Baby Doozit being silly

Last night, a little while before I went to bed, I got this awful pain in my side. It felt like a running stitch, except in the wrong place. It was very localized, so I didn't really worry about it, but it was annoying. I couldn't figure out what was wrong with it. My mom said it was "growing pains."

Well, I went to bed and laid down on my side, and it hurt, and I sat there and thought, WHAT COULD IT BE??!

And then, just in time, I felt some wiggling and Baby D moved on over. It was him the whole time, just chillin in the exact wrong place.

Silly Doozit! Glad he moved. He's avoided that spot since (thankfully).

random thoughts

On the idea that the rich get richer, the poor get poorer. Takeaway:

Among those who in 1996 were in the very highest income group isolated for study — the top 0.01 percent — 75 percent were in a lower income group by 2005. The median real income of super-rich households went down, not up. The rich got poorer. Among actual households, income grew proportionally more for those who started off in the low-income groups than those that began in high-income groups.
[...]
When somebody says that that top 1 percent saw its income go up by X in the last decade, they are not really talking about what happened to actual households in the top 1 percent. Rather, they are talking about how much money one has to make to qualify for the top 1 percent.

What kind of ketchup is best? Check out this guy's taste test. Pretty limited sample (he only asked 11 people to judge), but still pretty interesting. I will admit it hurts me to buy Heinz anything these days, but I still buy Heinz ketchup. Perhaps I will try something new one of these times.

Incidentally: turns out that Theresa Heinz met John Kerry at an Earth Day rally in 1990. Is anyone really surprised?

Here's an article on the most important hour of the day. My aunt calls her most important hour her Hour of Power. I would call mine that too, if I had one anymore. I've been bad about my Power Hours recently, but I should pick it back up again. The one place I'm usually good about the Hour of Power is work.

Baby Doozit is dancing! This morning, at one point he twisted around weird, such that his whole body was pressed up against the left side of my body. He kind of stuck out. When I touched him he went back to where he had been earlier. Right now he's just kind of wiggling. I think it's because We R Who We R is playing in the background. He probably is a closet Ke$ha fan. The rebel.

PS, I totally am not the one playing Ke$ha in the background. Yeah, that's my mom.

Okay, fine, it's on NCIS. But my mom is still listening to it.

Good quote:

“You can get sympathy or you can get better but you can’t get both. You can be in your comfort zone or you can have growth, but you can’t have both. You can be interested or you can be sold-out-committed, but you can’t entertain both. You can have excuses or have results, but you can’t do both. Choose the path that develops your visceral fortitude.”
- Mario Cortes

Visceral fortitude. That might be my new favorite phrase.

I liked this article on 20 things this guy does with money. Hollah with your dollahs! I especially liked #19. I learned in college that you should never lend money you want to see back again.

Here are some cloth diapers that really intrigue me. I love the Moo-licious diaper SO MUCH but Carl says he will not allow our son to wear such a cute diaper. :^( But Carl was okay with the giraffe diapers, which are also pretty darn cute.




This post brought to you by a dog wearing a bag:

Awesome video

You need to watch this video. It's catchy and also very informative. If you live in a place with an economy (which, if you're alive, you do), you need at least a basic understanding of these two guys. Don't worry, the economic principles are explained in hip hop music video form.

Fayek v. Keynes ROUND TWO!!



And of course, here's Round One:

why I can't eat!!

I figured it out!

Yesterday I had to stay late at work, even though I hadn't brought any extra food with me. When I got home, I was pretty tired and sick-feeling, but I had to force myself to eat dinner.

I realized today that my nutritional issues stem from stress. I remembered today how in college, whenever I got stressed out, I would stop eating--not because I was going anorexic or something, but just because. I still get hungry but it kind of stops mattering. I don't really notice it. It's not the clinical disorder of anorexia nervosa, but it is a form of anorexia (which literally means "lack of appetite").

Anyway, so I'm pretty sure that's the issue here. I'm glad to finally have a reason as to why I keep having weight problems. I guess I should have remembered how my body handles stress earlier, but for some reason I never saw the connection until today.

I would be more worried about my stress-related anorexia, but I remember how Baby D weighed so much at the last ultrasound, and I get the feeling that he's probably fine. Also he moves around so much in there, he clearly has enough energy.

