50 GREAT THINGS ABOUT FALL

I'm over here looking at my calendar with a puzzled expression on my face. Wasn't it JUST January first? How are we now in the month of August? Late August at that! August 23rd to be exact. Like, when did this happen? Wasn't i just a chubby faced kid with frizzy pigtails asking my mom to PLEASE "buy me an easy bake oven?" (she never did) Now im a chubby faced adult --albeit with a bit more cheekbone definition -- who is still wanting an easy bake oven. Some things never change. Unlike the seasons. Time is flying and try as I may (which, admittedly, is not very hard) I can't keep up. My favorite season of the year is reaching its climax, and as much fun as climaxes are *smirk* -- they don't last forever.

*insert thoughtful look here*

All isn't lost though. As much as i love summer, fall is my second favorite season. If by some magic we could turn the four seasons into two, i'd want it to be fall and summer. Can you imagine? An endless cycle of fall and summer all year long. um.. heaven? Im so down with that. Until they invent a solution to my two-season-a-year problem, i figured that rather than get all maudlin at summer's imminent conclusion, i'd get hype over fall's subsequent arrival. Not that im trying to rush you or me through the year, but since it was on my mind, i figure, why not talk about it?

But enough with the prelude:

1. The fall landscape. It boasts a beauty unlike any other time of the year. Fall foliage takes your breath away.
2. turtlenecks
3. boots
4. scarves
5. Hats. Newsboy caps, tams, fedoras, berets... hide your hair and look fly at the same time.
6. Dancing without excessive perspiration.
7. Football. ah football. Sunday and monday suddenly have meaning again.
8. Hot chocolate/cocoa
9. Hot apple cider WITH the cinnamon stick. (and maybe a little rum if youre feeling naughty. lol)
10. Warm days and cool nights.
11. corduroy
12. Wool overcoats
13. Blazers. I live in blazers during the fall season. It's perfect for the times when its too cool to go without covering, but too warm for a full on coat.
14. Giant pots of chili
15. No more mosquitoes!
16. Argyle. (and gentlemen, may i suggest a pair of argyle socks? Let em peek beneath your slacks when you cross your legs at work. Super duper hot. I wouldn't steer you wrong. I promise. Love, mama Lex)
17. Comfort food.
18. Its acceptable to gain a few lbs.
19. Hearing leaves crunch beneath your feet.
20. Fighting the urge to dive into a pile of leaves. (yes i am 30something and i still want to do this. Well until i remember all the vermin that crawls around in said leaf pile)
21. Using the fireplace
22. The smell of firewood
23. The harvest moon.
24. Crisp mornings.
25. Soup!
26. Pumpkin spice anything. Coffee, lattes, bread, candles...
28. Hayrides.
29. Amish country.
30. Nesting
31. Chilling under blankets on the sofa
32. Chilling under blankets on the sofa with the boo watching movies (preferably saturday afternoon cheesy films or the oldies but goodies: raiders of the lost ark etc etc)
33. Mowing the lawn becomes less and less necessary.
34. Studios put out the good movies. No more substance-less blockbuster schlock (although inception was GOOD. did any of yall see it yet?? tsk. yall suck!) and more thinking films. And yes, I like to do that every once in a while.
35. Freshly baked bread.
36. Reading in waning daylight. I like to leave my blinds open until its almost completely dark. No other lights on in the house. Call me weird (but just call me.)
37. Pie.
38. Scrabble and pie.
39. The sound of wind blowing through the leaves.
40. General Coziness. Ever notice how things are so friggin cozy and squeezy(yes i made that word up) in fall? Its cuddle season! Spoon me baby.
41. Classical and jazz by the fireplace.
42. Sweats and hoodies.
43. Brisk evenings outside with the fire pit providing light and heat.
44. Picking pretty leaves and putting them in a scrapbook
45. Baking on weekends
46. Going shopping for school supplies even though you aren't in school. :-)
47. Leaving the window cracked at night so you have an excuse to crawl up under your sweetie :-)
48. Candy Corn. I dont particularly like it, but i do it because everyone else does. lol
49. Nature hikes to observe and enjoy the season.
50. Quiet nights of quiet stars, and everything in between.

