31 Things

Gentle Reader,

It’s my birthday!

And I haven’t slept in four nights.

So nothing deep for you here today. Just a list, presented in an order of no significance whatsoever.

31 of My Favorite Things That Should Probably Be Your Favorite Things (Unless You’re a Man, in Which Case Some of These will Not Apply)

1. Sleeping late on a rainy day.

2. Towels straight from the dryer.

3. Iced coffee. Okay, not really coffee. More like chocolate lactose-free milk with like a half-shot of coffee. (I never said I was mature).

4. Watching a movie you’ve seen so many times you can turn the sound off and quote the whole thing.

5. Family dinner every Sunday night.

6. Friends. Even as they come and go. Even when years pass and you suddenly reconnect. I know some of the best people and am genuinely blessed.

7. This:

8. Hand-crafted, unique furniture. (If it’s made by your husband, so much the better).

9. Pizza. (Again, never said I was mature).

10. Sweatpants.

11. But also high heels.

12. Just never together.

13. This:

14. Bacon. Except I can’t eat it anymore. This is especially sad.

15. Big ol’ surgery scars. Rock that.

16. Curly hair. Technically this is also a hate, as any woman with curly hair knows. But when it’s good, it’s real good.

17. Red lipstick.

18. The deep sigh of a dog sleeping by your feet.

19. Books. The smell, the feel, the look. (Ebooks do not count. I can’t even).

20. Using the words “cray” and “bae” in order to drive other people up the wall.

21. Bible study. If you think the Bible is boring or weird or outdated, it’s because you’ve never dug into it.

22. Ladies nights filled with chick flicks, chocolate and facials.

23. Dancing.

24. Meyers-Briggs personality profiles. Fascinating.

25. Volunteering at the women’s shelter.

26. Bizarre reference questions. You just don’t even know the kinds of things people will ask librarians.

27. This:

28. Social media. I sometimes hate it. I’ll disappear for awhile. But it’s mostly fun.

29. The written word. I don’t know where I’d be without it.

30. The sound of fallen leaves crunching under your feet in October.

31. Good music. In every genre, but especially stuff like this:

Bonus 32 (You Know, to Grow On)

All of you who read this blog. It’s a strange thing, the writing life. Many of us who tap the keys are quite shy. There’s a reason we type instead of talk. Often hitting “publish” brings up a whole set of fears and neuroses. We wonder how you, out there in the vague vastness of internetdom, will take the words we labor over. We wonder if you will understand. We hope to somehow speak to you, to journey with you, to entertain you. We try to give expression to things too big to feel, too deep to understand. We want to encourage you to keep on going when things are tough and dark.

Without you, we only talk to ourselves.

Thank you, dear one. For reading, for commenting, for all the birthday messages you’ve sent. I appreciate your presence. I enjoy our interactions. I am so grateful that you would take the time to come here, click and scroll.

Now go crank up the music, mow down on some pizza and enjoy this Monday!