A Day In the Life

OK, so today is shaping up to be a pretty good day.

1) It is sunny today. As in continuous sunshine. As opposed to "sunbreaks", that Northwest phenomenon that seems to make people here happy, but which serves mainly to piss me off. Sunbreak is an official weather term used by meteorologists here. It means basically another grey, cloudy-ass day where the sun might pop out for like, 30 seconds, only to disappear right as your ass starts to get happy about the sun.

It's become a joke in my family. "Look!! A Sunbreak!" "Ooh! Ah!" Whatever. There are also a jillion terms for "rain". You know how there are supposedly like, 5,000 ways to say "snow" in some northern Native language?  That pretty much applies to western Washington and rain. There are so many ways to say rain it's not even funny.

But I digress. Today it is sunny. This is my office window today. That makes me pretty damn happy.

2) I got a Starbucks card for the Spring Equinox. A day started with sunshine and caffeine is a good day.




3) Baker Girl (aka Second-Born Daughter) made these last night, and thoughtfully packed one up for me take to work today. She made the dark chocolate "cups" herself, filled them with raspberries, topped them with whipped cream and threw in chocolate chips for a garnish. Hell yeah. She rocks.




4) The college is on break, between quarters. The library is closed, most of my colleagues are out. I will therefore play my CDs loudly on my lame-ass, tiny, tinny, $19 office CD player, and clean the hell out of my office. My office is friggin' out of control. It's like my daughter's room with a desk. I'm serious, it's bad. But with music, I can clean and sing simultaneously. The sunshine will serve as the usual Manic Motivator. It's all good.


5) Male Offspring is competing in the varsity tournament today. He's had a great season, and is turning out to be one hell of a wrestler.

I, of course, am thinking scholarships. You know I am all about the scholarships, baby. You've got a talent? Let it take your behind right on through that college. Hell, yeah. Anyway, he has kicked butt this year on the mat, I'm really proud of him. I've screamed myself hoarse with all the other wrestling parents -- this is intense stuff. Read the "Ready to Rumble" post if you don't know what I'm talking about. Anyway, the tournament is today, he's stoked, the team is stoked, it's going to be fun. I'm leaving early to cheer the kids on.


Not everything is good today, however. As I was crossing the staff parking lot, I realized my feet were cold. I looked down to realize I didn't have my boots on.

I forgot my damn shoes.

I'd been wearing these in the house. Birkenstocks. Not even the cool suede ones. The dorky-assed navy blue ones. With purpley socks. I was wearing them so my purpley socks would not end up covered in black and brown Labradog hair. (Okay, so I need to sweep the floors.)

Anyway, I guess my feet felt like they had shoes on, so out the door I went.

I almost went back for my boots, which, by the way are exceedingly cool. Then I figured, fuck it, no one is here anyway. And, if they were here, I live in the Pacific Northwest, where it is normal for people to walk around in Birkies and socks. So even though my feet look like someone's grandma gone wild, it probably just looks normal. So, whatever. Unless you sign my paycheck, I'm not worried about it.

One of my dear friends complains that after she moved here, her gaydar was way the hell off because she kept thinking she saw butch women everywhere (her particular attraction), and they always turned out to be straight girls doing Pacific Northwest. According to her, she can't tell the straight girls from the granola dykes. I found out I had this term wrong one day when I said something about oatmeal dykes, and she about spit her drink out. Whatever. "And where are all the stylish Butches out here?!" she bitches. "On the East Coast, people knew how to dress, where the fuck is the style? Flannel is not a damn style!"
Oh, well, I don't know about all that, all I know is that today I did not have to go back home to get my cool-ass boots, because Birkies and socks is pretty much normal here. That works for me.

I just have to remember to get my boots before I hit Male Offspring's tournament today.