delara, interrupted

A really cool thing is happening outside my office window right now. The sun is shining (which is amazing in and of itself), it is lightly snowing, and the net result is that every now and then a gently falling snowflake catches the sun for a split second and sparkles as it descends. It's like showering glitter everywhere! Amazing!

Lacey, Nas and I were talking this morning about how the snow that had accumulated overnight looked so fake this morning. It hadn't compacted yet, so it was super fluffy and almost looked like the fake snow they use in movies. What I love about fluffy snow, though, is you can see the individual flakes and all their intricate designs. In the most corny way possible, I mentioned how it STILL blows my mind that every snowflake is unique. EVERY snowflake!! Unbelievable! Of course, they just laughed at me. Silly mortals...

Hopefully, the snow is sticking around. I know - not the most popular wish in Chicago these days. But we are not-so-secretly planning a SLEDDING DAY next Saturday (because some of us will be busy or out of town this Saturday) and we need snow for that. The agenda will look something like this, thanks to the masterful planning of Kari and Tiff:

1. wake up
2. have bagels, cream cheese and oj for breakfast
3. drive to Wisconsin
4. sled for a bit
5. have some hot cocoa and lunch
6. sled some more - maybe engage in a snowball fight or two
7. have a second cup of hot cocoa
8. drive home
9. bask in the glory of having had the most fun day evah!

Yeah. It's like that.

Posted by Delara at 10:07 AM | Permalink | Comments (8)

Sunset last night was AMAZING. I so wish I had the foresight to bust out my camera and take a photo of it. Instead, I just enjoyed it, especially reflected in the windows of the condo building across the way from our office building. Despite the 4 or 5-foot piles of snow everywhere and the frigid air, it was glorious. Like a typical summer sunset, with rich layers of orange, pink, purple, yellow and blue. Luscious.

And this morning, the one window in the house that faces east was just beaming! I love that - that perfect moment in the morning when the sun is just high enough that it pours in through the window and coats the room in a warm vanilla yellow. Love. It.

Aaaaaaah. Ok, my day can resume now.

Posted by Delara at 09:49 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)

This past weekend was GLORIOUS. Because, above all else, I got to SLEEEEEEEPP! In fact, almost all day on Saturday. And all was right in the world again.

Halo 2, spades, great conversation about pushy Persians, and DDR Max took us well into the evening on Saturday - once I finally woke up and went to the gym. Sweat is good. Technology is good. Life is good.

But wait! Friday was supah cool too! Our dear friend Bud Humphrey recently finished a four-day winning streak on Jeopardy - he lasted FOUR DAYS, my friends. That means he's hella smart. AND - to add to the drama - he lost by only $1 on his last day. ONE DOLLAR, people! Wow.

So, Friday night we celebrated his coolness at a party in Park Ridge, after battling through the snowstorm. 4WD is good.

And then, Sunday was all about Star Trek movies (three of them for me in any case) and foiled attempts at playing RISK - er, at least foiled attempts while we were still at Greg's. Perhaps they actually got a game going once we left... stinkers.

But wait... there's more! Well, no - not really.

Posted by Delara at 09:41 AM | Permalink | Comments (4)

Why, oh why, am I hopelessly awake at 2:47am when I need to wake up for Thursday at 7:00am??

Why, oh why, did I drink coffee (albeit decaf) AND tea today, knowing that it would completely dry me out and give me a headache and congestion, which it has??

Why, oh why, did I not leave work on time in order to make it to the gym before going to have dinner at dad's tonight?

And finally, when will I have time (set the time aside?) to write some beautifully candid and loving letters to friends with whom I have not caught up in, oh, months, even years??

Riddle me these.

Posted by Delara at 02:47 AM | Permalink | Comments (6)

Two questions.

One:
What do you answer to "So, what's new and exciting?" when the most new and exciting thing in your life is the realization that Minnie Driver is now a (WHAT??) musical performer?

Corollary to this question: does one ALWAYS have to have something "new and exciting" happening in his/her life in order to be considered cool or remotely interesting and therefore worthy of continuing conversation?

Two:
How, exactly, does one get out of dodge if he/she has never been in dodge? Or even knows where dodge is?

Madness, I tell you. Madness.

Posted by Delara at 11:38 PM | Permalink | Comments (11)

Two of the most awesome and brainy guys I know have made it to blog central. They have no idea what they have signed up for. Please join me in welcoming...

George (otherwise known as Dr. Hatcher)

and

Richard (otherwise known as Dr. Brown)

YAY! Let the celebration commence!

