Makin a list...

I find that it can be an interesting way to learn about someone just by what they list as things they love. It also helps that my brain is always so sporadic and disorganized that this is a good way to make me appear sane. Well maybe not sane, but at least it will make me look as if I know how to make a list. And this isn’t even the kind of list that I do knowing full well that I am making it solely to procrastinate over items listed.

I love my: family, friends, dogs, a child’s laughter, Mountain Dew, letters in the mail, Koosh balls, computer games, the smell of permanent markers, old photographs, giving someone a gift for no reason, the sunrise, the sound of the ocean, all things Ben and Jerry’s, going to the movies, Ellen DeGeneres, random quotes, popsicles, jelly beans, making someone laugh, when a bartender gives you a free drink, watching someone draw, music a few decibels too loud, the smell of rain, chatting online, rhinoceroses, candles, driving to the edge of nowhere, Loreena McKennitt, office supplies, convenience stores, moonlight, air conditioning, people that can say “I don’t know”, live entertainment, T-Shirts with clever sayings, Bailey’s Irish crème, other people’s birthdays, dreams, a hug from a friend, Antiloop, mythology, ripping the tag off a mattress, Melissa Etheridge, bloopers, Gavin Newsom, intelligent questions, the softness of a woman’s lower back, other people’s knick-knacks, Absolutely Fabulous, bad lesbian fiction, Blockbuster, floating in water, all things geeky, finding money in the washing machine, over tipping, complements for no reason, a good book, weird or strange news, Kathy Najimy, dreaming of places to travel, a first kiss, visiting historical places, thought provoking discussions, laughing so hard I cry, and comfortable silences

I also love: fresh bread, hearing from an old friend, when good moods are infectious, photography by Judy Francesconi, finding something I thought I’d lost, goofy crap I never buy in the checkout line, snow, a good rollercoaster, the smell of dryer sheets, caller ID, Robert Miles, talking with someone till the sun comes up, listening to the stories of a grandmother, a smile, the Rocky Mountains, E-mail, letting someone go ahead of me, small bookstores, a woman’s voice, the people that changed my life in various ways, winning, open minds, being there when someone needs me, not taking myself too seriously, seeing a wild animal cross my path, when restaurants give you those little chocolate mints, views from the top of high places (with my propensity for falling this can be rather dangerous), heart wrenching songs and poetry, hearing the song that was stuck in your mind come over the radio, learning something new, a good nap in the middle of the day, watching people, having someone rub or draw on my back, ketchup, MP3s, knowing someone is there for you, run-on sentences, and you for reading this drivel.

It’s rather nice to sit down for a few moments and think of only the things you love. We spend so much time focusing on what brings us pain or what is going wrong, that we tend to forget about the hundreds of things that bring us joy. So why not sit down and let your mind wander through all the things that you love off the top of your head?

“If we have the opportunity to be generous with our hearts, ourselves, we have no idea of the depth and breadth of love's reach.” -- Margaret Cho