Posts Tagged ‘observations’

What are your fears?

laelene Posted in general blog，Tags: , , ,
09 March 2016
0

I’m not a very fearful person.

I’m not scared of bugs, or rollercoasters, or flying, or snakes, or public speaking, or traveling alone, or so many of the other common fears people seem to have.

The creature-related fears come up a lot since I volunteer at the National Museum of Natural History and I handle caterpillars, grasshoppers, hissing cockroaches, various beetles, Australian stick insects, butterflies, moths, tarantulas, and vinageroons/whip scorpions. I’m constantly amazed at the folks who are grossed out or terrified of these guys. Obviously if we have them out at the museum, they’re not going to hurt you. Yet children still cringe and cry when a butterfly circles them with their erratic dance and adults still make a face and stay ten feet away when they see a live insect or arachnid on someone’s hand.

Or take my friend, who is afraid of traveling by herself. Granted, this is probably something a LOT of people have not done or may never do. But the limitations you put on yourself when you can’t bring yourself to strike out on your own can keep you from a certain independence and self-discovery. I love my time traveling on my own, especially in foreign countries. I find those the most rewarding experiences to look back on. Should fear of some stranger in the world hurting you stop you from trying this? Or should you plan carefully, be vigilant and smart, and go for it?

Things like these make me wonder why people are so fearful. Of course, I’m not without my own fears, which generally are related to dying and pain, like falling from really high up (so stable buildings are fine, but if I have to balance on something to cross a chasm…) or not having some stability in my life (financial, emotional, or otherwise). But my fears don’t come up very often and they don’t make me shake or scream or cry or run away. So how do people deal with these fears they have that probably come up pretty consistently?

You’re bound to find a spider or two in your home at some point. You’ll probably board a plane to travel. You may not have to do massive speaking events, but you’ll probably have to present in front of a group occasionally.

So if you’re afraid of these things, what do you do? Do you spend exorbitant amounts of time worrying, fretting, sweating? Do you try to avoid them at all costs? I’m curious.

For me, when my fears come up, it’s more about planning for the future. This usually means that I spend some of my time concerned about the idea, but that allows me to consider how to prevent unwanted situations. I imagine having to deal with death and maybe I cry at the thought, but then I think about how I would get through it. I think about what life would be like if I had no money or I was all alone and consider the hard choices I might make. These are the types of fears I tend to have, about things that haven’t happened. It makes it a lot easier to deal with since I have time to think through possible reactions and courses of action.

My fears are mostly things I may never have to go through. I find it fascinating all the fears of things people have do have to contend with. Why am I not afraid of them? Why are so many people? And what are your fears?

A freezing office was killing our productivity

laelene Posted in general blog, lifestyle glimpses，Tags: , , ,
23 October 2015
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For months, the temperature of the office was almost a daily topic of discussion. It was always freezing for at least half of us, and a comfortable cool for the others. It got to the point where I had to wear at least two jackets in the office (which was pretty ridiculous considering it was blazing hot outside). Why waste all that energy to overcompensate for the external heat? Why does it always get SO cold in offices in the summer? It’s really counterproductive.

I would spend my days chugging hot water. The moment I stopped, I’d feel the numbing cold and have trouble focusing on anything else. It was dreadful to spend so much of my work hours uncomfortable and even in pain at times. Those of us who were cold were constantly thinking about how to stay warm, which couldn’t have been good for our productivity. I mean, I actually brought in a blanket that I put on my chair and wrapped around my legs when I worked. Many of us had little heaters at our desks as well, but after one blew a fuse, they weren’t allowed anymore.

Every couple of days, our office manager would call in the maintenance guys who would tell us everything was fine and the temperature was not abnormally low. Tell that to our icy cold hands. Finally, one day one of the sales folks joked about it being like a meat locker in the office – were we trying to keep raw meat from going bad? That sparked a discussion about how insanely cold it was and I shared an article about productivity in warmer temperatures. Some quotes from that article:

When our body’s temperature drops, we expend energy keeping ourselves warm, making less energy available for concentration, inspiration, and insight.

