In which I need to make my life more interesting? — Part I

Part of my mission for this year is to be open to meeting new friends and romantic prospects. I’ve had some success with online dating in the past and am open to trying it again when the time is right. I have some legitimate reasons for not pursuing it right now, along with one reason that turned out to be false, and an excuse in any case. My logic was, “All I do is work. I need to make my life more interesting.”

Well . . . I took a hard look at that self-justification. What part of my life is boring? The part where I sometimes get paid to play Scrabble or watch funny science videos? The part where I’m teaching myself American Sign Language in order to communicate with a Deaf client? The part where I walk rescue dogs or serve Sunday night dinner to homesick college students? The part where I work with an 80-year-old missionary who’s writing her memoirs (a project I’m resurrecting and will talk more about as it takes shape)? The part where I have best friends who include a truck driver who lives in Canada but spends at least half the year in the U.S.; an operating engineer who home-schools her kids; an Army wife with tattoos and a sense of humor that’s equal parts Lucille Ball, Brett Butler, and Ellen DeGeneres; and an animal rights activist and sometime yoga instructor? The part where I read kids’ books as a thirtysomething? The part where I often type with one cat on my shoulder and the other one on my feet? The part where I switch my Pandora stations between Bach and Bob Marley, a capella groups and jam bands, Americana and steampunk? The part where I’ve been known to participate in drum circles and open mic nights?

It occurred to me that I lead a very interesting life. I’m well-acquainted with many different emotions, but boredom is rarely one of them. Even if I don’t have a task to do, my mind is always going. Sometimes that’s a bad thing (like at 2 a.m. when I can’t sleep and have a 7:30 a.m. report time next day). Most of the time, it’s asset rather than liability. More pure socializing time would be nice, but at least I always have something to talk about when I meet someone new.

Now to meet men who can bring as much or more to the table.

Tuesday musings — 12/11/2012

“Only two X chromosomes could account for the creation of pomander balls by thousands of women who otherwise seem not to suffer from any grievous psychological ailment . . . .If you told a boy he had to make a gift for someone he loved out of rotting fruit, hairpins, and cheesecloth, he might find the concept intriguing—think of the possibilities in terms of making a mess, after all—but when he discovered that the process involved the systematic implantation of hundreds of cloves, he would plead his case to Child Protective Services.” – Gina Barreca

 

I will be baking cookies and making assorted goodies for my parents’ Christmas present (I’ll post recipes later), and I painted Christmas ornaments to sell at our church’s cookie walk/craft sale, but that is where my creativity ends. No Santa outfits or jingle bell collars for the cats. No stringing popcorn and cranberries for the tree (if I put the tree up; Little Trouble gets airborne sometimes, and I have ornaments that are 50+ years old and came on the boat from Europe with my maternal grandmother). No handmade cards for my entire Christmas list, including people I haven’t seen in years.