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Just Me?

We rarely go to the movies anymore, and when we do, we’re usually seeing something at the tail-end of its run.  But this weekend, it timed out that we got to see the Adjustment Bureau during its opening weekend.  And this made me inexplicably feel instantly cool.  Like everyone in the theater was somehow a little more special than all the people outside.

There is no reason for this, but admit it, you also felt a little bit ahead of the curve if you finished Harry Potter book 7 on the first day, or you found a band before they hit it big.  Even if its meaningless and it all shakes out in the end once everyone has seen the movie or read the book or found the band, even though it all comes down to the Sneetches and no one really remembers who had stars upon thars first, you still just feel a little bit superior to everyone who experiences it after you.

*******

Shaving my legs is literally my least favourite grooming activity.  I have to talk myself into it in the same way that I have to talk myself into exercising — which is usually by berating myself until I internally cry.  I love the way my legs look and feel afterward, but sitting there with a razor is mind-numbing.  And please don’t tell me about how you have the lightest hair in the world so you never shave your legs, or how you love the way hair looks and feels on your legs, or ask me if I’ve tried waxing or any other activity like that.  Because in my world, I want the just-the-cost-of-the-razor, clean-shaven legs.  I just don’t want to do the work.

*******

If I can’t talk on the phone when it rings — for instance, someone is over or I’m in the middle of an activity — I let the answering machine pick up.  I was asked this week why I don’t just pick up the phone and tell the person that I can’t talk.  But I don’t really see the point.  I mean, isn’t it ruder for me to pick up the phone and have the person hear that I took the time to answer the phone to tell them that I can’t talk?  Isn’t it better to have them leave a message and once the food is in the oven, pick up the phone and call them back?  Do other people answer the phone to tell the person that they can’t talk?  The one exception is when I want the person to know when I’m calling them back (for instance, I’ll pick up the phone and say, “I can’t talk right now but I’m calling you back in 5 minutes.”)  If I have no clue when I’ll be done, I let it go to the answering machine.

*******

I completely stunt myself serving-size-wise by the space inside my ice cream cup (I only eat ice cream out of tea cups or coffee mugs).  It’s an unnatural construct based on nothing, but even if I am dying for more ice cream when I get to the bottom of the cup, I cannot bring myself to refill it.  The serving size becomes whatever can fit in the mug.  This makes me seek out large coffee mugs.

Are these just me?  You too?

What do you wonder from your own life?

36 comments

1 JC { 03.06.11 at 9:07 am }

I eat ice cream out of a very small dish too, I don’t know the name of the dish but it’s like a sauce dipping dish or something like that. My husband thinks I’m crazy!

And I agree with letting the phone go to the answering machine if you’re busy.

2 Pauline Tilbe { 03.06.11 at 9:08 am }

I work as nurse in the quality department for a large doctors office. I do outreach to diabetes patients. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve called people and they answer the phone (cell phones are sometimes the only numbers people have nowadays) and then they get all mad because they’re in a meeting or teaching a class or worse yet, are not supposed to get calls at work. Did I tell them to answer the phone? It seems like we have this new (not necessarily good) belief that we need to accessible all the time so people don’t let calls go to voice mail anymore!!
Sorry for the rant but your blog reminded me of how dumb this really is. If you’re at work, in a meeting, driving your car, in the BATHROOM, let the call go to voicemail!

3 Sushigirl { 03.06.11 at 9:17 am }

I really hate speaking to people on the phone and would always let a call go to voicemail. Anyway, if what you’re doing isn’t so important that it can be interrupted to answer a call, then surely it doesn’t make sense that you’re too busy to continue.

4 edenland { 03.06.11 at 9:24 am }

I wondered, how, when I read your anatomically correct spelling of the word “thars” in the post above … I wondered why I cried – just like that, off the bat.

I’m still working out exactly why. Something to do with reading your words for so many years now Mel that every new blog post of yours is like you’re in the room with me right then, sitting down and having a cuppa. And of course you would know the Sneetches.