A forthcoming paper from researchers at UCLA even shows that brief exposure to warmer temperatures leads people to report higher job satisfaction.

When we experience warmth, we experience trust. And vice versa.

We know that cold temperatures worsen productivity. What new research is showing is that it can also corrode the quality of our relationships.

Great workplaces aren’t simply the product of good organizational policies. They emerge when employees connect with one another and form meaningful relationships that engender trust. What’s often overlooked is that connections don’t operate in a vacuum.

It seems obvious that the temperature of a restaurant or theater can alter our experience. So why do we continue to neglect it in the workplace?

It makes sense after all, since if you look at Maslow’s hierarchy of needs, the very basis of survival includes physiological needs. How could be possibly expect to be able to operate well in relationships and higher level thinking and work if we couldn’t even satisfy the innate need for body function? Obviously our resources would be redirected towards trying to alleviate that unmet need, not leaving much room for the work we were supposed to be doing.

After this rather lengthy discussion, complete with pictures of how people were piling on the layers to combat the cold, we finally got the thermostat changed. Suddenly, I could wear only one jacket, and a light one at that! Sometimes after drinking my mug of hot water I could even take off the jacket momentarily. It was amazing and immediately lifted the mood of all those who had been freezing before. Now temperature is hardly a consideration at work. Sometimes the office still feels cold, but not nearly as bad. Hopefully it will continue to stay at a steady 74 degrees or higher. Those who didn’t mind the cold before certainly don’t seem to be too hot in this new temperature.

I’m much happier and can actually focus on work without having to consider how to stay warm throughout the day. It’s pretty incredible that something pretty simple took so long to fix (and that it feels oh so rewarding). I no longer yearn to work from home just so I could feel my fingers when I type. Isn’t that glorious?

The Italian way of life

laelene Posted in general blog, lifestyle glimpses，Tags: , , , , , ,
15 October 2015
0

After Panda and I got to spend some time in Rome and the surrounding area, we learned a lot about Italian culture. I don’t seem to remember much of it from my first time in the country, either because I didn’t experience things the same, didn’t notice that time around, or forgot after all these years. I mean, it’s been 8 years! So here are some observations about how Italians seem to live their lives – while I still remember them all.

-They say “prego” a lot. Apparently this is a word that can mean many things in many contexts, so it is both highly useful for those who know it and highly confusing for those who don’t. Half the time I was wondering what the prego was supposed to imply in each given situation. The only one I got a hang of was when service folks used it to see if you needed anything. I’m pretty sure Panda used it a few times at times when it made no sense. 😛

-There are a lot of smokers, everywhere. At least they are on the streets and not inside! I’d forgotten how many more smokers you encounter on the streets of Europe and it’s really rather unpleasant. I’m always holding my breath, ducking clouds of smoke, and hoping I don’t stink of it myself by the end of the day.

roma trastavere train station in rome-Public transportation (and life) seems pretty lax. We got on many a train where our tickets weren’t checked at all. Not sure if the underground metro worked the same since we never ended up using that. The schedule generally works well, but the last night, we had a train that was 85 minutes late! At one point I found myself wondering why I wasn’t upset and why nobody else seemed upset either. That also seems to go with the generally lax approach. For us, it was because we were on vacation and just heading back to the hotel. No need to fret. For locals, perhaps they never even considered it a problem.

