It's Boot Season!

Hooray for boot season! I have just realized how much I love boots. I should have seen it coming, what with all the clues: 1. I've worn only boots for the past 5 days in a row 2. I have one pair of tall leather brown boots, one pair of tall leather black boots, one pair of short leather brown boots, and one pair of short leather black boots 3. I might get another pair of boots for Christmas. Boots, boots, boots! I can't get enough of them. I think I might actually wear boots every day until March 1 (I consider March a Spring month), and I won't even do it on purpose! I just naturally gravitate toward boots in the Winter. My feet get cold easily, and boots, being stronger and sturdier than tennis shoes, seem better equipped to keep out the cold and keep in the warmth!

Speaking of seasons, I believe we have officially reached Winter. Here's how I divide the seasons in MS:
November - February = Winter (4 months)
March - mid-May = Spring (2.5 months)
Mid-May - September = Summer (4.5 months)
October = Fall (1 month)

That's right. Sadly there is only one month of Fall for Mississippians. Only one month of blissful, crisp, weather with light breezes, crunchy leaves, and clear blue skies. Only one month of weather perfection. On the other hand, February is the worst month in existence. It is cold, rainy, and downright depressing. Feel free to send me warm casseroles, flowers, and a sundry other nice gifts in February. Your generous contributions are the only way I'll make it through that wretched month...well, those and an umbrella, boots, and chocolate on Valentine's Day.

Anyhoo, I want to share with you a story that my lovely friend Anna Duggan shared with me earlier this week. Anna tutors elementary school children weekly at a public school in Memphis. She was reading her students a story that featured Roman Numerals. She asked the class, "Does anyone know what Roman Numerals are?" One little boy replied, "Oooooo yeah! That's the pasta you cook in the microwave and then pour the seasoning on it." Classic. Teachers have fabulous stories to tell. Keep 'em coming, Anna and Claire. [Answer: Ramen Noodles...in case ya missed it.]

Also, the American music scene has been on a rapid decline for years. I am willing to bet that most of you have heard the song "Tattoo" by Jordin Sparks, who won the sixth season of American Idol, which I learned from Wikipedia because I do not watch the show. Here are some lyrics featured in this recently penned jewel of wisdom:

Don't look back at a new direction/I loved you once, needed protection
You're still a part of everything I do/You're on my heart just like a tattoo
Just like a tattoo, I'll always have you/I'll always have you, I'll always have you

I almost have no words to say on the subject...Just kidding. It's me. Of course, I do! This song is a sign that American music has hit rock bottom. Or, to quote Rachel from Friends: "There's rock bottom, fifty feet of crap, then [THIS SONG]!" I have various problems with the lyrics and ideas portrayed in this song, but the tattoo allusion is the worst. Are there no better analogies for love, love lost, or love forgotten than body art? What she really means is, "When I'm 67 years old, I'll see this saggy, maimed butterfly on my lower back while I'm looking at my butt in the mirror and remember the week we dated in junior high school." Being a part of someone in the same way you'll always be stuck with tattoo is not exactly a form of flattery. "Gee, I wish I could get rid of this wrinkly barbed wire tattoo on my bicep now that I'm 85." Tattoos are generally not remembered fondly. They are normally regretted more with age, and a person usually tries to hide the evidence that it ever existed on his or her body. Apparently the guy she wrote this song about (if she even wrote it) will soon be considered a mistake and she'll try to cover up the fact that she ever knew him! In trying to find a catchy, common icon through which to relate her feelings, Jordin is actually insulting people. Maybe she should just sit the next few plays out...