Summer Soft - Stevie Wonder

I BELIEVE IN... PART II

-Tea
Anyone who knows me well, knows that i am a tea junkie. Exotic, run-of-the-mill, loose leaf, bagged - Like pokemon, i gotta get them all. (i know. feel free to groan.) I am a lover of coffee too (and how), but there is something about tea that i find infinitely soothing. I had the pleasure of attending a Japanese Tea Ceremony, and it was a most tranquil experience. But, even without an elaborate ritual, tea calms me. Don't front on tea. BTW, im totally sipping some chai RITE NAH. :)

- Just Being
Or as we say in common parlance: Chilling. The Italians have a nice expression for it: "Il dolce far niente" The sweetness of doing nothing. Sound more poetic and less lazy that way, no? But in whatever language you choose to put it, doing nothing is one of the greatest things... ever. For best results, try doing nothing with a cup of tea. ;-)

-Dancing
WTH is wrong with you people? Why aren't you shaking your bodies down to the ground? Why am i, with my too shy shy © kajagoogoo self, the first one on the floor when the dance music starts?? Its my firm belief that 95 percent of the world's problems would be solved if everyone danced more often. Seriously, dancing is my number one stress reliever. Its not about formal training, its not about staying on beat, (though that helps) its about its about feeling the music, and ENJOYing yourself. And fellas... i can't stress this enough: DANCE. Don't worry about if you look stupid or awkward. You probably do and its ok. Kinda cute even ;-)

-Giving Compliments freely and frequently
If you admire something about someone why hold it in? Are you afraid of looking like youre sweating someone? Shoot. Ima let yall in on a little secret. I sweat all my friends. Seriously. Spread the good word. Oh and beware the difference between a sincere compliment and flattery.

-Not taking yourself(myself) too seriously.**
When did everyone get so deep? Between twitter, FB and the zillions of forwarded texts i get daily(im about to fight my cousin LOL), im wading through a glut of profundity. Folks are so insightful, so circumspect. Do we laugh at ourselves anymore? Where do the lighthearted go? Laugh at yourselves people! Be goofy! Admit mistakes when you make em. Stop couching everything in sagey expressions. Part of being human is being flawed! The world is a whole lot easier to navigate when we denude our egos of excessive gravitas.

-Men's Razors
Omg yall. Can someone explain to me why we ladies are getting the short end of the st(ypt)ic(k)? When it comes to hair removal why am i getting a closer smoother shave with mens schick quattro than with the one for women? (Um... don't answer that. I know yall got jokes. lol) But yeah they make the womens in pastels and scented and all that other fun girly stuff, but what im most concerned about is performance. And razors designed for males are much better than the ones designed for the fairer sex. But you don't have to take my word for it... ©

-Being unabashedly, unapologetically... Regular.
I don't know yall, but lately i've been feeling all last of the mohicans-ish. And it has everything to do with being um, regular. And no, not activia regular. lol. (rashad) I know everyone has different definitions of what constitutes regular/normal, but for the purposes of this blog im going to define my regular as "being content with the basics." Its more than that of course, but thats my feeling reduced to the lowest common denominator. t seems that everyone is on the cusp of greatness, is making moves or some other expression that signifies a grand aspirations. Not that anything is wrong with that... but. Its like nobody is _just_ a person anymore. Everyone is a daggone brand. Conceiving their brand, building their brand. Why is everyone intent on making themselves a commodity? Whatever happened to the simple life? Sheesh. I just (ok maybe not JUST) want to get married, have some pretty (hopefully) babies, and a nice home to come to where i can close the door shut out the world, and watch the history channel. Seriously. Keep your flashing lights. I am not at all average, but i am quite regular. (and yes there is a difference. ;-)

-Hugs
Give one. Spread love.

