I don't like BK Coffee, but I do like this stuff.

In light of my week of crappy nights' sleep that have been largely my own fault for staying up too late writing/reading/playing Halo3 on Xbox Live I'm going to write a post about things that make me happy. (Instead of chewing on my keyboard and crying pitifully about having gained four pounds in four days.)

Behold! Shoppy/Hobby things I Like or Getting To Know Your Resident Pottymouth:

Lush: It ain't cheap. And really, it ain't even that environmentally friendly or free of chemicals. But damn, people. Lush products smell good. The store is porn. Porn for your nose. I use their Flying Fox shower gel when I'm feeling frisky (which is never lately, but still) and their bubble bars and bombs are wonderful indulgences. If you like Jasmine, the Godiva hair bar is just about the nicest smelling thing on the planet. But I only recommend it for short/oily hair, since it can be a little drying. Your best bet is finding a local store or finding a friend who can help you get started.

Black Phoenix Alchemy Lab: When you get past the silly (amazing?) gothic tone and horrible information architecture of the site, what you have is one of the most diverse selections of hand crafted perfume oils available anywhere. A lot of love and creativity is put into these blends. I collect the imps--tiny awesome samples you can buy in packs of six or trade with others online for. Favorite scents? Zombi (fresh earth and wet roses) and Fae (peaches and musk) and a vanilla-one I'm forgetting the name of right now. Oh well. Normally I cannot CANNOT cannot stand fruit/food flavors, but the Lab's scents don't reek of chemical Bath and Body Works crap.

Knitting: I'm not great at it, but I really love it. It's a chance for me to indulge in my weird desire to Collect Things without just... collecting things. Sure, all I can make are baby hats and various scarves, but. But. I've never been a crafty chick so the whole thing makes me feel highly accomplished. It's relaxing and it makes me feel less like a drain on existence when I'm watching American Idol orSo You Think You Can Dance. (I love those shows so, so hard.) Favorite knitting destination? Definitely Ravelry.

Male on Male Romance: Yeah I know, this is the part where my blog nukes the fridge bare weeks after it's launch. But I have to be straight with you (hur hur hur). I think dude on dude romance (and by romance I usually mean smut?) is hot. The cool thing? I'm not the only lady who thinks so. In fact, some wonderful people I know started a small publishing house a few years ago. Now (NSFW) Torquere Press is thriving and entirely badass. While you're thinking about how weird I am, think about how shows like Grey's Anatomy and daytime soaps include scenes with attractive men being all schmoopy into each other and/or making out.

Moving on.

Halo 3 on X Box Live: About five years ago in Gainesville, my then-boyfriend-now-husband and I and two of our best friends started playing Halo 1 together every weekend. This involved lots of beer and (for me) tequila and lots of yelling "DERELICT MY BALLS" at each other. Later on, we joined up with a bigger group of kids and played 16-man games on four TVs in one apartment a couple times a week. I am competitive. However, I am also really super uncoordinated and I hate physical conflict. The perfect solution is clearly running around online with grenades and a shotgun yelling "YEAH, BITCHES!" on Xbox Live with cool people who I can't see as often as I want to because they live out of state now. I play as captainkitten.

Watching TV: WHAT A LAME HOBBY. But seriously, when my husband and wind down after babybedtime we watch a lot of TV. When S was a tiny baby I used to watch Scrubs on DVD while I nursed him. When we were in college we spent months watching all of Buffy and Angel. We watch a lot of crap on Netflix DVD. Dead Like Me. Wonderfalls. Battlestar Gallactica. Weeds. During the regular TV season we watch Lost, I watch Grey's, and our current favorite show is Pushing Daisies. I've definitely been trying to read more often but--hey wait, no rationalizing. I like watching TV. There, I said it!

Musicals: I. Adore. Musical. Theater. And not even decent, respectable musical theater. I'm taking Les Mes, Cats, Phantom of the Opera, The Buffy Musical (yeah I know, that doesn't count). Jesus Christ Superstar is my very favorite. I watch the Tony Awards. I go for totally obscure shit like Once On This Island and the briefly-staged musical version of Fritz Lang's Metropolis. I have a horrible voice but know lots and lots of songs by heart for private vocal sessions in my car. (When they are not interrupted by No, Mama, BACK LARDIGANS.)



What do you guys love? You know other than your kids and significant others and pets and all that.