Posted by Delara at 11:22 PM | Permalink | Comments (3)

As usual, I have been in meetings. But GREAT meetings. Seriously, I think I am one of the few people in the world who can actually say that they enjoy meetings. Well, really I enjoy the people with whom I meet. But it's all the same.

Also, I'm in a bit of a downswing at the moment. I think I'm absorbing some of my brothers' stress. Yes, both of them are going through some challenges, and as any loving sister would I'm absorbing their pain to lighten the load a bit. At least for now. It's all good... I do love them so!

So, perhaps some quiet time is in order. And it's just as well - this week has gotten amazingly busy! But don't worry, I'll be chatting up a storm in no time!

Posted by Delara at 12:26 AM | Permalink

So, my word for the day is penury - and although it is, yet again, not a new word for me, I love this word. It's just fun to say. Penury. And for some reason, when Lacey walked into my office, I said to her, "The password for today is penury," in a very quiet voice. Where did that come from?!?? Well, it came from some gameshow I apparently watched as a kid. Remember "Password"? Then, Nas, being the youngster that she is (har har), said, "What's Password? Oh, that must have been some gameshow that was on well before my time." Like I said, har har.

In looking it up on one of my favorite websites - snopes.com - we came up with this somewhat hysterical/somewhat sad account of how it was rumored that when given the clue "doe", an African-American contestant guessed "knob" instead of "deer." Well, I'll let you read the whole story here.

Needless to say, this could become a WHOLE other blog thread running through Kari's blog and my blog. And possibly 5-6 others. Anyone up for tackling stereotypes, prejudice and racism?

Just some light morning reading...

Posted by Delara at 09:52 AM | Permalink | Comments (3)

This entry could just as easily be called "The Light and Dark Sides of Technological Advancement" or "Wild On Technology - Ibiza". (Kidding about the second title.)

1. Mr. Hegedus (aka "Get-Up-And-Boogie Greg") passed along to me this link (World Community Grid) last night, and I haven't been able to stop thinking about how freakin' cool this is!

2. My inbox had 58 new messages this morning - which was odd since I had checked email on Saturday. (Lame, I know.) So, as I went through it all, I realized most of it was spam - and HILARIOUS spam at that. Check out the "From" and "Subject" fields!! Someone had a lot of time on their hands.

Posted by Delara at 11:40 AM | Permalink | Comments (3)

January 1st has always been a special day for me, but not because of the usual reasons for which people might feel this way. There is a newness about the day that is unlike any other. (Except maybe March 21 - ask me about that sometime.) It's almost like the day on which a baby is born. Fresh, clean, unique, precious. I'm not into "new year's resolutions" per se because I've observed that for most people (including myself) they're an empty ritual full of empty promises. But I do get very reflective on this day, and marking it somehow is always a joy.

3 or 4 years ago, I spent a very special new year's day with some of my closest girlfriends. Amelia and Charla were among the crew gathered that day, and the activity of choice was reflecting on our heart's desire - specifically, attracting into our lives our heart's desire. What we chose to identify as our heart's desire was different for each of us - a husband, an ideal job, more financial security, a better sense of a "calling"... Although most of us admittedly focused on finding our ideal mate. (as if such a thing actually exists...) So we created a plan to realize our heart's desire, listing qualities we seek, what we were willing to commit or contribute to the search, etc.

Since that gathering, each of us has gone through significant changes in our life - separation, marriage, loss of a loved one, new jobs, no jobs, etc. Each of us has also worked actively on our "attraction plans" and has supported the others in pursuing our heart's desire. Some of us have actually attained or attracted into our lives those very things we mapped out that day. Most significantly, though, new bonds that can be traced back to that new year's day have sustained us through a lot of life's events and have only grown stronger and deeper over time - a precious gift by any standard.

Today, I had another wonderful bonding experience - with the delightful Kari. After our supah-fun pah-tay last night (food and games galore!) Kari stayed over, having just driven back from MN. We had such a great time today, not even doing anything in particular. There was much lounging, in fact. But it was just such a great time! And now I'm looking forward to the growth of this bond and the amazing new ideas that will be realized (between the two of us I really think we'll rule the world one day) over the coming years.

What I am most grateful for as this new year begins are the phenomenal friendships with which I have been blessed over the years - some long-standing, some nascent. All significant contributors to who I am and what I am able to do with my life. I look forward to sharing many more of life's joys and experiences together. Thank you, all.

And happy new year.

Posted by Delara at 09:43 PM | Permalink | Comments (3)