Analogy Animal

Hanging out past my bedtime with a group of people that I mostly don't know to celebrate a friend's birthday. Half of us trying to describe someone who was with the group at the bar earlier. I'm sure I keep saying the wrong thing. A girl might be forming a crush on the guy, and we want to encourage that while preparing her for his extreme awkwardness.

I feel relieved when someone else comes up with an analogy. The guy is like a deer and the girl is a rabbit. Sudden movement will send the deer leaping away. Steady acclimation and they can end up being Bambi and Thumper. Not that the guy's Bambi. He's a stag. It's late, the bumbling babble continues.

That's how I was asked to come up with my analogy animal. Not a spirit animal. Simply one to stand in for me in analogies.

I settled on a penguin. The devotion to their mate appeals. As does the time when the women go off on their own. (Y'all know I need my independence in community.) Plus, they walk funny.

And their the unofficial second mascot for my college.

And everyone should like penguins.

Just like everyone should like me.

~~~
Anyone have other suggestions for my analogy animal? Picks for your own?

Musings on music and memories

I like making playlists in iTunes.

Some are time specific--Middle School Dance.
Or genre specific--Popular phase rockness.
Some are mood specific--Calming.
Remind me of a place--Camp associations.
Or a general idea of a life situation--Cheesy Lovely.
Sometimes I pick a word for a theme--Mail call.
Or my general mood--Nonsense syllables.

There are over 50 lists (after that I stopped counting).

Exactly two are named after people. Created to remind me of our relationship.

Two friends who never met each other. At one point I'm sure they knew of each other.

The two friends who attended camp with me for years (different camps). The ones who my college friends heard stories about when I talked about my childhood.

The two friends from my life before high school who I have any semblance of contact with now. Though it's pretty scarce.

One of them got married a few weeks ago. I went to the wedding because I needed that connection with my past. It's selfish, but made sense. Processing my emotions from her wedding has made me think more about the other one.

During tenth grade we e-mailed daily. In addition to frequent IM conversations. When I wrote him last weekend my subject, "Want more than an annual check-in," sums up our current communication.

Hearing back from him brightened my day. He's engaged now, to a girl I only know of from college away messages. And I'm happy for him. And happy that I'm happy. (I really was a mix of emotions after the wedding.)

I'm listening to my mix named after him. It must sound random to my housemate, but it makes me smile. Screaming summer. And dancing. And laughing at ourselves. Songs that became the subjects of our e-mails to each other. (I attribute my country music playlist to him.) Songs from away messages. Smiling in the comfort that while these songs don't describe either of us in our current lives they capture a snapshot of my past. It's nice to know that no matter how out of touch we are, some things don't change.

The List

Late night discussions led to me being asked to describe my ideal mate. (And comments on how strange that sounds.)

I didn't have it then. It's been too long since I've updated my list. Normally this stays hidden in my journal, but I feel like I owe people an answer and I don't feel like passing my journal around. (Who knows what secrets are hidden in there.)

7 things I'm looking For*

Trust--In a serious relationship, I have to be comfortable with you and want you to be comfortable with me.

Religion/Spirituality--Doesn't have to be mine. Does need to be open to mine.

Low-key--I get stressed out enough for us all some days. Also, I'm not looking for a super-intense relationship right now. That said, if I do find myself in one, I hope it will be serious. Just able to be chill about everything at the same time.

Other friends--In college I had multiple social circles, to the point where some of my best friends still do not know each other. (Though they do hear stories about each other.) At least in a new relationship I'll want to maintain some separateness to our spheres.

Patient--Based on my record so far, you better believe I'll redefine taking it slow.

Nerdy--Apparently I like nerds. Knowing me, this should not surprise you. I am one.

Not Desperate--Ummm....yeah. I mean, if you are desperate that's fine. Just don't be painfully obvious about it.


*Disclaimers.

This list may not be the top 7 things I'm looking for.

Obviously the list evolves over time. For instance, most days not desperate would not be included. Normally there'd be more reference to shared values, life goals, or something.

I don't foresee telling anyone, "You match my list! We're meant to be!" Nor do I plan on rejecting anyone because they don't match the list. I mean, the list is a guide to remind me what I think I'm prioritizing, nothing formal.