The Good News

When I was younger, there were two big dreams that I used to talk to my mother about all the time. The first was that I would own a book store. It would be called Tax Included because all the price tags would include the cost of the tax, so you would know just how much you would be spending before getting up to the cash register. It would also be built out of legos.

The second was when I was a bit older, and basically living in the newspaper room at the high school. I wanted to have my own newstation or newspaper called GNN, or Good News Nonstop. I would get sick of the constant negativity in the news, and even wrote two columns in high school related to the subject. I still keep the idea of moving to Canada in the back of my mind just because they have less fear-fueling media.

So, in the spirit of that second dream, I thought this morning I should share some good news from the past couple of days:

• After soccer practice this week, I caught the N train at Times Square. I was about six stops from home, deep into the latest book I'm reading, when I heard someone calling my name. I looked up and saw my roommate! Running into people I know is always exciting, especially since in Arkansas it was a daily part of my life and now it happens about once a month. And running into my roommate this late in a train car at the very back of the train (she's a little anal about getting on a car in the middle of the train) was very unlikely. The only word to describe us on the rest of our trip home is giddy.

• One of the classes I am taking this semester is Teaching Science. Yesterday we took a field trip to the Botanical Gardens. This was not a thrilling idea for me: My max enjoyment time for staring at flowers is about one minute, I kill plants no matter how hard I try to keep them alive, and that includes cactuses that my mom convinced me to name in the hopes that a more personal relationship would help me take better care of them (may Earl, Ms. Jackson, and Julian rest in peace.) But the Botanical Gardens was awesome! We actually learned things we could (gasp!) use in the classroom. Plus, in the last part of class, we got to pot plants, and since one of my classmates hates dirt, I got to play in the dirt even more! The teacher also integrated food: we made our own salad dressing, and had to eat grapes and tangerines to get the seeds to plant. It might be my new favorite place...

• And the last bit of good news for this a.m. is that it's Friday! Today, after school, one of my friends is having a little barbecue at her house, (fortunately she has a covered patio since it's raining.) Nothing better to end the week than a few good friends, and a few good burgers, with drinks made by another friend who's very creative in the mixing department.
  

There are other good things I haven't gone into detail about here, such as the fact that my mom will be here in five days, but I must grab breakfast and head out the door. I'll try to bring more good news installments, and don't worry, I still plan to open my bookstore. I can totally see myself at age 60, opening the bookstore, and being at the forefront of the Lego Architectural Movement.