A new look--again.

I changed my look again, because the old page only allowed one post to show up at a time.  Thus, limiting my ability to post twice in one day, should I have a hankerin'.  I like it.  I hope you do to.

V.I.P. That's right.

As of Monday I became a VIP at the Nabi plasma donation center.  Basically, this means my plasma has lots of Hepatitis B antigens, I get paid more, and I get to put VIP after my name when I sign in, moving my name and file to the very top of the list.  I'm not sure why, but the whole thing makes me feel like a rap star, and I am considering getting some bling with my initial on it.

Brrrrrr (I'm feeling poetic)

There's something quiet about the cold, something private.

Perhaps it's the way we hunch over keeping our arms as close to our sides as possible, our hands tucked into pockets.

With our ears to our shoulders, we do not invite the friendly conversations or simple nods hello from passersby.  

As we enter into the warmth of inside, we stand up, we loosen ourselves both physically and relationally.  We say hello.

Verbally Processing This Thing Called Hope

I have been pondering hope lately, not just hope in the Lord and His promises, which is ultimately hope, but the demeanor of hope as it sits on a person's soul.  Hope can be so freeing.  It doesn't so much sit on one's soul, but it makes is float, it holds it up.  But as a realist, hope is terrifying for me, even after writing that last description.  Hope gives up control.  It throws itself into an exhilarating free-fall from a mountaintop and risks the possibility of incredible pain.  The knowledge of the risk of pain causes me to reign in any hope in which I might surely enjoy and revel.I know that I have issues and pain that I need to work through, but why do I not risk hoping, seeing its potential to bring life?  Even as I process this, I am so enticed to hope, but it seems like a monster under my bed ready to grab my leg and bite it off.  Arrrrg!  Hope!

Holiday Novel

Each Holiday season I look forward to getting sucked into a good novel, but the selection of such is always the hardest part.  Any suggestions?

I am a Barista

Barista
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia


A competitor (James Hoffmann) during the World Barista Championship.
This article is about bartenders. For lawyers, see Barrister. For the chain of espresso bars in India, see Barista Coffee.
Not to be confused with Batista.
When using the term in English, "barista" refers to one who has acquired some level of expertise in the preparation of espresso-based coffee drinks. Within certain circles, its meaning is expanding to include what might be called a coffee sommelier; a professional who is highly skilled in coffee preparation, with a comprehensive understanding of coffee, coffee blends, espresso, quality, coffee varieties, roast degree, espresso equipment, maintenance, latte art, etc. James Hoffmann of Britain is the current World Barista Champion.
Though popularly believed to be an Italian term, it was developed in America as a derivative of the Italian word meaning bartender and is now part of the lexicon of some American coffee shops. Entered into English from the Italian in which it means roughly "bartender" (plural: baristi [masculine or mixed sex] or bariste [feminine]). The term is derived from the Italian use of the word bar, which is similar to the American or British café. In Italy, the barista typically works behind a counter, serving both hot (such as espresso and other coffee-based ones) and cold alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverages.

Although I am astounded to be akin to such a definition, and I think Scooter's should start selling really good beer and wine, I believe there is much more to being a barista. Baristas are the experts at everything. We are the available ear to anyone's woes. We set a tone to our given coffee houses. We arise early to ensure that your coffee is ready when you are. I love it!

Is it fall yet?

Not in my job decription

Okay, so in the say day, in the same hour, my role at Scooter's expanded.

The first incident:
After making a vanilla cappuccino smoothie with whip and making small talk with the customer, it was exclaimed to me, "You might know! Where can I get rid of a set of old encyclopedias?" How do I qualify to be one who might know? I make coffee! Anyway, I did have an idea: Lincoln Freecycle. She went for it.

The second incident:
From behind one of our walls I heard, "Hey Brook, is the word "subversive" really a word?"
"Yes, it is definately a word," I replied. Why did the customer suppose I had an advanced vocabulary? Hmmm?
It's not easy to be a barista. You have to always be on your toes.

Definition:
sub·ver·sive [suhb-vur-siv]
–adjective
1. Also, sub·ver·sion·ar·y [suhb-vur-zhuh-ner-ee, -shuh-] tending to subvert or advocating subversion, esp. in an attempt to overthrow or cause the destruction of an established or legally constituted government.
–noun
2. a person who adopts subversive principles or policies.

Breast Cancer awareness what???

Before I procede with this entry, a disclaimer: I am not against creative ways of raising money for breast cancer awareness. Furthermore, I have compassion and empathy for those who have fought against this disease.
However, you have to find the humor in just a bit of it. There are just some things that should not be pink.

Such a thing of beauty should never be pink

Really, a corkscrew?

Dangerous pink knives

And finally that which never loses its suction. . .


Other things I am hoping never to see in pink:
Kenmore washer/dryer
a snowblower
a weed wacker
basically any large appliance

check out who made the front page of the Journal Star today!

We have a celebrity in our midst. But, why was she at The Mill???

