1. I wish that I could read for a living. No joke. I love getting lost in words. I love language and stories and the way language or, more accurately, the words used, can change the entire tone of a story. I know I already posted about The Kite Runner, but I cannot say enough about this book. It was amazing. And, as I’ve talked to people at work about it, apparently I am latecomer (I didn’t know that was one word) to this bandwagon, but I am jumping on just the same. What is it about a really good book that reaches deep into your soul and changes you that is different from how a movie can affect you? Is it how the experience is personalized? Is that you bring your own twists and images to it?

2. I think everyone should take solo vacations now and again. It is so wonderful to be able to go wherever you want, for as long as you want; make no stops or fifty; wake up at 7 or 10. On a solo vacation, it really is possible to please everyone. I loved listening to whatever I wanted to listen to in my car. I loved going to the pool and leaving after an hour because my paleness was already cooked. I loved eating gelato for breakfast. And the gelato was divine…mango and pineapple. I loved not blow drying my hair or putting a single dab of makeup on my face (not that I don’t love makeup…the truth is, I do, but sometimes it’s nice to have take a break knowing that you are not going to see anyone you know, or even look in a mirror for that matter). This weekend was all about me. I read and slept and watched lame-o movies on ABC Family (loving every sappy minute of them). I love being so comfortable by myself. I love being alone without feeling lonely.

3. And, after that rant about loving my aloneness, I have to say that I also loved having my brother’s two dogs, Coco and Lola, to keep me company at night. If I knew I could have dogs like them, I just might consider getting a couple some day. And they were super cuddly because they missed their real family. It’s amazing to me how dogs really do get depressed. It made me sad for them.

4. While I generally enjoy my job, for the next 2.5 weeks I am trapped. I can’t be sick. I can’t take a day off. I can’t be late. I can’t leave early. Sometimes being the one with all the power is not my favorite thing.

5. Something that is always my favorite thing: road trip mixes (and yes, I still burn cd’s because I don’t have an aux. port in my car and I don’t have a little radio deal for my nano). Here’s the latest list:

1. Fall to Pieces/Avril Lavigne 3:28
2. Mixtape/Butch Walker 4:05
3. Love Loss Hope Repeat/Carbon Leaf 4:18
4. Imaginary Friend/Chantal Kreviazuk 4:12
5. Easy Silence/Dixie Chicks 4:02
6. On Your Porch I The Format 5:15
7. Beautiful/G. Love featuring Tristan Prettyman 3:51
8. Come Here Boy/Imogen Heap 4:01
9. I Miss You/Incubus 2:50
10. Lullaby/Josh Groban (With Ladysmith Black Mambazo) 2:32
11. The Fear You Won’t Fall/Joshua Radin 3:05
12. Just Like Heaven/Katie Melua 3:39
13. Lay Lady Lay/Magnet 4:37
14. Wait for Love/Matt White 3:53
15. Infinity/Merrick 3:21
16.A Girl Like You/Pete Yorn 2:18
17. Time After Time/Quietdrive 3:04
18. You Are My Joy/Reindeer Section 3:45
19. Stop Complaining/Skye 3:30
20. Grazed Knees/Snow Patrol 2:56
21. World Spins Madly On/The Weepies 2:45

6. I watched the third game in the Jazz/Spurs series of my own free will. I actually really enjoy watching sports by myself. I can change the channel whenever I get bored. I can click back for the score. I can mute it. And, I have to say, it was a fantastic game. Although, one of the most enjoyable parts of the game was not the game at all, it was how the cameras flashed to Eva Longoria when Tony Parker got hurt. I laughed out loud.

7. I love the desert. While it’s true that I miss the greenness (I didn’t realize that word had two ‘n’s) of California, I have to admit that I love the desert. I love the desert vegetation and the hot, dry air. I never thought I’d say that, but it’s true. And, while Utah is a big desert, I’m speaking specifically about the Vegas/Phoenix type of desert. Although, with all the running I have going on, I’m glad I’m not living in either of those places right now. Running this weekend was miserable (and almost non-existent).

8. I got back early enough yesterday to go see a movie with Sarah. We saw Disturbia and it was absolutely terrifying. I love scary movies and I love seeing them with people who enjoy them as much as I do. Anyone watching Sarah and me would have been dying of laughter. We watched half of the movie through our fingers. So good and so terrifying all at the same time. I highly recommend it.

9. I love the new employee I hired. She is fantastic. She’s on time, polite, and learns quickly. A resume really can say a lot about a person.

10. I am still battling with a sore throat after three weeks and a full ten days of antibiotics. And I took all ten days. I am anti-antibiotics. I only take them when absolutely necessary and I always take them all because I have a weird phobia of mutating bacterial infections. Strange, but true.

11. I am obsessed with language…more specifically, spelling. I will misspell things now and again, but I hate when I discover that I have. I guess it’s my OCD coming through (yes, I self-diagnosed). Oh, and the fact that I make words up on occasion does not change the fact that I love spelling.

12. While I did thoroughly enjoy my solo time, it’s nice to be back home…and have my computer back (yes, it’s a laptop and I could have brought it with me, but part of my weekend alone was about really being alone…which meant leaving my computer and the internet behind). Although, since this is the third time I’ve restarted my computer since beginning this post, I may have to be sans computer for a while because it really is time to get this thing fixed.