-Personal space is either nonexistent or like a one-inch radius from your body. I had multiple instances where people got too close for comfort, but they didn’t seem to notice a thing. At first it was just a couple who sat at the same bar stool area that Panda and I were eating at in McDonald’s (yes, we tried a local one). Out of all of the empty areas in the restaurant, they chose to be two seats away from us at the same table. I would have gotten a table to ourselves. Then there was a guy on the bus who swayed with the turns of the vehicle. Sometimes that meant bumping into me, despite the fact that he had a good two feet in front of him and even more to the sides. It was especially cringe-worthy because he reeked of cigarette smells. He also managed to brush hands with Panda when they were holding the same pole. At our stop, we both got off relieved to have some breathing room. Finally, there were the people who sat directly behind us on a long bench even though the entire rest of it was empty. And it was a loooong bench! I mean, you could easily seat at least 20 people on each side. Why did they have to come back to back with us, leaving just inches between our bodies? I don’t get it. Maybe I’m too Americanized. Funny enough though, this is something I expect in Asia, so I might not even notice it there.

-Street performers and hawkers are abound. Tons of musicians will perform all over the place and random people walk up to you casually selling battery packs for your devices, selfie sticks, flowers, or toys. For these type of people, the best policy for me has been no eye contact. Once you give them attention, they won’t leave you alone!

-In Rome for sure, but maybe more of Italy, they have little water spigots all over the place, which act as water fountains. The water never stops running out of them and you can go grab a few sips or fill up your water bottle at any of them. In fact, I remember my tour guide from my previous visit mentioning that all water fountains in Rome have drinking water – except Trevi Fountain. So hey, you really can’t go thirsty, can you?

And when it comes to food, oh my! What a difference…

italian outdoor seating on roads-First of all, they have some interesting outdoor seating. Oftentimes it’s a few tables and chairs that are actually on the road, off the curb. In more busy areas, they have a little barrier to create a sort of “room” for people to sit in. This would be life-threatening in the states, but in Italy it’s the norm!

-Just about every restaurant has morning and evening hours, with a break in the middle. Between 3-7, your meal options are very limited, so if you like to have dinner at 5 or 6, you better do your research. Dinners start late and go late in this part of the world. Personally, I’d rather eat earlier and get home.

-As you get each course, they tend to take away the food of the previous course. It seems irrelevant if you’ve still got a hunk of food on your plate. At first we were startled by this, but now I make sure to explain that I haven’t finished. I’m partial to eating a little bit of each course and switching between more than one at a time. This is why I love tapas, izakaya, dim sum, etc.

-This is the land of “beware what you ask for.” They tend to charge for all things, including bread, water, and sometimes even olive oil. If you really don’t care for it, don’t ask for it! Just say no (or no thanks).

ristochicco fettucine and roasted potatoes

I wanted fettucine with a tomato-based sauce, but they only offered a cream-based one that night.

-Menus are quite set (little to no flexibility to request modifications to a dish) and very seasonal – to the point that it’s a day to day, hour to hour kind of thing. That means that you can look forward to much fresher options, but it also means that the awesome picture you saw on Yelp may not be applicable to your visit. (Yes, that happened to me. Sad times.) I’ve seen some restaurants with very strict rules on ordering with no straying from exactly how the dishes are offered. The chefs are in control and rather finicky too. I’m not used to such particular ways and it doesn’t bode well for a picky eater like myself.

-Service is always slow. I’m not sure if it’s because of the relaxed pace of life or the fact that these establishments appear perpetually understaffed. Or if they’re “understaffed” by American standards because everyone takes it slow and they don’t need to go any faster. Either way, we’ve had to plan extra time for meals because we know it will take forever to get our order in, get leftovers boxed, and finally receive and pay our bill.

So there you go! Some of the lessons learned from our observations of how Italians do things. Have you experienced this too? What did I miss in my list?

That whistling gal

laelene Posted in general blog，Tags: , , ,
21 August 2014
0

Today, my coworker started chuckling when I walked towards her whistling. I thought it was because of something else, but when I asked her why she was laughing, she said it always amuses her when I whistle, since she usually only hears guys do that. I’ve never really thought about that before, but it’s true enough. I can’t seem to think of a single female I know who also whistles. I haven’t considered that from the perspective of those who see me. What do they think when I whistle? Is that an oddity?