-Being alone
People who always have to be with people make me nervous. Of course i could be exposing my limitations here, but im a firm believer of aloneness (NOT loneliness) Why you always need people to distract you? Get comfortable with yourself. Solitude is not scary -- if you do it right. Learn what inspires you, get a handle on what makes you tick. You can't ever be comfortable with others until you learn to be comfortable with yourself. Over the years, the biggest hurdle for me was doing things by myself. If i couldnt get someone to accompany me on -- whatever -- then i just didn't to it. Wackness. I missed out on a lot because of that. Now im all about getting out there. So do, see, feel. Don't be afraid if no one wants to come with you. Its ok to do it alone. The bonus? When you do have someone(s) to join you, that makes it all the sweeter.

-Experiences not "things"
This may seem laughable to folks that know me - for i have many "things." But the fact of the matter is the older i get, the less i want things (or at least things in excess) and the more i want experiences. Experiences, shared or not - i find have much more long-term fulfillment than the initial -- but transient joy of things. Not to mention, material things take up so much physical space, where to store it all? Experiences are habitue of the mental. and that space is endless. The funny thing is, the more you fill it, the more space there is.

-Burning Bridges
Ok i don't mean quit your job on some steven slater steez. Or cuss out your momma when you know you're gonna be hitting her up for next months rent check. But i mean we all probably have experienced relationships with people places shoot -- THINGS even -- that we know are toxic. Perhaps we are even aware that they are no good - yet we keep going back to them because they are familiar, comfortable, maybe even comforting. Yet the toxicity remains. In those instances when we finally get the cojones to cross that bridge - BURN BABY BURN. Watch the smoke ascend. Don't look back! We know how that worked out for lot's wife. ...What? "Didn't any of you go to sunday school?" (points if you can source that quote) Anyway. If we don't burn it, we may be tempted to cross it once more, double back on ourselves to see if things have changed, gotten better. When chances are, they haven't. According to einstein the definition of insanity is doing the same thing but expecting different results. We aren't insane are we?

-Under promising and over delivering.
You know the old adage "actions speak louder than words?" and its cousin "talk is cheap?" Well those didnt become old adages for no reason. The fact of the matter is, most people would rather you DO rather than tell saying you will -- but DON'T. That's worse than never saying anything at all.

-Bacon

Need i really explain?

**Of course, it could be argued that by even making an entry talking about what i believe in, i am guilty of taking myself too seriously. But, well, we won't argue that will we? :-)

Roy Hargrove - Dream Traveler

11 THINGS I MISS ABOUT YESTERYEAR

My milieu the past few days has been one of reverie. Im sentimental and nostalgic by nature, and just the slightest stimulus is necessary to send me wandering down memory lane... getting stuck in the brambles and underbrush of now vs then.

Through the force, things you will see, other places, the future, the past, old friends long gone... - Yoda*

Pretty much.

Ok so maybe i don't have the force (YET. im working on it) but i do have a memory that works on occasion, and here are 10 things that i miss from back in the good old days. This is not an exhaustive list - i doubt i could ever exhaust this topic - meaning i'll probably revisit it in the future. Until then, read on and feel free to share some of your own! Sidenote: its sad that i even have a good old days. Gosh!


I miss:


1. Mixtapes
Remember them? Not the "mixtapes" that are out now, where the word mixtape serves as more of an idea than a reality. Im talking actual factual cassette tapes. Remember making them? The painful process of adding up the times of each song you were dubbing so that you didn't go over the space of your tape? Remember taping things off the radio? Remember hating when the DJ would talk over or cut off the end of the song? I used to always neglect label the tapes and put the song listing on the little card that went inside the tape case. Id have to listen to the tape to find out what was on it. lol. OR what about if someone taped over your tape??? UGH.

Or how about this: remember having a mixtape MADE for you? Like if a guy liked you he'd make you a tape? lol. As a person who has ALWAYS loved music i loved this kind of thing. Funk that other stuff. Put me on to some music though ?? *swoon* The first time i heard Keith Washington's kissing you was on a mixtape. I had never kissed this guy but i guess he was giving me hints? Another one of my puppy love suitors made me one - a maxell 90 min tape - with all sorts cool jams. AND the kicker? At the end of the tape, he put "please don't go girl" by New Kids on the Block. This guy HATED new kids, thought they were new edition rip offs but he knew i loved that song (and still do) so he put it on there for me. Well that was better than a 4 carat cushion cut. I was ready to marry him right there. (Un)fortunately i was 15, so... that never came to pass. But yeah, i miss mixtapes. "We" need to do that again. I'd settle for a mix CD... Shoot. A mix playlist even...

