While on a roadtrip recently to visit with family, we stopped for lunch and ended up getting into a political debate. Surprisingly it wasn’t just my husband and I that were debating, our two children joined in as well. Between the four of us, we were getting quite loud and I had to remind my family that were weren’t the only ones in the restaurant. This brought to mind a certain quote from an interview of Richard’s:
“I find New Yorkers incredibly engaging. They’re like Parisians …cool and confrontational, in a good way, in a good way, like they like a good debate. …you walk into a restaurant and it’s not full of people silently sitting in front of each other like it can be in England; it’s full of people pointing fingers in each other’s faces having a really good political debate, or whatever.”
Our debate took place in a Midwestern McDonald’s but that seems fitting, in an All-American kind of way.
I said we needed a burglar, not Hamburglar!
It was kind of ironic seeing as how I’d spent the majority of the trip trying to avoid controversial discussions, as I always do during gatherings with extended family. So it struck me as funny that it came pouring out over a quick meal of cheeseburgers with my husband and kids. I guess I feel safest with them and know that whatever I say won’t cause them to treat me differently afterwards.
no, you do! (feel the love)
Once upon a time I’d throw my opinions in the ring with the best of them, but I always walked away feeling badly. I let my passions get the best of me and either offended who I was conversing with or walked away feeling bitter because I was offended myself.
These days I prefer more an exchange of ideas rather than an actual debate. I don’t need to be right but I do need my conversation partners to be willing to entertain various viewpoints.
Goofy is a dog that acts like a person, yet he has a pet dog named Pluto. should I go with an animal cruelty angle or civil rights?
All in all, I try to bow out of heated discussions during Holiday get-togethers whenever (and however) possible.
The risk to personal relationships, not to mention my own peace of mind, isn’t worth it to me in the long run. If you need me, I’ll be at the kid’s table; the “grown up” table is overrated.
My husband was watching a DVR’d episode of “Agents of Shield” recently and I decided to watch along. Most of the time I only half pay attention, usually occupying myself with something near by within hearing distance- it gets confusing trying to follow who is good, then bad, then good again. I know enough to be able to follow the storyline though so I wasn’t totally lost. At one point in the program I noticed these guys in a picture that was hanging on the wall:
I perked up and said, “hey, those guys are from the first movie!” (Captain America: the first Avenger) to which my husband backed up the program to see if I was right (18 years of marriage and he still doubts me. when is he going to learn?) Then the characters in the show started talking about fighting Hydra and how they were going to take them down even if it might seem like a never ending battle. to which I said…
-say it with me-
Cut off one head…two more shall take it’s place.
Hail Hydra!
Then I felt all proud of my geeky self. see, I know what’s what! (thanks Richard!)
I’ve had some heavy things on my mind lately…and I’m sick of it! So I’ll be back here soon to have some fun! In the meantime: I was reminded of a poem that someone left for me in the comments of this blog, once upon a time, when I really needed it. I needed it again today and as I reread it, so much of it reminded me of Richard. And so I think it belongs here.
If
by Rudyard Kipling
If you can keep your head when all about you
Are losing theirs and blaming it on you,
If you can trust yourself when all men doubt you,
But make allowance for their doubting too;
If you can wait and not be tired by waiting,
Or being lied about, don’t deal in lies,
Or being hated, don’t give way to hating,
And yet don’t look too good, nor talk too wise:
If you can dream-and not make dreams your master;
If you can think-and not make thoughts your aim;
If you can meet with Triumph and Disaster
And treat those two impostors just the same;
If you can bear to hear the truth you’ve spoken
Twisted by knaves to make a trap for fools,
Or watch the things you gave your life to, broken,
Last evening I was watching one of my favorite television shows, Cutthroat Kitchen. If you’re not familiar with this Food Network show, each episode centers around a cooking competition between 4 professional chefs. What is unique to the show is that they can bid on “sabotages” throughout the competition to trip-up their competitors. It’s always something unusual, like taking away a key component of their required dish and replacing it with candy, junky snack foods, or something equally as undesirable like canned meat (I basically just described my diet) or making them cook on upside down frying pans, taking away their cooking utensils, etc. it’s always a challenge and really fun to watch!
So last night, when I saw a particular contestant I couldn’t take my eyes off him… because he looked like Thorin Oakensheild! Okay, maybe saying he reminded me of Thorin would be more apt since Thorin isn’t an extremely tall, slightly balding Italian chef with an accent.
The criteria for winning this show is to discern whether or not the dish presented reminds the judge of the required dish, not necessarily if it is the dish or even looks like it. So Chef Alberico reminds me of Thorin; do I just have Thorin on the brain or do you see what I see? Thorin-esque or not, he was very cute to watch.
(Edited to Add: video was removed from Youtube)
On a slightly different but equally random note: this evening we will be adding yet another animal to our household. we’re “rescuing” a bearded dragon from an abandoned situation. because we need another animal in this house; 4 cats, 2 birds, a 3 ft. Iguana, a very rotund hamster, and various tropical fish just aren’t enough. My son was trying to come up with a name for the lizard but didn’t know any appropriate Australian names (because Bearded Dragons were originally from Australia. Thank You Wikipedia!) I suggested we name it Smaug. Son kind of crinkled his nose at that but my reasoning is that not only is it a “dragon” but when our two youngest cats sneak into my son’s room to hassle it, which is inevitable, it will be Fili and Kili trying to slay Smaug.
**this isn’t the best recording but I love the Ukelele 🙂
Sometimes everything seems awkward and large
imagine a Wednesday evening in March
Future and past, at the same time
I make use of the night, start drinking a lot
although not ideal, for now it’s all that I’ve got
It’s nice to know your name
You don’t know
you don’t know
You don’t know anything ’bout me
An ocean, a lake, I need a place to drown
let’s freeze the moment because we’re going down
Tomorrow you’ll be gone
You’re laughing too hard, this all seems surreal
I feel peculiar, now what do you feel?
Do you think there’s a chance that we can fall?
You don’t know, you don’t know
you don’t know anything ’bout me
What do I know? I know your name
You don’t know, you don’t know
you don’t know anything ’bout me
Anymore
I gave up dreaming for awhile
I gave up dreaming for awhile
I’ve noticed these are mysterious days
I look at it like a jigsaw-puzzle and gaze
With wide open mouth and burning eyes
If only I could start to care
my dreams and my Wednesdays aren’t going nowhere
Baby, baby, baby you don’t know
You don’t know, you don’t know
you don’t know anything ’bout me
What do I know? I know your name
You don’t know
you don’t know
You don’t know anything ’bout me
You don’t know, you don’t know
you don’t know anything ’bout me
What do I know? I know your name
You don’t know, you don’t know
you don’t know anything ’bout me
Anymore.
Fun facts: the official video for this song takes place at a Circus and there is a concert version on an album called From North to South; it all comes back to Richard 😉
Nowhere in Particular RA 