I would sit cross-legged and all gangly with you if we were transported back in time to being our younger selves. We would have been best mates, man.

xox

5 BigP's Heather { 03.06.11 at 9:28 am }

I love going to the movies, did it all the time before. Now I never go. I do know that feeling. I sat and ate pizza with Fuel when I worked in radio, before they were big. Met lots of people actually. Took Missy Elliot shopping…

I hate shaving.

I had a sorority sister who did this and it drove me nuts. She never called me back. I would rather it went to her voicemail so I could just leave her a message with what I wanted her to know. Instead I called her 12 gazillion times before I could actually have a conversation with her and give her information.

Right now I am wondering about giving dead babies names. I’m torn about giving Katherine’s twin a name…I blogged about it, not eloquently, but I don’t know what to do.

6 N { 03.06.11 at 9:30 am }

No on the first, but big ‘ole YESes to the other three. Well, to be fair, I almost never answer the phone at all. But in that scenario, yes, I would let it go to voicemail.

7 NotTheMama { 03.06.11 at 9:39 am }

My cell phone goes to voicemail more than I answer it, especially if I am working. I know the people who will call for important ÿthings, and who is usually calling just to chat. I try to answer if I think it’s something that needs my immediate attention. I’m *supposed* to get off work at 4:00, so my sisters start calling at straight up 4, even though they KNOW I’m not gonna answer!
I hate for my food to touch… I only like certain kinds of cake, and I MUST eat it a certain way, so that the icing on the outside is the last thing I eat. The forks and spoons have got to be put in the drawer a certain way, even though I know that they will be messed up with the opening and shutting of the drawer. (And yes, I will take time to straighten them any time I open that drawer!) My spaghetti noodles have to be broken into small pieces before I boil them. Wow, I could go on and on. Lots of quirkiness for me I guess 😉

8 PaleMother { 03.06.11 at 9:47 am }

I seek out large mugs, but for naught because … I can never make it through a bucket of tea that big without needng to re-warm it … and in some sick twist … almost all of the big ones in my collection are not mircrowave safe. Why? Is it hard to find big, mircrowavable mugs?

Other irrational mug trivia … it makes my head go pop when my husband uses a coffee mug as a ladle. We have several ladles that work quite well. Mugs, on the other hand, do not work so well as a ladle. Why in the world would you make a mess if you don’t have to? When the real thing is equally close at hand? This is not ****ing boy scout camp. Weirdo. Sure. In the home he grew up in (which is a certafiable wreck), you couldn’t find the right tools. So this became “normal.” But I think that’s another reason it bugs me. That was THEN.

I am sure the fact that this bugs me as much as it does is also not “normal.”

Shaving. Eh. Don’t mind the legs as much as the other bits. Can’t stand doing the other bits. Like you, love the results. Hate the chore.

The phone is an instrument of torture; it does not command me. Screening and voicemail is the only civilized way to go. Picking up to say you can’t talk is a waste of time. Besides, some people don’t know how to take “no” for an answer … see my original point about torture.

9 musicmakermomma { 03.06.11 at 10:10 am }

I love voicemail. My DH was shocked that I didn’t always answer the phone, but I sometimes am just not in a good place to talk. Always amazes me that people answer the phone and they CAN’T talk, but they don’t tell you for a while, like a game of phone chicken. Maybe they want to see if what you (the caller) has to say if more interesting than the vital task they are doing…

10 a { 03.06.11 at 10:30 am }

I rarely answer the phone – even if I’m not busy. I’ve hated this week, because I’ve had to answer the phone many times to deal with a variety of issues. I try to employ that tactic at work, but feel guilty. Fortunately, my phone doesn’t ring very frequently – at home or at work. Answering to tell people you can’t talk is silly; answering to tell people you’ll call back at a designated time makes sense.

I never cared about being the first to see/do anything. I hate shaving my legs, but I have that infamous light hair, so I can delay…unless I’m going to be wearing shorts/skirts/dresses. However, I can’t stand hairy underarms, so I will shave there frequently. I’m not that into ice cream, so two scoops is enough, no matter the vessel. However, I don’t think I’ve ever refilled on ice cream, and I do for almost everything else.

And like NotTheMama…I hate for my food to touch (exceptions made for pastas, casseroles, soups, etc. where it’s supposed to be that way), and my husband always lets the food touch when he serves. Aaargh!!!

