sweaty sweatshirt

This morning I biked the 5 miles up to work for the first time in many months. It was semi-sunny and a little damp on the streets. A lovely springy morning. I was in London last year at this time and I've been thinking about those days a lot. It reminded me of our rental-bike ride through Cambridge.

Anyway, I noticed that one of the buildings I passed has changed businesses. It now says on the awning in giant letters:

URBAN LOTUS BEACH SPA

Urban. Lotus. Beach. Spa. I just imagine the owners thinking, "We should make sure we have at least one word that will appeal to everyone!" But all together, it seems ridiculous. They have nothing in common! Those words give me strong images that are impossible to connect. I get like a busy sort of concrete and lightbulbs populated area, with a little peaceful mucky pond of lilypads and lotus flowers for some reason, oh and then also there is a sunny beach there with kids in swimsuits playing and splashing, and then a quiet perfumed indoor tan-painted room with carefully folded towels and sculptures made of smooth stones.

WTF?

guilty pleasures

This blog post is dedicated to my friend Jana (not Janna or Jenna) who closes each of her posts with a short list of "guilty pleasures." Here are mine, as of late:

-Coffee in the afternoon

-Seasonal 50-cent chocolate-covered marshmallow candies from Walgreens. I buy one of these every time I am at Walgreens if the season permits them to be sold, whether they are in the shape of eggs, hearts, pumpkins, or santas.

-Biking to Andersonville, playing Euchre and accidentally getting drunk with new friends on Sunday night

-Hungover Wigglwrming (more guilty than pleasure)

-The Best American Non-Required Reading of 2007

-Pseudo "Cat Lady" behavior

-Girl Scout Cookies

-Feeling messengerish while biking on cold days

-Attending kids' concerts by myself

-Fantasizing about world travel

-Reading writing of friends

-Zines

-Not getting a haircut

-Converse All Stars purchased at Urban Outfitters

-Going out for lunch

-Imagining treacherous wisdom tooth removal complications

-Gin and milk

-Hanging out at work when I'm not working

-Procrastinating laundry