Trivial, Insignificant Things That Only Matter To Me
Lately, I have had some trivial, insignificant things that are shallow and superficial and only matter to me pop up in my life. And being the narcissistic person that I am, I feel that these things should matter to you, too.
First, let’s talk about the fact that I found wrinkles on my face this week. Okay. So, I’ve known they were they were there for a few months now, but this week I had had enough. I think I see the beginning of crow’s feet around my eyes and on my forehead are several suspicious laugh lines that somehow don’t seem to go away when I’m done laughing. I blame Bean. And Chris. And quitting my good-paying job in the middle of a recession to move across the country.
So, this week I decided to take action. I bought a new face wash.
NOTE THE FINE PRINT: Visibly reduces signs of aging.
AGING, people. My face wash says aging.
I need more chocolate in my life, please.
Second on the trivial list of important things that only matter to me is the fact that at my sister’s wedding she had this candy bar thing. The issue isn’t the candy bar because – let’s face it – that was brilliant and she might have one-upped my own wedding with that little gem. But what is infecting my life right now is that my parents seem to have GREATLY overestimated how much candy it takes to fill such a candy bar. And that means that every time I go visit them (which is often…) I am sent home with tubs of candy.
And every time I try to turn down the candy for the sake of my growing thighs, Chris swoops in and grabs a tub (or TWO) before I can argue and the next thing I know it’s 11:00 at night and I’m ass-deep in Laffy freaking Taffy. And Chris, who has the restraint of a nun, nibbles on something lame, like, ONE Twizzler. Its really pissing me off.
(Wanna hear my favorite Laffy Taffy joke? What do you call a pig who takes karate? A PORKCHOP!)AND SPEAKING OF CANDY… That brings me to my next insignificant thing. My bubble gum machine has way too many green gum balls.
I asked for this bubble gum machine for years. I’ve always wanted one. I think they are so happy and festive. And I wanted to bring it in to my office and feed the starving college students. Finally, my wonderful mother-in-law took pity on me last year and bought me one. Unfortunately it never made it to my office and landed instead on my kitchen counter. Where I think it rightfully belonged.
Anyway, lately, every time I turn the little dial I get a green bubble gum ball. I love all bubble gum balls. All except green. And look at that machine. Does it not seem incorrectly proportioned with green bubble gum balls to you? I have taken action by throwing them away when I get them. And I know what you’re thinking. “Katie! That is so wasteful! What about all the poor starving college students of the world?” Well, I don’t know what to tell you except that I don’t like green bubble gum balls.
Next on my important list are my toenails.
Look – I realize this doesn’t relate to anyone in the world except me, but as my blog readers you are required to read this and sympathize with me. Its your end of the deal here.
When my sister got married she was a total bridezilla.
Actually, that’s not really true. She was a pretty laid back bride. But she was a stickler about our toenail polish. She wanted it to be something pale or neutral in color. I guess since she dressed us in HOT PINK she drew the line at bright colored toenails. But the thing is that I love bright colors on my toes. Especially in summer. I think it looks so fun and happy and it makes me smile every time I look at my feet. I also love pedicures, but I haven’t been able to afford one since some short, dancing, teething man came into my life eleven months ago. But I got one for Ginny’s wedding. And now, I have wasted my ONE pedicure on PALE PINK toenails. It really just frosts my cookie…
And speaking of frosted cookies (in the non-anatomically ironic way…) Chris has been pretty frosted ever since we got cable this week. When we moved to Florida, we decided we would forgo cable until we bought a house. Its too complicated to set it up for a short time in one house and then move it to another house in a few months, plus we thought we would see how our lives were without television.
I think the past couple months without cable in our lives can be summed up in the following picture:
Yeah. Its been that bad.
So, this week we decided to give in and get a cheap cable plan that will last us until we move. We called Dish Network because they were the cheapest and they came out the next day and hooked us up. We went the extra $5 and splurged for Verses so Chris could watch the hockey playoffs, but other than that it was pretty basic. But when Chris turned on the TV he was horrified to find that the HD channels weren’t included in our plan.
But I ask you, if we were going for cheap and fast wouldn’t you just assume HD wouldn’t be included? I did.