11 Amanda { 03.06.11 at 10:42 am }

Ice cream out of a tea cup…brilliant! Never thought of that!

I agree about the voicemail thing…which reminds me of another pet peeve of mine…people who wait for the whole message to play, and then hang up. So then I spend the time dialing in, entering password, etc for nothing.

12 Esperanza { 03.06.11 at 11:00 am }

I do like being the first to know of something but that almost never happens anymore. I HATE shaving my legs. LOATHE it. That is why I only wax them. And then I use a depilator every week for a few months. And then I forget to use the depilator and my legs become horrendously hairy. And then I thank god I live in San Francisco where I can never where anything but pants, no matter what the month. I think you’re totally right to not pick up the phone if you can’t talk. I HATE when people pick up the phone to tell me they can’t talk. Unless they had something else to say, like when they can talk or the answer to a quick question they know I might be asking. Otherwise, let it go to vmail, which I probably won’t leave because I didn’t have anything important to say, I just wanted to chat. Also, I don’t pick up the phone when I’m with someone, unlike everyone in my family. I used to, but then my man told me how rude it was and I realized he was right. I eat my ice cream out of the carton, and I usually take cues from my man on when to stop (I stop when he stops). We don’t get it that much anymore so I don’t feel like I have to reign myself in. Your story reminds me of how my dad always ate it out of small rice bowls, to keep himself from eating too much, but then he’d get two or three servings and end up eating a ton. Still, he never served himself all of it in one bowl. I guess it was too demoralizing to see how much he was actually eating.

As for my things? Hmmmm. I hate having to plug in my computer. I will let my battery run way down or try to borrow my husband’s cord (that he’s using) rather than move my cord from one outlet to another.

I basically wash my dishes before I put them in the dishwasher. I mean, there is no food on them when they go in there. I guess I think they are being disinfected? I have no idea.

I never blow dry my hair. I go to work with it wet every day. I don’t even own a blow dryer. I think at first I didn’t know how to use one well and now I can’t be bothered. Which can be difficult in the winter because I have a lot of hair and it takes forever to dry. This also severely limits the types of hairdos I can wear.

I correct people when they use words incorrectly. Some of my biggest pet peeves are saying “enamored with” instead of “enamored of” and using “anxious” to mean “eager” (except “eager” is now the final definition of “anxious” in the dictionary, so I guess I need to let that one go). Recently I had to correct someone when she kept using “exasperate” instead of “exacerbate”. In my defense, I grew with a mom who corrected us on when and how we used “lie, lay, lain” and “lay, laid, laid”. My dad also knew the meaning of (and could articulate the meaning of) EVERY SINGLE SAT WORD I quizzed him on. And obviously I only picked the hard ones. Interestingly, I’m a horrific speller, and so is my dad.

13 Another Dreamer { 03.06.11 at 11:07 am }

I do the same thing with the phone. I let it go to voice mail, unless it’s someone I want to know I’ll be calling right back. My friends kind of question me on that if I don’t answer the phone while they’re around, and I tell them that I have company or I’m busy. Most of my friends don’t care about that though, they answer the phone and text messages all day even if they’re with company or in the middle of something. I set up guidelines though, I need personal time without the cell phone. With a home phone you get that personal time if you’re away from home, but with a cell phone there aren’t any barriers. Good at times, but also very invasive. It drives my friends nuts, but I don’t feel the need to answer my phone whenever it rings or beeps or plays music at me.

I agree about the feeling ahead of the curve thing. That doesn’t happen to me very often, but feels really neat to be a part of something before it’s something bigger.

I am horrible about portion sizes, I’ve been measuring things out lately as my move to get healthier and lose weight. So I literally took a measuring cup last time I had ice cream, and I measured out 1 cup. But I plan out all my meals these days, so I know what I can have throughout the day so I can budget when to eat it so there’s no question of seconds or going back for me, or eating something spur of the moment. Not as much fun, but necessary for me.

14 Tigger { 03.06.11 at 11:50 am }

I, too, hate shaving – and I hate it now more than ever, because I can’t REACH my freaking legs. I hate having hair on my legs, because it prickles and annoys me. I am currently between a rock and an itchy place and it’s driving me mad – to the point that I’m ready to call a friend who works in hospice and ask HER to come shave them FOR me!