2. Big Wheels

The in between stage from tricycles to bikes. So much FUN.

3. School Shopping
I was in target earlier this evening and the back to school section was in full effect. Is it me or do they put the stuff out earlier and earlier each year? Pens, pencils, black and white composition books... you name it. I saw a few parents browsing the sales and i recalled the excitement i used to feel around this time of year. While i was sad that summer vacation was coming to an end, i was anticipating the new school year. New clothes, new shoes, new trapper keeper(while they were in style) new friggin outlook -"THIS year im going to really apply myself, be the straight A student i know i can be." - this attitude, of course, fell by the wayside two weeks in to the new year. But it was fun while it lasted. Now as september approaches, there is nothing to get excited about. All it means is fall and winter... and well im not even going to go there right now. lol

4. Saturday Morning Cartoons
In my pajamas. Eating cereal. Apple Jacks. Lucky Charms. The good cartoons too! Hannah Barbera: Scooby Doo. Jonny Quest. Josie and the muthalovin pussycats! And of course, Bugs bunny (yes i know this is Warner)

5.Family Vacations
My family used to ALWAYS vacation together, at least once a year. Mom and Dad picked the spot, and we went. But that was when we were kids. Now that we're all grown and living our oh-so-fancy adult lives, its incredibly rare for all of our schedules to mesh so that we can all vacay together. Errybody got to check their "schedule". Um excuse me but when did yall get so important?? Im the oldest and and i aint doing isht! lol. But yeah, i'd give anything for us to all go on another road trip together, dad's oldies blasting, my brothers and i playing punchbuggy when we spotted volkswagon beetles on the road, my sister whining about someone sitting too close to her, my dad getting mad at requests for unscheduled bathroom stops, mom being the long suffering mediator she always is. The kids in unison begging to stop at mcdonalds, my parents ignoring our pleas only to stop at some corny unheard of spot in some overgrown corner of I-95. Yeah, i miss that.

6. Buying CDs
Ok maybe not buying (who likes spending money?) But moreso owning. My music collection is bigger and better and broader and deffer than it ever has been, but one thing about it bothers me. The majority of it is virtual. And though i love the immediacy of buying something on Itunes... or "acquiring" it by other means there is something to be said about having a hard copy. Its hard to explain, but there is a realness about a CD (or record) that just doesnt exist in the digital world. Not to mention, when i bought my cd i'd read ALL the liner notes, the thank yous... everything. I'd study the pictures, check for the photographer (if there was one) all that kind of stuff. You cant do that when you download. So, while the end result is the same - you get your music - the essence and experience has changed.

7. Late Night Phone Convos
Um... when did i get old? When did yall get old?? Why is everybody turning in at 9:30 PM?? Who are you people??? Ok im exaggerating for effect, but the truth is that things shole have changed from the days when i could stay up talking on the phone til two and 3 in the morning , go to school and NOT miss a beat. Hanging up quickly if my dad picked up. Calling up folks on three way... lol. *sigh* I dont even know what we would be talkin about. Half the time we'd be silent, watching tv LOL. But those days are long gone. People dont even talk on the phone anymore(i know im guilty as a rampant texter) and late at night?? Pshaw. Kids arent on the phone... theyre on facebook! I saw my little 14 year old cousin posting updates at 1 am. Girl you better go to bed! Where yo' momma at? Statuses like: "OMG i ♥ ♥ justin beiber s0 much!!!!! Its just too much for me. lol. But i digress. I miss the the silly, innocent (yeah right) fun of those phone convos.

8. The Pace
Everything moves so fast now. Remember when news was news? Remember when we had fun just to have fun and not to put it on facebook so we can show how much fun we are having? Remember when things weren't a click away and you had to wait? Remember anticipating? Now that everything is a real time endless stream of data... nothing really stands out. Just blips on collective consciousness. Its like we know everything at once,... while still managing to know nothing at all. Weird right? Dont get me wrong, i appreciate everything modern life has to offer, but sometimes... i just want to take a second to breathe...

