Monday Musings

Once again another week begins and once again I'm living off of two cups of coffee and a distinctly empty stomach. So what do I do? I begin a blog post. My apologies for what I'm sure will be a sincerely un-profound ramble. I have previously mentioned my penchant for surfing craigslist, everyone's favorite virtual garage sale, but I have not mentioned that I also have a devilishly good time looking over online personal ads. It's not that I'm necessarily mean spirited, since at one time I too posted one, but it is just so darn entertaining to see what the potent cocktail of desperation, online access and a 500 word maximum will do to a human being in this state with 600,000 people and 9 months of winter. My personal favorites include:

Pro:
- people with odd hobbies that they're not afraid to disclose (i.e. mastery of the accordion)
- anyone who has the guts (no pun intended) to post that they're significantly overweight
- Vermonters who aren't afraid to admit they've never skied and don't want to learn
- people who fess up to the fact that posting an online personal is extremely embarrassing

Con:
- people who substitute a picture of a kitten for their photo
- use of the word "sensual"
- men in their 50's who claim they "just like to cuddle"
- people who put "looking for friendship" in their ad when they're clearly not

Bored? Entertainment abounds if you know where to look...

An Even Seedier Underbelly

Update: not only has my plant been stolen, I've had had to call the police twice in the last two days due to large parties spilling over into the streets well after midnight. Yesterday I had the pleasure of phoning Burlington's finest while listening to a large brawl of people screaming at each other in the middle of the street in front of my house at 2am. Then neighbors started yelling out there windows at them. Then I started getting severely annoyed. Then I called the cops. My favorite moment had to have been when the police arrived and one particularly large and intoxicated man screamed that some girl had rung him to come over but "she ain't there and I ain't got no p**sy!". Apparently that was the crux of the issue. He had been dragging people out of their houses looking for her.

I keep my doors locked at all times, FYI.

The Seedy Underbelly of City Life

Well, I believe I have officially been ushered into life in Burlington now that I am one of the many who have experienced theft. Some douche bag decided it would be fun to steal one of the hanging plants off of my porch yesterday while I was at work. Seriously? A hanging plant that cost $10 a Home Depot? Why? I'm baffled and angry. If anyone in Burlington sees a white plastic hanging pot full of half dead pink petunias that mysteriously appeared after 8am yesterday, let me know. I have two attack cats and I'm not afraid to use them.

A Good Day

Why I love my job:

An absolutely adorable 6 year old that I've known since I started working here passed the deep end test today in our pool. When she started here she could barely swim. She just ran up to me screaming that she passed the test she passed the test she passed the test! When I asked her how she did it, she told me she practiced, duh.

Sometimes grant writing just sucks the big one, but sometimes the kids here remind me why I work so hard.

A Burlingtonian At Last!

I have done it. I have finally become a resident of Burlington. After 8 years of living here in a state where a mere 20 years ago cows outnumbered people, I've given up moving from quasi-suburb to suburb to rural outpost and am trying my hand at the "big city" of approximately 39,000 people. Here in the largest city in Vermont, I've found a much more palatable lifestyle. I dig it here! My apartment is tiny, my living room is green and my kitchen cabinets are blue, my cats have windows to sit in, and my landlord is very nice. It's a lovely situation and I've found I really like living by myself. Now when I snap and obsessively compulsively clean at 2am, no one is there to laugh at me. But, rest assured, I'm not a recluse. If I die, there are several people who will find the body before I start to decompose. Just thought you all might like the update. I'll post pictures as soon as my computer decides to function as a complete unit again.

In other news, I am just back from the Windy City after a lovely visit with my favorite sister. I'll give you a brief snapshot of the trip:

It's the 4th of July - we walk the streets of Chicago with no one in sight. What's going on? Mass virus outbreak? Alien abduction? Not a store open - not a restaurant serving - not a car on the road. We keep walking. Finally, as we near the waterfront, we see it: The Taste of Chicago! Almost every person in the greater Chicago area was crammed into a 1/2 mile of food tents and street vendors vying for the opportunity to scarf down a turkey leg covered in bbq sauce. Every turkey in a 10 mile radius must have been fearing for its feathered life. Katie and I were absolutely astonished. It was a true spectacle in the Greek sense of the word. If you have the chance to experience this I highly recommend it from a sociological perspective alone. Of course, Katie has celiac's and I'm a vegetarian, so we ate ice cream. And we hit up the free photo booth!


Taste of Chicago. A true experience. Pass it on.