In related news, today the receptionist at my work finally noticed I'm pregnant. I am officially 8 months along! And some people are still just barely noticing. How funny.

an unexpected kindness

I didn't get to properly acknowledge this random guy in person, so I have to acknowledge him here, where he will probably never see it.

Today I stayed late at work, and met my husband at my Metro stop to ride home with him. We got on a crowded train, and I beelined for an open seat, and this random other guy got there right before I did. It was a sad moment because my back was killin.

But right then, another guy got up. He'd been sitting next to the wall, so he had to maneuver to get out of his seat. But he did, and offered the spot to me.

I was really touched by that. It's not super often that people are so considerate on the Metro--obviously, since that first guy totally was like "I'm gonna beat the pregnant lady to that open seat!!!!" Anyway, I thanked the guy who stood for me several times, but I know those words alone can't really convey my gratitude. It really meant a lot to me.

I wish that guy could know what a difference he made in my day.

It really makes me wonder how many other tiny acts of kindness are like that: small on the outside, but deeply meaningful to the recipients of said acts.

Like this one time, I was at Union Station, and as I walked past, a woman spilled her purse on the ground. It was the lunchtime rush and people were everywhere, and this lady was crawling on the ground and cursing at her bad luck. I bent down and started helping her, and I thought she was going to cry. "Blessings! Oh, God bless you!" she said over and over again. She just seemed so grateful. It only took like 2 minutes out of my life, and it was 100% not a big deal just to bend down and pick things up for her, but I do think it seriously changed her whole day. I think about that time a lot.

So after that guy gave me his seat and I thanked him a few times, I decided I couldn't go wrong by doing what that woman did for me. I prayed for that guy to get some extra blessings for helping me out.

Who knows. But I sure hope his day turned out great.

random thoughts

Here is a terrifying article about the plague of child-men in America. Basically, it explores the trend of single young men (SYM) who spend decades in extended adolescence. I know a few of these.

Carl once sent me this poem, years ago when we were just dating. I found it again today:

I THINK CONTINUALLY OF THOSE WHO WERE TRULY GREAT
by Sir Stephen Spender

I think continually of those who were truly great.
Who from the womb, remembered the soul's history
Through corridors of light where the hours are suns,
Endless and singing. Whose lovely ambition
Was that their lips, still touched with fire,
Should tell of the spirit clothed from head to foot in song.
And who hoarded from the spring branches
the desires falling across their bodies like blossoms.
What is precious is never to forget
The delight of the blood drawn from ageless springs
Breaking through rocks in worlds before our earth;
Never to deny its pleasure in the simple morning light,
Nor its grave evening demand for love;
Never to allow gradually the traffic to smother
With noise and fog the flowering of the spirit.

Near the snow, near the sun, in the highest field
See how those names are feted by the wavering grass,
And by the streamers of white cloud,
And whispers of wind in the listening sky;
The names of those who in their lives fought for life,
Who wore at their hearts the fire's centre.
Born of the sun they traveled a short while towards the sun.
And left the vivid air signed with their honor.

This article explains how to get what you really want. Gist:

1. First, decide what you really want. Studies have shown it’s hard to get something if you’re not sure what it is. If time and money were no object, who would you be? What would you do?

2. Never make decisions based on the perceived limitations in front of you. There is almost always a way around perceived limitations; watch this video for a great example. Instead, make decisions based on what you identified in Step 1.

3. Take small, immediate steps toward getting what you want. Don’t wait long; take the first step right now. Possible small steps toward traveling where you want include reading a guidebook at the library or bookstore, saving $2 a day, scheduling a date in your calendar even if you’re not sure it will work, etc.

4. Review the steps on a regular basis. If it’s your life dream to go to Destination x, write it on a post-it note and put it where you’ll see it everyday. Then always think, “What’s next? How can I make this happen?”

This is an article about one guy's year of penury. Hint: penury = SAT version of "poverty."

James is watching the Disney channel, and can I please just mention how terrifying the "Sharfabulous" Sharpay movie looks.

....super terrifying.

I am terrified.

This post brought to you by disturbing images:

super interesting video on fat and sugar

Okay, this video is LONG--long long long--but worth it. So fascinating.

Yeah, I will probably have to never have a soft drink again.