This weekend ended up being much busier than usual – but it was all planned, and since I’ve basically been a hermit the last couple of weeks I didn’t mind the social exertion.
I gave blood on Saturday with my friend Nate. He was coerced into donating platelets instead of whole blood, so we were there for approximately 3 hours, and it was good to catch up. Went to get brunch after, and ended up at the Row which is just down the road from JJ’s Market on Lyle. It was delicious, and such a lovely afternoon. A random lady outside of the restaurant asked me if I was a tourist after I took the picture below…no, I just like butter.
After brunch, I went home and took a power nap, then met Katie for dinner in Franklin. After dinner we went to see Gravity which was good, but we both still felt stressed-out as we were leaving the movie theater. Maybe that was the goal; not sure.
Yesterday, I met Cathy for brunch at Sky Blue Cafe, which was absolutely adorable. After eating, we went to the Southern Festival of Books and checked out the booths; didn’t stay to see anyone speak this year though. Chuck Palahnuik was the most famous author present this year, but to be honest I haven’t actually read any of his books. I should probably get on that. Yesterday I ended up with two autographed books though – the Bible Salesman by Clyde Edgerton, and the Girls of Atomic City (heh, I could look up the author…). I really ought to know more about Oak Ridge.
I spent yesterday afternoon finishing my duvet cover, which is now on my bed. Isn’t it pretty?
It was a good weekend overall. I’m not sure how this week will shape up, but we’ll see.
No Promises This Time 
That sounds like a great weekend. I had a similar one. But your duvet cover is way cooler than my quilt top, which I didn’t actually finish. The feather pattern is so appropriate for a duvet cover! And the colors are just resonant. Wow. Way to go!!
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Oooh, very pretty! You girls are so much more accomplished than I am at sewing…and that doesn’t bother me a single bit!
Grandma has a copy of The Girls of Atomic City. I’ve flipped through it a few times and thought I might like to read it sometime. I don’t know if she has read it or not. I do know she works crossword puzzles.
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Well, I’ve still never sewn an actual piece of clothing. I just sew straight lines.
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Giving platelets is kinda fun; usually they let you watch a movie (otherwise it would be a pretty boring couple hours). They always wanted me to give platelets because I was CMV-negative. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cytomegalovirus
One time, I chose Serendipity from their collection because this girl I liked said it was her favorite movie of all time. I didn’t really agree with the idea that you should decide who to be with by leaving it up to fate, aka chance. However, it wasn’t completely chance because the guy had to go way out of his way to try to make the most of the minimal opportunity she gave him; thus, it was partly a test designed to weed out all but the most committed (aka obsessed; then again, playing hard to get is often an effective means by which people purposefully induce fascination, and she did put him up to the challenge, so it’s not like he was being stalker-ish in an unwelcome way). I’m sure with modern technology, his efforts to track her down would have been completely different.
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I might donate platelets next time. Nate joked about doing it biweekly so that he can catch up on Breaking Bad for free….
Never saw Serendipity mostly because I don’t like cheesy romantic comedies much. These movies are basically fantasies (not “fantasy” as in the genre, but idealized and generally unrealistic), IMO – and I’ve heard “chick flicks” referred to as emotional porn for women. Doesn’t it tend to be true that if your expectations are realistic, you won’t be as disappointed as you would if you were subconsciously hoping for fantastic results? I’m just not a fan of these movies.
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Sometimes you can be disappointed even without hoping for fantastic results. But there’s always the option of living in a fantasy world and simply shutting out unpleasant reality. Romance novels, romcoms and hardcore porn are some ways of totally immersing oneself, but there are techniques that mix real life with fantasy to create interesting hybrids.
E.g., if I were with a chick who cheated on me, I would rather not know, as long as there were no negative consequences I needed to worry about. I would rather just believe that she had been faithful, or at least take refuge in the possibility. Women who fake orgasms or tell white lies like “you are the best lover ever” or “wow, that’s the biggest penis I ever saw” or “I’ve only been with two other guys besides you” are also assisting their lover’s efforts to hide from a reality he might find unpleasant.
You may have heard the saying, “So many women fall in love with the wrong guys, simply because the wrong guys say all the right things.” Sometimes, pointing out that the guy could just be insincerely saying what she wants to hear is not appreciated, because it ruins the fantasy. From childhood on, people realize that make-believe is often more fun than reality; certainly it’s more comforting and easier to deal with, because it’s more controllable than the real world. The perfect guy doesn’t exist, so one pretends the guy one is with is the perfect guy, and hopefully he plays the part at least semi-convincingly — in words if not in actions.
Maybe that’s what marriage is all about. People know that it might end badly, but all this hoopla about living together forever almost makes it seem believable. This grand wedding, complete with gems that supposedly last for eternity, is like the “happily ever after” end of a fairy tale. People don’t want to sign a prenuptial agreement because it contradicts the fantasy; such tangible evidence of possible impermanence makes it harder to suspend disbelief.
Regrettably, reality often has a way of intruding despite the best-laid plans to avoid it. “Facts are stubborn things; and whatever may be our wishes, our inclinations, or the dictates of our passion, they cannot alter the state of facts and evidence.” — John Adams
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