There's a preschool next to where I work, and as I was walking out to the parking lot one day last week, I could hear the squeak of a swingset and the happy yelling laughter of children. It immediately took me back to my days of elementary school. It also made me think about how saturated the world is in sound and how I don't even notice most of the time.

So as I'm trying to tune out politics right now, I'm also making an effort to notice noise. Some sounds I'm finding particularly satisfying:

• the crunch of leaves, especially in the woods where there's a thick layer
• rain pattering on our metal roof
• D-Fiddy's shutter opening and closing
• a deck of cards being fanned and shuffled
• the crackling of a fire
• the solid click of a metal deadbolt
• the crunching-paper sound my computer makes when I empty the trash
• purring

This weekend was one big bliss bit. No one thing we did was exceptional, but put all together it made for a great, relaxing weekend.

Saturday

Breakfast buffet. Aw, how I love a good breakfast buffet. Biscuits and gravy! Eggs made to order! Belgian waffles! BACON. And we had a coupon, which somehow makes it taste that much better.

Post-host tidying. We had some folks over Thursday night for a debate-watching party, and it was Saturday until we could complete the clean-up. There's something satisfying about putting the house back together after hosting. Washing dishes, storing away extra glasses, carrying spare chairs upstairs. When we removed the extra leaf from the table, we found the now-smaller (but really just regular-sized) table to be the most hilarious thing we'd ever seen. Surely it wasn't always this small! There's so much space in this room you could dance a jig! Did we really adjust to the bigger table in just a day? No, our table was never THIS small. This is like a mini table. Just look how ridiculously small it is!!

Errands. Not too many to bog down the day, just enough to make us feel productive and justify totally loafing around the rest of the day.

Reading. For hours. I nestled into the sofa, with Bridget on my lap, and read until I finished the book. To me, there's little else so luxurious.

Bluegrass concert. Break out a fiddle and a mandolin, and I'm in heaven. This surprises even me. I didn't grow up on this music, but for some reason it stirs something in my heart. And this was a benefit concert, which makes it sound that much better.

Sunday

Hike. Took a 6-mile morning hike to a great overlook. The leaves are just starting to change and the temperature is perfect for a walk in the woods. On the rocks at the top, I napped in a sunny spot while Rob took photos of the view.

Football. Now that I'm into football, watching it on TV is actually fun. Although I'll admit it's not the game itself I enjoy as much as the excuse to spend several hours on the sofa with beer and snacks.

Orgasm. I couldn't think of a cocktail that begins with an O for my tagline, so I did some research and came across the Orgasm. Which then, of course, I just had to make. I brought it to Rob in the living room and said, "Would you like an Orgasm?" He looked up from his computer with an expression that quickly turned to disappointment when he saw the drink in my hand. Not as glorious as its namesake, but it's a damn good drink, now among my favorites. And I can't wait until the next time we have people over, so I can ask someone if they've ever had an Orgasm. And, if not, if they'd like me to give them one.

(Parts 1 and 2.)

Connoisseurs jewelry cleaner.
My mom gave me a jar of this when Rob and I got engaged. It makes rings look like new, and leaves my diamond super-sparkly. If I'm going to be at a jewelry counter for something, I'll ask them to professionally clean and buff my rings. The rest of the time, I swear by this stuff.

Lint roller.
There is no escaping cat hair at our house - with 3 cats, it constantly floats in the air and attaches itself to everything. We have been five days into traveling in a different country only to find a cat hair on one of our shirts. A shirt that was clean when it was packed! Whenever that happens on a trip, I'm like, "Aww, look! A Bridgie hair! I miss that kitty." But the rest of the time? Not so great really. And thus the lint roller.

We keep one in each car glove compartment and in a drawer in the kitchen. Part of the morning ritual is to lint-roll before leaving the house. If I'm wearing black, I'll do it again when I get out of the car because apparently cat hair is floating around in there, too. I used to be coy about it, but now I just stand next to my car and roll that thing all over myself. I can't count the number of times I've said to Rob in a parking lot, "Hold on, I have to lint-roll my boobs." And then, a moment later, "Now can you do my ass?" Somehow this is less scandalous to me than being caught with cat hair on my clothes.

Swivel Sweeper.
Just bought this, so I can't actually say yet if it's something I swear by. But it's got the potential to be. This is one of those As Seen on TV things. I didn't see it on TV, but almost all of my co-workers did and they all LOVE theirs. Like, I have heard them having water-cooler conversations about how amazing their Swivel Sweepers are. Our custodian even bought one to use at work. One day a plant fell off the windowsill and soil went everywhere, and so I got a live demonstration. That sold me.

We have bare floors throughout our house, and I sweep a lot. I'm not sure this will replace sweeping altogether, but it is great for quickly running over the floors every couple days. It's very light, and the small swively head can fit basically anywhere. It maneuvers around chair legs and under the sofa very well. And it doesn't send dust into the air like sweeping does (especially when Rob is sweeping, I'm just saying).