For Chris though, HD was our inalienable right that had been taken from us and so he spent the rest of the day on the phone with Dish Network making sure they knew his civil liberties had been poached. And then he sat on the couch for the rest of the afternoon staring at the television and cursing. So annoying.
Well, that’s it. That’s my list of trivial, insignificant things that matter only to me at the moment. Thanks for hearing me out. I sort of feel better actually.
What about you? What is a trivial, insignificant thing in your life right now? Go ahead and share. You’ll feel better.
58 Comments
Amy
I just finished my last final, but I don’t care because my roommate, who is basically my sister, just left. She lives in Michigan. I live in Nashville. I’m depressed. And I don’t know how I’m going to get home tomorrow because the highways surrounding my house are closed.
There really ARE a lot of green gumballs in that machine!
Dorice
I read your blog on a daily basis and, despite thinking at first it would be a bit lame (sorry…being honest here) I thoroughly enjoy it.
The reason for the comment was to say “YEAH! for bright colored toes.” My favorite is bright coral/orange.
Keep up the great writing.
Rachel
I just bought the new Baggu duck bag in navy blue (http://baggubag.com/#/Enlarge/DUCK+BAG+16OZ/Navy/), and it is totally rocking my world.
That, and organic chocolate milk.
Mary
I’m supposed to be studying for finals right now. But let’s face it, reading your blog is way more fun. And I’m sick and whiny. Studying for a calculus final while being sick and whiney just isn’t possible. I’m glad I got that off my chest. 🙂
Jordan
I came home early to be here when the guy came to look at our internet ( it’s been misbehaving ever since we got rid of cable tv…coincidence? I think not). He said he’d be here between 3 and 6. It’s currently 5pm and I really want a nap, but I’m still waiting for this darn guy.
Jen
I had to tell my 8 yr old son that I can’t come to field day or his field trip b/c the lady I work with took vacation and that means I can’t leave. And he was not too happy with me yesterday. “It’s not fair” my comment not his. Had he said “it’s not fair” to me I would have quit my job. And lived in a box for the rest of my life.
I completely agree on the wasted pedicure. Go bright and colorful or go home!
Krista
I think your complaints are not insignificant, very justified in fact. I’ve been whiney about the fact that I have to go into my office a bit more right now. Yes, I realize I am lucky to have a job and I am really lucky to work at home, but I really dread facing my co-workers in person and worse then that, I have to leave my little people at home so that I appear professional. Whew! I do feel better. P.s. I love the green gum balls :o)
Tressa
You crack me up Katie!
I’m just curious, why don’t you like green gum balls? Don’t they have the same effect as green M & M’s…ya know what I’m talkin about right 😉
I LOVE GREEN!!!
Jessica
I really hate it when the toilet paper is put on the holder the wrong way. It should be over! It really irks me when it is wrong, pretty stupid but I just can’t get over it.
Sara
I’m with you! At work I turn the rolls around when other people put them on incorrectly. Just my little passive-aggressive contribution to the company I suppose.
Meredith
Sara, you’re lucky! I work at a school. Our TP roll holders are bolted shut, and the rolls are always flipped under!
Sarah
Umm.. my daughter’s swim instructor seems like a drill seargent (she’s 5), my house seems to get dirtier every minute my husband is home, although I love having him here, I haven’t had a pedicure yet this year, and it’s May and it’s freezing (Oregon).
However, I am cooking a great dinner for my family tonight and bought myself a GORGEOUS necklace for mother’s day that is making me very happy. : ) (Always buy yourself a Mother’s Day gift no matter how small)
I started reading your blog awhile back and it makes me remember fondly my time when my daughter was little and my only kiddo. Thanks for that. I also love that you will tell it like it is – it’s HARD sometimes! Anyone who tells you otherwise is lying.
Nicole
My darling kindergarten students gave me a viral eye infection that is making me look like a cyclops. Plus, since they are so stinking tactful, they keep asking me “why one eye is so big and one eye is so small.”
Think long and hard before you keep searching for a teaching job 🙂
Sara
Wrinkles are NOT insignificant! And yes, they are cause by children… and husbands. Get ready for grey hairs next! My husband’s hair has gotten very grey since the birth of our youngest.
