Letters to Santa

There is nothing more magical than kids who believe.  I am winding down a fairly stressful day with children's letters to Santa.  Enjoy!

"Dear Santa,
I have been trying to be good this year, but boys will be boys. You must know that by now."
- Henry, 8

"Dear Santa,
You are very good at being quiet on Christmas Eve, but I know you are there."
- Edwina, 8

"Dear Santa,
Mom and Dad said I have to wait until I am nine before they will buy me a new bike.  But I don't want to wait so long so I am really counting on you this year."
- Charlie, 7

"Dear Santa,
I heard you in my house this morning.  Two times!  I hope that means you brought some extra stuff!"
Candice, 9

"Dear Santa,
You know how I know you love me?  You waved at me in the mall today, even though I didn't sit on your lap.  Please be safe on Christmas so we can see you again next year!"
-Meghan, 6

"Dear Santa,
Last year I asked for a puppy and toys.  I got lots of toys and turtlenecks.  My neck is warm.  Can I get that puppy this year?"
-Zachary, 9

"Dear Santa,
All I need this year is $111.  Thanks!"
- Ryan, 7

"Dear Santa,
Can you tell me if I am on the nice or notty list?  I want to know what's comen."
- Alex, 8

"Dear Santa,
If you bring a bown arrow, I promise not to use it in the house or point it at anyone."
- Mark, 9

"Dear Santa,
I moved since last Christmas.  Please don't forget to look up my new address."
- Alexis, 7

"Dear Santa,
I would like some new crayons.  Of different colors."
- Morgan, 5

"Dear Santa,
I know I haven't been good ALL year, but I was good when it counted."
- Grayson, 7

"Dear Santa,
Please bring some toys and treats for the dog.  He has been very good this year."
- Michaela, 6

"Dear Santa,
For Christmas I want an internship at the Department of Human Services, several consecutive nights of sleep uninterrupted by panicky nightmares about papers and exams, and some socks.  I will be at the same house that I have been at for Christmas for the last 12 years, so I shouldn't be hard to find.  I won't be leaving you cookies this year, as I will probably have eaten all of them and you really should be balancing your round-the-world diet anyhow.  Please consider using antibacterial hand soap/wipes on your trip this year; I can't help but think you would be an excellent vehicle for infectious agents.  Safe travels!"
- Katie, 23

100. One Hundred. Hundo.

To celebrate my hundredth post I thought I would make a list for ya. I love lists and I love this website on the power of the "List of 100." Listing 100 things on any topic definitely makes you think really hard, dig deep, and get a little creative.

Since it's the holiday season, and I am getting over my Grad School Blues a bit, I think I will grace you with:

100 Things That Make Me Happy

It may seem a little lame, cliche', or tamer than the things I have been sharing lately, but I think it is such a good evaluation of life sometimes, to remind us that there are at least 100 things to be happy about. Enjoy!

