Mild Amusement

It's been a while since I've talked about the random compliments that people seem to throw my way, so I figure it's time to remedy that. I don't quite know what it is that leads to some of these comments, since it's not like I go out of my way to ask people to try to say nice things about me. Though "nice" might be a bit of a stretch, since some of these comments are so strange that they fall more into the category of "seriously?" than "wow, thanks." With that as a backdrop, though, let me get right to it: Me: "Eh, work's kinda lame right now" Friend: "What?! But you love your job, and you're always so happy about it" This is precisely what I mean. On the surface, that sounds like a good thing. Who doesn't want to do something they enjoy? But if you think about it, I think my friend just called me either gullible or a chump. I mean, everyone has bad days and there are always little frustrations that...

I've mentioned before that often my actions around my house are driven by the munchkins that happen to be walking around. Even simple little things like whether to leave the toilet seat up or down  and taking my temperature often involve a little kid. I've actually gotten used to it, and it's not a big deal, but it's changed how I act just a little bit. This time, however, I think someone else might have taken that to the next level for me. Allow me to explain. I'm very used to little kids wanting to play with the adults in the house ( I am no exception to this general attitude ), and even more importantly, them wanting to imitate all of the adults. That generally means that I have to be on my best behavior around the kids, so that I don't set a bad example. I don't swear when little ones are around, I make sure to say "please" and "thank you," I excuse myself from the table, and I generally act like a civilized person. They're lit...

For people that have known me for a while, there are a couple of stories that they are bound to have heard me tell. They're just amusing stories all around, so they're bound to come up eventually. Everyone involved always chuckles or flat out laughs, so in theory, it should be a win-win situation. Should be. As it turns out, though, I know a few jokers that have managed to use these stories to make fun of me . Let me start with one of these stories: a long time ago, a bunch of us were looking for a place to eat. These were friends I had known for a long time, and we'll all grown up together, so it was a very casual outing. In fact, it was so casual, that we didn't even have a destination in mind. The plan consisted of: "let's find food." So, we were driving around trying to find something to eat, when someone spotted a restaurant that looked promising: Friend #1: "Hey, what about that spot?" Friend #2: "Which one?" Friend #1: ...

No matter what you do, everyone always has distinctive tastes. My siblings and I were all more or less raised the same way, and we all steadfastly try to clear our plates . That doesn't mean that we all appreciate the same dishes, though, or that we approach meals the same way. Like I said, personal taste always factors in at some point, and different human beings are bound to have different predilections for food. It's just how it goes. Anyhow, that means that whenever we eat any kind of a bird (chicken, turkey, hen, you get the idea), everyone has their favorite part. For example, my sister has always been a fan of the drumsticks, I'm partial to the dark meat, and my mom generally prefers wings. We don't actually pick through the plate to ensure we get our favorite parts, since that's always been considered gauche at our dinner table. Still, if the nearest piece happens to line up with our preferences, we always grab it with glee and relish the food just a littl...

A little while ago, we had some family stay with us. Among other people, one of my younger cousins stayed with us for a few days. I hadn't met her before, so I was actually a bit worried how everyone would react. I mean, I can handle adults, but I'm never quite sure how to deal with teenage boys and girls. They talk differently, they have far different interests, and they tend to regard anyone who is older than them as strange. All in all, it's a dicey proposition. Still, I happen to be the youngest of the adults in the house, and I am also the youngest at heart (being a smart aleck tends to do that). So, on more than one occasion, I found myself trying to engage this cousin in conversation or otherwise keep her company. It wasn't horribly awkward or anything, but it took a little bit of time before that initial shyness passed. And, at one point, we were talking about school or something, when she mentioned handball. Now, we just so happen to have these little balls...

A few days ago, I went to a holiday party with some friends. This is actually something that we've done for several years in a row, and we always look forward to it. It's fun to see old friends and catch up, and there's always some delicious grub to be had. Mix in some alcohol and the fact that we've got a few jokers in the bunch, and we always end up having a good time. However, there is one very interesting turn of events that tends to crop up at these parties that scares me just a little bit. I always refer to it as the moonshine. You see, one of the friends has some relatives overseas. During one of the early incarnations of this party, she had just returned from a trip to visit these relatives. She figured she'd share some of the spoils from her trip, so she brought along a bottle of "plum wine" to the party. It was something that her relatives had brewed themselves, so we were definitely getting a unique experience. In fact, it was so unique that...

In case it isn't already patently obvious from some of my posts, I tend to be a bit of a smart aleck ( this is a pretty good example ). I have a quirky sense of humor and I am not afraid to use it. It means that other people bring their wits, too, so it's not at all rare for other people to make fun of me . It comes with the territory, so I don't begrudge anyone their jokes, especially since I tend to find it funny, too. And heck, if I've earned it, I'll take my lumps. Sometimes, though, I get some lumps that I may not have earned. Those are almost always universally amusing, because they involve some sort of wacky misunderstanding or some sort of goofy lead up. These, my friends, are a couple of those stories: A while back, a few of us decided to have lunch together. We needed to settle on a time for lunch, but the other two had relatively free schedules. That left it to me to decide on the time. It just so happened that I was chatting with one of the two lun...