An old obsession in a whole new way

Last Friday night in St. Louis, I had the priviledge of learning to make beer! It was amazing to learn about everything that goes into it. Not only is it a relaxing process, but you can drink beer while making more.
I've been searching the internet for affordable home brew-making kits, so I can get started. I'll be saving up my tips from Scooter's, and before you know it you may get an invitation to come and drink some of my beer!

Why do we do that?

There are two trends I've noticed at Scooter's, and I have been guilty of myself. The first is that when someone offers to pay for their friend's drink, the friend makes a joke about how they are going to get a large whatever, plus several pastries, etc., and then they settle for a small cheap drink (most likely not what they would have gotten if they were paying for themselves). The question: why do we belittle people's generousity? Why do we feel guilty when someone else offers to pay. It's their choice.
The second thing I see tends only to occur among women. When alone, a woman can order their drink without hesitation for the most part, but when with a friend, they must confer with one another to see what the other is having and what size. This information influences what each will order. The question: Why doesn't each get what they really want? What holds them back? What are they afraid of?
I, henceforth, will strive to be grateful for the generosity of my friends and order what it is that I want.

I forgot how much I like Demotivators

Maybe it's unfortunate that I enjoy cynicism, but it's just so funny. My friend Ben reminded me of Demotivators. The tag line: The only consistent feature in all of your dissatisfying relationships is you. Find more funny at dispair.com

The inevitable question

In just a few weeks, maybe days, my mom will ask me what I'd like for Christmas this year. When I was a wee grade school lass, my brother and I would pour over the toy section of the Sear's catalogue and pick out dozens of things we wanted, simply by seeing them for the first time. But, now, I have to be more careful. I am aware that there is a Christmas budget and my desires have grown more and more expensive. And, I am very picky, or specific in my tastes sounds nicer. So, this year I have created a wish list that I can email to my family with links to the products online. That way my family will know exactly what I'd like. The great thing about is though, is that the internet is like a gigantic Sear's catalogue for adults!

One of my favorite faces

I am a dog person. I can't help it, I'm drawn to them. I have been struck lately about just how much I love my dog. She warms my heart. She can be annoying as well, I'm not going to paint an unrealistic picture, but I am so very fond of her. She rarely lets me get a picture, so with the help of photobooth and a sit, stay command, here she is (Sorry they're so big).

Haikus again

today is Monday
cool, dreary, cloudy
like Monday should be

Anticipation.
Is it happening to me?
Shall I dare to hope?

Happy Columbus Day?

Does anyone else think it's weird that we celebrate Columbus Day, and that the government workers get the day off? I mean come on.

A haiku excuse for not blogging

Sniffling, sneezing
My nose running all the time
Can't wait for the freeze

I may be 31, but I've still got it!

For those of you that haven't heard, I got asked out on a date. That's right, a date. He was unshaven (in an unhygenic sort of way), drunk, and after some quick math, 49. I'm pretty sure we'd take the Startran bus to our nice dinner. I just love serving coffee at Scooter's!

Things I didn't want to own until I became a home owner

I have new consumer desires that were never a problem before I became a home owner, but now, there is weird stuff I want to own, such as:
1. a shovel
2. new windows
3. a really good vacuum
4. a weed wacker
5. a hose with no holes in it
6. a shop vac
7. a tree limb trimmer
8. a caulking gun
9. a garden hoe
10. a good quality 20 foot extension cord

I think my dog is an ESFP

Back in my graduate school years, when I lived with Lou and Renae, I was irritated more than once by Lou decreeing the personality type of my stuffed dog. I'm over it. Joie and I decided today that we think Bianca is an ESFP. She is most definately an extroverted feeler. She makes noises for everything. She's obsessed with having her toys within her reach, so we thought Sensing, and she can change her activities on a whim without any thought to what she was pursuing before, thus Perceiver.
This morning she sat at the top of the stairs and whined because she heard activitiy downstairs and wanted to go see the kids. I called her to the kitchen and told her to eat her breakfast, which she went and did, totally forgetting about the children. I have a very odd dog.

Things I'm looking forward to in the fall

Because it's been soooo hot, many folks are commenting that they are ready for fall to arrive. I am one of them. In anticipation of cooler weather, here is my list of things I'm looking forward to (this is not a top 10 list):
1. A new season of Grey's Anatomy
2. Not caring that my car's air conditioning is broken
3. Wearing my favorite fleece jacket and my new polyester jacket
4. Sitting outside and not having under-knee sweat
5. Camping
6. Bianca being finished with shedding
7. Afternoon/Evening walks
8. Raking leaves
9. Open windows
10. Husker Football

Seniors lobby Council to restore aging program

This picture cracks me up. These seniors are up in arms about the city budget cuts for their programs. They are the picture of angry revoltists.
Since my Scooter's job is right next to the aging center, I feel a bit "in the know" regarding the cuts to the seniors' programs. I am against it, as the seniors actually use the programs and the senior centers, it is a huge part of their livelyhood. It costs the city very little compared to other programs. And, do we really need to drop the kind of cash that is needed to put in brick crosswalks on South Street? If we don't provide seniors with programs, then as the baby boomers age and become seniors, they'll all be hanging out at Scooter's.

