb: "well, yeah, that, too."

me: "those polite frozen freaks have been obstructing our path to alaska for TOO FUCKING LONG!!!"

bb: "dude, that sentence had a comma between every word! heh heh heh."

me: "it was poetry in motion. grammatical poetry."

fin.

[5/2: fixed. high five to brother bear, bruise photographer, nerve damage speculation expert, and proofreader.]

can we all just agree that brother bear is both hilarious and consistently reasonable?

me: "[brother bear]. what is your opinion on pecan pie?"

brother bear: "i haven't been a fan of pecans in the past but i'm ready to give them another try."

me: "okay."

bb: "i recently discovered that i'm ambivalent about asparagus, so that has to mean that pecans get another shot."

can we all just agree that blogger's habit of trying to sign me in with whatever gmail address has been used most recently on my compy is a really

annoying one?

c'mon, dudes...don't have a "remember me on this computer" checkbox for me to check if you are just joking. i mean, i like bloggering and everything, but i would like it a lot better if i didn't have to re-sign in every time i check my personal email. or anyone else who is using my computer checks a gmail account.

your not-so-secret goal is clearly TOTAL INTERNET DOMINATION anyway, and so i can't be the only person with this problem.

and i know that once the entire internet belongs to you, i might not be authorized to complain about it, but you haven't bought out aol yet, so at least some of it isn't yours. and i'm annoyed*.

*not annoyed that google still doesn't own the entire internet, sillies...i dislike monopolies and i don't own google stock, so that's a pretty solid double-whammy against that suggestion.

can we all just agree that a trifecta of funny things that audra said is an excellent way to begin may? [part 3]

"you can tell bill o'reilly whatever you want about me."

can we all just agree that a trifecta of funny things that audra said is an excellent way to begin may? [part 2]

me: "...i'm not sure if i'm physically attracted to him."
audra: "why? is he all manly and muscular?"

[aw sheesh, audra.]

can we all just agree that a trifecta of funny things that audra said is an excellent way to begin may? [part 1]

"i like horses. i'm allergic to them—i can't let them lick me."