I'll Be Home For Christmas

Listening to this song this afternoon made me wonder why being home for Christmas is important for so many people... So deserving of a song.

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Since I started college, and moved away from Wisconsin, I've wondered where my home is. Initially, I thought my home was simply where I was living, so I began to consider school my home. There, I had the bed I slept in, my belongings, friends, and my life, but I was missing something - my family. I missed the smell of the house, the noise we'd create talking around the dinner table, doing my homework with my brother in the kitchen while my mom made dinner, working on projects with my dad, and saying goodnight to my parents every night.

When I see my family now, I realize it is their company that I consider my home. My home has become as much of a sensation as a location. For me, home has become a place where I am comfortable, where people care for me, and where there is an endless amount of love and friendship.

I think it is for this reason that when I was in college, I referred to my dorm as my home, now, my apartment has become my home, when I am at a hotel with my family, I often refer to our room as our home, and when I am in the house I grew up in, I am also home. (Needless to say, I tend to confuse those around me when I refer to my home, as I consider all these places to be my home.)

Someday, I hope to have a family of my own and together, we will make ourselves a home. For tonight, I am with people who love me, and I feel at home.

 

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I love collecting quotes, so I've decided to start sharing some with you.

what do you wish?

i wish it were christmastime.

i wish candy - specifically chocolate - was a healthy snack that was recommended for your daily diet. that way, i would easily be the healthiest person alive.

i wish it were saturday already. that would mean i was home, in wisconsin, with my family.

i wish my best friends weren't all in places i am not.

i wish it wasn't already november. that means i have been here for six months and have only six left, which really is not that long.

. . . . .

but it's wednesday, which means we are halfway through the week!

ET, phone home

So, I was going to make a post about aliens and my recent obsession with the possibility, but then I reevaluated the idea and realized it is as silly as I have always thought.

 

After further consideration, however, I have decided to go with it. This is a space for me to share my random thoughts, so that is what I will do. So, this may sound silly. Actually, if it doesn't, you are worse off than I am.

Anyway, a few nights ago I had a dream. In this dream, I was some sort of conspiracy theorist who saw signs of extraterrestrial life and believed the government was hiding this information from the public for "protection," as certain people believed this knowledge would be destructive. They believed that this information, the possibility that we, as a global community were coexisiting with another form of life somewhere else would be too much to handle.

I woke up that morning utterly confused. Why was I dreaming about aliens? Since when have I been into these conspiracies?

To my shock when I got my morning newspaper, the cover story described how scientists across the world were joining together in a hunt for extraterrestrial life. The story went on to describe this two day collaboration, which did not mention any alien sitings (http://www.expressnightout.com/, November 8, 2010 cover story.)

Then, yesterday on Castle (classy source, I know), the whole episode was about aliens. Some of the absurd comments Castle made only furthered my thinking and offered support to the theories I developed in my dream. Needless to say, it turns out (surprise, surprise) aliens were not involved in this murder and everything could be explained logically.

While I am still unsure of what I think about this whole alien idea, I do know one thing. This string of thoughts has led me to wonder about the world we live in. There is no doubt in my mind that far from every detail of every story is revealed to the public (as no one knows what happened to JFK). In fact, sometimes the story may not even make it to the press. So how can we carry-on despite this blatant withholding of information?

I understand that a certain level of non-transparency may be justifiable in the interests of National Security, but as we know, "absolute power corrupts absolutely." There are certain departments within the government that are seemingly beyond reproach and have no need to divulge what they know. Unfortunately, it is likely that the secrets and lies will continue, and they will only become more sophisticated as time goes on.

At the same time, however, we often turn a blind eye to anything that doesn't fit nicely into our predispositions. So how much use would it be to know that aliens really do exist when it is significantly easier to live with the belief that aliens disappeared when ET returned home?

. . . . .

For something less "heady," check out this picture. And I promise that this is one of the few conspiracy theories I will babble on to you about.

Click the picture for more fun!

Goal #1: Learn to Cook

My three most notable experiences in the kitchen are as follows.

1996

At the age of 7, while watching my mom make dinner, I was told a tragic story regarding one of the neighbor girls. While attempting to drain boiling water, she spilled the water on her forearm and spent the evening in the hospital treating the burns. A few weeks later I heard another story of a girl who burnt her herself while taking a cake out of the oven. Combined, these two experiences convinced me that cooking was an unnecessary health risk that could be avoided by letting someone else cook.

2009

I moved into a house with four other girls. I was faced with my own kitchen for the first time. I decided that learning to cook would be fun because it would be an excuse to purchase cute kitchen supplies. I christened the kitchen it by purchasing a cupcake pan and a set of mixing bowls. (These supplies were each used once.)

2010

I can still count my experiences in the kitchen on one hand. I have decided, however, that this has gone on for long enough. I am convinced that I need to learn to cook and bake. If I at least make an effort and it turns out everything I touch is terrible, others will no longer expect me to cook and I can return to the simplicity of takeout. On the other hand, if I succeed, I will hopefully have developed a new hobby.

. . . . .

I figure, if I can do chemistry, how hard can cooking be? Essentially they're the same... right? You combine ingredients, somehow they change form, and you end up with a final product that doesn't necessarily resemble what you started with. At this point, the main difference I can see is that in one you are told to never consume what you are working with and the other is all about consumption. I hope this venture doesn't lead to my death.

To further my belief that cooking isn't that difficult, I have convinced myself that if people have been cooking since, well, since people were alive. So, how hard can it possibly be? (Although, it seems to involve much more magic than science.)

To end on a positive note, I think I have potential. I am generally pretty good at following directions and I have a few cookbooks that have seemingly clear directions. Occasionally, I get impatient, forget to purchase key ingredients, or don't have the necessary cookware, and decide to proceed anyway, but most of the time I follow directions. Enough prepping myself though, it is time for my excursion into the kitchen to begin, and important events will be highlighted on this blog.