Subprime

According to a Jan. 5 AP (Sophia Tareen) article in the Tucson Citizen, the American Dialect Society, a long-established group of linguists, grammarians, historians and scholars, has chosen the word 'Subprime' as their Word of the Year for 2007.

Now, we bankers have been using the term 'subprime' for ages, but thanks to 2007's economic downturn, particularly in the mortgage industry, most of the rest of the population has become familiar with the word. According to the article, some students have adopted its use in reference to their tests, "I'm going to subprime this; mess it up."

As a banker, AND a wannabe grammarian, I thought it only prudent that I suggest some possible 'subprime' uses of my very own:

1. There's some subprime milk living in the upper left quadrant of the fridge.
2. Dog towels are chewed. "That's it; I'm subpriming the pink wedding bathtowels."
3. Mr. Megatron Decepticon, better watch your back; Optimus Subprime to the rescue!
4. Q: "Do you watch Celebrity Apprentice?" A: "Nah - not really into subprime-time."
5. Sittin' next to Chewy: "...think I'll subprime these Altoids into my nostrils before it gets any worse."
6. "Did you get a flu shot? You're looking a little subprime today..."

Got any good ones? What's YOUR 'Word of the Year'?

P.S. Apparently, the American Dialect Society was founded in 1889 and began choosing 'Word of the Year' JUST FOR FUN! Not in an official capacity to induct words into the English language. Where can I sign up folks!? 'Dem's MY kinda people...

Emote This!!

If I were a type character, I would be an emoticon. I LOVE emoticons... oh not the pretty, colored graphic ones; those are cheating. I mean the good, old-fashioned stick-figure emoticons. I know - I'm a dork. Nevertheless, it explains why I was fascinated to discover a whole world of them out on the web the other day. My favorites were (remember, most emoticons are left to right, left being top, right being bottom - example, :-) = smiley face):

1. :-B = buck-toothed
2. ~:> = chicken
3. B-) = Batman
4. (::[]::) = bandaid, or emotional support
5. ~(_8(I) = Homer Simpson

This discovery was so much fun, I decided to attempt creating (and, in some cases, commandeering) emoticons of my very own. Check it out!

1. :>) = "Wow, that V chick has a substantial beak on her!"
2. XX--- = "Luke, you've switched off your targeting computer; are you okay?!?"
3. { :>O = Me, leading worship at FCC.
4. UU = Tushi stuck to couch.
5. :-& = I want spaghetti for dinner.
6. [~~ :-O ] = Husband, singing in the shower.
7. UU>= = Outgrowing my jeans.

This is fun - come join me! What's your favorite existing emoticon? OR take a stab at creating a new one... Maybe we can come up with a couple good inside blogland jokes along the way!

Emergency Brake

Okay - let's play the caption game; what does this picture 'say' to you?

Couch Potato

Dearest Husband,

Thank you for loving me even when I refuse to change out of my robe or remove myself from the couch to grab the remote, or do any of the 6 piles of laundry in the basement, or clean stuff or pick up the phone or do anything at all besides watch all the Die Hard movies. In a row. While eating my weight in M&Ms and York Peppermint Patties.

(In my defense, starting at 2:30 pm today, the rest of the weekend is all people and places and extravertedness; I'm claiming the 'fueling up' clause, big time).

What IS it about January though? Gravitational forces around the couch and bed are irresistible... Am I alone with the bottomed-out energy level syndrome this time of year? Did humans used to hibernate at one point, and it's left-over instinct? What solutions have you found (yes, I know - BESIDES having kids) for unsticking your tushi from the nearest reclining surface and eyes from the nearest action flick?

Journey of My Hair

Time for a shallow, somewhat vain post... Each time I grow my hair out (once every few years at least), there's one particular day where it's FINALLY official: ALL strands of hair go back in the binder. No stragglies. Today, my friends, is that momentous day. Happy Pony Tail Day!


In celebration, thought it would be fun to explore the journey of my hair this past decade or so. At age 24, I discovered the joy of having a professional hairstylist - and have been making up for lost time ever since. People tease that my hair changes every time they see me; you be the judge...

