My Take On Valentine’s Day: A Contrarian’s Point Of View

February 14, 2013February 14, 2013 / Ally Bean / 20 Comments

I won’t lie. I think that for adults Valentine’s Day is a big ‘ole waste of time & money. Too contrived.

I like hearts. I like chocolate. I like flowers. I like dinner. I like jewelry.

But need we do them all on one day? Would we not be better served if we distributed these little treats of life over the course of a year?

I think that we would be. And as I adhere to the philosophy that one should be the change one wants to see, I can assure you that the extent of my Valentine’s Day celebration will be this post… with the cute little heart on it.

The rest of you, please carry on in a way that makes sense to you. I know that you will regardless of what I write here. Have a good time. Please. Do.

But as for me, I think that I’ll follow the wise words of Dharma from Dharma & Greg: “A big part of being open is to embrace things you know are stupid.”

Which, for me, is Valentine’s Day. Happy Valentine’s Day everyone.

[Image from here.]

A Mid-Winter Sunday Morning In The Park

February 10, 2013July 1, 2025 / Ally Bean / 19 Comments

“Many people don’t realize that it’s in what you think are the limitations of a certain form that you can often find your own rhythm and space.”

~ Isabelle Huppert

Sunday was one of those monotone, nondescript days that was neither lovely nor lousy. Not too cold. Not too wet. Not too bleak.

I had almost no energy. Whether it was because of the weather or because we ran around all day on Saturday, I don’t know. Doesn’t matter because I had no pep.

But I thought that we really should do something, so I talked the hubster into going to a city park that we hadn’t been to in years. I remembered that it was flat, paved and had decent parking.

At first I wasn’t going to take my camera with me thinking that without vibrant color outside there’d be nothing to take a picture of. But then I realized that taking photos on a winter day that offered neither sunshine nor snow would be a fun challenge, so the camera came with us. Just in case I saw something I wanted to photograph.

Here’s what I saw…

~ • ~

Faith, Trust & Puzzle Dust

February 9, 2013March 23, 2020 / Ally Bean / 14 Comments

WHILE working on a jigsaw puzzle with her husband, she was asked whether or not she had got all the puzzle pieces with blue on them together into one pile.

She replied: Yes.

WHEN it was pointed out to her that there were about 20 more puzzle pieces with blue on them that she had not put into the pile, she thought hard about this.

Then she said: Some is like All, only Less– and Easier.

AND then, having faith that she had explained herself clearly, she walked away from the dining room table, trusting that she had done her bit for this project. Needing to put distance between herself and those 1000 dusty puzzle pieces. Wondering why she said that she’d help with this stupid puzzle to begin with.

[Images of puzzle from Jig Zone. This particular puzzle is here.]

Two Nice Guys With The Same Name

February 7, 2013February 7, 2013 / Ally Bean / 21 Comments

My Zen-Den rented a car. While either in the rental office or while driving the car, my Zen-Den’s black leather business card organizer wallet fell out of his computer bag. He did not know that this had happened.

This wallet holds about 40 plastic cards that my Zen-Den uses at hotels & airlines & car rental kiosks when he travels for work. Also, once upon a time my Zen-Den stuck a receipt for a car service visit in the back of this wallet.

[It would be at this point in the story that I could go off on a snarky tangent about paying attention to what’s going on around you… don’t adopt an absent-minded professor persona… zip the sides of you computer bag. But I won’t.]

• • •

Last Tuesday morning we received at the house an overnight package. On it was the oddest address label. The label said that Zen-Den in MI had sent Zen-Den in OH this package. I figured that it was work related, so I didn’t open it.

[I could have opened the package immediately but:

It wasn’t addressed to me, which technically means that I shouldn’t open it– like that’s ever stopped me before; &

I live in fear of anthrax dust because I’ve watched a gazillion times that NCIS episode where Tony gets the bubonic plague. Hey, don’t judge. It could happen.]

• • •

When my Zen-Den came home from work I handed him the package. He had no idea what was in it, so we both watched as he opened it. And there was his black leather business card organizer wallet.

There wasn’t a note in the package with the wallet, so we had no idea how the other Zen-Den came to have my Zen-Den’s black leather business card organizer wallet. There was only the address label with the other Zen-Den’s business address/phone number on it.

[Again, I could make a big issue of the fact that a stranger had information about my Z-D’s vehicle and license plate number and credit card, but that would make me sound churlish, so I won’t mention it here.]

• • •

So the next day my Zen-Den phoned the other Zen-Den and they talked. Come to find out someone at the car rental company had found the wallet. When the car rental company went through their records, they found the other Zen-Den’s name/address & sent him my Zen-Den’s black leather business card organizer wallet.

The other Zen-Den knew that it wasn’t his, but he took the time to look through it where he discovered the car service receipt with our home address on it. Then, because he was a nice older gentleman, he just mailed it to my Zen-Den. No big deal. Just did something nice.

My Zen-Den offered to reimburse the other Zen-Den for the cost of mailing, but the other Zen-Den said not to worry about it. He had it covered.

And that, gentle readers, is how it came to be that my Zen-Den got his black leather business card organizer wallet back. Amazing, huh? Who’d have thought that there’d be two nice guys with the same name? Just glad that there are.