Archives for July 2008

A Sign of the Times?

July 22, 2008 by Maren 8 Comments

I try to give blood regularly. For those of you who have never given blood, you are asked a ton of questions to ensure that your blood is safe to give before donating. While in the hot seat, the nurse also takes your temperature, checks your iron level, tests your blood pressure, etc. In addition to the evasive questions and various pokes and proddings, the nurse also asks fairly normal questions. It was a fairly normal question that actually made me pause and laugh yesterday. Went something like this.

Lady: Name?
Me: Maren
Lady: Social?
Me: ###-##-####
Lady: Height?
Maren: 5’10”
Lady: Weight?
Maren: 165 lbs.
Lady: Gender?
Maren: Excuse me?
Lady: Gender?
Maren: (Laughing) Seriously? Female.
Lady: We are required to ask that now.

She asked a few more questions, but it took me a while to regain my thoughts and answer the other questions normally. My sarcastic bug kicked in and for a split second I had the urge to make the interrogation into a joke. I fought the urge and answered correctly so that a needy person could use my blood.

It’s kind of sad that we live in a society where gender can’t be assumed. Everyone is sue happy. And EVERYONE ELSE is afraid they will be sued for assuming something that SHOULD be simple. And as a result I have to declare my gender when donating blood. I think I’m going to go slather on some more makeup. For some strange reason, I feel mannish.

Edit: What be thee? Thanks for guessing!

July 14, 2008 by Maren 15 Comments

Edit: An Eye.

Let’s have your best guesses! This may be too easy, but we’ll give it a go anyhoo. I’ll post the answer tomorrow!

Free Meal with Dessert-TODAY ONLY

July 11, 2008 by Maren Leave a Comment

Live around a chick-fil-a? Dress like a cow today and receive a free combo meal…or have the essence of a cow and receive only a free entree. Click here for info.

Need dessert? In honor of the date being 7/11 you can grab a free slurpee at partcipating 7-Elevens. Click here for more info.

I’m a loser and don’t feel like using my few hours of free time by dressing like a cow. Plus no 7-Elevens are close by. I guess I’ll starve…that or dress like a cow in the comfort of my own home and eat like a pig.

Have a great weekend!

How do you work this thing?

July 9, 2008 by Maren 7 Comments

As mentioned in my last post, my parents came to visit over the Fourth of July weekend. One of our projects was to organize our crawl space filled with Tupperwares of memorabilia and junk galore. The junk seems to multiply and appears in disguise as everything from Christmas accessories to Elementary School yearbooks. From Camping gear to Turkey roasting pans. A plethora of nothingness to be used at our beck and call. Problem is, with many of these items, sentiment is the only reason they remain. The items never see anything besides the black hole of the Tupperware, their home. The items aren’t even RARELY used, they are NEVER used. And frankly, I don’t think about the items until the next time I open up the tubs to sort through them again. Ridiculous, really… With that being mentioned, we set out on our venture of organizing junk.

As some of you know, I am a huge fan of games. Occasionally, I’ll find one for a steal at a thrift store and buy it just because. One of those games called Pen Doodle Um was purged this weekend. I bought this probably about 5-6 years ago at a thrift store in Indianapolis because I confused it with the old game we had played as children, Spirograph.

This was finally its time to make its exit from my life, forever. But, before donating it, I thought I’d give it one last try to secure its spot back in the crawl space Tupperware abyss.

As advertised, the beautiful drawings were supposed to look like this…

or this…

It’s a fancy set of plastic pieces that require an engineering degree to assemble it. My dad is close to being that smart, so I stuck him on the task. Thirty minutes later, a hot glue gun, a rubber band, a scale, and 3+ lbs. of pennies, we had ourselves a doozy of a contraption.

It had ONE shot to make its impression on my life. Unable to contain my excitement, I grabbed pen and paper and started those pendulums a’ swinging. My precious artwork that has been in waiting for 5 or 6 long years was truly breathtaking. Something so amazing that a 2 year old could even replicate its beauty…As you will be able to CLEARLY see, it’s just what the box claims ‘The Toy That Creates Designs…Like MAGIC!’ Check it out!

It looked like this… (Magical)

then this… (Awe Inspiring)

and this… (Truly Captivating)

I finally got the swing of things and created something slightly better…

My dreams of selling my artwork as stationery on eBay dashed faster than one of the pendulums swung under the table.

Although the laughs are almost worth the price, the verdict remains for this game: Out of its storage tub, and back to a life at a thrift store (waiting for another sucker who feels sorry for abandon games & gizmos). If you are dying to have your very own, you can purchase this bit of beauty at the Wayside Christian Mission Thrift Store in Louisville, KY. But if I were you, I’d just consult your 2 year old for a drawing that is probably twice as good.

Also, if interested, please make an offer on my Pen Doodle Um Original Artwork . For the right price, I’ll consider selling (okay, kidding). My drawings have also found a new home– my city’s recycling plant.

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