It’s interesting how something so normal to me suddenly gets this halo of specialness just because of my gender. Why don’t more women whistle? In the public eye, the women I’ve seen whistling generally do those really shrill, loud whistles to get attention. Is there a time when they’re just whistling a tune like I often do? I’m going to be more self-conscious when I whistle now. It always seemed rather natural to me to try to whistle and when I finally taught myself how, I just kept practicing. Today’s observation has brought new light on this activity. I’m not sure how I feel about that, but I’ll certainly continue my whistling ways. With so few women whistling, I might as well represent.

8 ways my cat is like my fiancé

laelene Posted in general blog，Tags: , , , , , , ,
18 May 2014
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Have you ever marveled at how similar a person and an animal have been? I often wonder if Smokey is just Panda (my fiancé) in feline form. They’re so similar in their personalities and preferences that they’re perfect for each other. So much for me getting a pet cat! More like them finding soul mates in each other. Curious what I mean? Here’s a round-up of ways “my” cat is like my fiancé…

1. They’re both kinda awkward. Panda’s an engineer who often fits that stereotype. He’s a bit gangly, not always socially appropriate, and just kind of off in his own world at times. Smokey can stare into space and get lost in her little head. She doesn’t always respond the way you’d expect and she runs kind of crooked. Both very silly, but totally adorable nonetheless.

2. They’re both bad communicators. I am always working with Panda on how he expresses himself (like how he used “veer” when he meant “leer”) and how he misinterprets the meaning of phrases. He doesn’t always use the English language to its full advantage. Meanwhile, Smokey will meow at us as if she wants something, but never follows through. My other cats make it clear when they meow if they want attention or food or something. Smokey just meows and then appears to have no purpose. I wonder if that’s because…

3. They both have poor memories. Panda never seems to remember things I bring up and Smokey seems to forget something happened as soon as she turns around. Perhaps their confusing communication efforts are due to these memory lapses?

4. They both eat and sleep a lot. You’d never know it looking at Panda, but he eats a ton (and never puts on weight). He can certainly chow down and Smokey does the same. She goes through bowls of food like nobody’s business! And when they’re done eating, they can both sleep up a storm. Whereas I usually wake up after 7 or 8 hours, they’ll go on for 10, 12 hours easily.

cat sleeping soundly against soft blanket and pillow

Big sleepers in this family.

5. They both love to play. Panda is always enjoying games and toys, like his little Lego people and even happy meal toys. Smokey will bat around anything she can find, from bottle caps to wads of paper. She’s a huge fan of chasing around a laser dot and playing with her squeaking mouse toy. Lucky for her, Panda is more than happy to play with her. 🙂

6. They both like to pet people. Panda will come around and pet my head like I’m a cat sometimes, which is a funny goofy thing he does. Little did I know that Smokey would like to “pet” us in her own way… by putting her paw on our faces (claws out, ouch!). Maybe they just like to put their hands on things.

7. They’re both scaredy cats. I’m the brave one in the family, staying calm for most things. Panda gets super nervous/worried/scared about things and stresses himself out. He gets startled whenever Smokey is feeling playful and decides to pounce on his feet. He’s intimidated by bugs. And Smokey? Every little noise or movement could cause her to jump alert and/or run off in fear.

8. They both stretch strangely. I often find Panda in a strange position on his side with his knee stretched up and his arm extending through his bent leg. Apparently he finds this comfortable. Smokey is more about stretching completely long, which I’ve never seen a cat do before!

cat laying on carpet with legs stretched out straight behind her

So you see, they were really made for each other. Wouldn’t you agree?

Just enough exercise

laelene Posted in video blog，Tags: , , , ,
01 April 2014
0

Sometimes people do the silliest things. When I was at the airport a few weeks back, I noticed this guy putting his suitcase on the escalator, then rushing down the stairs to meet it at the bottom. Apparently taking the suitcase down the stairs was too much exercise for him and taking the escalator himself was too little exercise (or something like that).

suitcase on escalator from Mary Qin on Vimeo.

