Goup's On

Everyday I sit in front of my computer and wonder why the words just won't come.

Then about 5 minutes later I switch over to looking at cheesy gossip blogs and reading other mom's blogs (which are brilliant and I love).

Then about an hour later I realize I've just wasted an hour that I could be with Little Man. An entire hour of accomplishing nothing but the small thing of turning what used to be viable, gray brain matter into a soupy mush that might just at this very moment be leaking from my ears.

(Note to self- invest in ear plugs.)

I've just done it again. An entire hour that I should have been working hard or playing with my child has been wasted. The worst part is, I know I'll do it again tomorrow...and the day after that...and the day after that.

I have this delusional idea that someday the words will just come: my thoughts will coalesce into this amazingly coherent thing that will get me a job that pays enough money to support that sweet little guy. But all I seem to have left is mushy gray goop incapable of sustaining actual lucid thought and ideas.

When Old Friends Turn Up Anew....

When I lived back in Ohio, I worked my way through undergrad at a local Bridal Shop. I was a commuting students and didn't really have a network of friends on campus, but the girls at this shop became those amazingly close friends that lucky people find in their early twenties. The even luckier people keep those friends through time and distance and life changes. Technically, I shouldn't really have been friends with most of them. On paper, we didn't have much in common, and the then-boyfriend-now husband never really understood my loyalty to this group of women. They weren't really his kind of friends. But thank God they were mine. Over the four years I worked at that shop, we commiserated over the occupational hazards of the job, watched each other go through bad break ups, rough patches with family, but we also shared in each other's joys--the new baby, the relationship that finally seemed right, the engagements, and together we celebrated each and every one of our weddings. Out of the five other girls that worked at the shop, two became the closest friends I've ever had. I've done a fairly good job keeping in touch despite living in a different time zone with AB, but once I went off to grad school and she got married KD was always harder to keep up with.

After Little Man was born, I lost contact with KD even more. It's hard enough to keep track of friends who don't return your calls, but it's impossible to do it with a toddler running around you. The last time I called K was in March, and she never called back. I decided to officially give it up.

Then today, out of no where, I get a call.

Friendships are funny like that. We'll probably never be as close as we were those years during college--too much time has passed, too much distance between us. That's ok. I think that A was right; real friends are those people who you can talk to after a huge silence and it's like no time at all has passed.

We live in very different worlds, but I'm glad that I still have her friendship. It's a link to one of the happiest periods in my life. It is a link to that time in my life when I was able to become myself.

Yummmmm

Today J and I had some extra time for lunch, so we decided to try out the new Greek place in town. For those of you around CU that haven't heard, Pickles is now Papa George's. Except it's also still Pickles.

I know. I don't get it either.

But if you can get past the faux Applebee atmosphere and the fact that the woman sitting next to you is eating a enormous taco salad, I'd highly recommend checking out their Greek menu. Papa George's has had a booth at the Farmer's market for the last few months, and I've been happily eating breakfast, I mean sampling their food whenever we go. They mostly did catering before, so I'm especially glad to be able to get some of their Spanikopita without having to order enough for 12. I think that the new owners are trying to ease into the whole restaurant shtick, seeing how the restaurant still serves the Pickles' menu. The Greek menu isn't anything overly imaginative, just the usual: Greek Salad, Spanikopita, Dolmades, Souvlaki, some sort of grilled lamb, and (of course) baklava. At first, the prices seemed a little steep--$6 for a side salad, but when it came I could see why. The salads have a huge amount of this delicious imported feta on them and the homemade dressing should really be bottled and sold somewhere.

All this is to say, I hope that they keep expanding the menu. I think they will--I heard the owner/manager say something to someone about flaming cheese (oopa!). But I definitely can't wait to go back.

Just Surfaced

So I knew the ending before I started to read it, but that didn't stop me from enjoying every last page of the 7th Harry Potter book. It took me all day (but that is only because I have a very understanding husband and a toddler who seemed to be in a cooperative mood), so now I can finally stop wondering how it all ends...

Happy Birthday Morgan!!

Yesterday at about 3:30 CT, My brother's wife had their second baby- a girl- 8 lbs, 9 oz.

Congrats! And Welcome little Morgan Grace!

Speaking of Procrastinating...

I saw this on someone at Panera yesterday:
Needless to say, I want it.

Irony

I am currently teaching a Study Skills course this summer where I'm trying to teach the students how not to procrastinate.

My Fitzgerald chapter is now 3 1/2 months late and I spent the last two days re-reading Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince so I could be ready for Saturday's big release.

Uf.