1. Woolen socks on winter days.
2. Philosophical conversations over hot coffee.
3. Working for an organization that I truly believe in, and support their mission not only through my work but through my personal actions.
4. 4-legged friends.
5. My roommates. They are some of the most vibrant, dynamic young women I have ever had the pleasure to know.
6. Fast-forwarding though commercials.
7. A big beautiful, blank canvas and an afternoon.
8. Midday naps.
9. Christmas movies (especially when enjoyed in summer).
10. Picking apples off the tree and eating them in the orchard.
11. Doing the crossword in bed on a weekend morning.
12. Singing in the car.
13. Summer evening rainbows.
14. Purring cats.
15. Wearing summer dresses to local art fairs.
16. Talking to strangers in airports/on airplanes.
17. Black and white photos.
18. Being in triathlon shape.
19. Shivan's "Hangover French Toast."
20. Freshly washed, still warm from the dryer bed sheets.
21. 2 f0r 1's @ Stella's on a Saturday night in "the" upstairs corner booth.
22. Weddings. Wedding dances. Getting dressed up for weddings. Being so honored to be asked to be in a wedding. Celebrating love. Weddings are the best!
23. Tacos.
24. Free stuff.
25. When strangers buy coffee for each other.
26. Sun porches.
27. Early morning breakfasts.
28. Wii Tennis championships in the living room.
29. Surprises.
30. Emergency preparedness/planning.
31. Nightly roommate pow-wow in which the following topics nearly always come up: school (we hate it but we love it), funny things we did as undergrads, men (the good, the bad, and the ugly), and food.
32. Fresh snow on all environmental surfaces EXCEPT the roads.
33. Getting to the on ramp right as the idiot light turns green. Wahooo!
34. Getting lost and then found again.
35. Mittens.
36. Going barefoot anywhere it is acceptable.
37. Skipping.
38. Telling "college" stories. What a unique experience to have such a padded place to test your wings.
39. Birthday Week (one day does not have the capacity to contain all the fun I prefer to have for birthdays).
40. Yellow shoe laces.
41. Making Christmas cookies with the "Muehe" ladies. I do not remember a Christmas that we have not had an afternoon of rolling, cutting, baking, frosting, sprinkling, goofing up, "breaking" the cookie to eat it, and some hysterical laughter.
42. One woman dance parties. It is absolutely imperative to one's mental health to celebrate their own accomplishments.
43. The ocean.
44. Being able to consider my immediate family my best friends. It has been wonderful to have a collective 126 years of life experience to draw from!
45. The Spoonbridge and Cherry. Easily my favorite place on the planet. This makes me think that it is funny that no matter how well traveled I am (and I would consider myself moderately to fairly well-traveled for someone my age), it's still things close to home that make me happiest. This is a true testament to the fact that amongst all the other "rights" in my life, I am in the right geographical place too. What a lovely feeling.
46. Car rides. If the walls of cars could talk, they would tell the most intimate of secrets.
47. Driving a manual transmission car. Vrrooom Vrroooom!
48. House plants.
49. Custom Nikes. Love love love love love.
50. Being able to say I am halfway done with large tasks.
51. Realizing I have less to do on a large task than I have already accomplished.
52. Flirting.
53. Giving presentations. If you can't dazzle them with science, baffle them with bullshit.
54. Being respected for being intelligent and praised for being a hard worker. These are some of my favorite qualities of myself.
55. Getting my haircut.
56. Easy to open pistachios.
57. Getting mail.
58. Making faces.
59. Being able to tell your dreams and aspirations to someone and have them love and respect you for it rather than think you are crazy.
60. Sledding.
61. Sailboats.
62. Giving to charity; whether it is time, money, donated goods, or simple well wishes and a thank you.
63. Hot tea before bed.
64. People with an inherent calmness to them. This may be jealousy, as I am not inherently calm but rather a bit of a firecracker. Nonetheless, I enjoy being in the presence of calm.
65. Watching TV shows from my childhood: Captain Planet, Saved by the Bell, Full House.
66. Grammar and spelling. Not that mine are always perfect.
67. A solid "I am here for you" hug.
68. Surprising people.
69. Installing something--anything-- by myself. Like: internet service, shelving units, etc. It reasserts my power over complicated material things.
70. Buying select groceries from the local co-op. While it makes me feel a little poor, it simultaneously makes me feel hip and good for the planet. Plus, organic cheese is the cat's meow.
71. First dates. Even when they rarely become second dates, and almost never become a third, first dates are typically so fun.
72. Butterfly gardens.
73. The sound of running water.
74. People who acknowledge the need to extend human rights even when their own cultural or religious experiences has not.
75. Traveling.
76. Listening to people speak in languages other than English.
77. People watching.
78. Catching someone "people watching" me!
79. Wonderful and supportive classmates @ The School of Public Health. There will always be a unique bond with the people I have shared this crazy experience with.
80. Finishing things significantly before the deadline.
81. Finishing things right before the deadline and having that magical "Phew!" feeling.
82. Bubble baths and a bottle of wine.
83. IKEA furniture that lasts more than 6 months.
84. Completing things you never thought possible.
85. Making a mistake and discovering it was better than what you had intended in the first place.
86. The smell of freshly cut grass in the summer.
87. Balloon hats. And newspaper hats for that matter.
88. Driving with the windows down in the summer.
89. Happy dogs.
90. The absolutely massive variety of hamburgers at King's Cafe in Miesville. I would recommend The Slider.
91. LEGOs.
92. Picking up where I left off.
93. Starting over.
94. A little lesson I learned from my childhood dog: sometimes the only movement you really need to do throughout a lazy, relaxing day is to relocate yourself to the "sunny spots" throughout the house as the sun bounces from one horizon to the other.
95. Crunchy peanut butter (now in organic! My heart be still. . . )
96. People who are thoughtful. I am trying to take notes.
97. Ladybugs on windowsills.
98. Reading the newspaper in print form, rather than online at least once every two weeks.
99. Understanding that someday big milestones will feel little, maybe even become part of the background noise and that the little things may be what ends up defining part of my character. And being okay with whichever way things go.
100. Crossing the finish line.

