burning like matchsticks in the face of the darkness

Today's [Friday's] Lenten Labyrinth meditation continues the theme of emptying/purifying.etc. and states: "Regardless of how beautiful or carefully applied is our makeup, we are what fills us."

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( gym )

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e-mail forward from Eric:

HEMA is a Dutch department store. The first store opened on November 4, 1926, in Amsterdam . Now there are 150 stores all over the Netherlands .

HEMA also has stores in Belgium , Luxemburg, and Germany . In June of this year, HEMA was sold to British investment company Lion Capital.

Take a look at HEMA's product page. You can't order anything and it's in Dutch but just wait a couple of seconds and watch what happens.

This company has a sense of humor and a great computer programmer.

http://producten.hema.nl

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FUH was in town for the day, and he showed me the cover of the December 2007 Journal of Political Economy, pointing to the bottom listed article

Peter T. Leeson: An-arrgh-chy: The Law and Economics of Pirate Organization

He then proceeded to read me the abstract, and it actually sounds kinda interesting (hi, the abstract opens: "This article investigates the internal governance institutions of violent criminal enterprise by examining the law, economics, and organization of pirates.") so I made a photocopy for myself.

You can check it out yourself if you're interested.

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"Joy Sadhana is a daily practice in the observation of joy."
-mylittleredgirl [more info]
"Sin is necessary, but all will be well, and all will be well, and every kind of thing will be well."
-Julian of Norwich, Showings

Five good things about today:
1. The copier guy came and fixed our copier!
2. One of the Media Services guys came by today, and when he passed by my desk he asked if I'd gotten my DVD yesterday.  I was impressed that he even remembered since we haven't interacted much, and I just thought it was really thoughtful.  Later, one of the other Media Services guys was also in the area and asked as well, though that was less impressive since we've interacted more and I feel like he's one of the more senior people there.
3. See entertaining items listed above.
4. It was in the upper 40's today and sunny, and we decided to go to the Square for lunch.  (It was v. quiet in the office.)  No one had preferences, so I voted for Pho Pasteur Le's 'cause I was in the mood for what I always get there -- ginger tofu (with peanut sauce), no onions.  I was especially pleased by this because I had been so disappointed by the Mediterranean Flatbread I'd gotten at the Grille yesterday -- it was v. tasty (spinach, mushrooms, arugula -- and carmelized onions, which I was not warned about, but which easily picked off), but for $5.25 I think there should have been more food involved (they give you a pile of greens on the side -- which they ruin by putting dressing on, though it's only vinaigrette or something -- but hi, that is still not great, plus I could get it for like $0.30/oz on the salad bar upstairs).  I mean, I can get a big container of pasta, or a bowl of tofu&vegetable stirfry, for about the same price as this.
5. Google-stalking For The Fun. /cryptic

Three things I did well today:
1. I did laundry (in my pajamas -- probably the first time since college, when I had in-building laundry).
2. I bought groceries.
3. I remained awake and functional despite Megan's flights being delayed from <midnight arrival to after 1am arrival.

Two things I am looking forward to (doing [better]) tomorrow:
["anything that you're looking forward to, that means you're facing tomorrow with joy, not trepidation," as Ari says]
1. Brunch!
2. Real time with Megan.

8 hours of sleep last night.  Not so much happening tonight, huh?
I'm definitely fighting off a cold, but I think I'll win.

The AvonWalk commercial or whatever it is The Breast Cancer 3-Day commercial has one bald woman, and Mary Alice commented on how great she looks and she mentioned how Natalie Portman was bald in some role and looked great and I suggested V for Vendetta and she didn't know but IMDb-ing afterward I was right.  And I totally knew this thanks to your icon.

At dinner tonight my dad was talking about how hybrids that look funny sell well but hybrid SUVs that look like regular SUVs don't sell at all 'cause so much of the point of getting a hybrid is being able to advertise the fact that one drives a hybrid, and driving and SUV is totally anithetical to that image.

I watched snippets of the Olympic skating with my mom tonight.  Including a guy of whom I had seen icons earlier in the week.  ( spoilers? for men's skating tonight )

Amazon's having a 4-for-3 promotion on select titles -- though you still have to have specifics in mind or a lot of free time 'cause SFF is 220 pages and Teens is 179.  On the bottom of the Teens page?  Elmo Loves You (Big Bird's Favorites Brd Bks) (Board book) / by Sarah Albee, Maggie Swanson (Illustrator)

I feel like I should have more anecdotes, but today was a slow day.

Joy, however.  Got an e-mail, subject line: The Beauty in the Stones.  Body text: "Hey. I just read this and I had to let you know that is was one of the sweetest things I've ever read. // Sorry to bother you."

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My cunning plan for V-Day was to just ignore it, but clearly that hasn't happened.  [Though I was amused to realize as I walked into work that my all-black outfit could have been construed as a statement on the day.  It was honestly just because I had a meeting and think black looks professional; plus I like that outfit.]

"Valentine" by the Get Up Kids [sing365.com lyrics here] came up on random on my WinAmp and I thought I'd share for anyone who's feeling bitter.  And then "You Are My Joy" by Reindeer Section [stlyrics.com lyrics here] came up, so I'm sharing that, too, for those who are happily partnered.

Cat, this made me think of you.

Linda's from Arizona and said when she didn't feel like celebrating Valentine's Day she would celebrate Arizona's statehood instead.  I meant to e-mail Nao 'cause of that.

2 years; wow.

via illiterate, hp_hardcore valentines (and from 2005).  Much with the squicky, though I find some of them fabulous.

via wisdomeagle: a fabulous V-Day card (because of the surprise object of the letter)

Also: linguist valentines (via sineala)

I realized as the train pulled into my home station that I could have gotten flowers for my mom.  My brother sent her an e-card, though.  At least one of us wins :)