Tupperware Forget Me Not containers.
We always have half an onion or green pepper or tomato in the fridge, and until I bought these, we'd stash them in plastic zipper bags. Which made me feel wasteful and guilty. I got these at a Tupperware party (how quaint, I know) to use instead. I guess oftentimes people forget they have that onion or pepper or tomato leftover, and so these are designed to hang from a fridge shelf to remind you. We don't use them that way, though. I just like that they are the perfect size and shape for all those slicing/chopping foods we keep on hand. Rob's improvement to these would be to make them transparent, because as they are now you can't see what's inside without opening.

TableCraft wine pourer and stopper.
Perhaps the most used, most loved item I have ever bought for the house. That might sound extreme, but keep in mind we drink a hella lot of wine. This thing is a 2-piece deal - a wine pourer, with a stopper that slides out. I've seen other versions, but this one is simpler and more elegant. Also makes a nice gift. I get this item at Target, although I think they recently stopped stocking it. That means you should run to your closest Target now and buy all the ones they have left.

At the beginning of a new year, I always take time to reflect on what changes I want to make, what I can do better. But I don't necessarily make resolutions.

There are some people who seem, all throughout their lives, to evaluate themselves and then actively work to make improvements and learn new things. I find that inspiring. Rob has an uncle who wants to become fluent in French, and he has worked steadily on this goal for several years. I'd say he's fluent now, but he's still reading novels in French that are getting progressively more difficult in order to hone his ability. Over Christmas I learned that he also has been taking saxophone lessons. I really admire people like him, and have begun to adopt that attitude in my own life, taking classes or trying new things out of an eagerness to learn and grow.

So for the new year I'm listing three goals - no, not even goals, but projects - that I'm looking forward to working on in 2008. Unlike resolutions, they aren't things I'm lacking or areas in which I'm disappointed in myself. Instead, I'm identifying interests that I'd like to further develop - initiatives that will bring me joy and make me a better person.

1. EMT certification. What I do with this, if anything, is yet to be determined. We'll see how it goes. But I'm really excited about taking this course.
2. Italian. As in, begin learning the language. There are several reasons for this. Italian is so beautiful, and especially after reading this book I'm eager to learn it. Also, it's something Rob and I can work at together. I took Spanish in high school and he took French, and so Italian is a language that will be familiar in many ways to both of us but still completely new. And finally, it will come in handy on a trip we're taking this spring in which we'll be in Venice for a few days.
3. Swimming. This is something I used to be really good at; I was even a lifeguard in high school. But I haven't been in a pool, for any purpose other than vacation recreation, in a long time. So I'd like to get back in the swim of things. Because it's something I love to do. And because it's great exercise, especially in the winter when it's too cold outside to run.

Those are my no-pressure projects for 2008. Check back for the update.

Which reminds me. Has anyone come up with a good word that rhymes with 8? Because it is so tempting to rhyme as I wish others a happy new year, but frankly all the words I'm coming up with are elementary school at best. "Hope your 2008 is super great!" Argh.

But I do hope it's great. For each of you. I hope this year is just what you want it to be. Happy New Year!

• picking up my husband's pants from the tailor
• asking for meat at the deli counter
• depositing checks at the bank
• buying bagels for a morning work meeting
• getting my rings cleaned at a jewelry store
• buying certain items at the grocery store: toilet paper, deodorant, cough syrup, a ham
• picking up a prescription

At Curves, members were asked to write on a sheet of paper what we are thankful for, and then they were posted on the walls for everyone to read. Interestingly, the vast majority listed the same three things in the same order: God, my family, this country. A few were different, and one in particular stood out to me and was by far my favorite. It was written by a teenage girl, a fact made obvious by the i's dotted with big circles and the content. It read: my awesome friends, my adorable boyfriend, Andy Warhol, Trent Reznor, mac & cheese.

In that same spirit, I continue my tradition of listing the little things for which I'm thankful. (Lists from 2005 and 2006.)

• vibrant autumn colors
• belly kisses
• the house dip at my favorite sandwich shop
• veterinarians
• the big window in my office
• our swanky upscale grocery store
• that all my close friends have found partners
• snow days
• cities - New York and Chicago in particular
• polka dots
• working out with my mom
• that moment of relief upon waking from a dream in which I was either lost, back in college, or pregnant
• bacon
• talking on the phone with my brother
• the mountains
• getting 40 mpg
• the shade of red that I get my highlights in
• snuggling after hitting snooze
• kitty purrs
• the last 2:45 of LoveStoned (the "I Think She Knows" interlude)
• that feeling of exhilaration after a good run
• my dad's crinkle-eyed laugh
• The New York Times online
• my grandparents' farmhouse filled with family
• mac & cheese