Seven Random Things

Madam Owl tagged me to play along with this meme, so I guess I will. Here are seven random things about me.

1. I recently discovered that I am actually 5'8" and not the 5'7" my drivers license claims. I'd suspected this for a while but hadn't confirmed it until a recent visit to the doctor. I'm pleased about it.

2. People have tried to nickname me on multiple occasions, but nicknames don't stick. I don't like being called by my last name, I don't like shortened versions of my first name, and no one's come up with a really good silly nickname or set of nicknames for me. One friend thinks I'm un-nicknameable. I tend to agree.

3. I cut my own hair. Well, I've been letting it grow out for the last several months, so I haven't cut it much, but when it needs cutting, I do it. Because my hair's wavy and curly, the casual observer can't tell if I cut it unevenly anyway.

4. I always always always wear heels on the first day of teaching a new class. I like to dress up a bit at the beginning of the semester to reinforce my status as a professional, but I also like to have a little bit of extra leverage, which an additional three inches in height really can give me. That puts me at nearly 6 feet tall, taller than pretty much any female student I have and taller than many of the male students as well. It may not be fair, but it really does make a difference in the way they initially perceive me.

5. I was in the elevator at school the other day and one of the English professors, who I hadn't seen in quite a while, got on the elevator, too. She didn't immediately recognize me because my hair was different than it had been the last time we'd spoken. She recognized me quickly and commented on the fact that my hair was different. "It's longer," she said, "And black." I nodded. Then she asked me, "How did that happen?" I hesitated, unsure whether my natural first response was rude, but then, when I couldn't come up with another possible response, just said it: "Time and hair dye." Fortunately, she didn't find that to be snarky or flippant and she didn't seem to catch the quiet judgment in my eyes at her question. She didn't think it was funny, either. She just complimented my hair and got off the elevator. I wonder sometimes at how many silly things people say in regular conversation. I know I'm not immune, but I don't talk much with people I don't know well, and when I do I tend to think before I speak (sometimes overthinking so that I miss my opportunity to join in a conversation), so asking someone how their hair got longer and blacker isn't something I'm likely to do.

6. I enjoy writing a great deal. I mostly just have a hard time deciding what to write about that I think anyone else will care about.

7. Seven is one of my two favorite numbers. Four is the other. They've been my favorite numbers since I was seven and my brother was four.

Here are the rules, should you like to play:
* Link to the person who tagged you
* Post the rules on your blog
* Write 7 random things about yourself
* Tag 7 people at the end of your post and link to them
* Let each person know they've been tagged

I am not going to tag people, just because I've seen this meme going around in a few of the blogs I follow and I'm not sure who hasn't been tagged yet. If you see this and haven't been tagged yet, consider this an invitation. The internet wants to know more about you!

[Heart] Photos

I found this on a bathroom wall at a Dallas coffeeshop the other night and thought it was just perfect. There was no "I" included, just a command to "[heart] photos." And I do.

Day One Hundred and Eighteen: Downtown

It was my brother's birthday, so I drove out to Dallas to hang out with him. We went to a couple of bars and a coffee shop and spent the afternoon and early evening drinking. Cory came and hung out with us for a while, too. This was taken on my drive through downtown Dallas--I got a little confused about the fastest way to get to the highway, so I took the scenic route instead.

Day One Hundred and Seventeen: Mystery

"The true mystery of the world is the visible, not the invisible."

~Oscar Wilde

“The most beautiful thing we can experience is the mysterious. It is the source of all true art and science.”

~Albert Einstein

Day One Hundred and Sixteen: Lace-Scape

Close-up on the lace of my dress. Plus a green thread from a sweater I'd worn earlier in the day.

Day One Hundred and Fifteen: Headlight

Hey, come on try a little
Nothing is forever
There's got to be something better than
In the middle
But me & Cinderella
We put it all together
We can drive it home
With one headlight

~The Wallflowers

Day One Hundred and Fourteen: Fake

This is one of the fake flowers I keep on my office desk. Real flowers are prettier and smell better, but I always feel bad about having to kill them to bring them in from where they grow outside and I'm not in the office often enough to keep a plant alive there.

Day One Hundred and Thirteen: Painted

Last time they painted the fire lanes in my apartment complex's parking lot, they also painted some of the plants growing up through the cracks in the lot.

Day One Hundred and Twelve: Favorites

This is one of my favorite pairs of shoes (I thrifted them for less than $5 and they fit perfectly), but I can't actually make the walk to and from school in them because of the height of their heels. So I get to wear tennis shoes while I walk and carry my favorites.

Blog for Choice Day 2009

Today, the 36th anniversary of Roe v. Wade, is Blog for Choice Day. The topic for this year's event is this: What is your top pro-choice hope for President Obama and/or the new Congress?

I have so many hopes for the next four years. I hope that Obama follows through on the statements he has already made about supporting Roe v. Wade and providing better healthcare and birth control options so that abortion might not be necessary as often. I hope that people like this will not be allowed to continue to abuse and lie to their patients. I hope that the legislation passed by George W. Bush that cuts off overseas aid for organizations that discuss abortion as an option and that allows health care providers to refuse treatment that conflicts with their beliefs will soon be overturned.

I hope that, as a result of Obama's leadership in this arena, pro-choice individuals can begin to feel that their choices, their bodies, and their lives remain theirs to control instead of living in fear that the Supreme Court will overturn Roe v. Wade, that Congress will pass further legislation allowing pharmacists and healthcare providers to even more easily deny us our choices and our freedoms, and that women around the world will be forced to make do with less than they deserve.

Day One Hundred and Eleven: Free

We must be free not because we claim freedom, but because we practice it.

~William Faulkner

Day One Hundred and Ten: Gum Monster

I'm not sure if there is anything to say about this one. It is what it is.

Day One Hundred and Nine: Railroad

I spent the afternoon and evening with Cory, which was nice, except that I couldn't shake this stupid headache. We went to a park in Dallas and walked for a while, which helped my head somewhat, but after a while the headache was back.


This railroad track appears to be unused, but Cory stood guard for me anyway while I crouched in the middle of it to take pictures.

Day One Hundred and Eight: Red Bubbles

Clearly, I've gotten a little behind in posting my daily photos. I will be attempting to catch up today.

Day One Hundred and Seven: Do Not Enter

Seriously.