Pixel Imperfect

Every day, I'm going to try and write about once nice thing that happened the day before. -- I went for a run yesterday at Lenny Boy Brewing. They've got a brand new run club: noon on Sunday's. I can do that. Unfortunately, I lost track of time and got there late. I messaged a friend that I was going to be 15 minutes late. I fully expected to run the 3 miles solo -- which I don't enjoy. After about half a mile, I see someone else on the Light Rail path headed towards me. The figure begins to look familiar. It's a runner friend of mine who is far too fast for me to run with. I was surprised to see him. "You missed the turn," I called out. It was his first time at the LB run and I assumed he'd forgotten to turn down Tremont. "I was looking for you." He slowed as I approached, turned and began running with me. We ran down to the Bland Street Station, turned, and returned to the brewery. As we turned onto Hawkins, he encouraged me to ...

Last week was a very weird week. Very stressful and busy. I didn't keep track of any of my mornings last week so we'll just skip that  "Black ops... black ops... dropping presents from the helicopter..." The song gets louder and louder. After 60 seconds it's playing at full volume. I blink my eyes and reach for my phone. It's been plugged in and under the pillow all night. SleepBot has kept the screen dark, but technically on. My finger practically sizzles as I swipe the glass to indicate to indicate I am awake. I squint at the screen. 7:00am on the dot. It's rather bright in my room. I realize that I left the blinds open last night and my apartment is flooded with natural light. It's kinda nice.  I forgot to set up the coffee last night. No, that's a lie. I thought about it at 10:30 but I was already under the covers and reading. I couldn't be bothered to set up the coffee last night. I lie in bed for another 15 minutes swiping at m...

I've come to work to be greeted with a bag of Thin Mints, Samoas, Savannah Smiles, Thank U Berry Munches, and Trefoils. And now I have to sit here with these cookies next to me ALL DAY. I made the mistake of going onto the bakery websites. The troop I'm buying from uses Little Brownie Bakers. The other bakery has Chocolate Chip Shortbread, Lemonades, and Cranberry Citrus Crisps. My god. If I run into girls selling the other cookies I'm going to be in trouble. I really want to try the chocolate chip shortbread and cranberry crisps. Why can't I buy, like, half a box? Or just two or three cookies? Auughhhh. I have been known in the past to eat an entire box of cookies in one sitting. That is probably why I was super fat in college! Entire box of: Thin Mints - 32 cookies, 1280 calories, 80g sugar Samoas - 14 cookies, 980 calories, 70g sugar Savannah Smiles - 25 cookies, 700 calories, 50g sugar Thank U Berry Munch - 14 cookies, 840 calories, 49g sugar Trefoils - 40 ...

A soft melodic tone trickles into my ear. I reach out a hand and, eyes closed, swipe it silent. My hand curls around the phone. My foot twitches. I'm a bit warm. I pull the phone towards my face. My eyelids flutter, blink, squint. 7:00am. The text in the phone is insistent - "Wake up, mutha fucka!!!!" I blink, I sigh ... I doze. A harsh electronic beat pours into my ears. I reach out a hand and, eyes closed, swipe it silent. My hand curls around my phone. I bury my nose into my pillow. "WHAT THE ACTUAL FUCK" exclaims the silenced alarm. It is now 7:30am. A tentative sniff reveals my saving grace. There is premade coffee. Thank you , past me . I pull on a pair of socks. I grip the railing as I teeter down my spiral staircase, brain half-asleep, eyes half-closed. A few moments later, I'm slightly more awake, sipping my coffee with too much cream and staring in my mirror with displeasure. "Christ. You're a hot mess." Another sip of coffee...

It's snowing pretty heavy here. (Heavy for Carolina snow...) Sticking, too. I haven't got a cancellation email from my college yet, but it's not like I've left the bed for more than a few moments anyway... As I sit here in my bed with my laptop and coffee, I can't help but think how very lucky I am. I have a job I love (and I actually use the skills I was taught in undergrad). I work from home one day each week. If I cannot go into work for any reason (inclement weather, illness, travel) I am still paid. It wasn't always like this. I had my fair share of wage-slave jobs. Even now I sacrifice a certain amount on income for the flexibility that my job provides, but stress and hours of many higher paying job cannot make up for sitting in my bed with my laptop and coffee, working from home and watching the snow.

I've been journalling (like physical pen and paper journalling) a lot lately, which is why I haven't posted here much. I have things I need to spill that I don't want to put on the internet, that's why. What's been going on lately? November K-Swiss and I split mid-November Thanksgiving with the family Spending more time with my bro. Haven't spent enough time with him. Would like to. Took a solo trip to Asheville Made some friends in Asheville. Friends who are bugging me to return (and I'd like to!) Begin going out to Meetup.com events to make some more friends in town December Lived with some college friends for a week or so Found an apartment (it's a loft with a spiral staircase) Moved into apartment Accidentally lost weight -- how did this happen? Home for family X-mas party. Spent more time with my siblings. Made some new friends. Got sent home with three dozen siopao Had a fantastic birthday including presents and sushi Dec...

