• online checkin
• easy final exams in another language
• procrastination
• role playing in class
• confidence
• being thisclose to being done with the semester
• online journals
• not being affected by a striking airline
• a plush jellyfish with a permanent smile named bernard
  

Unexpected Sundays

• Refusing to work on Sundays.
• Also goes along with learning how to say no.
• Cleaning my room.
• New sheets!!
• Window shopping.
• Finding the perfect little gifts.
• Cash-only dive bars in Harvard Square.
• Non-student locals.
• Pats in HD (well up until about the 2:00 warning).
• People watching.
• A cold December afternoon perfect for snuggling on the couch!
  

• babies that are actually cute so you don't have to lie to their mothers' faces
• taking the dogs on walks twice a day
• my mom's mace (it's a spice!) soup
• thrift shops in Pittsburgh
• old, old friends
• a fridge full of homecooked food
• weddings of truly lucky, happy couples
• getting excited about projects
• the remaining idealism about my job/the future
• a whole stack of clean new post-it notes
• the passion to get all worked up over things
• candy cane frozen yogurt with chocolate chips
• inspiration from likely and unlikely places
• getting all dressed up (you can even take me nice places!)
• dinosaurs
• the New York Times
• fashion blogs
• photo blogs
• big ideas
• breaking out the fur earmuffs
  

birthdays.
starting a club.
connections.
vacations.
moving downtown.
getting a's.
possibly getting a fellowship.
good food.
countdowns.
fried eggs.
thanksgiving plans (something to do with the embassy?).
feeling loved.

• scrambled eggs on buttered toast
• clearing the air
• communal crosswords
• long nights out
• going to the movies on a rainy day (and sneaking burritos in)
• time to think
• Groucho: the cat that thinks hes a dog/baby
• the kind of day where you run into half a dozen people you haven't seen in months
• rocking the jeans, boots, and cleavage on a Saturday night
• cooking ahead for the week (delicious chili!)
• unseasonably warm November Sundays
• nights with a rotating cast of characters
• catching up on the DVR
• the smell of freshly chopped herbs
• ways with words
• texts that make me laugh out loud

components of a lovely weekend :)

-south end open studios
-free wine and snacks
-my lovely ladies
-beautiful art i will be able to afford one day
-the one studio with a bright red interior
-scorpion bowls and chinese food
-life chats
-phone chats with the grandparents
-newbury street on a gorgeous day
-sales
-flashbacks to middle school, high school, freshman year, and senior year, all in one night
-coen brothers movies
-sneaking snacks/nips into the movies
-lending a hand
-the gym
-sunday solo time
-outlook park
-new books
-long walks
-napping
-dexter.

i love weekends. love.

• home cooked meals with all my friends
• going to bed early
• boots + tights weather
• thanksgiving = three weeks away
• reading the blogs/writing of all my friends
• big squashy couches
• getting into the afternoon groove at work
• the blessing of having too many options
• pictures of new babies and puppies
• halloween costumes from scratch
• punters
• insightful friends
• kind coworkers
  
• kitchen dance parties
• "food tastes better if its been thrown on the floor once or twice"
• birthdays
• giving good gifts
• foliage
• fall in Boston
• missing people: that's how you know they're important
• my cat curling up in all the piles in my room
• clarity

Friday Top Five

• Ladybug rain boots
• A seat on the train in the morning
• Seeing my writing actually improve
• My mom sending me adorable cellphone pictures of babies and puppies
  
• Where the Wild Things Are coming out tonight! (even though I probably won't see it til next week)
• and a 6th for good measure: I have Thanksgiving tickets back to Pittsburgh!
  

• friendly coworkers
• text message photos of cute baby cousins in furry hats
• putting those kickass gel cushions inside a pair of heels
• a little sugar-high to maintain focus
• seeing beyond the bullshit
• snickerdoodles (also, saying that word out loud)
• outside perspective
• learning to knit!
• a busy calendar
  

• scarf weather.
• pumpkin flavored coffee on a cold morning.
• leaves changing colors.
• stepping on leaves and acorns and hearing that crunchy sound.
• walking into work to find candy someone left on your desk.
• getting an invite to see the boston ballet.
• three day weekends.