As for answering my phone…I don’t, if I’m at work, unless it’s someone unusually important (like my doc) or someone who calls me at a regular time calling at an irregular one (like my husband calling me when it is it NOT his normal break time). I wish I could train myself not to answer my phone simply when I don’t want to talk to a certain person (like my dad, who has taken to calling me every day again for absolutely no reason except to yammer in my ear about things I don’t care about in the slightest), or when I am sleeping. Of course, it never fails that dad calls while I’m napping, so those two go hand-in-hand. His VMs will just say “call me back later”, though, and I HATE those types of VMs. TELL ME WHY YOU ARE CALLING ME!!! I used to think it was important when he called, and now I”m finding that I dread picking up the phone – husband tells me not to, but what if it IS an emergency? Ugh.

Ahead of the curve – eh. I like discovering new stuff, and old stuff, but I usually prefer to be somewhere in the middle. The “others have heard of this, they think it’s good, I should check it out” part.

Portion sizes? What are those? My ice cream comes in a BIG bowl that my husband painted for me that says “jenna’s ice cream bowl” on the bottom. He usually puts about 3 scoops in it, but it could hold so much more. 🙂

15 HereWeGoAJen { 03.06.11 at 12:56 pm }

I hate shaving my legs. Hate. (It’s the one of the only things I like about winter.) Someday, someday, I am going to get laser hair removal and not ever shave again. And then I will be happy.

16 Baby Smiling In Back Seat { 03.06.11 at 2:04 pm }

Now I only eat ice cream (or froyo normally) out of one specific bowl. I made it, of course. It’s a different shape from all of the others I’ve made, more ice cream shaped in my mind. If it happens to be dirty, I can’t have any froyo until the dishwasher has been run.

If the phone rings I’ll check caller ID. Usually I let it go to voicemail (whether or not I can talk! ha!) but there are certain people like health care providers or work calls that I need to catch while I can.

17 Balancing Act { 03.06.11 at 2:41 pm }

Shaving – I hate it every season. When it is cold out, I hate shaving because I know it is going to instantly go back from me shivering. When it is hot, I have to shave even sooner, but if too soon then I get razor burn.

Icecream – I don’t use a small cup/bowl, just a regular sized bowl, but I only allow myself to eat 1/2 the fat. Does that count?

I’m the same way with the phone. I would rather just let it go to voicemail and call back when I actually have the time to have a meaningful conversation.

18 It is what it is { 03.06.11 at 4:52 pm }

First, I LOVE caller ID. It helps me separate the wheat from the chaff, call wise. I often don’t pick up the phone even if I do have the time to talk as generally I am not in the mood (would rather be reading or writing or otherwise doing something). I would much rather go to someone’s voice mail than for them to pick up the phone and rush me off.

I have dark hair and olive skin. I am done-Done-DONE with shaving but I tried laser hair removal (just one treatment on a patch on my shin) and got hypopigmentation in the area. It took months for it to go away and that was the end of my laser hair removal dreams (although, this was probably 8 years ago so maybe the technology is better now). I shave every other time I shower.

I no longer eat regular ice cream (losing weight and all) and preferred spooning it right out of the carton when I did eat it (hence the aforementioned need to lose weight). I now only eat ice cream novelties in single serving portions.

I do not like getting gas. I wish wish wish someone would develop a mobile gas business where they would come to you to fill your tank.

19 Queenie { 03.06.11 at 4:58 pm }

Hate shaving, especially in the shower of our new place, which has nowhere to lean for shaving. I don’t answer the phone if I can’t talk-I think that’s sort of rude! I only ever eat ice cream out of mugs (but I get more!). Although, I don’t like the ice cream here-it tastes weird. And I’m wondering how people make new friends when they are grownups.

20 Annie { 03.06.11 at 5:26 pm }

Definitely not just you on the shaving. Just yesterday I finally shaved mine, after putting it off for three months. GROSS! I just wasn’t motivated since I get to keep my pants on for doctor appointments now (Yay!), my husband isn’t getting any action so he doesn’t see them, and I live in a cold place so I rarely see them either. Still, it’s nice to know that they’re actually shaved now even if no one sees or appreciates it!

