You Ate My Sandwich?!

This picture was taped to the refrigerator in the break room at work this morning:

Reminder

Two significant reminders for the day:

1. The power of a compliment - I received several compliments today from my tights to my nail color. It's funny how such a small comment as, "I really like the color of your nails" from a total stranger can not only make you smile but help make your day a better one. I've been trying to make more of an effort to give out compliments - to those I know and the unfamiliar because I know how good it makes me feel and I want to be able to pass that along to someone else and pay it forward.

2. I am not alone - As I was talking to a friend I ran into at the coffee shop this afternoon, I realized I am not alone in how I feel about certain things in life. It's nice to know others share some of the same feelings I do and makes that unknown a little less scary.

Undercover

The Undercover mix tape is now available upon request.

1. Drop It Like It's Hot (Snoop Dogg) - Neon Hitch
2. Cousins (Vampire Weekend) - Mumford & Sons
3. When You Were Young (The Killers) - Astrid Swan
4. Private Eyes (Hall & Oates) - The Bird and the Bee
5. Crazy (Gnarls Barkley) - Ray LaMontagne
6. Last Nite (The Strokes) - Adele
7. Barracuda (Heart) - Sky Larkin
8. Bring It On Home To Me (Sam Cooke) - She & Him
9. Hurt (Nine Inch Nails) - Johnny Cash
10. When I Grow Up (Fever Ray) - First Aid Kit
11. Tik Tok (Ke$ha) - Sunday Girl
12. Rocket Man (Elton John) - My Morning Jacket
13. Pursuit of Happiness (Kid Cudi) - Lissie
14. Wonderwall (Oasis) - Ryan Adams
15. Single Ladies (Beyonce) - Pomplamoose
16. Forever Young (Alphaville) - Youth Group

Questionable Identification

I've never had someone question the validity of my ID until yesterday afternoon as I was picking up a few things before the Iowa game started. I wanted to get a sixer of beer so I headed over to the liquor part of the store. After perusing through the refrigerated beer section, I decided on Shock Top Belgian White. I headed to the cashier with that, 2 limes, and ground cumin in hand. Not surprisingly, the cashier asked for my ID, so I showed it to him, without taking it out of my wallet. He then asked me to take it out, and of course I obliged. Then he studied it very carefully, looked at me, looked back at my ID and said, "This doesn't look like you." For those of you who haven't seen my ID before, I got it renewed 2 years ago, so my hair was still bright blonde and in this particular picture, it looks almost white. I've had a couple people comment about my darker hair versus the lighter hair in my picture, but I've never had anyone doubt it was me, so I was a little taken aback. I so badly wanted to say, "Listen Pat, congrats on your 8 years of service at Hy-vee, and I'm glad to see that you are taking your job so seriously, but with all do respect, do you honestly think I look like I'm under 21? I mean, I'm flattered, but let's be real. (A.) In the event that I was under 21 and this was a fake ID, do you really think I'd be using it at the Hy-vee Liquor store? No. I'd wait to pull this out at some place like Uncle Bucks or Komodo Club later on tonight. And (B.) If I were, indeed under 21, using a fake ID at your store, do you really think I'd be purchasing a Belgian Wheat six pack of beer? I'd be buying Smirnoff Ice or a bottle of UV Blue Vodka to go along with my Big Gulp cup full of lemonade I have out in the car." But, I kept it short and sweet and simply said, "Well, I don't know what to tell you, that's me. My hair is darker, yes, but if you look at my face, it matches the picture." He gave me an irritated look and said, "yeah, okay." Apparently a helpful smile in every aisle does not apply in the liquor section.

7 Miler

I had a great run today with JW. We ran 7 miles, which is the longest I think I've ran since Dam to Dam (yikes) and I felt great overall. I've been battling a leg injury for about 6 months now and after receiving some treatment (finally), I'm hoping the worst of the problem is behind me. I was a little nervous less than a mile into the run when I felt my leg starting to act up, but I ran through it and by mile 3, I was back to feeling great. It was a great morning for a run - a little windy, but overall the friendly 60 degree temps, the sun trying to peek out through the clouds, the beautiful fall scenery, and of course the great company made the run less work and more fun. It is so encouraging to run without fighting any pain. I'm not convinced I'm 100% cured, but I can only hope I have more successful runs to come.

Good Reading

While enjoying a few hours at the pool everyday in Vegas this past week, I got some good reading done.

First Tattoos on the Heart, on loan from JW, is about a Jesuit priest who started a gang intervention program called HomeBoy Industries. I enjoyed this book immensely and it was so inspiring to read about a man who has such a rare but much needed gift of patience and faith. Definitely recommend this one.

Next, Sh*t My Dad Says. Read this one in a matter of hours - highly entertaining, highly recommend if you want a no-think, laugh-out-loud book. The title pretty much says it all - author writes about what his dad has said about numerous topics over the years. Check out the website here for a little taste of what the book is like.

Commendable Restraint Efforts

As I mentioned in the Vegas post, one of the shopping stops we made was at Anthropologie. Here are a few items I reluctantly left the store without: