Must. Save. Princess.

If you are ever kidnapped by strange creatures, I'm probably not the one who should travel through dungeons, water and deserts to rescue you. You would be trapped for a long, long time. Maybe even forever.

That's right. I got Super Mario Bros. for Christmas. And I knew this would happen. That's why I hadn't actually played it until yesterday. This is the stuff of which addictions are made. I've been yelling at turtles and Luigi and dragons and fire and Mario. A lot.

I was not good at this game when I was nine. I am not good at this game at 29, either. I've learned a lot of things over the past 20 years, but how to navigate underground worlds with my BFF is not one of those things.

But there are advantages to playing when you're an adult. You can do things like move your furniture to make your living room more conducive to video game-playing. Neat, eh? (My couch is generally not right in front of the television...)

Hopefully this newly-formed habit will not negatively affect my grades or my intention to graduate in a few months!

The In Between

Tis the season to create goals and resolutions for the year. But rather than outlining a bunch of specific goals that I probably won't accomplish, I'm going to say this:

In 2010, I want to live in the in between.

"In between what?" you ask. Well, I tend be the kind of person who is always looking forward to the next big thing. And there's no doubt that 2010 will have its share of fun and exciting things. I'll be going to the Olympics, graduating, turning thirty (with Bono in Denver), taking a little trip to Japan (!), and who knows what else...

As awesome as all those things will be, it's the little in between things that make up life. The conversations at Starbucks, the day-to-day interactions with co-workers, the dinners with friends, the lazy Sunday afternoons... these are the things I want to pay attention to and enjoy.

There are appropriate Steven Curtis Chapman lyrics for any occasion, right? From his "Miracle of the Moment:"

There’s a wonder in the here and now
It’s right there in front of you
And I don’t want you to miss
The miracle of the moment

There’s only one who knows
What’s really out there waiting
In all the moments yet to be
And all we need to know
Is He’s out there waiting
To Him the future’s history
And He has given us a treasure called right now
And this is the only moment we can do anything about

How much is too much?

If you've been reading my blog for awhile, you know that I mostly post about random, silly things or fun stuff that I'm doing. But I recently had a great conversation with a friend who challenged me to be more transparent on my blog. (Don't you sometimes hate that friend who challenges you? Just a little bit?)

If you only read this, you probably think life is all fun and games. But, like everyone else, I have my issues. Plenty of them.

My question is this: How transparent should one be on her blog? Obviously it's a matter of personal preference and comfort, so maybe the better question is how transparent should I be on MY blog?

This seems like an appropriate time for a Pro/Con list:

PROs of Sharing

-Accountability

-Might be encouraging someone without knowing it

-Possibility of turning into the next Julie Powell (as in, Julie and Julia)?

CONs of Sharing

-Totally opening yourself up to criticism from people you don't even know

-One word: Stalkers

-General creepiness of putting your junk out there for everyone to see, including co-workers and future employers

What do you think?

For those of you who are sharers, what are your motives?