c h o o k o o l o o n k s

Self portrait.  Photographed with Nikon D300, 24-85mm lens.

On this day (and since I'm on a roll with the list-making), forty-two things I love:

1.  Oreo cookies.  Just the originals, not the Double-Stufs.

2.  Maxi dresses.  I bought a couple at Target recently, and I'm living in them.

3.  Music.  More and more, lately.  Of every different kind.

4.  Really clever movie-making.  Recent favourites: Away We Go, and the scenes in UP which tell about the life of the old man using only images, without any words.

5.  A good percussive or bass rhythm.

6.  Sitting with my dad and my uncles watching them drink rum and "ol' talk."

7.  Fresh-squeezed fruit juice.

8.  Traveling, and making genuine connections with locals.  Bonus points if neither of us speak each other's language well.

9.  Getting lost in a really good book.

10.  My bed.  I have yet to sleep in a bed that feels more comfortable than the one we have.  I don't believe this is a coincidence.

11.  Solitude in beautiful places.

12.  When Alex becomes weak with laughter, and her whole body shakes.

13.  Twinkle lights.  Left to my own devices, I'd hang them in every room of our house, all year long.

14.  The taste of sea water.  Bonus points if I'm tasting it because I'm scuba diving.

15.  Watching people who love each other greet each other.  Bonus points if they haven't seen each other for a while.

16.  The startling and somewhat explosive smiles of the following famous people:  Al Pacino, Julia Roberts, Barack Obama, James Earl Jones, Christy Turlington, Nelson Mandela.

17.  Really good Thai food.

18.  The moment I know I've captured the natural, happy or peaceful spirit of someone on my camera.

19.  Watching a really passionate dancer, singer or musician.

20.  Watching or listening to Marcus talk to his father.

21.  How I feel after a good yoga class.  You'd think I'd go more often.

22.  How I feel after completing a piece of writing I've worked really hard on.

23.  Good wine.  Preferably at the end of the day, with a good sunset in view.

24.  The following smells:  coffee, anything baking, rain, wood chips, dark chocolate, the beach, sandalwood.  Also: cinnamon, but only at Christmas.

25.  Christmas.

26.  Trinidad & Tobago.  In spite of it.

27.  When Alex crawls into bed with me in the early morning, trying to get a good solid snuggle before we begin our day.  I think if I can get her to continue to want to do this from now until the day she goes off to college, I'll consider myself a good mom.

28.  Related: the way Alex calls that unsteady state when you stumble as a result of being half-asleep the "sleepy wobbles."  To my knowledge, she coined the term herself.  I struggle every day to use the phrase in normal conversation.

29.  The sounds of laughter from a playground.

30.  Sitting high up on a beach, digging a hole, deeper and deeper, and then finally hitting water.  It feels triumphant.

31.  Beautiful or provocative art.

32.  Digging my toes into powdery sand.

33.  Fires in fireplaces.  Bonus points if it's cold and rainy outside.

34.  Popcorn sprinkled with parmesan cheese.  Yum.

35.  Big, warm, heartfelt hugs from people who really appreciate big, warm, heartfelt hugs.

36.  The moment I open the door and see my hotel room for the first time.

37.  Black Paper Mate Flair felt tip pens.  I really don't like writing with anything else.

38.  Ending a fancy meal with a cheese plate and a good port, instead of a sweet dessert.  This is my idea of pure decadence.

39.  Ghosthunters.  Don't judge me.

40.  My Marcus.

41.  My Alex.

42.  Daydreaming about what I'm going to do during the second 42 years of my life.

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Happy Love Thursday, everyone.  Please leave your stories or links to your words or images of love in the comments section, below.

And may you have a very happy, happy day today.

Song:  Crazy by Alana Davis