Six Things About Me (plus a bonus)

I love my dog.  I love how she looks up at me with adoration, follows me wherever I go in the house and the slightest word from me makes her wiggle all over with happiness.  I love her long floppy ears, the hair that sticks up on her head and the silky hair on her feet.  I hate that she is always underfoot and her wiggly body is flinging hair everywhere.  I'm sad that she's getting old and won't be around much longer.  I'm also sad that the cat's got a long life ahead of her.

I love early morning.  I love the quiet darkness, the solitude, the possibilities of what could happen with the day.  I love watching the sky change color as the light increases.  I love the early morning sounds--the clink of a spoon on china, the sound of dog food being poured into the bowl, the hiss of the coffee maker, the twittering of birds as they greet the new day.  I hate to put an end to the pleasant, quiet solitude and go to work, plunging into the babbling hubbub of a building filled with the emotions and tensions that are unique to teenagers.

I love my job.  I love connecting the right book to the right person.  I love helping people discover information.  I love ferreting out little known facts.  I love watching the faces of students when they are on a quest for information.  I love watching students help each other and my very favorite thing is watching a 'not so bright' student who has payed attention help a 'bright' one figure something out.  I hate that I spend the vast majority of my time cajoling, prodding, and sometimes threatening students to care, to work, to be responsible, to do the right thing....

I love stuff.  It's awesome that I can go to the discount store and find about anything I want at a price I can afford.  I love that these stores can sell products that could be perceived as luxury items at a price that gives just about anyone the chance to own a little luxury.  I hate the fact that we are such consumers.  I shudder to think of the amount of stuff that is discarded when a new thing comes along.   It revolts me to think of the resources used to get some of these products to me.  How can a dollar item travel across the ocean and a continent to me and still cost a dollar?  How can its producer be making any money if they are not exploiting their workers?

I love the internet.  I adore being able to find out anything within a few minutes just because I want to know.  I love reading blogs and browsing websites for exotic things.  I love discovering new facts that I stumble across.  I love the feeling of going on an adventure without leaving my comfy chair and how sometimes when I finally drag myself away from the computer I feel like I'm re-entering earth's atmosphere.  I hate how it separates me from people.  I hate how I think, "One more click, then I will go to bed," only to realize I haven't spoken a word to my family for most of the evening, but have chatted with someone I don't know a few states away.

I love words.  I love the sound of them, the writing of them, the typing of them.  I love puns and sarcasm and plays on words.  I love it when people get my 'wordy' jokes.  I hate it when words escape me.  I hate it when people use words to hurt because they have the power.  I'm not a quick-minded speaker and it upsets me when people are so glib about what they say and can put words together so quickly with the deliberate purpose of wounding someone.

I love labels.  The artwork on Celestial Seasonings boxes has always fascinated me because of all the effort that went into a disposable product.  I'm afraid I've bought products on the basis of label art alone.  The bright colors and interesting font styles of antique labels intrigue me. What would the artist think today if he saw has creation preserved instead of decaying in the trash heap as he expected?

That's my list! Now tell me some stuff about you I don't know!