Thursday

On Thursday, I went to work. I like my job. I don’t love it, but I like it – it’s great experience and I learn a lot, and I’m never going to have a boss as great as the one I have right now. What I don’t like is that I sit all day in my windowless office. Unless deadlines are looming, or it’s a particularly difficult case, I don’t see or talk to a lot of people. That’s the part of my job I’m not crazy about. That, and the whole day passes me by and I have no idea what’s going on in the outside world, because I have no windows.

On Thursday, work was the same. I worked, and I was finalizing some particularly frustrating cases. After work, we had a work thing. My friend Alice got a new job and is leaving our office. Boo for leaving, but woohoo for her finding a job that she’s excited about. So a bunch of people from our office went out after work. We ate at J.Buck’s – it’s pretty much the go-to restaurant since it’s approximately .25 feet from our office building. We had fun times, and then I went to the grocery store to buy supplies for my holiday cookie exchange party, and then I went home. It was getting late, after all.

When I got to my door, a huge box was waiting for me. The night before, I’d gotten a notice from Fed-Ex that I missed a delivery. So I had signed to have it delivered the next day, thinking it was my parents shipping me my Christmas presents (to open them alone), and I was not pleased. However, I was wrong, so I quickly retracted my displeasure with my parents. This box was massive. I bent down to look at the address and recognized it as from a friend in Fort Smith. As I was about to try to figure out where to cut the box open, I noticed helpful arrows and instructions pointing one direction, saying, “Open here” and “A good place to open.” It’s true that I generally hate being told what to do, but in this case I appreciated it, so I took the advice and opened there. I want to say I was immediately delighted when I opened the box, but that would be a lie. All I could see were Styrofoam peanuts and a card addressed to “Headband Davis,” a nickname I abide because I love my friend and it’s pretty funny. In case you are confused by this nickname, you should know that I like to wear headbands. See, look over to the right, I even say it in my description of myself. I like headbands. If you still don’t understand the nickname, then I’m not sure we can be friends anymore. (Just kidding, we can be friends – Bless your heart).

On Thursday, it had been at least 3 weeks since I last talked to my friend. This was a complete, out-of-the-blue surprise. And it was awesome. The card was awesome, too – one of those square ones from Hallmark that I love. And it said one sentence: “A window for your office.” By that time, I was talking to myself. I just kept thinking, “No, way!” But it was true. I threw peanuts every which way to see for myself. Sure enough, inside this box was a window. I pulled out the window and fell in love with it – it’s from an old building, complete with distressed wood. In my excitement, I dumped out the entire peanut contents of the box. That might have been a mistake. But they were quickly (er, eventually) put back in the box. And then I sat there and admired my window. It’s beautiful.

It was an amazing, grand gesture that makes me smile. A lot. My friend sent me a window. Never in my life would I have thought of this, but in so many ways, it was a perfect gift.

I got a window. How was your Thursday?

Year in Review

In lieu of something really good, here's what I've got for now. I'm going to try to write more soon. By the way, today was a really amazing and wonderful day, filled with one of the most unexpected surprises. So cool. Someday, maybe I'll tell you about it.

So, the year is coming to an end. In January, I crafted a list of things that I would make resolutions, if I wanted to resolve things. Below is the list, along with my introductory comments that I originally included, as well as comments on my progress with this list. As the year ends, I’m going to try to think about those things that I want to add to the list and expand on for next year.

“So I’ve been thinking. It’s a new dawn, it’s a new day, it’s a new life (insert Michael Buble song here), and everybody’s talking about resolutions. Yes, I realize I’m a little late on the bandwagon, but not because I haven’t been thinking about it. More because there are so many things I would like to resolve to do for this year. But see, if I make these actual resolutions, then I’m going to feel guilty for not doing them, or spend all my time worrying about when they’re going to happen. So I’ve compiled an advisory list of things that I might at some point make resolutions if I were going to do so.

If I were to make some resolutions, here’s what they’d be:”

1. Take the Missouri bar in July (ugh.) – Done and done. . . and PASSED
2. Get in shape and lose some weight – after all, I have PCOS, which puts me at risk for heart disease, diabetes, cervical cancer, and infertility (among other things). This is really the least I can do. – meh. I work out on a generally regular basis. I’ll take it.
3. Read at least 10 books that challenge me and/or my way of thinking this year. – oh, wow. I don’t know if it’s been 10, but In Cold Blood was amazing. I read Catcher in the Rye and Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil – both for the first time ever. I also loved The Girl who Played with Fire, The Thirteenth Tale, In the Woods, The Likeness, and Catching Fire.
4. Go to Hawaii. – Did it!!! Amazing. Loved it, even if I was there for a conference.
5. Go to DC for the Cherry Blossom Festival. – didn’t do it. Am okay with that. Apparently have plans to go April 2011. So if you’re up for a trip to DC then, let me know.
6. Make friends in St. Louis – yes, I have a few. Not a lot, but I like the ones I’ve got.
7. Strengthen my relationship with my brother (I’m not saying that it’s bad, either) – I think so. He’s going to be a dad in February. He’s going to be a wonderful father.
8. Get a Wii (more for Mario Kart than Wii Fit). – nah. I have other things to do with my money. You know, like buy stuff for my new niece. And drool over electronic readers.
9. Figure out, understand, and be confident in my finances – hmm. I’m working on it. Or I’m going to marry an accountant. One or the other.
10. Find a cause in St. Louis that I’m passionate about and get involved – hmm. Did not.
11. Become a card-sending encourager – I sometimes do this. I could always do this more.
12. Spend as much time as is humanly possible with the important people in my life – I did pretty well on this one. I got to spend amazing fun times with Amy, Kelly, Bryan, Marcus, Kaylan, Heather, Amber, my friends in Tulsa, some Blackstone buds, and, most importantly, my family. Will always be looking for more opportunities to make that happen.
13. Write 3 things I’m really proud of. (And no, I may not count this theoretical resolution list. . . or the Missouri bar exam. . . or work products; Yes, I may count funny retellings of my life experiences) – I have written less than I thought I would. I don’t love that, but I’m excited about having this blog. . . even if I don’t always consistently write on it.
14. Be funnier – you know, it depends on the audience. Some people bring out the funny in me. Some don’t.
15. Allow other people to suggest things to resolve (but be willing to completely ignore those suggestions if I find them too difficult, too challenging, or not funny [see No. 14]) – I did this. Successfully.