Weird. Wonderful.

laelene Posted in lifestyle glimpses, photo blog，Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,
10 December 2013
1

Yesterday. What an… unusual day. Today. Another oddity. (But scattered in between were precious moments of wonder too.)

Let’s start from the beginning. I got to sleep in a bit yesterday because we had our condo walk-through scheduled for 10. It wouldn’t make sense for me to go to work first, so I just met Panda there. I originally planned on going to Target first to go return some stuff and get a notebook, but the time I allocated for that got taken up by a challenging deicing process. I’d completely forgotten about the icy rain the night before and found my car encased in one solid layer of ice.

tree branches completely encased in layer of ice

I woke to a very frozen world!

car door handle completely covered in layer of ice

I couldn’t even open the car door by pressing the button.

top of car covered in ice with small stick pointing straight up encased in ice too

Haha, there was even a bit of ice standing straight up around that little stick thing. Nothing can escape the layer of ice!

iced over pine trees with tops missing from breaking off due to the weight of the ice

As I was cleaning off my car, I heard crackling and I thought someone was pouring hot water on ice, but it turns out the trees were breaking apart.

When I finally got it all off the windows, I headed to the condo. Along the way, I was careful to keep a distance from the other cars. The van in front of me started shedding ice sheets when it picked up speed and eventually my own came flying off too. We met at our new home and were taken inside by one of the guys who manages all the construction. He showed us all the light switches, faucets, doors, rooms, plugs, appliances, windows, heating and cooling systems, plumbing, etc. We have a lot of low flow options to help save water, including the toilet, shower heads, and kitchen faucet. I played with a bunch of the windows, which flip inwards so we can easily clean the outside. Smart! The demo guy was baffled that I wore a heavy jacket and multiple layers, yet bounded around barefoot, even stepping outside like it wasn’t freezing out. I’d never thought that was weird and suddenly I felt like a nymph or something after that, haha. It was fun to see everything brand new and ready for use! This is our new place!!

new kitchen in condo with stainless steel appliances, wood cabinets, and granite countertops

I’m so glad we went with stainless steel appliances. Lovin’ the kitchen!

large open space of living and dining room with cherry hardwood floors

I joke about turning this into a dance studio… wouldn’t that be cool?

master bathroom with standing shower, bath tub, sinks on opposite sides, and toilet

I can’t wait to have a shower where I don’t have to deal with a curtain!!

master bathroom sink with vanity area, dark granite countertops, and light wooden drawers

This sink is mine and the opposite one will be Panda’s. I might need some of his drawers though. 😛

master bedroom in new condo with tray ceiling

The master looks smaller when it’s not the model home, but we don’t want a giant space anyway.

paperwork for new condo with manuals for appliances and other instructions

They provide us with a ton of manuals so we can figure out how to operate and maintain everything.

hallway of new condo with hardwood flooring

On the opposite end is my favorite room, the most massive one that’s about the size of a two-car garage. I would love to get a grand piano and pool table in it, lol. Totally not happening anytime soon, if ever. But the dream lives on… From this room you can see straight down to the kitchen.

hallway bathroom with standard countertop and tiles

The hall bath is for the other bedrooms and guests. It’s the only counters that aren’t granite – the upgrade just wasn’t worth it.

new condo porch with white railing and view of houses in back

Oh I’m going to love hanging out on the porch when it’s warmer.

evergreen oil lamp from homegrown collective november 2013 box made with pine cones, evergreen clippings, berries, and parrafin oil in mason jar

I brought along my newest craft as a house warming gift to bring some holiday cheer to the place!

bush with leaves completely frozen over

It’s so fascinating how the ice created that layer over everything.

front door entrance of new condo

I doubt we’ll be using the front door all that much, except to pick up packages that don’t fit in the mailbox!

front of new condo with frozen driveway, one garage door open and one closed, and brick facade

Hello beautiful. I can’t wait to move in!

