My New Relationship

This relationship is not new, but there has been a new advancement in the relationship.

I could be wrong but I think that most people who live or work in the city have "their" homeless guy (or gal). This is a particular homeless person that you pass everyday. You may acknowledge them, you may not. You may give them money or food, you may not. Nevertheless they are part of your life. My homeless guy stands in front of the Boeing Building. Everyday as people pass he says "Good Morning Young Man" or "Good Morning Young Lady" to every single person. At times people are coming so fast its a whirl wind of pleasantries. Most people don't respond. I always say "Good Morning" and smile. At that particular spot I cross the street. It is not a cross walk so I usually have to wait a bit for traffic. After the first few days he acknowledged me a bit more with some Sweeties and Honey's and some other stuff I can't understand and finally an "I lu yewwww!" as I crossed the street. Now this interaction is our normal morning routine. Oh I forgot to mention that he sounds like Billy Bob Thorton in Sling Blade! I still just say "Good Morning" but my smile has moved to more of a laugh. I wish you could experience this. It makes my morning. There are days that I am just not in the mood for him, but I walk by anyway and by the time I am across the street my mood is lifted. I just can't help it. He is so priceless.

I know I am not the only one he loves so today I was caught off guard a bit. As I passed he starts saying things I hadn't heard before. Not the sweeties and the honey's and the usual garble I can't understand. So I say "What?" and walk closer. As a side note I have never given him anything, no money, no food, nothing. So today he tells me that he is going to be having surgery tomorrow, so after tomorrow I will not see him for the rest of the week. He reiterated, "You will see me tomorrow morning but not for the rest of the week." I just said "Oh No! Good Luck. I will definitely come by tomorrow morning to see you." He said a few things I didn't understand something about praying for him I think. Then off I went across the street with his "I lu yewww" trailing behind.

Now what do I do? Should I get him something? I don't even know what that would be. I know he likes to smoke but that's not appropriate. Maybe some food? I am at a loss. Maybe just a good luck with your surgery and see you soon.

This Is Crazy

Heidi Montag, Spencer Pratt, Dog the Bounty Hunter, Janice Dickinson, Geraldo Rivera and Rod Blagojevich are dropped in a remote jungle....

Sounds like the start of a great joke, right? It is no joke. This is a reality show! "I'm a Celebrity...Get Me Out of Here!"

The gist is celebrities live in jungle conditions with few comforts and have to earn human essentials. Viewers will decide which celebrities stay or go. The last remaining star will be crowned King or Queen of the Jungle, winning a cash prize for their favorite charity.

I know you will not want to miss this gem. "I'm a Celebrity...Get Me Out of Here!" begins June 1st (8-9 p.m. ET) on NBC.

Update: 4/21/09 11:41 am
A federal judge has denied permission to former Gov. Rod Blagojevich to travel to Costa Rica to participate in a reality TV show. Although I am sad he won't be participating, I sort of can't believe he had the guts to even ask. On second thought, when it comes to him nothing should surprise me.

It gets me everytime

There is a new ad campaign out for 1-800-Flowers. I see it everywhere on buses driving around the city. Every time I see it I think, "I totally want a giant cupcake for my birthday! I hope someone gets me one! Yum!" And every time I am deflated by the fact that it is a giant cupcake shaped flower bouquet. Who would want a giant cupcake shaped bouquet of flowers? I think anyone would get this and be disappointed and wish they received a real giant cupcake. Don't you think it looks delicious? At least for a split second?

By the way it looks MUCH bigger on the side of a bus.

Dream Jobs

I have two dream jobs. The first one is Billboard Painter. I'm not talking about the run-of-the-mill wall paper billboard you see along the highway. I am talking about the few true old fashioned billboards that are still painted on the the wall of a building. I mostly want to do this job to find out how they do it. Some how they draw the lines and create a line drawing of the picture. I think they use a giant overhead projector. Then they fill in the lines with color. I'm picturing a paint by number type system. And if it is, I could do that. But if it is some kind of real artist type that is experienced in painting murals then I'm out. Incidentally the best painted billboard in Chicago (that I know of) is off of 90/94 at the Armitage exit. Right now its paint in support of the Chicago 2016 Olympic bid. If you are in the neighborhood, drive by. Here it is under construction.

Awesome. I can't wait to win the lottery, so I can intern with the billboard painting company that does this. Do you think it is a competitive position to get? Probably. Who wouldn't want to be a billboard painter?

My second dream job is Namer of the OPI Nail Polish Colors. I rarely get my nails done but when I do I pick the color just by the name. I also do the same with paint colors for my home.

What a Wonderful Day!

My stapler ran out of staples! It is such a special occasion. It happens so infrequently. It's like the office equivalent of a lunar eclipse. I get so surprised and happy when it happens. Now if I did not have a box of staples in my desk (and about 50 boxes in the supply closet) that would be another story.