Uisce
I’ve recently started a blog myself and pretty much everything I write is trivial and insignificant. I really enjoy reading your trivialities though, keep it up! 🙂
Katie Anderson
“And Chris, who has the restraint of a nun”- That totally cracked me up! That is very lame how they can eat like one piece of candy. Who eats one piece of candy really??? Only men lol.
Sue V
Oh man this list could go on and on:
Jessica, I’m with you on the TP – it drives me nuts too!
My kids slide the bathroom rug away from the sink everyday – stupid, but it bothers me, probably because I am the only one who will straighten it.
Dishes in both sides of the sink-Why? I don’t understand why you would leave dishes in the side of the sink you run the water in.
Less than 1/2 a cup of cereal left in a box…Come on! No one is going to eat that. That box is going to sit up in the cupboard forever (or until I throw it away)
I think thats enough for now.
Stevi
I thought our high school joke of being twins had started to wear off. But then I saw it…that glowing reminder that there will always be some little thing that draws us nearer to each other. We have the exact same little squishy pinkie toe.
(I can’t believe of all the blogs I’ve read this is the thing that I’ve chosen to make my first comment on. BUT IT WAS IMPORTANT!)
On point: I’m starting to find Good Housekeeping far more interesting than Cosmo. And this really disturbs me. I don’t even have kids. But I really like the recipes they list in the back. Sometimes I tear them out of the magazine at the doctor’s office. People give me snide looks. =/
Sara M
OMG! I felt really old when I decided I was done with Cosmo and moved onto Redbook! That was about 4 years ago (I was 27 and had been married for a while, plus trying to get pregnant).
Betty
There is a crib in my house. And not that I don’t want to have this baby, but it is TOTALLY freaking me out. And the fact that I freaking out over something I think I should be ok with is also freaking me out. It’s a vicious cycle. And I love the gumball machine!
Katie
Our crib freaked me out, too. Chris surprised me by putting the nursery together one afternoon and when I came home and saw that crib standing there I just broke down into tears. Don’t really know why. It just scared me. I think you’re normal. 🙂
Marie
My trivial insignificant thing is worrying about whether I’ll be able to go on holidays or not this summer 🙁 I’ve been saving for my trip to America (from Ireland) since January, I even GAVE UP SMOKING to save for this trip (so this trip has been brilliant for getting me to give up smoking) and now because of a silly little volcano erupting in Iceland, I’ll just have to wait and see if the planes will be flying in 6 weeks, or whether they’ll get grounded again. So yeah, I’m worrying as to whether I’ll be able to go on this holiday that I’ve been looking forward to for the last six months!
Mom of one
My stupid cable company uped my charges without notifiying! and then the stupid automated teller, made me repeat the information 4 times! ARG! … but being able to go to the pool today made me feel better!
Tracy
I have been wearing glasses for like I don’t know 3 1/2 years now. Before that I wore contacts for like 12 years. I still hate that I have to wear these stinkin’ glasses. It bothers me that I can’t get LASIK (not a candidate), but my hubs got it. I hate that I can’t buy cute sunglasses because if I did that I’d run off the road two seconds after putting the car in drive. WAH!
Phoebe
my long-distance boyfriend that most of my family hates is finally going to be in town this weekend. We haven’t seen each other since January. Guess who else will be in town this weekend? The rest of the family. And guess who looks like they are backing out of said weekend now? I should have moved across the country with him when I had the chance! (Funny thing is, his family LOVES me, mine hates him… I thought girls were the ones with in-law troubles?)
Kendra
I have so many insignificant things going on in my life that I would hate to bore anyone with. For some reason though what you find to be insignificant in your life has provided humor for all of us!
Kiele
I just finished all my finals and coming home to read your blog is definitely the icing on the cake of this awesome day!
The thing that really irks me is when my boyfriend is home ALL day playing video games but cant find the time to help around the house… hello its not that hard.
Angela
My nail polish is chipping after only two days.
And, I went to the bank today to get my first debit card but my Mom never told me to bring any picture ID.
urrrgh.
