ALL OVER THE PLACE

Shorter days, longer nights. It's finally cooling off. Winter is upon us. I want nothing more than to stay indoors with a cup of tea, a fire, a good book, and my fat cat.

I'm about ready to sign up for more classes. Maybe next week. First I must collect various transcripts from other colleges I've attended. What a long, illustrious trip down memory lane that'll be! (That's sarcasm, if you can't tell!)

Had coffee today with Mara. We met at the Creekwalk Starbucks (where we bumped into my old friend, John E.), then wandered over to Barnes and Noble. It's changed a lot; new layout, new faces. We saw Lisa, who seemed sweet and a little sad. I used to be so (unrequitedly) infatuated with her that I was barely able to concentrate on anything or anyone else when she was around. I could hardly even drive a car if she was my passenger. It was like I was drunk or something. But not anymore. She is not suited to me at all. Her beliefs are too conventionally Bibical and conservative for my tastes. Jesus and George Bush - all that biz. And these aren't really big convictions of hers (except for, maybe, the Jesus part). They're just something she has accepted. Never the less, I always loved that provocative way she had about her, and her secret warmth. And her singing.

ANYWAY! Enough about her. As I said, I'm over that!

Besides, I prefer women who don't cause me to wreck my car!

I thoroughly enjoyed my time with Mara, today. I could sit and share a conversation with her for hours. She's a mature woman, with intelligent ideas to express, and beautiful, bottomless green eyes. And a sensitive heart. And a mean wit. And she can read a book in one sitting while drinking coffee in the Borders cafe! And she doesn't like Bush or the war, nor does she buy into conventional religious beliefs. This means we can both speak freely without it becoming a debate.

Damn! All the good ones are taken!

She's probably going to read all this.

--- so ---

Hi, Mara. I had fun. Thanks!

Tonight, I had dinner at Aunt Sally's. Chili and a big salad. Dump cake for dessert. Great food and better company. And I didn't even pass out during the mystery program! Sally and I discussed religion in depth, and she made some good points about God's infinite nature being something that cannot be limited or defined by human conventions (like religion). It was from something she was reading by an author named Spong (who I've read before); something that I will likely borrow from work and read, myself.

I'll have to have Sally and the gang over to my place again, some day.

Tomorrow is the premier of Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire. I will be going with some friends.

When I came home tonight, I discoverd that Marie, a regular commenter on my blog, has started a blog of her own. She's another smart cookie, and quite fetching. She's the slender witch in the short skirt I mentioned in a previous blog. She's also a dedicated scholar (sort of like Hermione Granger). She writes a lot about brainy, science subject matter that I will only ever understand if I ask a million questions. She likes Japanese culture and even taught me a few words of Japanese (but I forgot them).

Hi, Marie, welcome to the wonderful world of blogging!

All these interesting, intelligent, strong, amazing women.

I love them.

P.S. I've dreamed up a simple game to waste your time. Take a famous person or persons from history and categorize them (in a very abstract way) as inhabitants of Middle Earth. For instance, hobbits. They love peace; playing, singing, and composing songs and poetry; and they like to smoke funny weeds; but they can be petty and often fight over things like wealth and property. I'd say the following (completely random) group of people are clearly hobbits:

Wizards, however, are brilliant and eccentric problem-solvers, and they do and think things that seem like magic to the rest of us. And, though they are often, by virtue of their sheer greatness, involved in the world's larger politics, they (the good ones, at least) would probably rather spend their time having fun with the hobbits.

The next image you will see, is definitely that of a wizard:

Nothing to it. Just a time waster.


TODAY'S QUOTE:
"If you can spend a perfectly useless afternoon in a perfectly useless manner, you have learned how to live."
--- Lin Yutang