Personality facinates me

On my free Saturday morning, I delved deeper into what makes me, me. As of late I have been bombarded with the not so impressive aspects of my personality, such as not really understanding and expressing my own needs and feelings. Instead, as an ISFJ, I am apt, with much anger and expression, to say lots of things I regret 5 minutes later. I believe that's it's all for good, but it really sucks now.
Below is my personality. Notice that my extrovert and introvert aspects are near the middle. That seems to be genuinely reflective of me, as many have assumed that I am an extrovert, but I assure them I am not. If you're bored, take the test yourself and read up.

A Prius, Joel, and an opossum that didn't play dead

On Friday afternoon I rode my bike home from work, to find my electrician friend, Ben, at my parents' new rental house. He informed me that he had some bad news for me. I began to panic, but he quickly told me there was a opossum in my driveway. We went outside, and sure enough, there was a rat-sized opossum at the end of my driveway. I poked at it with my dad's weed wacker, and it moved a bit and tried to get away, but an injury kept it lying there.

I went inside, called animal control, who then gave me the number to wild life animal rescue. I spoke with Joel, who said he would drive over and take a look. He asked me to wait outside and keep watch over the opossum. I went outside to find that rigormortis had set in. Joel drives up in his white Prius. He is in his 60's, white haired, neat. He takes a look at our opossum friend, affirms that it is actually dead, and tells me that you can tell, because it's pale. I told him that I would know when opossums looked pale. He replied that their lips are usually pink. Joel likes opossums. He has 23 at home. He helped me bag it up so I could avoid experiencing my gag reflex, and we decided that the corpse should go in my garbage and not his, because my garbage collection comes sooner. Yeah for me.

In other opossum education, opossums are unlikely to get rabies because they have a relatively low body temperature. They do, however, carry fleas. I have my rabies vaccination just in case.

My B

Back when it was really cold and I was shoveling twice a day this was captured by Allison. I do appreciate summer.

And under "Chicken" at the DQ

Cherry Urine Woman update

I talked to the cherry urine woman today. She said that the rash she had was indeed from an allergic reaction. This is congruent with my diagnosis. There was aspirin in her medication, to which she is severely allergic. We all hope she recovers quickly so she can make even more frequent trips to Scooters.

Why I should be a doctor

As a Scooter's barista I come into contact with many random individuals with unique backgrounds. My workmate Jared has dubbed one of them "the cherry urine woman". I will call her Heather, because that's her name. She came in the other day and asked me if I knew about vericose veins. I told her my grandma had some removed once or twice. She then had me examine her legs, exclaiming that it just came on yesterday and was covering her legs. I told her it was probably a rash and not vericose veins, but she should seek a doctor's opinion. She said she had seen her M.D. and he said she should put aloe vera on them. She then tried to show me her back, which I declined to see. In leaving she said that I should be a doctor, because lots of people probably ask me for my medical opinion, since I work at a coffee shop. I immediately began studying for the MCATs. I guess I need to know a lot more if I'm going to be in the coffee business.

House

So, after Rebecca's comment about my being a verbal processor and not blogging, here are my two excuses.
1. My parents bought the house across the street from me as a rental, so I have been busy with the details of fixing it up and other laborious tasks. I am looking for rentors by the way (3 BR, 2 bath, refinished hardwood floors, a must see. Call for an appointment.)

2. I have been watching Season One of House, M.D. and I'm hooked. There are 4 episodes on a disk and I'm on disk 4. It's witty, so I like it.

kayak at sunrise

On Memorial Day we arose early and took our kayaks to a lake nearby my aunt's place. We paddled around drinking coffee as the sun came up. Amazing.

Size doesn't matter

I have been thinking about faith lately and the whole mustard seed deal. I think I have finally come up with an understanding of the what Jesus was getting at, or at least something that sits really well with me. I find that if what the Bible asks of me is impossible to live out, then perhaps I am misunderstanding it. I realize that all is accomplished by grace, so let's just get that out of the way.
Now, back to the mustard seed thing. If my faith is as big as a mustard seed then I can throw a mountain into the sea, or something like that. So, I think the crux of it is whether or not I choose to believe in who God is and what He can do if He wants to, not how much I believe. The question is do I believe or not. There is either a mustard seed worth of faith or no faith at all. Somehow, this is easier.

The most satisfying Bachelor ever!

For several seasons now, my friends and I have been watching The Bachelor. This season the best woman won the heart of the Officer and the Gentleman. Although we are fully aware of the disfunction of this show, it has provided hours of Monday entertainment and dramatic superlatives. Our pick from the first night (Tessa) walked away with the final rose and a sparkling precious.

virgin post

Okay, so's here's what is hopefully the first post of many. I often think of things that I want to blog about, and my voice in my head says, "I should blog about that."