Thoughts of The Week: Orange You Glad To See Me Smile?

January 14, 2010

Thoughts of The Week: Orange You Glad To See Me Smile?

My friend Alexa Mae from Arizona should get an award. Three months ago her husband Mr. C had an episode which landed him paralyzed and in the ICU. She blogged about the entire experience from the tiny little pieces of hope to her ability to keep the faith. It is a beautiful story (here is a brief synopsis). A love story, really.

For Christmas Alexa sent me a crate of Arizona oranges. She took time to send me oranges, then directed me to take "orange smile" photos. I don't have an award to give Alexa Mae, but here is an "orange smile" photo. Just for her (in my Orabelle dress, no less).

(Between me and her): Love you Alexa Mae!

Speaking of the adventures of paralysis, I went to Avatar last weekend. My favorite part of the movie is when Jake Sully gets into his avatar body and runs away because he is finally out of the confines of his human body. The 3D glasses made me feel like I could reach out and hug him. And I wanted to.

I'm sorry. Was that a spoiler? Here is another spoiler: If you are on a date and you have to wear the 3D glasses you will look really nerdy. I mean, nerdy. And your date will too.

So don't go unless you are really secure with yourself. And your date.

I have never been secure about my relationship with John Mayer.

Do I like him as an artist?

I don't know, do I?

I went to his concert once but he was making all these funny faces when he played the guitar. I felt insecure about it, and left early.

But lately, I like him.

I even texted Stephanie (a self-proclaimed Mayer fan) last week pre-surgery and asked her what album I should buy.

"Continuum" she texted back, immediately.

I just got a phone where texting is SO MUCH EASIER.

Like it takes me a half decade to write a text, rather than a whole one.

I was telling Chup about it this morning,

"I really love this phone!"

(It's a fancy phone!)

And he responded with,

" Good. Just don't let it run your life."

I wanted to delete that comment.

In the blogging world I haven't deleted comments for a year or so.

Even the horribly mean ones.

But yesterday I decided I really don't like the mean ones. I don't mind the un-approving, disagreeing, discussion-oriented comments. Sure. Keep them up! But the mean, hateful, disrespecting, mindless STUPID ones? Nope. No more. I respect my blog and my readers and those who I write about too much to keep them around making things stinky.

So now I delete comments if they smell.

Alexa Mae smells good. I know because I met her once at Smith & Edwards in Northern Utah. It's an army surplus store, but they also have a lot of other golly-who-knows-whats for sale. So we like to stop there on the way home from Idaho and get stuff. Which is what I was doing when I met Alexa Mae. She was visiting from Arizona. You can see how random this is all getting, but I choose to call it heaven-guided fate. I happened to fall in love with her at first meeting . . . as you would . . . if you could meet her at Smith & Edwards in Northern Utah.

She smells good and has the most courageous hair.

I can say that someone else has lovely hair because I am so secure with mine.

Not like when I have to wear 3D glasses. When we had to put them on I looked over at Chup and said,

"It is a good thing we are married, because our relationship would be over if we were dating."

And he smiled.

(Not an "orange smile" but an Avatar smile!)

I bought Continuum.

But now it makes me think of my sister and how much I miss her.

Like how much Chup would miss the sister wife if she ever went missing.

For months we've lived with her I've never complained.

She's gone everywhere with us.

She replaced my morning book reading with The Chief--her seductive apps so securely kept my son's attention span.

When she went Code Blue on our trip to New York City, I let Chup leave for some of the day to spend time praying for her life in the Mac Store ER.

And almost every night I come to bed only to see her tightly wrapped in my husbands loving fingers. Her face glowing into his eyes.

She is his world.

So how does it feel when he says to me regarding my new phone,

"Just don't let it run your life."

?

You know what I think?

Somebody is jealous.

"Orange smile" and a wink.