About Joy

I've recently had reason to contemplate joy-- to think deeper than the next corny movie on my hit list, and ask myself what I am truly glad to have in my life. It's not a difficult answer.

The relationships. The good ones. Those people, places, and animals are the Joy of my life. It's very difficult to think about losing even one of them. I think that's why I've tried not to attend many funerals in my lifetime. I'd rather have my memories remain joyful. Not relegated to the past-- behind some horrid memory of black clothes and crying and lots of sniffing because NOBODY thinks to bring enough kleenex for the way your nose runs when you cry. I think life and the people in it are to be enjoyed.

So I decided that what I want to do right now is honor some of the joyful moments I've had in my life-- and thought to capture with a digital camera-- by posting random photos. I know not everyone wants their picture up here, and I know I'm not going to upload EVERY joyous moment I have on film... but I thought it would be something important that I could be happy to review later on-- a commemoration of Joy. (By the way, some of my favorite cousins have 'Joy' for their middle name. I love that about them!)

And since I cannot NOT figure out the formatting of the photos, they are in VERY random order. Sigh.

Sad

So I'm back at my Spring Cleaning-- which I started mid-finals, and then gave up when I realized I'd recycled two (not one- but TWO) wedding invitations. Spent about a week with my head in the sand recuperating and regrouping for the Summer Semester... and now I'm back at it.

Spring Cleaning.

I bring this up because I'm now at my desk (obviously, as I'm typing)-- cleaning it off and wondering how dirty the surface will be when I get down that far-- and I have discovered a wide variety of to-do lists. My favorite has only one item on it, but places for more things I never got around to writing down, and obviously intended to. The first thing on the list? "--Write things down!"

Okay-- that's just sad.

Stuck to the TV

So... remember the Flaming Pizza Box story? Apparently, I didn't learn the lesson. Don't get me wrong- I love Ikea as much as the next starving college kid-- but I will never buy a tea light candle holder there again. I always figured with a TEA LIGHT that is already in it's little cup, putting it in a container MADE FOR TEA LIGHTS was a pretty safe way to burn a candle. I was wrong. Those "do not leave unattended" warning stickers are there for a REASON, people!

The particular candles I buy come from Z Gallerie, a store I love. They are supposed to be smokeless, dripless, and the wicks don't have any lead in them. A good thing, I think. The 50-tea-lights-in-a-bag that I bought previously were turning my wall and my tea light holder black. Yuck! I've used a good 20-30 of these little dubers already, and have had no problem with them in the past-- in my nice little glass cup, on top of a ceramic plate, on a fairly flame-safe surface in my living room. It's a very happy thing.

So I thought nothing of leaving one of them burning in a (supposedly ceramic) tea light HOLDER, sitting on top of the TV (which is on loan to me from a good friend) while I was doing things in the other room. Fast forward to two days later. I decide to watch a movie. I notice that the tea light holder on the TV seems shorter than I remember it being. OH. That's because it has melted down INTO THE PLASTIC of the TV. Grand.

(Okay. I'd just like to note that this sort of strangeness could only happen to me. Or to my co-star, Shana. So... WHERE ARE THE CAMERAS HIDING THIS TIME???!!!)

Closer examination reveals that the heat of the tealight heated the candle holder to such a degree that it MELTED THE TEA LIGHT CUP (these cups are plastic, not the traditional metal, under the mistaken assumption that they'll conduct the heat less well or they look fancier or something) to a charred black soup in the base of the tea light holder-- now a cold, hardened black soup that has become one with the holder itself. And the whole thing has sunken down into the plastic top of the TV-- about 1/2 inch. The borrowed TV. And the smoke alarm was blessedly silent while the plastics melted, burned, and reformed themselves there on the TV. The borrowed TV. (This is starting to feel strangely like poetry...)

On the bright side, the TV now has a unique and very handy cup holder on it's top-- and the picture and function were not affected in the slightest. On the down side, I'm throwing out all the tea light holders that I bought at IKEA last year. Sigh... Also on the bright side, the sudden personalization of the TV has been seen with humor by the person I borrowed it from, too. And, I will never forget about leaving candles unattended again-- the warning sticker from the bottom of the candle holder is permanently fused to the TV.