Letters from the North Pole

Something came in the mail yesterday that made me laugh out loud, even before I opened it. It was a letter from Santa! I didn't recognize the handwriting, but it was addressed to Edie with a return address of 'Santa, North Pole'. And there was a stamped postmark but no location.

Mysteriously missing postmark

Simply stated return address

The letter had some pointed responses to drawings that Edie made recently - one to Santa and another to Santa's Littlest Elf, who we read about. I vaguely remember Dave bringing Edie to the mailbox to send these notes to Santa after Christmas - thank you notes rather than a wish list. Then I wondered if she wrote them while Grammy, Papa and Becky were here, and maybe they responded on Santa's behalf? But I confirmed they didn't have anything to do with it.

Dear Edie....

Anyway, when Dave came home I was like, "So Edie got a special letter from Santa today....", while kicking him under the table and opening my eyes wide to subliminally ask, Did you have a student write this?? He swears he had nothing to do with it, and when I considered how intense his workdays are and how much organizing he would've had to do to make it happen, I knew it wasn't him either. The truth is, we straight up got a letter from Santa and it made my day, maybe even more than it made Edie's. I think the letter might be associated with this USPS program, although I'd think they have a North Pole return stamp. Regardless, these unexpected things remind me that life can be wonderful and surprising. If some generous citizen takes it upon themselves to respond to kids' letters to Santa, I hope that brings them as much joy as it brought us.

Snugglebunnies!



In other news, it's been insanely cold here lately. Polar vortex, I suppose. I wear a down vest in my house, drink tea all day, and hustle while outside, if I absolutely HAVE to go outside. I've also been running on the treadmill that Dave bought me for Christmas, which is on our back "three season" (i.e. one season - Spring) porch. I get bundled up in running gear, strap on my iPhone-holding fanny pack, and head on out. I warm up pretty quickly once I get a good pace going, and it's awesome to have an option to run at night without risk of slipping on ice, negotiating with commuters, and dealing with dark, cold ridiculousness. This is good, because I have about three more weeks of training before Austin, and this week, Dave and I signed up for another half-marathon. Ashley presented the idea of the Brooklyn Half, and at first I scoffed. Is it really necessary to train for a race on the heels of this one? She warned that, true to New York City fashion, entry spots would sell out in one day (and they did). Dave, Ashley, Jeff, and my mom were in. I pressed the 'register' button before reason set in. I can't seem to say no to a potential running adventure. 'Til next time!

You can never have enough purple

Bottomless Coffee

Do you know that feeling when you're dozing in bed while reading, you can essentially feel your brain waves slow down? I woke up this morning after about two weeks of a very light work schedule, and my brain waves were dormant for 45 minutes. I went through the usual motions but it was dark, chilly, and ridiculously foggy, and my brain felt the same....until I took a sip of  coffee that is. With cream. Hallelujah, that shit is so delicious. It's like the overhead florescent lights in a school gym buzz on, flicker with a slow burn for a prolonged minute until they really kick in.

This former coffee snob has accepted drip coffee. I make it pretty well at home. Since we've lived in Connecticut, I've welcomed Dunkin Donuts back. It wasn't an easy acceptance, but after two years and change, I appreciate its merits again. My latest ungodly concoction is half coffee-half Salted Caramel hot chocolate. There is no reason a grown person needs to drink it, but I can't help but think of enjoying one after a long run, or just to get the motor running on these cold, dark days. Hot damn! Also, I'm not above a drive-thru Dunkin' run. I know it's tacky and like, obese-American to rock the drive-thru, but two kids in the car is the only excuse necessary to stay buckled in.

Am I really dedicating a blog post to coffee? I suspect I need to address new content, to write about something dominating my life other than kids or running, and coffee is at the top of my list. Hmm, let's see, surely there are more dimensions to my life...

Oh, yes. I started to read a book last night. This is the first book I've read since July, and I didn't have the will to finish it, even though I liked it (The Interestings). My book of 2014 is Lean In, by Sheryl Sandberg, about balancing work, family, and life while rising to the professional top (if you're so inclined). I love working, I love graphic design and the experiments and research that go into that part of my job. I'm organized, driven, and am intrigued by urban planning and developing my planning skills. But I often wish I worked less; how great it was when Edie was a baby and I worked 24 hours a week and spent my other days exploring Seattle with her (coffee mug in hand of course). It was great for me and Edie, but my work suffered. I went to the office Monday, Tuesday, and Friday. After two days at home mid-week, I barely knew where I'd left off on Tuesday, and how difficult is it to build momentum on a segregated Friday? Very. My employers were saints; despite my best intentions, they must've lost money on me during that time.

Lean In explores how women can thrive in business, with or without a family. It addresses workplace inequality and overcoming internal and external barriers. Sample internal barrier: Comparing yourself to the male leadership while at work, and the stay-at-home moms while at home. Sample external barrier: The well-researched female tendency to underestimate our performance, while men typically overestimate their performance. Self doubt is an issue some days, and this book is illuminating common sentiments, many of which I never even gave a name to, and challenging those norms. Even though Sheryl, the COO of Facebook, makes an obscene amount of money and therefore has more resources at her disposal to make whatever she wants to do work, the concepts ideas apply to any class. I'll let you know how it turns out.

Yep, folks, coffee and reading. I also like impromptu dance parties, sledding on fresh snow, and scoring network t.v. pulled thanks to a $60 antenna. More on that next time.