New Layout

I wanted to make this easier to read by making the text space wider, as I can often talk at length and it was frustrating to be scrolling so far, only reading 3 inches of text. Sorry, if you were super attached to the old color scheme, it didn't all transfer perfectly with the new template. Don't get your panties in a bunch about switching the yellow to gold-orange. I did what I had to.

Also, I just realized that this is my 99th post, making the next one the BIG FAT 100!

There is a lot of pressure to provide you with something awesome, but my brain capacity is that of a slug. Dilemma-- I can't very well wait all the way until the semester is over to draft a really dreamy post, deserving of the third digit it is about to acquire, but I also don't want my 100th post to be me bitching about school. Huh. There is a lot to ponder.

Paper Writing: Pushing Every Boundary You Ever Thought You Had Set

Physical Boundaries

1. The Gut: I have recently discovered that my stomach does not like to be left out of any event, including paper writing. The harder my hands are working to type things up, the harder my stomach thinks it needs work. It's favorite wartime victims? HoneyComb cereal, mini marshmallows (mmmm mallows), Lime Tostitos and salsa, chocolate, and pickles. Not usually all at once, but the next three weeks may test that boundary as well.*

2. Amount of Sleep Required To Function: Very little, actually. Now, I am not staying up all night to write papers because I value my mental and physical health too much to do that unless it is an emergency, but I am constantly outlining, editing, rearranging, and creating tables in my head. All day. Even when I should be sleeping. I have discovered that the only way to ensure myself some solid sleep is to roast myself into a beautiful coma via electric blanket. Set the dial to [H] and eyelids to closed and. . . I dream in data analysis code.** Okay, not an ideal dream, but at least I am sleeping.

3. The Body is a Vessel Built for Caffeine Storage: An entire pot of coffee? Child's play. However, I do refuse to use anything harder than espresso shots, and even 2 or 3 shots of espresso in a hot beverage is about my max.

Mental Boundaries

1. Multi-tasking: Two tasks at once? That's it?! Pick your knuckles up off the ground, caveman, and learn to really multi-task. For instance, it is 10:50 am on a Tuesday and I am currently engaged in the following:

• Listening to GIS disease tracking lecture
• Paper crossword puzzle
• Harvesting Farmville crops
• Updating assignment due dates on the Google Calendar
• Shopping at rei.com

2. Creativity: There is no bounds to creative ways to eat, sleep, get out of a pickle, create a pickle for someone else, communicate with friends, etc. I also find that my mind is so mumbo-jumbled, that the things I say make less sense, but people think I am being funny. I just roll with it.

3. Memory: If it isn't related to the following items, I have forgotten it:

• Rotaviral vaccination in developing countries
• Mandatory AED placement in Hennepin County
• Official University of Minnesota email as an effective communication method to inform students about H1N1 preparedness
• The risk to human rights by allowing water to be treated as a for-profit commodity

Emotional Boundaries

There are currently no emotional boundaries, because the last three weeks of a grad school semester strip the student of all signifiers of emotion, except tears. There is no patience, no sympathy, no empathy, no epic joy, a little epic heartbreak, little compassion shown, tons of sarcasm, heaps of dramatic and heavy sighs, and many tears. Except, luckily I have crossed into the realm in which there is no time to cry. Which is good, it frees up all the time I was spending sobbing to actually do some work.***

*I bet pickles with salsa could be good in someway. I'll let you know.

** So a lot of times when I am frustrated by irony, I will say "Jesus!" Rarely am I a "Jesus Christ!" exclaimer, but I do like "For christ sake." Okay, so then the other day I say someone else's blog in which they typed "Geezus" in place of what I assume is to be "Jesus" when used as an exclamation. So then I debated what to type here, where I eventually decided not to type anything. But, what is up with that? Like misspelling his name means you aren't using it in vain? Gimme a break. Jesus.

*** This could be interpreted as the most giant "I don't give a flip about anything else." This would not be wholly correct or wholly incorrect. Take it as it is.