I'm working on getting back into a habit I used to have that involved getting to bed at a reasonable hour and waking naturally around 7am. It's a struggle. I'm going to try to start posting how my mornings go here. If I can, indeed, get back into my habit, then we'll also have daily outfit photos again. Day 3: Wake. Brain is confused. A savory scent is wafting into my loft and a curious gurgling sound pricks my ears. Phone declares 7:04am. Did my alarm go off? What is that sound? ... COFFEE! Commence mental argument Get out of bed get coffee It'll still be good in ten minutes, let's just take ten more minutes.  Seriously? Get your ass up. Hey, here's the water your poured yourself last night. Drink that, get up. Soo comfy. And it's cold out there. You left your robe at the foot of your bed, no excuses. Also I think you need to pee. Gorramit... I stretch. I sit up. I drink some water. I shiver. I blink rapidly. I grab my glasses and...

Someone posted the above photo on reddit , and the top comment was " It isn't that easy ." Below is another redditor's reply . I love this post. I've had to develop lots of coping mechanisms over the years to deal with crippling anxiety and depression. ALL of these, particularly #10 and Bonus are ones that have been of great assistance to me. Now -- on to the plagiarism! All credit to IdeaPowered 1) No, he/she isn't the only one . There are millions of people. Go meet more. Those aren't your only friends. They are just your only friends NOW. You can make more, and often better, friends. 2) Molehills, not mountains . Keep things in perspective. You might feel shitty because you fucked up about this one thing. In a year you probably won't remember it and it will be inconsequential unless you keep chastising yourself for it. Everyone else is too busy being paranoid about themselves to have to remember every stupid thing you did. 3) Chastis...

I'm going to make some of you feel a little old -- I just used a fax machine for the first time in my life. I get a buzz of irritation when people request faxes. When I needed stuff faxed in college, I would email it to my Dadders and ask him to fax it. I don't understand why everything can't be done digitally. Waste of paper. Once, KSwiss needed work done on his car, they emailed him the paperwork, he signed it on his tablet (literally, signed his name with his finger) and emailed it back to them. This is the way it should be. Of course, the next generation will probably think I'm old for having used an actual phone instead of an implant in my head or something. Of course, I think it's amusing when people still have landlines. My parents don't even have a landline anymore. And of course, some people pride themselves on their lack of modern communication technology. And the Millennials say: What's that? You can't play any song you could possibly want...

I got into work today, regular Wednesday... thinking about making tea, thinking about what for lunch... And I get into my suite, pop my key in my door and then something clicks in my peripheral vision. I back up and actually look at my door. There's brightly colored stuff all over my door! A banner, and a headband and a fairy wand. A birthday-girl pin and a card. A gift bag with glittery hair pins, hot pink fingerless gloves (which make me sorely regret that I'm missing a 90's party this weekend), and some other brightly colored cute things. I immediately started laughing. My boss and co-worker came over to my office* early (they both get in at 7:30) to decorate my door. And I think to myself... why did they do this today? And then I called my co-worker and she said "well, we knew you're probably working from home tomorrow because it's Thursday." HA! So true. They're cleverer than I am. My god, I'm so fucking lucky. I have the best offi...

Hi friends! I'm about to make an angry rant here. This is something that I avoid doing, but it's building and it must be excised. I thought that I'd warn you, just in case you'd like to keep the negativity out of you day. :) If you're petite, like I am, then comments on your weight and figure are totally socially okay! Did you know that? I'm learning. I met a friend's grandmother. The first thing she says to me is "Oh you're so little! How much do you weigh?" Seriously? Well, how much do you weigh? Birthday party for a colleague in the office. After the cake is sliced, the department director says "Give Mary the big piece, she needs it!" You certainly don't need it... Talking about clothes with a colleague and she comments on how thin I am and how I "really need to eat a cheeseburger!" I had three slices of pizza for dinner last night, bitch Walking past the receptionist office at work wearing something like ...

I was recently discussing with a friend my "way with words." I've begun writing a little again. I'll share it with you sometime when I'm convinced it's not crap (this friend was displeased with my vulgar criticisms of my work... so maybe it's not all crap). Today, I was digging in my closet and found the very fist paper I wrote in college. Written in 2004 (I was on the cusp of turning 20) for one of the most challenging to impress professors at my alma mater. I earned an A- for my efforts, and he begins his comments on my paper by stating: "Your paper has given me considerable pleasure -- derived from your jaunty and intelligent comments." I think I swooned. I was just rereading the paper. There is a section that I found --- well, shocking! to be included in my philosophy paper to this veteran professor. I cannot believe I wrote this! Peculiar Pleasures: On Aristotle's Treatment of Self-Control (In which I discuss both partaking to e...