9. Not being so technology reliant
What is the last phone number you memorized? Im so friggin tired of being tethered to machines! LOL. But its my fault. I could make my brain work, but i have chosen the easy path. I have about 10 numbers in my head that i know by heart. The rest are in my phone, on various contact lists. If i ever lost my phone... or if my pc crashed... or if the giant computer that runs the world went offline, i'd be sunk. No bueno.

10. Being naive
I didnt know people did this or that. Or that that can happen with this. Or that would have an effect on this. Or that that... and that. and that. and THAT.. and OMG make it stop! Please!

11. Believing that one day it would all make sense.
Nope. Not yet anyway.


*********************



Today's music choice - Remind me by Patrice Rushen. Classic. LOVE this sound. You might recognize it as the song sample for the junior mafia classic - Need you tonight. Sing it girl...

Dang... i think i miss 1995 too...



Patrice Rushen - Remind Me




* i couldnt resist. had to find a way to insert star wars in there. lol

RANDOM QUESTIONS

And my answers to them. :-)

So, this grouping of questions was sitting in my formspring, (which i have been leaving woefully neglected) apparently sent to me by one of my readers. I know, i was amazed anybody still read this thing too! The reader didn't leave a name, so no shout out. But i will say thank you for making me feel loved. lol :-)

Anyway, on a nice steamy friday morning that has left me less motivated to work than usual... what better time to answer the questions? Sorry reader, whoever you are for having to wait a few months for the answers. That's if you're still there.

Anyone? Beuller? lol.


Without further Ado:


1.What is your name?
Alexis

2. Do you have a nickname?
Um people call me lex, lexy/lexi solar plex (my mom's sobriquet) - my grandad calls me alex.


3. How old are you?
Do you know binary? im 100000 :-)


4. What is your hometown?
The intersection of I-95 and the schuylkill.

5. What is your favorite food?
Gee... do i have to name one? That's like unpossible. I suppose if i had to eat one kind of food for the rest of my life, it'd be sushi. OR macaroni and cheese. Ok wait... steak.

6.Do you believe in Ghosts?
Ghosts? Hm.. i wouldn't say ghosts per se. At least not in the typical hollywood depiction. But spirits, yeah.

7.Who is your favorite music artist?
Do i have to pick? Can i get a top five or something?? lol. Man...(or woman) I have no idea. So many genres, so many amazing artists... but if i MUST choose, Michael Jackson. No... Stevie Wonder. No... EWF No... Miles Davis. NO... stravinsky. Dang it. Im pleading the fifth on this one. Oooh Beethovens fifth...

8. Do you drink/smoke?
Drink yeah, Smoke no.

9. Are you pierced? How many?
Yep. Two in each each ear, and two in... other places. lol

10. Any tattoos?
Ink free, but im currently rocking some ill henna. lol. I definitely do plan to get a permanent tat but i really need to get one that is meaningful and not some cliche (rose, name, rainbow, MOTHER lol) one. Im looking at an adinkra or astronomy related. My friend is an artist, im hoping a design can be conceptualized for me.

10. What would you say is your best qualities?
LOL more than one? I hate these kinds of questions. I always feel like a douchebag answering them, like im bragging on myself. lol. Anyway, i dunno. Off the top, I'd say my loyalty. I will fight for my friends and family. Those i love i forever have their back. Like state farm, i'll be there. Or like a bad penny. *shrug* lol.

Um... what else? I love to learn. Im always willing to try and do new things and i love absorbing and basking in knowledge of other people. Three, im a good cook. I burn in the kitchen. (in the good way.) Fourth: I heard im kinda sweet too. lol.
but you don't have to take my word for it... :)

Ok i just went on about how i dont like those kinds of questions and then gave a long drawn out answer. but if you're a reader of this blog you know i admit to being full of isht.

Anyway.

Thanks for the cool questions! Anybody have any others? Send em to my formspring as i plan on checking regularly now. It gives me something to blog about. :)

And as its Friday we need some cool down music... I've been chilling out to Erykah's Gone Baby Don't Be Long. Perfect cruise tune. Im gonna ride out into the sunset with this one. Yeah baby...