Survey: Things that make me happy

[liv]

redbird poses the following question:
Look around you right now and name 3 things you can see in the room you're in that make you smile/happy, even if it is just the tiniest little bit!
And this seems a good question to answer, so...

1. A heap of boxes
   I'm storing some stuff for my good friend LC because she's been moving around a lot (she's a medical student) and is currently in rather a small room. I really like being able to do little things like that for a friend; it makes almost no difference to me (the flat's really bigger than one person needs, in all honesty), but it makes LC's life a lot easier. So the boxes remind me that I have a really comfortable place to live, and good friends I'm able to help out. I don't know the names of the stuff, cos it belongs to LC, but I suspect it's mainly just stuff.
   
2. My teapot
   The teapot itself is white with blue flowers. It was a 19^th birthday present from my housemates; by the time of my birthday I'd been at uni for a term, and already established a reputation for being the kind of host that always had the kettle on. Now, I'd bought myself a teapot the first day I arrived in Oxford, (from the original Oxfam shop, as it happens). I bought it because it was so utterly ugly that I fell in love with it. But my housemates thought that someone as tea-obsessed as me ought to have a prettier teapot than that. (The ugly teapot has been on long loan to various of my friends ever since; I think loreid currently has it, but it's been given temporary shelter by darcydodo, J and pseudomonas at different times.)
   
   The teapot is covered with a ducky little sheep teacosy that J made, J being talented and crafty and generally lovely. The sheep has a fleecy body and stroky velvet head, tail and legs, and its tummy is warm because it's full of tea, and it's utterly cuddlable. J made it as a visual representation of my name sigil, which makes it even more lovely.
   
   And the teapot is full of tea, which is always a good way to make me happy. I'm drinking the tea out of a left-handed, purple mug advertising some Israeli scientific supplies company. I love this mug because a rep gave it to me as a freebie when I was working as a summer student in a lab in Israel; I was so pleased to be mistaken for a real live scientist worth bribing with freebies, and a Hebrew-speaking real live scientist at that! Plus, it's purple.
   
   The teapot doesn't have a name; I'm not quite obsessive enough to name my teapot. The teacosy's name is usually just Lamb or diminutives thereof. The sheep-shape cushion cover it matches is called Lavan, though, since the word means white and is also the name of an infamous Biblical shepherd, connected to my own namesake story. The tea's name is, boringly, Scottish Blend; I have many interesting and exotic teas, but sometimes I just want yer basic cuppa like wot builders drink. I normally avoid anything that's trying to sucker people in with the cheap marketing ploy of putting a saltire on the box, but it's worth getting specifically Scottish tea because anything else tastes a bit horrid if you make it with soft water.
   
3. My computer
   My computer was my first significant purchase with my own money that I'd earned with my own labour. And it wasn't the latest model even two years ago, so its vital statistics are not exactly anything to boast about. But it runs like a dream compared to the dinosaur I was previously using.
   
   The computer is currently displaying my LJ friends page. I hardly need to say that I love LJ; that would be why I've spent my only free weekend in weeks obsessively posting here! But I've been particularly thinking recently, that one of the things I didn't expect when I signed up was just how affirming the experience would turn out to be. This was prompted because the other day a random stranger declared that she loved me "in a delightfully ambiguous way", but also, recently I've been described as "one of the most brilliant people I know, and one of the best conversationalists," and "delightful and intoxicating", which is possibly the best compliment I've ever received!
   
   It's just amazing the way that if ever I write in less than a perfect mood, suddenly a whole pile of people are providing me with hugs, or sage advice, or humourous distraction from whatever was bugging me, or confidence-boosting praise of my character, according to each person's usual approach to these things. Of course, that's what friends do, but if I weren't on LJ I wouldn't bother whingeing at 30 or so friends whenever anything minor went wrong.
   
   I grew up in a family where everyone was interested in everybody else's life; the brothers found this very frustrating and invasive, but to me it was comforting. And I built up a close social circle at uni which to a great extent took the same thing happened. And now, much as I like living on my own, I slightly regret that I don't have anyone to come home to who would ask how my day was, and be genuinely interested in the answer. But instead, I have LJ, and I'm glad of it.
   
   The computer's name is Silver Churn; I acquired it at a time when I was soppy enough to be filling up my life with allusions to my beloved. I'm slightly embarrassed by it in retrospect, but I haven't thought of a really good alternative to change it to, so for the time being it stays. I can always say that it reminds me to have patience when the computer's misbehaving. Yes well.

Comments

[shreena.livejournal.com]

I love that you're not obssessive to name your teapot, but you have named the teacosy, the cushion cover and the computer! And I also love the teapot saga.

[liv]

Um, touchée...

Look, the teapot, although it has personal resonance for me, is essentially just a mass-produced, not particularly inspiring piece of china. Whereas the teacosy and the cushion obviously have personality, so it's ok to name them. And computers have to have names because they might need to be identified by other computers they network with. Yeah, ok, you have a point!

[pseudomonas.livejournal.com]

The red teapot is currently in Edinburgh, awaiting collection by loreid.

I think a "things I have named" thread might be called for.

