Good girlfriend

My boyfriend's birthday is coming up this weekend. We'll spend it in Kentucky visiting his amazing little sister. She secured a rather prestigious equine vet internship and I am very, very proud of her. :)

I have to say that shopping for Muse is rough. If he wants something, he goes out and gets it. (Thank goodness he doesn't want much, otherwise we'd be broke.) I convinced him to pull together an Amazon wishlist, but not many of the items were fun. I had to improvise.

Gift one: The Watchmen. He found the movie rather off-putting (what with the gigantic glowing blue genitals and all - Google it yourself if you're that interested), but is curious to explore the world of graphic novels.

Gift two: Comic Book Tattoo. Muse's favorite female musician is Tori Amos. The book is an award-winning collection of stories based off of her lyrics (written by a variety of authors).

Upcoming anniversary gift: Lakers tickets. Sure, our anniversary isn't until November, but these things are really hard to get a hold of. Presents for him are hard to figure out, so I suck at keeping them a secret*.

* He doesn't read my blog, interestingly enough. He says it makes him feel like a creepy voyeur. The secret spilling happens when I blurt it out excitedly.

Truth

Pugs not drugs, found at dELIA*s.

Musings and happenings

Some of this weekend was great.

• I felt good enough to voluntarily go for a hike.
  
  
• I walked Cheeto.
  
  
• I had my first official press junket experience (I'd link you to that, but it's embargoed).
  

Some of it was deeply upsetting.

Some of it was productive. (I'm excited that Chanpory has started posting again after a long hiatus.)

Some of it was introspective.

• I'm still thinking about Getting Things Done. I believe part of my issue with it is that I feel like I get plenty done. I just want to keep increasing the quality of what I spend my time on, which means saying no to the stuff that won't increase my happiness/satisfaction levels. I also need to be better about setting boundaries - I deserve guilt-free free time to just spend as I like. I can't help everyone and I can't do everything. I *shouldn't* do everything. Will I regret not finishing something a smidge earlier when I'm old and gray, or will I regret not spending more time enjoying the people and the world around me? Some folks absolutely need a better system for keeping themselves organized, but I don't think I'm one of them. I'm happy with what I have in place and need to cut back on the quantity of what I'm doing.
  
  
• Perhaps it's less that I dislike GTD and more that I dislike the idea of implementing a whole new system of organization. I'm pleased with what I've created for myself and suppose I feel a bit protective of it.
  
  
• It's too bad that cutting back on the quantity of what I'm doing means that I have to choose between: a) cutting back on my activities that bring in income, b) cutting back on the activities that help people I care about, and c) cutting back on things that I find emotionally rewarding. Saying no to income is a luxury of the well-off. Cutting back on helping people makes me feel guilty and selfish. Not doing things that I find emotionally rewarding means that, if I'm hit by a bus tomorrow, I die unfulfilled.
  
  
• I also have to consider the fact that doing too much can have negative effects on my physical and mental well being. I can't help anyone if I'm too frantic and frazzled to function.
  

Just keep swimming, swimming, swimming ...

My mind just won't quit. I want to redecorate, try new recipes, go to the beach & boogie board, write, draw, sing, act, go horseback riding, move, get more degrees, read, rant, relax, explore ...

Lots.

Too much, probably.

Thoughts and lynx from my weekend:

- Towel bars should be hung at 48 inches off of the ground.
- Bunnies with stuff on their heads bring me joy.
- Years after first happening upon Wordle.net, I still adore it.
- "Righty tighty, lefty loosie," and other such nuggets of wisdom help me out constantly. It blows my mind that I never learned these things until my 20s. (Mom & dad, I'm looking at you.)
- I thought a political debate was going quite well, until the person I was arguing with referenced this guy.
- V for Vendetta dude's hair/beard is out of control.
- There exists such a thing as a collection of short stories based on Tori Amos songs. It's called, "Comic Book Tattoo."
- Ikea Hacker and Apartment Therapy inspired me to add legs to my bookcases. I cheated the back legs in a wee bit, so they now fit flush against the wall above the molding. I can finally earthquake proof the bejesus out of them.
- I want to take some classes, but I have no idea which ones. And it seems silly to take classes and not pursue an additional degree. What I want to study doesn't seem to exist.