By the time we finished, it was about 11:30 and Panda and I went to get an early lunch together before going to work. Apparently I’d missed a fire alarm at our office that morning and not long after arriving, I was heading to the restroom when the doorbell rang. Since I was on my way, I went to answer it and found a guy from the power company telling me he had orders to shut off our power. I thought I’d been pranked and the shock of that announcement had me completely baffled. A lot of people weren’t in the office due to the weather, so I didn’t even know who to get. We eventually got that sorted out… whew!

melting icicles on car's mirror

By the time we went to lunch, the icicles were nearly all melted.

footprints in snow on grass next to path

Some people decided that walking on the grass was better than the path, I guess.

trees branches covered in layer of ice from winter storm

Good thing these trees were trimmed last month, or the branches might have broken off. This looks so surreal.

Later in the afternoon, Autumnfall asked me to accompany her to the local grocery store to get some candy canes for a promo we’re going to run. Along the way, we had a ton of fun admiring our surroundings, getting pictures of iced over plants and the scenes along the walk. That’s when we saw that breathtaking hawk make a pit stop. As we were nearing the store, a random guy said, “Hey ladies” in a rather creepy way and as we were checking out, this old man stood waaay too close to us even though the line was for four possible registers. Just adding to the strange occurrences of the day. Back in the office, we took some time for a photo shoot with the candy canes and got some pretty hilarious shots. More to come on that, when the promo starts (we’re giving away candy canes)!

walking path flooded with muddy water after winter storm

Our walk turned out to be quite the adventure, with giant puddles and hawk sightings and tunnels to go through. Oh, and creepy men too.

bush with all leaves iced over from winter storm

More iced up plants!

red berries and green leaves of plant covered in layer of ice

Iced up berries!

plant with brown branches and black berries covered in layer of ice from winter storm

Ok, ok, just one more iced plant picture!

thickening fog obscuring cranes atop new construction building

The fog was thickening and starting to obscure the cranes up top.

rectangular ice fallen from pine trees onto pathway

I promised no more iced plants, but here’s just some ice that fell from pine trees!

After work, I made that Target run I’d meant to do in the morning. I ended up exchanging one item and realizing that the other was from Charlotte Russe – oops! And of course I left, completely forgetting that I wanted to get a notebook too. There’s another Target on the way home, so I figured I could go there and also swing by a gas station for gas, but I completely blanked on the exit and missed it. I reeeeally need to write out my thoughts though, so I decided to make a slight detour to yet another Target. When I arrived, there was a girl crying her heart out near the front. It reminded me of how I’ve been feeling lately and I sort of wish I could bawl it out too. But for now, the tears won’t come even when my heart is heavy. Maybe the writing will help. While browsing notebooks, I found a really fun set of festive ones. Even better is that they’re eco-friendly. Always a plus in my book!

colorful bunch of towels hanging out to dry in target store

I thought this looked funny so I took a picture and then a Target guy happened to come to collect them and he explained that they use them to wipe off the carts. Since they don’t have a dryer, they just hang them where they can. How nice! A wet cart is certainly no fun to shop with.

very foggy night with street lights glowing yellow and blurry on the road

Ooh, the fog is really settling in now.

set of three notebooks by green inspired in blue, green, and red with gold dots and quotes

My newest thought-catchers. 🙂 So pretty!
The blue one says “Looking at the stars always makes me dream.” -Vincent van Gogh
The green one says “Happiness is a bright and shining thing.” -Unknown
The red one says “Joy delights in joy.” -William Shakespeare

