Get It All Down: to live this lonely road is so hard to bear and hard to follow

July 18: sanctimonious [irony!]

I try not to come off sounding all sanctimonious and lawyerly, but sometimes it's just too tempting to let fly.

July 19: dross

Separating the gold from the dross is not something upon which I want to spend my time anymore.

July 20: usufruct

A usufruct can be a sensible way to deal with 'inheritance' of real property while encouraging one's putative heirs to be productive of their own income at the same time.

Do you have a piece of technology that should be dead, but it's still going?
my phone may not actually be receiving calls anymore. I'm not certain, since I so rarely actually get telephone calls. No big loss, eh? But that probably wasn't the point to this question, so: hmm. I have a combination DVD/VHS player that I acquired in 2004, which means it's old enough that it doesn't have USB connections. It still runs perfectly well—and, seriously, I'm just not all that finicky about my visual technology needs. Oh, I've also got a Gateway laptop, c.2000. It weighs something like 14 lb. and gets hot enough to fry a burger when it's been running for more than 10 minutes (which is about how long it takes to boot up...Windows 2000). I'm sure there are other artifacts of my tolerance for "it works, it's fine" technology around here, if I thought about it long enough.
When it rains, does it put the damper on your mood?
on the contrary. To quote the great golfer Tom Watson (out of context, naturally), “I love rotten weather. ... Let the seas pound against the shore, let the rains pour.”
What was the latest you stayed up in the past week?
12:30 AM—both times because I just had to finish the book I'd started. I think this is the same reason that I yawned my way through junior high. And high school. And so on.
Have you had an awkward situation with someone recently?
That's a fair assessment. Imagine an exchange that goes something like this:
"I'm sad."
"You're sad? Don't be sad. Here's why...." [accompanied by a punch in the face]
[shock & pain]
"What's your problem NOW?!"
Do you always seem to be losing your bobby pins?
no, they are good about remaining in their little drug-baggie in my bathroom drawer where they belong
When was the last time you found something overwhelming?
now qualifies. Just because of life in general. The past 4 months or so.
Going anywhere next year for vacation?
please God, I hope so.
Ever sent drunk texts?
could be—but with luck, never again. Quoth Benjamin Franklin (1706-1790): “Remember not only to say the right thing in the right place, but far more difficult still, to leave unsaid the wrong thing in the tempting place.”
Do you remember the dream you had last night?
it was about phone calls. Waiting and arranging for phone calls with someone terribly important, whose calls I kept missing. Oddly, I slept pretty well but the dream wasn't satisfying or relaxing at all. (And it was a direct result of the book I'd stayed up to finish: Firestorm, by Nevada Barr. So, thanks for that, Cat. :)
How many dresses do you own?
I'm making this list off the top of my head, so there may be more. (This does not count any of various leftover being-in-a-wedding matchy-matchy stuff in closets here or in the home state.)
1. the new black and white one, for the wedding next weekend
2. the new gray one (which still doesn't fit the way it should, but it's pretty close)
3. indigo blue silk with a very wide skirt and short sleeves (a lovely "grown-up" dress)
4. black crepe silk wrap dress with deep slits in the full skirt (a "holy crap" dress)
5. dark blue (somewhere between royal and navy) with cream 1-inch dots halter dress (definitely not for everyday)
6. beige linen v-neck floor-length with ditsy-print flowers (yeah, it's as odd as it sounds, but it works)
7. black raw silk suit (my "court suit", which I've only worn a couple of times - a "wow" piece)
8. black-watch plaid wool flannel suit-dress with black velvet collar (appropriate for wear prehaps ten days out of the year, but super cute then)
Do any of your friends seem like a brother or sister to you?
The Cat, college BFF, and Flufftini & her husband all have certain much-loved sibling-y qualities.
What bothers you more, cigarette smoke or cigar smoke?
cigars are revolting
What do you think of Leonardo DiCaprio?
hot. Talented.
Have you ever seen a movie that messed with your mind?
definitely. Use the little search box on the right sidebar to find references to "American Me" and "The Big Blue." The former is the most distressing film I've ever seen, and the latter is the one that's...well, it's stuck with me.
Do you look good in hats?
no, I look like a squirrel with mumps
Can you see a noticeable difference between DVD and Blu-ray?
yes, but it hasn't altered my consciousness enough to trade up that DVD/VHS combo to get a Blu-ray player, has it?
Is there a song you're currently listening to on repeat?
"Ghost of Sorrow" by J.R. Richards
Has someone ever told you something that left you speechless?
yes, many times. Sometimes it even happens in a good way, as when a friend takes the time to say, special, that they're thinking about me, as in the following text message, received on what could have been a rough day.
"Enjoy your Thursday. It's a good day for a good day."