19 May 2006

SSSSpecially for you!

S'mee invited me to play ! Woohoo! She gave me the letter 'S'.

Here's how it works: If you wanna play too, let me know in the comments or send me an email and I'll assign you a letter. Then you write about 10 words that start with that letter that are important to you and explain why. Here it goes!

First I have to say I find it very interesting that she got the letter "B" and now I have the letter "S". Hmmmmm.

1. Solitude. I love being alone. Everyday I commute to work 20 miles. It gives me a chance to be alone and think. I even enjoy dining alone, shopping alone and working alone. It's good to be alone occosaionally, but I too, crave being with friends and family most.

2. Soliloquy. Shakespeare is a favorite of mine. This is my all time favorite soliloquy from Hamlet:

Tis now the very witching time of night,
When churchyards yawn and hell itself breathes out
Contagion to this world: now could I drink hot blood,
And do such bitter business as the day
Would quake to look on. Soft! now to my mother.
O heart, lose not thy nature; let not ever
The soul of Nero enter this firm bosom:
Let me be cruel, not unnatural:
I will speak daggers to her, but use none;
My tongue and soul in this be hypocrites;
How in my words soever she be shent,
To give them seals never, my soul, consent!

3. Sand, Surf and Sun. I am a beach brat. I grew up on the coast of Southern California. Spent more than my fair share of days at the beach. In high school, we would go to the beach every Saturday and get ourselves burned to a crisp. (can y'all say skin cancer???) We had too get burned so when we went to the Saturday night dances we'd look cool. The sun, sand and surf are now engrained in every fiber of my being. I drive to the beach at least once a month just to smell the salt air. It has a calming effect like nothing else.

5. Surf and Turf. My favorite dinner. Lobster and a Porterhouse or Rib Eye Steak. The steak must be cooked medium rare. Some people have told me if I'd just throw the steak on the ground and let it graze a bit it would probably come back to life. Heh. Still my favorite meal. I think between it and Salmon I probably wouldn't ever want anything else. Except....

6. Semi-sweet chocolate. The more the better. I used to be a milk chocolate lover. Don't get me wrong, I still love it. However, if there is a good 72% around, that gets eaten first. Usually with a few pecans.

7. Simplicity. Many people find pleasure in the abstract, difficult and intellectual. While a good read and plenty of alone time thinking goes on in my life, there is nothing better than simplicity. There are some things that just don't need reinventing, such as, a good homemade pie, crisp sheets line dried, a well written letter in the mail, a crisp apple, peanut butter on celery, an a-line skirt.

8. Scriptures. Therein lies great truth. I have recently been reading the book Fire in the Bones by Michael Wilcox. It chronicles the life of William Tyndale, the primary translator of the english version of the bible. It is amazing to me the constant threat of life to him and others to bring forth the scriptures to our native tongue. His work laid the foundation for a young plowboy to inquire of God after studying the New Testament. The martyrs of old demand our respect, and I will be grateful for the opportunity to thank Mr. Tyndale someday.

A favorite scripture: Alma 37:6

    Now ye may suppose that this is foolishness in me; but behold I say unto you, that by small and simple things are great things brought to pass; and small means in many instances doth confound the wise.

9. Stars. Not celebrities. Stars. Alpha Centauri, Orion, Ursa Major and Minor, The Pleaides. For years and years and years, I have known to look to the sky and marvel at the wonders of God. We are such fortunate beings to live in this universe. The big guy and I have spent more hours than I can count together in the darkness of night looking up to the sky. I even saw a meteorite once in the daytime. It streaked acorss the sky, a bright orange ball of flames, quickly entering our atmosphere and falling to earth. We are going to spend some time looking for meteorites on the property in Arizona.

10. Sisters. I have two. Well three, one died at birth. I also am the mother of three sisters, and I can't think of any greater people to spend time with. There is a bond between us that transcends time and space. One sister I see all the time. The other I miss terribly, and haven't seen in about ten years. I love that we could all get together and laugh and have a great time no matter where we are or what is going on. I share a family resemblance, however, they look like twins at times. I am odd man out until you get to the ankles. Bingo! Now we have a genetic path!

There are still many things to say about tthe letter S. A MINI Cooper S is another favorite, even if I own a Cooper and not an S. A good Sandwich like a Howard's special. The word special and what it means to us.(inside joke, no explanation given), Sunday mornings with their quiet time and wonderful breakfasts, silly jokes.
The only one I can ever remember: Why don't cannibals eat clowns? give up?
Because they taste funny!