haiKupiec

In the beginning, I was a dog person: Clifford, Blackie, Merlin. At the tender age of 5, I was sweet-talking my parents into a puppy. He *had* to be named Clifford, of course. My five-year-old self picked the small red runt and hoped for the best. He didn’t grow bigger than a house, but I could not have been happier.

Then I was a cat person: Catmeat, Bird, Copycat, Sweetie Pi, Princess Kiki. I never knew I could be a cat person and then one day I was. Catmeat made me a cat person. (It’s a strange name, I know. Imagine giving that name to your vet or asking it to be engraved on a tag.) She was a blue-eyed Siamese-mix beauty who played fetch better than most dogs.

Now I am both: Brinee. She’s Brin for short. Actually, I have terms of endearment for her that I use (already!) that would make many people gag. I love her, what can I say? There are pics on flickr. The feline members of the family are undecided. They are proceeding with caution.

Brin was named for her brindle coat…a coat that reminds me of Clifford. Some love lasts forever.

I am genetically programmed to be a Washington Redskins fan. My mom is a D.C. native and my dad grew up in Arlington. I adopted the Ravens as a favorite several years ago. (Who doesn’t like a team that evokes a Poe-t?) But this year, I am pulling for another team.

No beating R. Bush,
It will be a Brees when the
Saints go marchin’ in.

As kids we lit sparklers on the 4th of July. I loved sparklers more than any other kind of fireworks. Who doesn’t want to be up close and personal with the dancing, sizzling light of a sparkler? Their only downside was that they never lasted long enough; they would go out too soon leaving you wanting more.

Some people are like sparklers. They light up the room instantly, making life glow and sparkle. Cole Campbell seemed to me to be a human sparkler. We only met by email–we planned to get together and talk about the web after New Year’s.

A car accident claimed his life yesterday.

Though we never formally met, I was fortunate to experience the sparkle. At Winter Commencement a few weeks ago, he was lined up with his fellow deans and other VPs for the processional. He was dancing in line, bringing life and joy and fun to the duty. I am sorry that I will not have more of the sparkler.

Enjoy the sparklers in your life; they will never last long enough.

2006…we hardly knew ya.

Just when I think I have my act together, the calendar flips over and there is another year looming large, spreading out into the future. I was thinking about my resolutions and they seem to be the same ones that I have had in many years past. They are becoming so permanent that they are practically tattoo material. But I am thinking of shortening the list to a manageable and (hopefully) achievable number of resolutions.

I have been reading Organizing Plain and Simple by Donna Smallin, a holiday gift. I also read “Saying Yes to Mess” by Penelope Green in the New York Times. (I don’t think it’s a coincidence that this article made the NYT’s frequently emailed list.) From these two reading I have learned that: a) I put too much on my to-do list (I need to stick with three things); and b) neatness is overrated.

Anyway, I am humming a little Elvis (Costello, that is) and thinking about Peace, Love and Understanding…a New Year’s resolution trifecta.