21 Mali { 03.06.11 at 6:10 pm }

There are other grooming activities I hate worse than shaving my legs.

Ice-cream bowls? Who uses bowls? Isn’t the carton enough?! (Seriously though, I do have small bowls I use to try to keep the portion size down. It’s surprising how much you can fit in if you scoop and build carefully.)

I’ve never loved the phone. I tend to answer if I’m home, but happy to let it go to answerphone if I’m busy/have visitors etc. I object to feeling that we are obliged to answer when it is convenient for the caller, but not for us.

22 Chickenpig { 03.06.11 at 7:00 pm }

I greatly dislike shaving my legs. So much, that unless my legs are going to be exposed for any reason, I usually don’t. I remember I had a very scary bleeding episode when pregnant with my twins, and it was very early spring and my legs weren’t shaved. When I was up on the table with my legs in the stirrups with the doc telling me that she didn’t think they would both make it, the nurse kept twitching the sheet over my hairy legs…as if they were offending her, or that I would be embarrassed by them. It was bugging me so much that I finally turned to her and said “I really don’t care that my legs are hairy, it is the least of my concerns right now. Could you leave the damn sheet alone? ” Ah, the things we remember.

23 Jackie { 03.06.11 at 10:15 pm }

In high school and early college I was a music snob and would only listen to the college indie station. When everyone else started to notice the bands that I liked, I would brag that I’d heard them months ago and was already tired of them. I can’t believe I had friends at all, now that I think of it…
Shaving isn’t my thing either. More specifically, I hate shaving in the shower. I’m fine to bring a cup of water, a washcloth, and a razor out to the living room and sit on the big comfy couch with the sunlight shining in… but in the dark small shower where I have to contort myself into various pretzel like positions to reach all the nooks and crannies? No thanks.
I don’t answer the phone if I can’t talk, but I will usually text them to let them know that I’m not ignoring them.
And I’m with you about not going back for refills. I feel like if I get seconds, I’m setting myself up for GI upset (I have tummy issues anyway) and I’m going to curse myself by overdoing it. Even if I’m still hungry, I only eat what’s on my plate and am often reluctant to finish that.

24 Barb { 03.06.11 at 11:52 pm }

I’m with ya on all fronts.

25 Aramelle @ One Wheeler's World (Linky) { 03.07.11 at 1:24 am }

I’m not so much on the movie aspect, as I detest going to the theater. On books and music, though, I love being the first. That’s part of why I’m loving recommending your book to everyone who will listen. 😉

HATE shaving. Like you said, I love the nice smooth feel after, but I can’t stand the chore. It would seem more worthwhile, I think, if the results lasted more than a day.

I don’t answer the phone anytime I’m in the middle of something or on the frequent times when I just plain don’t feel like talking (whether in general or to the specific caller).

I really should limit the ice cream to a small mug. I tend to go with a big ol’ bowl and then wonder why we run out of ice cream so quickly all the time.

26 Mina { 03.07.11 at 2:54 am }

I don’t really get so many phone calls, I am a SAHM, and my baby has sleep problems. Can you tell I rarely use the phone anymore? I use it when I am out in the park, pushing the pram. Otherwise, it is just another ‘forbidden’ thing I let my baby chew on when I really need him to be quiet.

Shaving is LOADS better than waxing. I did that for years and I hated it. I am also very, very fortunate to have a husband who, bless his heart, does not get what is all the fuss about hairy legs. So he does not mind the ‘lady of the cavern’ look once in a while. Thanks God for that!

And the Jiminy Cricket sitting on my shoulder watching my ice cream habits? And telling me to not fill the ice cream mug again? Yeah, totally ruining my mood too. I theoretically could tell him to do a lot of other alternate activities, but basically, the mood is ruined and I just wait for the next ice cream eating opportunity. Which, what do you know, is a coupla hours away… hardy-har-har.

So, all in all, I’d say it’s just you, Mel. ;-))

27 Heather { 03.07.11 at 9:21 am }

I, too, despise shaving my legs.

