Talkin' 'bout the car wash

Over the past month or so, I have become completely dependent upon Google Reader. But that's a story for another time. Today's story is about what one of my Google Reader updates from Etsy contained.

If you aren't familiar with Etsy, it's a burgeoning online powerhouse of handmade items. Many a fascinating product can be found on it's pages, and to keep up to date with what's new, I subscribed to their news feed on Google Reader. Usually the updates contain trinkets and accessories and sundry miscellaneous items. But today, they struck gold. And the gold was entitled, "News from craft + style."


It all started out innocently enough. A model with a pained looked here, an awkwardly posed model there. And then there was this:

And this:

I'm fairly certain these women just jumped out of a car wash.

Oh, fashion. Such a joy.

Thank you, Joanne.

Let's take a moment to talk about a little known super power. A super power housed in the largest conglomerations of countries the world round. A super power whose attributes include the ability to exchange knowledge and resources, the ability to sway a day in one direction or the other, good or bad, and the ability to evoke tears of joy and gratitude or provoke screams of anguish buried in darkest portions of a man's soul.

The super power of which I speak?

The person on the other end of the Customer Service phone line.

Over the past few days I have been trying to return a package purchased online. In order to do so, I've had to call the Customer Service line. Several times. And then some.

This process has, at times, made me question my sanity. I've talked to approximately a million different people who have all been embittered by the system. I always try to be especially nice to customer service employees because I spent a summer as a technical support representative. Consequently, I know how difficult it can be to deal with people who are calling with the sole intent to whittle you down into a weeping pile of insecurity so that you'll give them the full refund, even though you would have given it to them anyways.

So after speaking with an endless stream of jaded customer service professionals, I called one more time this morning in a final attempt to get all of my questions answered. This time I spoke with a woman named Joanne. I will probably name my firstborn after Joanne in her honor, girl or boy. She was so wonderful! She was pleasant and helpful, and I think I thanked her over one million times.

Her day started well. My day started well. Her kindness made such a difference in my morning, and hopefully my not being an irate, belligerent customer made her day a little easier too. It was a beautiful thing. 

Winter-Blues Comfort Food

Confession: I am ready for some sunshine.

I love winter. Specifically, I love snow. But since we are experiencing a snow drought here in Western NY, there's not much to love. I do not love being assaulted by life-threateningly-freezing wind gusts or taking 5 layers of clothing off when I get to the gym. This is the part of winter that can be a little miserable, even for the most ardent of winter-lovers.

What better to cure cold-weather blues than hearty comfort food? I absolutely loathe oatmeal, but really love this version using quinoa:

You know it's going to be good when Martha's involved. It's just the rule.

And...if for some reason quinoa doesn't do the trick...there's always the good ole' faithful combo of milk and warm cookies:

Since I was in dire straights of winter blues, I opted for both. It was a good decision.

Grand Theft Auto: Take Two

Dear Identical Car Owner,

Please stop parking next to me at Wegmans. And please, for the love of all that is holy, stop leaving your car unlocked. If you continue to do so, I will continue to mistakenly get into your vehicle thinking it is mine...as I did today...for the second time. Thank you.

Sincerely,

The Woman Who Keeps Trying to Steal Your Car

1, 2, 3.

1. I wish the Cheesecake Factory did deliveries (and really, why don't they? who could resist cheesecake brought directly to their door?). If that were the case I would be shamelessly devouring a gigantic slice of Oreo cheesecake right now.

2. Ice dancing? Really? It's worse than pairs. Shut it down.

3. Does anyone else want to move to British Columbia after seeing all of the beautiful scenery at the Olympics (and on the semi-lame, super-frequent commercials)? Vancouver, here I come.

3b. Does anyone else feel bad for the second guy in the two-man bobsled? All he does is run and duck, and no one ever talks to him during the interviews. To all of the backseat bobsledders: way to go!!!

I like cheese

So because it is winter break we have had about a thousand prospective students visiting our hallowed halls this week. With an individual visit comes an interview with your admissions counselor, along with an information session for your whole family. This morning I interviewed a student and then brought her mom and 5 year old brother back for the info session. The poor little guy was trying so hard to be content while imprisoned in a tiny room with no entertainment, so he kept himself busy by writing a letter. To his mom. It said:

"Dear Mom,

I like cheese."

It made me laugh out loud. All day long. And it made me so appreciate a childlike worldview. I love it that kids are so much better at noticing and embracing the real stuff of life than adults are. Jesus knew what he was talking about when he told us to have faith like a child. It makes sense.

In honor of my new young friend, I think I'll make macaroni and cheese for dinner. Just because I like it. 

Color-Coded Career

When I saw this test touted on another blog I was beyond skeptical. Color choices as a career predictor? Really? Didn't we move past that after first grade? Isn't that what I just went through four years of college to figure out? But, as a lover of all things colorful and informative, I went ahead and took the test.

The results were eerily accurate. Seriously...I'm a little freaked out. My top two primary occupational categories were a tie - equal parts Researcher (Independent, Self-Motivated, Reserved, Introspective, Analytical, and Curious) and Creator (Nonconforming, Impulsive, Expressive, Romantic, Intuitive, Sensitive, and Emotional), with Organizer (Self-Control, Practical, Self-Contained, Orderly, Systematic, Precise, and Accurate) as a secondary occupational category. It's like they've been watching me.  

So, bring on the first grade ideology and throw college out the window (again). And take the quiz! It's so interesting!