Tales from NW

Earlier this week (like so many times) I circled my car around the neighborhood for twenty minutes, only to find a parking space in a two hour zone. Gave up, parked the car there anyway. Got up before the crack of dawn to move the car to a legal space, but it took ten minutes to find one. Cussed. A lot.

Just now I circled the block around my building three times. No parking. Found a spot four blocks away. Walked to my building only to find an empty parking place right in front. Now, if I go back to my car by the time I get to this new open space in front of my building it will surely be taken. Then I will drive back to the old spot cussing that I wasted my time, and then that one will have been taken too. So, I leave my car where it is (and p.s. it's a spot only open on the weekends, so I'll have to move it later anyway) and think about how nice it will be to have a driveway again someday.

Reading cookie recipes

I stop reading as soon as they list margarine or butter in the ingredients.  I can't take your recipe seriously if you would consider using fake butter, even though you're allowing me to use the real thing.  Sorry.

Cynical in the city

I arrive to my 5:20 apartment viewing and buzz the manager, she says it will be just a few minutes. A girl walks up and says she is there to view as well (weird!) so I tell her the manager will be here shortly and attempt to make small talk. I asked her if she had been looking long and she said no. I told her I had only been looking a couple of days, and how I can't believe how competitive it is in this area and that everything goes so quickly - like within hours! We chatted a little bit about the neighborhood and then walk up two more girls to view the place. This is crazy, I think to myself. Then the manager unlocks the door. All three girls walk in ahead of me. Huh, okay. Before I even get all the way into the apartment the first girl turns to the manager and says, "I'll take it! Who do I make the check out to?"

Betch. I cannot believe she walked in in front of me and snagged it before I even saw it! Although it was hard to blame her. The apartment was amazing... but still! Unbelievable.

Merry Christmas!

Last year in my family we had all come to the conclusion that the stress of buying gifts, that really we don't need, is silly and wasteful, so we stopped. I still exchanged gifts with some close friends because it was kind of too late to back out, as some of them had already gotten things for me. Don't get me wrong, I do think it's fun to pick out a surprise for someone & see their face when they open it. But I've become rather disgusted by American consumerism pretty much every day of the year, and I won't even get started on Christmas. Seriously*. I shouldn't even go there**. Plus, I just can't stand the meaningless "obligated gifts" because they got you something, or the "I don't know you well enough to pick out something you'd actually love, so I got you this uber-generic gift" or the "just tell me what you want & I'll go to the store and get it for you gifts" blah-blah-blah. Growing up I don't ever remember making a list of what I wanted or really even asking for some big thing. My mom just knew me well enough to pick out something I'd like (plus, we didn't exactly have the money to do it any other way). It just seems like telling someone what you want defeats the whole purpose anyway, especially now that we are all old enough & make enough money to buy what we want when we want it. Never mind the fact that presents is not what Christmas is supposed to be about anyway! Gah!

I have decided to individually participate in the Advent Conspiracy this Christmas. It's a wonderful thing! And, I'm so glad it has exploded and gripped so many people this year. So, my group of friends that I exchanged gifts with this year grew much smaller, and in light of Advent Conspiracy, I am giving relational gifts. I bought a board game & Kids in the Kitchen cookbook for a family to use together, a cake decorating class for a friend and I to take together, etc. And it must be getting to other people, too, because I have gotten really great sustainable gifts from my friends this year (either that or they just don't want to set me off for fear of having to listen to hours and hours of my ranting)!

I feel like all of this discussion is leading to more questioning and searching, and eventually deeper relationship. After all, Christmas actually is all about our relationship with Christ!


Okay, I could make a list a mile long, but I can't hold these back:
*We spent $455 BILLION last year on Christmas in the United States alone. Excuse me while I go throw up***.
**Have you seen the Wal-mart commercials? The ones with the message about how shopping at Wal-mart saves you thousands of dollars a year, and that way you can give more at the holidays? Right! If I shop at Wally World where I continue to support the evil empire & oppress more & more people, then I can give Wal-Mart executives even more money for crap that will end up in a landfill more gifts to charity. Isn't that nice of me? Gosh, shopping at Wal-Mart really makes me feel good about myself.
***Did you know it costs about $2500 for a well in Africa? And that divided by the number of people who use it, that averages out to about $10 per person. We spend more than that on stalking stuffers. We could give not only CLEAN WATER, but LIFE, to those who desperately need it, and practically at no cost when you consider how much we overspend at Christmas.

Think Green®

Waste Management, I'm calling you out! You're "Think Green.® Think Waste Management." slogan is a fraud. I'm going to highlight just one reason this is true: billing.

I work for a company that uses your trash and portable toilet services at multiple job site locations. When you send us a statement of services each month you manage to space out about three lines of information onto two 8.5"x11" pieces of paper. Then you neatly package those papers together with a return envelope and at least one flyer about how environmentally responsible you are. For every single solitary service at every single job site.

Suggestion: Combine.

You could fit all of our services for all of our job sites on one piece of paper in one envelope (or better yet, email it!). And actually doing so would make me believe you care about the environment instead of telling me you are every month when I have to throw your excessive mail in the recycle.

Stuff

I think you should watch this. I know everyone won't agree, and if you would like to prove it wrong, be my guest. But actually watch it. Think about it. Research it. I think the thing that bugs me the most about people who "disagree" with environmentalism is that they don't really believe it's a bunch of phewey, they just don't want to think about it or have to change their actions, so it's just easier to deny that it matters. This kind of mentality, whether it's about social justice, the environment, politics, religion, etc. just drives me crazy! You have a brain and a conscience. Use it.

P.S. This reminded me of a bumper sticker I saw yesterday. "Support America, Buy a Congressman" LOL!

How to annoy me

Drive slowly in the far right lane of the freeway during rush hour, so no one can get on or off the freeway without road rage. Thank you.