By far one of my favorite things about working in higher ed is the fashion. Yes, the fashion. The incredible variety that you will find at committee meetings, for example, where both faculty, administrators, and executives are involved. My last committee meeting had a gentleman wearing cargo khakis, a bright red tee (with some sort of image on it), and a short sleeve blue button-up, unbuttoned. It looked what the IT kids wore when they were in high school. There was a woman wearing fitted trousers (no judging there, I wear fitted trousers as you know) tucking into Uggs (judge judge judge!). Who wears Uggs out of the house, unless you are a college student or maybe you're running a quick errand. But more importantly, who wears Uggs to work... on a day when you have a meeting?!? And then there was the gentleman running the meeting. Charming looking man wearing nice slacks, a coordinating but not matching jacket (I am a fan of this. It's more a casual than a suit, but stil...

I discovered the subreddit RedditGetsDrawn and posted  the above photo of myself.  ... Hmmm...  Now you all know my reddit name. Stalk stalk stalk. Anyway, someone  drew me :) I love the minimal comic style. And I feel like he made my face a little more angular, and I like that too. Anyway. Fun subreddit to scroll through. Check it out. I feel like this would be a good time to share the one other drawing that has been done of me.  This was done by a drunk friend. I was probably also drinking. 

IM conversation Her: I got a bag of mandarin oranges while I was out, help yourself. Me: Oh thanks, I'm super full from lunch though :) (five minutes later) Her: I also have Halloween candy Me: .... Me: That ... is a different situation entirely. And I quickly stride over to her office to find several Target bags full of candy. Oh my favoritest person in the world! Mmm, Skittles for Stargirl. Do you know how long it's been since I've had candy? ANY CANDY? A long time. Mmmm... 

"This freaking thing keeps messing up..." I mutter, toying with my phone. My sister is driving, I am riding shotgun, and my mother is in the backseat. If there two other adults in the car, she always relegates herself to the back seat. "Mom! Mary said the F-word," my sister calls, trying in vain to get a rise out of our mother. Mom makes a non-committal grunt. "I said freaking. Don't be dumb." I actually make quite the effort not to curse around my family. "Curse words" spill out of my mouth when I'm at home or around friends, but around my family I try not to curse. I try really really hard not to say goddammit. "Your face is dumb," she retorts. Our most beloved comeback, made doubly funny by our near-identical faces. I return my attention to my phone. It has trouble picking up wi-fi signals in certain areas. It currently shows a wi-fi connection, three bars! But I am unable to connect to FourSquare. How will I collect m...

KSwiss attempted to cook dinner. Cook = toss one of those Bird's Eye bagged meals into a pot and heat it up. I always make extra rice with these things and so he decided to make some. One cup of rice, I said. One and a half cups of water. Medium high. One cup of rice, he poured into the saucepan. HALF a cup of water. So now my kitchen smells like burning. The Bird's Eye Teriyaki something-or-other turned out okay though. That one comes with instructions printed right on the bag.

I had trouble getting out of bed this morning. Not the kind of trouble I’m used to – that would be the brain crippling wanting to melt into blackness trouble – but rather the I’m so cozy I never want to leave my cocoon trouble . (Side note: Happily, the brain crippling trouble hasn't been spotted in months! I blame my new job. Thanks jerb. You make waking up not suck.) So. Late start. Then we discovered that one of the cats pissed in the tub. And I couldn’t find my makeup bag and .FUCK FUCK FUCK I think I left it when I went out with friends on Friday (beat) God oh my god oh my god my Makeup Forever Aqua Eyes (small and expensive but perfect cream shadow), Glam-o-flauge concealer (my Holy grail cannot live without concealer) and my Skin 27 BB Cream (brand new, must be ordered on Amazon) were in that fucking bag. Oh jesus. FUCK. My hair looks like shit. My bangs are angry at me and I feel like I look like a man. Three GIANT zits on my chin. Enormous. Like,...

Reddit had a thread about quotes that you find yourself using over and over. I selected some that I like. Spoke to me. Some of these are well known, some of them I hadn't heard before.  Yesterday is yesterday. If we try to recapture it, we will only lose tomorrow -Bill Clinton  Good fiction disturbs the comfortable and comforts the disturbed." -- David Foster Wallace  Yeah, well, that's just, like, your opinion, man. - The Dude  What we do in life echoes in eternity Be kind, for everyone you meet is fighting a hard battle. - Plato  You can't always get what you want. But, if you try sometime, you find you get what you need. - Rolling Stones  He who fights with monsters might take care lest he thereby become a monster. And if you gaze for long into an abyss, the abyss gazes also into you. - Mark Twain  Don't take life too seriously, you'll never get out alive. - Van Wilder.  Keep on keepin on War is not about who is right, but who ...