Month: April 2010

Glad to Have a Friend Like You

The prompt:  Today is Hug a Friend Day.  Why is it important that we show our friends that we care for them and appreciate them?

Max: It’s important to show your friends how much you apprecite you. If you don’t, they will not talk to you or act mean to you. They will not help you because you abanded them like if you need help and you ask a friend that you betrayed. They will most likely ignore you. They will also glare at you and go back to whatever they were doing. If you did not betray them, they will help you and fill you with hope because you have friends that reach out to you.

Grigory: I think that showing appreciation is important, because (well, it’s to friend don’t you like your friends) If you don’t show appreciation then you might not friends with that Person anymore and then stop talking to each other and maybe will die. (probably no though because it’s really rare that comit suicide because of a lost friend).

Another reason it’s important to show your appreciation because you want some friends to back you up in something like a fight, and if you don’t show your appreciation then they might not be friends with you and maybe will be backing up the person you’re in a fight with

Porfirio: “Hi Cody!” “Hi!” What’s up! oh nothing. Pofirio I invited you to my birthday party, and when is it, you mean the party yeah when? It’s on August, 25. Dude that’s a long time and I do you ask me if it’s not August or not even a bit, I know, but I can’t wait because you cody say that there’s ganna be dumpings for snack and I can’t wait for it. I know right, but I’ll see you at the party, “wait!” What time is the party ganna start well I don’t know. “Well” see you there, “bye”.

To review…if you appreciate your friends you will get:

  • helped
  • filled with hope
  • backed up in fights
  • invited to birthday parties four months in advance

If you don’t, your friends will:

  • stop talking to you
  • act mean to you
  • ignore you
  • glare at you and go back to whatever they were doing
  • possibly commit suicide

In a similar vein, we’ve been talking lately about the Golden Rule and how much harder it is to treat someone the way you want to be treated when that particular someone is being a dick. (I didn’t use that exact phrasing). We decided to try to treat people the way we want to be treated no matter what.

Viraj has some ideological problems with that: I think the treat people the way you want to be treated “No Matter What” has some flaws…if an assassin is about to murder you, would you say: “I’ll treat you to pizza and ice cream. Then I will give you my cash, bank account, and credit cards. Then you can kill me.”?

Touche.


I’m All Frakked Up

OK, Battlestar Gallactica. You win. It took three seasons, but you got me.

I still bristle at the use of the curse ‘frak’, especially when used like:

“This is just a clusterfrak.”

Or

“I want you to frak me like there’s no tomorrow.”

And I groan at the eyebrow- and jaw-acting of Katee Sackhoff (Starbuck), Jamie Bamber (Lee Adama), and Tahmoh Penikett (Helo).

But Mary McDonnell and Edward James Olmos are frakkin’ sublime, the plot lines are truly entertaining, and the themes (torture, xenophobia, use of natural resources, family dynamics, religious extremism) are timely and/or timeless.

Congratulations, BSG, you’re in the fan file.

Pwned

I found out that a farm just up the road from me had a summer produce CSA.

Yay, local produce!

Yay, reducing my grocery-related carbon footprint!

Yay, supporting local business!

Yay, yummy things for me all summer!

As soon as my tax refund came through, I wrote a check for $500 and sauntered up attaway.

In the driveway sat a car with the following bumper stickers:
Bush/Cheney ’04
McCain-Palin
and my favorite…
I Think Therefore I Vote Republican

Goddammit.

Dear Redford, Part 2

Dear Redford,

When I got you, you were so calm. Course, you were also dehydrated and full of worms. Now, there’s no such thing as too much exercise. The other day, we walked three miles up Dimmocks Mill Road and three back, and as soon as we got to the house, you bounced around like “So when are we gonna exercise?” and then did about forty sprinty laps around the yard. This morning, after almost an hour of hiking off-leash, you cavorted behind Wa’s house from 9:30 to 2:00. A little bitty snooze this afternoon and you were ready for me to throw the ball for you again.

All that exercise makes you a very hungry boy.  Two-thirds of a can of wet food, six cups of dry food, and whatever vegetable filler I can sneak in there, every day. Even after all that, you want more. You stand in the kitchen, stare at your metal food bowl, and then stomp on the edge of it, making it thwang against the tile. Thwang-ang-ang. I say, “Redford, you just ate!” Head-tilt. Stomp. Thwang-ang-ang. So I give you raw hides and milkbones (the big ones). I smear peanut butter inside your hollow bone for you to lick out. We play ‘Find a Peanut’, which involves me scattering handfuls of peanuts on the kitchen floor for you and Violet to hoover up.

And unlike Violet, who has to watch her girlish figure, there’s not an extra ounce of flesh on you. You’re probably sixty-five or seventy pounds now and pure muscle, and you’re certainly a good three inches taller than your sister. I remember that day I brought you home, you ran right between Violet’s back legs without even ducking!

And your head. Your head is a big block of cheese. In size, shape, and composition. You’ve proven yourself to be, shall we say, hard-of-learning, but you’re still the sweetest goddamn thing there ever was.  At the dog park, you kiss every dog passionately, even when they rrrrr at you. If two dogs get into a fight, you zoom in there and start madly licking muzzles, sure that your love can diffuse any tense situation.

You like to make out with people too, in particular Bobby’s head. I think you like the feel of his close-cropped hair on your tongue.

The most expensive lesson for me has been that you cannot be left alone. I’ve replaced shoes and doormats and grill covers and do you know how much a Japanese maple costs?!

But you know what? You don’t like to be alone. I get it. It’s who you are. And I wouldn’t have it any other way.

Love,

Amy

Why I Do My Job, Part 5

Suki left today.

I’m sad.

She made me a card. It opened on the wrong side.

Dear Ms. Scott,
Thank you very much for tea-
ching me.
When I heard that I’m moving
back I was shocked! Because
You, Ms. Amy Scott, were my
#1 teacher for real I’m not telling
a lie Ms. Scott You really is! And
when I was third grade I hated
to go to school. But when I
started to learn from you I started
to like shcool! And now your
class room is One of my favorite
place. Because when I go to your
class first thing I could say “Good
morning “to you and it really feels good
And seconed , is that you are really
good at teaching! So I think
If I was teacher when I grow
upand kid was cheat chating first
I’ll think ” Hmmm? what did Ms. Scott
did. And bye… and…
NEVER FORGET ME!
Your student,
Suki

Don’t worry, Suki. I won’t.