[monanotlisa.livejournal.com]

Greetings from that random stranger. *g*

I'm afraid my statement was just a manifestation of boundless narcissism: someone who puts into words what I have been pondering myself is instantly very dear to me. & ;-)

Loved your tales. Am a tea person myself; ah, the things I could tell you...some other time.


Now.


Look around you right now and name 3 things you can see in the room you're in that make you smile/happy, even if it is just the tiniest little bit!

As I am currently in my parents' study, this one's quite hard.

1. My mobile phone--

one of the biggest opponents of the cell phone mafia, I valiantly resisted for about two years longer than most of the folks surrounding me before surrendering to the siren call of of constant communication.

Of course, ever since December 2001, I've used it, abused it, and cannot imagine a life without it: Codependency, thy name is cell phone.

It has an in-built alarm clock, a stopwatch, a reminder service, nifty ring tones, a sturdy ::coughstrangeenoughtobecoolcough:: cover, sends text messages, and it even vibrates. I mean, what more can a girl ask for?


2. Two tiny pottery sculptures--

one of them sitting atop the shelf above the computer, one of them sitting perched on the corner of the bookshelf behind me.

I made them both when I was still in school and had both time and fun molding wet earth and channeling my inner artist.

The first one is an Easter bunny, unglazed, with an outstretched arm that used to carry a little basket holding eggs-- all made of clay, naturally. A bit rough, I'm afraid, clearly made by a child but with great care for details.

Yes, "cute" *is* the term that comes to mind.

The second one is a mouse, spray-painted and lacquered in pink and silver, with black eyes and wearing a dark necklace with a yellow medal-- don't ask me why, I clearly thought it was a cool idea back then.

It's simpler yet more sophisticated than the bunny-- its round shape and regularity of form imply a certain focus on the essence of a mouse; it's a bit cartoon-ish, actually.

No idea why my parents decided to decorate this room, of all the rooms, with very endearing yet rather early examples of my oeuvre, but there you go.

I know I was happy at the time I created these, first in school when having fun with the clay, when getting a good grade later on, and when giving it to Mama and Papa for Easter. Then, of course, it makes me happy to see them-- lovers of tasteful art and defenders of style-- absently decorating corners of their house with things their children created and that they loved for their sake.


3. That Angel 5x6 episode the lovely astridv sent me via snail mail--

can't dl more than the smallest files at uni and am sadly unable to do it at home on dial-up-- really don't spend enough time at home and am suffering from insane phone bills already.

As I love Angel the Series and am an avid reader and writer of reviews, a significant lag is a horrible experience (she must have an easy life otherwise, you say, and I guess you're not wrong) that astridv saved me from. Loves me sweet countrymen, eh, -women.


& :-)

[liv]

I'm afraid my statement was just a manifestation of boundless narcissism: someone who puts into words what I have been pondering myself is instantly very dear to me
Oh, don't worry, I'm not at all confused about this. I just found it amusing to quote you out of context. And I'm really much more delighted to know this than I would be if I thought you were really in love with me.

Lovely talking to you last night, too.

[monanotlisa.livejournal.com]

Oh, don't worry, I'm not at all confused about this.

*g* Wasn't worried.

I just found it amusing to quote you out of context.

Which is an age-honoured tradition, after all; how many quotes we use everyday are actually fractured or plain misleading?
/smart-ass

And I'm really much more delighted to know this than I would be if I thought you were really in love with me.

& :-) Ah, I don't fall in love easily.
::blinks::
Come to think of it, still too easily, though...

Lovely talking to you last night, too.

Absolutely! Looking forward to more cross-channel chats!

[darcydodo]

Answer in my journal.

[darcydodo]

but it's been given temporary shelter by darcydodo

No, I never had it.

dundee.

[newfoundglories.livejournal.com]

I came across your journal while doing a search for the University of Dundee, Scotland on google. I am planning to spend the next fall semester there studying English, and was curious what you could tell me about the school, the life, etc. I would greatly appreciate your help in this matter-I've been searching for people who actually live over there so that this experience will go a little smoother. Thank you in advance.

[(Anonymous)]

If you are considering Edinburgh as well, I'm doing English Lit there and am happy to talk about it.

EM

Re: dundee

[liv]

Hi Ashley, nice to meet you. It's gratifying that Google pulls up my journal on such a general search.

I am not the most relevant person to talk to you, given that I'm a science grad student, working in labs at the hospital, so I have very little involvement in campus life.

Anyway, what can I tell you? I came to Dundee for the research, knowing nothing about the place, and by total fluke I turned out to love it. It's very friendly, very cheap to live here, and the landscape is stunningly beautiful (which is not well known, a lot of people don't seem to know that there is anything worth seeing between Edinburgh and the Highlands).

Compared to other towns of comparable size, there's a reasonable amount going on here culturally etc, though I think people wouldn't come to Dundee specifically for the cultural life. But if you're a metropolitan at heart, it's very accessible for Edinburgh or Glasgow. The university itself is fairly cosmopolitan; you'll certainly meet a fair proportion of fellow Americans.

I don't know, what do you actually want to know? I'll friend you and then you'll be able to see my contact details, you're welcome to talk to me by email or IM. Or we can carry on talking in these comments, if you prefer. Go ahead and ask me some specific questions!