Friday, February 12, 2010

Antidote for the Thesis Blues

My friend Megan recently posted on her blog all of the small things that both make her happy and help her get through the blustery days of winter (and the challenges of new motherhood). I applaud her optimism (one of the many reasons she is my friend) and am going to adopt her topic for today's Friday blog post. Here the things that make me happy in a world full of snow and thesis writing:

1. David's cooking. Actually, just David in general! (Hey, we're newlyweds, I reserve the right to be overly enthusiastic.) But if he hasn't cooked for you, you really should be lining up outside our apartment for dinner.

2. Muppet characters of any kind, particularly Kermit the Frog. Though I prefer old school classics like Muppets Take Manhattan, I do also like that the Muppets are making a mainstream comeback in the form of Disney-based commercials on ABC.

3. Snow! I absolutely love snow and the winter season, I just hate being cold and driving in bad weather. (Somewhat of a paradox, I know.) But from out the window, it's wonderfully appealing.

4. Valentine's Day. I know what many of you are thinking - how could I possibly love a holiday seemingly created by Hallmark to get tons of consumers to spend lots of money on chocolates and sappy cards??? I guess I am just not cynical enough to have ever looked at it from that perspective. I love the fact that a day exists where we can send messages of love to the important people in our lives, especially since life gets so busy and it is so easy to take those important people for granted amidst the hustle and bustle. So I will be baking brownies, sending Valentines, and buying David something ridiculously sappy and cute. So there. (And for the record, why isn't everyone in support of any and every holiday that encourages chocolate eating?? If you don't like the romantic pressure associated with Valentine's Day, at least go out and get yourself some chocolate for goodness sake.)

5. Pizza of all kinds. In fact, I will be thoroughly enjoying leftover deep dish for lunch in 15 minutes or so.

6. TV shows. Grey's Anatomy, Project Runway, American Idol, The Office, The Good Wife, Mad Men, Top Chef, Archer, Glee...what can I say, I'm an addict. DVR and the staggering of TV seasons is a wonderful thing. My husband plays WoW and I watch too much television. We'll make great parents. :-P

7. Great Expectations. Best. Book. EVER.

8. The Maroon 5 single from the Valentine's Day movie soundtrack, "The Way You Look Tonight." I never get tired of this song to begin with, but put it in the hands of my favorite band to reinvent and it's like hearing it for the first time.

9. Mimosas. (And no, they don't just make me happy just because I tend to consume them while I'm waiting for breakfast food.)

10. Getting the mail every day. I love letters in particular, but I do enjoy just getting snail mail addressed to me in general.

11. Reading magazines. My current favorites are Time, Entertainment Weekly, and Real Simple.

12. The Love Letters blog on Boston.com. Another guilty pleasure, I have so many of them. But there is something comforting about people wearing their hearts on their internet sleeve and a group of readers offering their support through the comment feed everyday. I usually find these things to fall into the category of TMI, but this blog got the better of me.

Happy Friday to you, doing the things that make you happy with the people that make you happy when you are with them!

2 comments:

The Fearless Fowler said...

Lists of things that make one happy are wonderful - whether to combat the winter blahs or thesis blahs or life blahs! I am glad you started your own list. It's fun to read what makes others happy. Also, one can never be too enthusiastic about one's spouse. I think being unabashedly in love is great and need not be propped up by the excuse of "newlywed." Just please don't wear matching sweaters or put the words to the song "Valentine" on your blog for David. Hope your thesis battles continue to go well!

Sarah said...

Ha! We do have the same Penn t-shirt, but David always makes sure to tell me when he is going to wear it so that I do not put it on as well!

BTW - you were right about Levi. He is a wonderful distraction from ANYTHING, but particularly from my thesis document. What a cute kid (just like his parents). I can't wait to meet him someday. Thanks for the photos :)