I will not answer the phone during the day at all. I KNOW it’s ringing. I just don’t have the time and/or energy to tell someone I’m too busy to chit chat. It’s kinda rude, I suppose, but I don’t really care all that much. Guess that’s why most of my friends call after 7! 🙂

28 Kir { 03.07.11 at 9:49 am }

I work in telecommunications, so answering personal calls is like a “CHORE” for me. I am on the phone all day and talking to someone in my REAL LIFE is not something that I can do. I almost always let it go to VM (Unless its my mom) and then I text them and ask them what they need. I know..>SAD but true.

and I have to shave my legs EVERY DAY, if I don’t I feel dirty and not clean, that’s OCD at it’s best.

hanging my head in shame.

29 Kir { 03.07.11 at 9:51 am }

oh and I wanted to say that I agree with seeing movies, reading books, discovering a song or band before everyone else makes you feel special and “in the know”. I have taken days off from work to see the Harry Potter movies on the days they open…I have listened to XMRADIO heard a song and then when I hear it on Terestrial Radio and someone says “that’s a good NEW song” I have been known to say “I downloaded it 6 weeks ago”

does that make me insufferable??? 😉

30 Liana { 03.07.11 at 10:12 am }

Hate shaving. My hair is thick (except on my head, unfortunately) and dark, so it must be done and often, but it sucks. Sucks.

Like Queenie, I’m also wondering how to make new friends as an adult and wishing anyone would follow up on it.

31 Cece { 03.07.11 at 12:25 pm }

My husband does that – answers the phone and as he picks it up is like -What, I can’t talk right now. THEN DON’T ANSWER THE PHONE. My mother will jump out of the shower to answer the phone. I think they are crazy.

I’m embarking on my quest for summer clothes for my son. I’ve already got enough, but I have a bunch of sources for good quality hand me downs, and I end up buying WAY too many shirts because I can’t pass up a deal. I think my daughter has something like 25 18 month size dresses for the summer and spring. Why? Because I got htem for $1 a piece. It’s a sickness.

32 Lollipopgoldstein { 03.07.11 at 12:31 pm }

I think making friends as an adult is one of the hardest things. I think you tend to meet them through work (but what do you do if you’re not working?) or home (but what if your neighbours keep to themselves?) or through an activity (but what if you don’t have time for activities?). A lot of my friends are people I’ve known forever, just met via chance, or are local bloggers who stepped through the computer screen. I have to admit that a large chunk of my friends started out as people I read and then we both discovered we were in the same place.

33 Jill { 03.07.11 at 2:34 pm }

Shaving my legs is THE WORST. People don’t believe me when I tell them I have to shave every day. And by “have to” I mean if I don’t want to look like a sasquatch. Because even one day of growth is too much to go in public in shorts/skirt/swimsuit/leg-baring clothing. Even one half day is pushing it. Seriously, I am so with you. Annoying!! And it is so much work. Really not, but well, you know.

34 Missy { 03.08.11 at 2:18 am }

I too hate shaving and let it go until it is a fright and no I don’t have the light hair either. It’s dark, gross, and scary. About the time I do shave it, I go through at least two razors. TMI I know. I also eat my cereal from a cup. Drinking from a bowl is awkward and it spills out the corners of my mouth. I put soup in mugs too for the same reason.

35 Just Me { 03.08.11 at 12:26 pm }

I hate shaving my legs. And my armpits. And especially my bikini line. And I have dark hair that grows fast, so leg shaving is an every day thing in the summer. I recently told my husband that when I shave my legs during the winter, I’m probably going to proposition him since I don’t want to “waste” it.

Not only do I not answer the phone when I’m busy or with someone else… sometimes I don’t answer it because I just don’t want to talk to any one at that moment. I figure if it’s an emergency, I’ll call them right back. Otherwise, it can wait until I’m interested in talking on the phone.

And I actually think it’s healthy to put food in a smaller dish. It’s what keeps me from eating the whole bag of potato chips.

36 Sandy { 03.10.11 at 7:21 pm }

You have an interesting perspective on life. I wonder what you think of mine? I have 12 children ranging in ages from 26 years to 5 months. Read about us at http://www.twelvemakesadozen.blogspot.com
Leave a comment and let me know what you think! Bring your friends. All are welcome. We just announced a new give away to make the deal a little sweeter.
Sandy

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