So finally, I made it home and was watching The Voice and The Sing-Off. After about an hour of the air running, I started to wonder why it wasn’t heating up. I tried resetting the thermostat with no success, so I just turned off the air and bundled up. After doing some writing, blogging, and news watching, I went to bed. I didn’t sleep very well, waking up frequently once it started to get light out. Around 7, I looked out to see the snow blanketing everything. The plow trucks hadn’t made it in yet. I kept going back to sleep and waking up to check on the status of the roads… things didn’t seem to improve much so I decided to work from home today. I had trouble getting up and really working because of the chillier air. I waited a few hours before calling management to send someone to look at it. I learned that there’s an emergency option that uses the heater in the closet rather than whatever’s outside. They figured the outside one got frozen over (no surprise there) so it wasn’t working. I just need to wait for the ice to melt to use it like normal again.

layer of snow covering all ground, cars, and trees

Why good morning, snow.

barefoot on porch in sunlight with shadows of railing

I went outside once the skies cleared and appreciated the sun for a bit.

sun shining brightly through tree branches

When the sun came out, the snow melted from the trees quickly!

During what normally would have been my lunch break, I decided to take a shower. Now that’s one perk I like about working from home! When I want to refresh myself, I can just hop in the shower AND still have plenty of time to eat some lunch. Come 3 in the afternoon, I was getting antsy being alone with no one to talk to for so long while I tried to pound through work. I took advantage of another benefit of working from home and got changed into some workout gear, then went running! I can’t remember the last time I did that (sometime in college probably) and in snow? Gosh, that would have been over a decade ago. Still, it felt good to clear my head even if I was rather out of shape. I listened to some music and just tried to stay in that zone for as long as possible.

brown fungus growing on tree branch

It looks kind of gross, but it kind of reminds me of a fungus I like to eat called wood ears.

sofa sitting by side of road covered in snow from storm

Somebody had left some furniture by the side of the road, like this sofa. Would make for a pretty cool photo shoot!

When I decided to slow for a bit, I found a playground with a little climbing arch and climbed up to sit on it. It was so nice to peer into woods, groove to my music, and shut out the world for awhile. When it got too cold, I got up and jogged back. I had put the key to the apartment in my leggings thinking they were tight enough to keep it in place. When I was going up the final set of stairs, I stopped to pull it out only to find it was gone. I patted all the way down my legs and started to get worried… I guess I’ve learned a lesson about sticking a key in your pants. Doesn’t work so well when you’re jolting it around while running. Luckily, it had stopped falling down right around my ankle. Thank goodness! I then picked up with work again (albeit with slightly shaky fingers).

metal playground equipment with bars in arch shape

Saw this and couldn’t resist. I just had to climb it.

dblcam image of person with headphones in ears against blue sky and feet stepping on bars of playground equipment with snow on ground

Sitting on the bars, enjoying the amazing air as I watched a squirrel in the distance.

running trail covered in snow broken up by footprints

My running path was a little treacherous but I didn’t slip once. What a serene place.

I’ve felt off ever since returning from my extended Thanksgiving break. Last week was cut short since I got back halfway through the week, which kind of threw me off. Now this week has only been two days and it feels like the week should be over already. My internal clock must be all out of whack. I hope tomorrow brings a more normal day; I could certainly use some boring old normalcy in my life right now.

Half mast

laelene Posted in general blog，Tags: , , , ,
23 September 2013
1

I’ve often wondered: Is there some sort of information site that tells you when a flag should be half mast?

american flag billowing at half mast in front of police stationI mean, there are the standard holidays every year that people know about – Memorial Day, Veteran’s Day, and now Patriot Day. But sometimes you get the unexpected, like most recently with the shootings at the Washington Navy Yard. There was one time I remember someone important in politics died (and the reason I knew was because the flag at my post office was at half mast and I wanted to know why).

So how do all the public institutions and businesses ranging from office buildings to plazas to fast food joints know when to raise the flag? Do they check on a website? Back before the WWW came about, did they each have to call in to some pre-recorded line? I mean, this is something that fascinates me because it’s ubiquitous across America. You’ll see flagpoles all over the place, and if you fly a flag, I think you should be respectful enough to pay attention to when it should be lowered. Nowadays with the internet it’s easy to get the word out, but I’m curious how this age-old tradition was managed in decades past.

