Saturday, December 27, 2008

Merry Hohoho Landia

Wow, well, it appears the the Schmidt family has singlehandedly managed to restore peace to the American economy by injecting grandiose amounts of cash into the flagging system. As a matter of fact, the ladies known as my aunts are out shopping MORE, even now.

I am personally not sure how they do it, as my desire to shop is apallingly weak, much like my desire to get manicures and to wear foundation makeup: nonexistent.

We are a funny family, prone to hours of impassioned Boggle playing, crosswork solving, and losing all our money to my brother in poker games. It's really restorative.

I must warn anyone who thinks that seeing the Benjamin Button movie. Don't. Just don't. Terribly disappointingly bad. What a missed opportunity.

Anyhow, More to come, but right now I really need to get to the crossword before they finish it without me.

Monday, December 15, 2008

Lazarus the journal

Ahem, I am back from the "dead"!

*crickets chirping in background*

Umm, okay, well, let me freshen this place up a bit *brushing cobwebs from corners* and regale you with my tales of wonder and intrigue.

Or just an update.

Hey, people, I live in Austin Texas again! I never thought I would live here again, but here I am. After being so far away, so unstimulated (socially), and so out of my element for so long, where better to go than where my roots are?

I couldn't think of anywhere I'd rather be.

Yes, the job market is crappy, the economy seems to be bottoming out, and everyone is looking forward with a gloomy countenance, but I see a lot of silver linings in this scenario.

Americans are addicted to junk and crap. It's true. (note to self, I will not let Chip give anyone mango slicers or other useless kitchen clutter this year!)

I hope that an economic downturn will make us all consider what we actually care about in this world, and get back to "basics." I want to see more people gardening and growing their own food. I long to see more people creating beautiful outdoor sanctuaries adjacent to their homes where they can entertain friends, family, and flights of fancy. *

I would love to see more folks scaling back on the things they don't really need (fast food, cable television, plastic junk), and focusing on those things that are meaningful to them (personal relationships, hobbies, learning new things, reading).

In fact, I feel so strongly about this that I will hereby proclaim 2009 my own "Year of Living Simply." ** This year will be better and more productive than the last, because I am going to try to be a better and more efficient me by trimming the fat and celebrating the simple, the visceral, and the marvelous.


*I have to hope this, because as an unemployed landscape architect, I need those people to call upon my skills to help them realize their outdoor design potential.

** Living in a house less than half the size of my house in Indiana, that is 300% crappier, I must focus on living simply because we cannot bring any more stuff into this house, we have to save $$ to buy a home here, and *cough* I am unemployed, which means I simply cannot afford to live any way BUT simply.