Symmetrical Book Stacking

Speaking of symmetrical book stacking (yesterday's comments), one of our upcoming childproofing projects will be shortening some of our book stacks to make them less precarious. Books are one of those things (like garbage cans and underwear drawers) where you can tell a lot about a person in a short span of time. Here are some titles at the top of my current stacks:

1. Shepherding a Child's Heart
2. Embracing Fear
3. Adopting a Toddler
4. Oven Manual (open to 'Cleaning')
5. Waking the Dead
6. The Dance of Attachment
7. Saint Julian
8. Bible (open to Romans)
9. How to Be Your Own Selfish Pig
10. Hymnal (open to 'Be Still My Soul')
11. Enneagram Personality Type Descriptions
12. Thesaurus (open to 'fluke')
13. God Calling
14. Please Understand Me
15. Eva's future lifebook

What's at the top of your stack? Any must-reads I should add to mine for 2008?

Fear Busters: Turning Worry Into Wonder

A few days ago, in a rush to brunch with friends, I backed our SUV (with 'gusto') smack into a large snowbank on the side of the driveway. This particular snowbank was immediately above a culvert - a 3 foot embankment we had newly landscaped with rocks and grasses this past summer. The front left tire was barely touching the driveway, the rest of the vehicle slanted downward precariously - and I became convinced of the likelihood (not just the possibility) of the following things:

1. We would need to pay money to excavate the SUV.
2. Our landscaping would need to be re-done.
3. Rocks would damage the underside of the SUV resulting in need for car repairs.
4. Even a tow-truck would have difficulty dislodging us since the driveway was mainly ice.
5. Someone could get seriously hurt in the process of trying to push the SUV from behind.
6. Our entire afternoon would be spent attempting solutions.
7. I might be without a car for at least the next few days, or until Spring.

I shared most of these concerns with Ed (as calmly and positively as possible) on our way to brunch in our second vehicle, while voicing strong, yet polite, aversion to his opinion that it probably wouldn't take much to fix this. At the time, I remember saying, "I feel really strongly about this, Ed... but I honestly don't know whether I'm catastrophizing, or just being intuitive."

The result? After enjoying a great meal, our brunch friends drove home with us and, (in the less than 10 minutes it took me to don my boots, jeans, warmer coat, hat, mittens, scarf and fierce determination), the SUV was easily dislodged with a tow rope and their Mountaineer. On the first try. Not one blade of landscaping grass crushed. No rocks visible. No one had to attempt to push. I watched, and giggled in awestruck delight... then immediately began to soak in this important lesson...

I forget this quote's author and exact words, but here's the gist of what someone smart once said or wrote: "Worry doesn't work; there are only two options. Either you're wrong and you've wasted precious energy, intellect and time. Or, if you're right - all you're left with is the dim satisfaction of being right. That's all - it fixes nothing, prepares you for nothing."

If I'm honest, I've always been slightly annoyed with people who advise, "Just live in the present." Some of us (Intuitives particularly) are actually wired to think of future possibilities. There is purpose for this, and beauty - just as there are benefits of being rooted in the practicality of the present. So how can Intuitives (and any other worriers) turn worry into wonder?

My new motto for 2008: "Choose a new what-if". I can't (and don't want to) stop thinking of future possibilities - it's against my grain and would shut me down. But I can and will choose to take captive fearful thoughts disguised as intuition, and turn them into positive possibilities. What if the Mountaineer is stronger than I think? What if Eva comes home in February? What if my job lets me cut to 20 hours? What if God is REALLY good - no matter which possibilities come true? What if He REALLY loves me and has my BEST in store?

Is this a bunch of 'pop psychology', 'positive thinking' mumbo jumbo? I'm still in the process of fully testing, but I don't think so. Scripture backs it up:

"Whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable - if anything is excellent or praiseworthy - think about such things [...] put it into practice. And the God of peace will be with you."

"And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him..."

This, I believe, is a path worth walking down. Busting fear and worry has been an important theme for me in 2007. I have, by no means, "arrived", but am ready to process externally about this path on which He's so tenderly led me. Fear-busters yet to come: 'Self-Compassion vs. Self-Worship', 'No Fear In the Moment', 'Redemption vs. Worm Theology', 'Reserving the Right to Disagree - With Myself'... there might be more too. Don't worry, I'll fill in the generous gaps with lighter fare.

Thanks for reading, friends; looking forward to being back 'in the loop'!