Above is the stapler that was on my desk when I started my job. The homemade note attached with tape reads "If this stapler is removed from here there will be NO REPLACEMENT!!! Therefore, be generous and DO NOT REMOVE FROM HERE!" I thought "WOW they are really serious about their staplers." I just figured they must have had problems in the past from people stealing them or something. My office is small, about 15 people, so it seemed kind of strange. I highly doubt anyone would be stealing staplers. Later I found out that mine was the only one with the note and that in fact it was stolen from one of the printer islands. Oops. It wasn't me. The stapler was here when I started.

Bicycle, Bicycle

I'm so excited that biking weather is finally here. I have six bicycles and I love them all. I guess what most girls feel about purses or shoes I feel about bicycles. You need a different one for different situations. I have a road bike for long rides. A cruiser for cruisin' the neighborhood. A mountain bike for off-road. A commuter for riding to and from the train. A fixed gear for those mid length rides and to work my legs. And the Brigdestone XO-1 just because I wanted it.

It would not be at all strange if history came to the conclusion that the perfection of the bicycle was the greatest incident of the nineteenth century.- Anonymous

Honey

Besides being one of my favorite movies (which you should all add to your Netflix que if you have not seen it), honey is an amazing product we should all be using more often. Steve turned me on to all of the benefits of honey and since his blog seems to be stagnant I thought I would pass this information on to you.

Honey has been used for centuries by human civilizations to cure common ailments and sicknesses. It’s an open secret that everyone’s grandmother knows about. Listed below are 21 common problems which can be cured by Honey.

1) For burns
Apply freely over burns. It cools, removes pain and aids fast healing without scarring. Apart from being a salve and antibiotic, bacteria cannot live in honey.

2) Bed Wetting
A teaspoon of honey before bed aids water retention and calms fears in children.

3) Sleeplessness
A dessert spoon of honey in a mug of hot milk aids sleep and works wonders!

4) Hyperactivity
Honey is a mild sedative with minerals, vitamins, amino acids etc. Replace all white sugar with honey. White sugar is highly stimulating with no food qualities.

5) Nasal Congestion
Place a dessert spoon of honey in a basin of hot water and inhale fumes after covering your head with a towel over the basin.

6) Wounds or Grazes
Cover wound with honey and a bandage. Excellent healer.

7) For Fatigue
Dissolve a desert spoon of honey in warm water or quarter honey balance of water in a jug and keep in the fridge. Honey is primarily fructose and glucose and so it is quickly absorbed by the digestive system. (Honey is a unique natural stabilizer - ancient Greek athletes took honey for stamina before competing and as a reviver after competition.)

8)Facial Deep Cleanser
Mix honey with oatmeal approx. 50/50 till thick and apply as a face-pack. Leave on for half an hour then wash off. Great as a deep cleanser for acne .

9) Poor Digestion
Mix honey with apple cider vinegar approx. 50/50 and dilute to taste with water. This aids digestion. (Also reputed to be wonderful for the joints.)

10) Hair Conditioner
Mix honey with equal quantity of Olive Oil and cover head with a warm towel for half an hour then shampoo off. Feeds hair and scalp. Hair will never look or feel better!

11) Sore Throats
Let a teaspoon of honey melt in the back of the mouth and trickle down the throat. Eases inflamed raw tissues.

12) For Stress
Honey in water is a stabilizer - calms highs and raises lows. Use approx. 25 percent honey to water.

13) Anaemia
Honey is the best blood en-richer by raising corpuscle content. The darker the honey the more minerals it contains.

14) Food Preservative
Cakes with honey replacing sugar stay fresher longer due to natural antibiotics. Reduce liquids by approx. one-fifth to allow for moisture in honey.

15) Heart Patients
These people are well advised to replace white sugar (sucrose) with honey, natural fructose and glucose.

16) Hay-fever
Chewing the tops of comb honey stimulates the immune system due to minute amounts of pollen. During the season chew for 20 minutes a teaspoon of bee capping (tops) five to six times per day. Highly effective and useful for asthma sufferers as well.

17) Osteoporosis
English research has shown that a teaspoon of honey per day aids calcium utilization and prevents osteoporosis. Essential from age 50 onwards.

18) Long Life
One common fact worldwide is that the most long-lived people are regular users of honey. An interesting fact yet to be explained is that beekeepers suffer less from cancer and arthritis than any other occupational group worldwide.

19) Migraine
Use a dessertspoon of honey dissolved in half a glass of warm water. Sip at start of attack. If necessary repeat in 20 minutes. Always effective (so tip goes) as migraine is stress related.

20) Conjunctivitis (pus in the eye)
Honey dissolved in equal quantity of warm water. Apply, when cooled, as lotion or eye bath.

21) Cough mixture
6 oz. liquid honey, 2 oz. glycerin, Juice of 2 lemons, Mix well. Bottle and cork firmly. Use as required

Honey....who knew? And don't forget to watch the movie.