I don’t know why it intrigues me so much – perhaps just the logistics of effective communication baffling me – but I think it’s pretty amazing no matter how they do it. It takes a concerted effort to pull off something like that, yet to most people it’s probably you never think twice about. I just love how it works so well behind the scenes day in and day out. To all those who are the flag-raisers, thank you for doing what you do.

On My Mind – the debut!

laelene Posted in on my mind，Tags: , , , , , , ,
28 March 2013
7

(Linking up with Jennifer of Ramblings of a Suburban Mom for Thursday Thoughts)

Ok, so I’ve really been enjoying the updates from Jen at Ramblings of a Suburban Mom and I particularly like how she shares her thoughts and what’s going on in her life – most of which we readers/followers can certainly relate to! I often have a ton of random thoughts that I like to share as well, so I’m adapting a version of her “Monday Morning Ramblings” + “Tuesday Troubles” + “So What Wednesdays” + “What I’m Loving Wednesdays” + “Thursday Thoughts” + “Friday iPhone Dump” + “Saturday Smiles.”

I’m going to roll them all into one post every now and then, highlighting what’s been going on and what’s on my mind. And so, I’m dubbing it “On My Mind,” though it will likely include any snippet from my life that I want to share! Call it a “mind dump” if you will. 😛 I’ll try to make it all easy-to-digest bullet points and include some pictures/videos to help illustrate some of the points. So here we go!

firehouse sub sandwich with pickle slice~As I was going through the TSA checkpoint earlier this week, the guy manning the x-ray machine asked who brought the sub sandwich. I had a brief second of “oh no they’re going to confiscate it!” before bracing myself and cheerfully saying, “It’s mine!” He then asked, “Oh and you got a pickle with it too?” He seemed pleased when I was surprised that he could tell there was a pickle slice on the side. Random, but it made me smile.

~When I boarded the plane, I saw a guy mounting his GoPro on the window so he could capture our flight. I can see him doing some sort of time lapse with that footage. I wonder what the end result looks like!

~Why do I always get the wing seats?? I hate having the wings obstructing my view of everything below, but those seem to be the only window seats open whenever I book a flight. I need to travel more and rack up mileage so I can get in front of the wing!

~There were 4 boxes waiting for me when I arrived home and 3 of them were things I had gotten for free! Pretty exciting. Two of those were from winning giveaways and the other was from writing 100+ reviews on Gogobot.

naturopathica holistic health skin care regimen kit for normal to oil skin

Box 1: Naturopathica Skin Care Regimen Kit

naturopathica oat facial polish, rosemary oil-reducing moisturizer, aloe cleansing gel, and plant stem cell serum

Inside the box: Oat Facial Polish, Rosemary Oil-Reducing Moisturizer, Aloe Cleansing Gel, & Plant Stem Cell Serum.

gogobot box of swag with (headphones, bottle opener keychain, t-shirt, and fancy toiletry bag

Box 2: Gogobot swag (headphones, bottle opener keychain, t-shirt, & fancy toiletry bag).

ko denmark jasmine neroli rose body wash

Box 3 had the body wash I’d won from Nuts 4 Stuff!

~That 4th box was a Blissmo box I’d ordered and I attempted to do an unboxing video today. Verdict: I’m not good at it & it’s not worth the effort! I’ll still to pictures for now.

~I was invited to my first survey to qualify for a VoxBox from Influenster! I was sad when I first joined because my score was a lowly 30 and didn’t budge after I completed a bunch of activities. Turns out it just takes their system time to register the new activity and my score jumped to 89! Hopefully I qualify for this mystery box… I’d love to review something like that.

~I’ve been entering a lot of sweepstakes & giveaways and I noticed something funny in many of the Official Rules – if the contest is open to Canadian residents, they require a competency test involving some basic arithmetic… why in the world?!

(click to enlarge) sweepstakes official rules requiring canadians to pass arithmetic test

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