Ana
I don’t want to study for the CPA exam! And I am tired of people telling me I will done fine because I always do fine.. Lame I know ha!
But I LOVEEEEEEEEE your blog! I wish mine was as cool as yours 🙂 And I want to steal Bean he is so cute! But I don’t even know how to take care of babies and I don’t even know if I want one.. I am a complicated one.
Ana
Wow and apparently I need to work on my English as well 🙂 *” I will do fine because I always do”
SanDee
I too should be studying for the CPA exam…but I’m not…and I’m far behind…I’m reading blogs instead…
Hillary
I had a small gumball machine as a kid and somehow mine always seemed to be filled with white ones– and I hated the white ones! I don’t know what it is about those machines… it’s like they do it on purpose.
beth
I would like to gripe about the lack of cool, comfortable, non-heal or wedge, brown leather sandals in the world. My fabulous brown sandals are dying a slow death. I, of course, have owed them for 10+ years but they should last longer shouldn’t they. This brings me to my question, WHERE DID YOU GET YOURS?????? I love them!! They are exactly what I’ve been looking for. And please tell me you bought them recently or give me a manufacturer, everything is on the internet, right? For the love of good shoes, help a girl out, please!
Katie
I did buy them recently! I bought them at Shoe Carnival for $15!! They have them in black, too, and I’ve been thinking about going back for those!
beth
Would you mind giving me a brand name? Shoe Carnival doesn’t have a buy on-line option and there isn’t a store even remotely close to me. (Sometimes NYC doesn’t have everything!)
Thank you for helping my never ending quest! 🙂
Casey
I made the mistake of letting my husband buy a PS3. I then made the mistake of letting him hook it up to our 52″ television in the living room (where my DVR is). We now spend every evening negotiating and trading our souls to each other for the chance to use the good tv for ourselves. I guess I should be upset at myself but I choose to be upset with him. 🙂
Heidi
Ug, I am sick of the hockey playoffs already! And that’s coming from a Minnesotan, so that is bad! My husband will not watch ANYTHING else right now. Oh well… better hockey than football, baseball, or basketball in my opinion 🙂
Kate
My downstairs bathroom is filthy and I don’t know how it got that way. I never use it. I let a friend go in there without realizing that it needed a biohazard warning.
Katie B.
The nail places by my house will do a color change for like $5 bucks. It’s not the same as a whole new pedicure, but it’s a lot cheaper and you get the color you want 🙂 Also, I feel like someone else always does a better job at painting my toes then I do.
Sarah H.
That’s good that you got that all out there. Maybe you could donate all the extra candy to a church function–like a junior high lock in, or something fun? A good way to get rid of it, with out eating it all! Second—I think for $8 or something you can get a polish change. Not a full pedicure…but they can just change the color to a super bright color 🙂
Marla
I too finished my finals today. It appears that you have A LOT of college students who read your blog. That must make you super cool.
And I’ve never noticed the wrinkles. They must not be there. 🙂
Marla @ http://www.asthefarmturns.wordpress.com
Sarah, who misses you lots
Omigosh Katie, you know I am right there with you on the whole husband-eating-one-measly-bite-of-candy-and-is-satisfied thing. Ughhhhhhhh. I hate it. Stupid skinny boys.
My significant-only-to-me thing is: Black dog hair is taking over my house. We vacuumed a few days ago and there is already a thick coating everywhere again! Yuck.
Also I got a cute black and white print skirt yesterday for $15 and I’m so excited to wear it! Super cute, but so easy to wear with any of my black t-shirts or tanks. Yay!
Katie
Oh!!!!!!! I miss you so much Sarah!!!!!!!!! Call me soon!!!!!
Love,
Katie, who probably misses you more
Gale
At least your gumball machine looks color balanced with the green ones in there. I don’t like green ones either. Nor green lifesavers or jelly beans for that matter.
My trivial annoyance is people who come up to public transportation (in this case BART in the San Francisco Bay area) and plow their way to the front of the queue when it’s obvious that all of us civilized folk have been politely lining up and waiting our turn. Argg!
Phoebe
OOO Gale! I hate when they do that!!! It’s beyond rude! Especially at the weird stops in the middle of the street (like the downtown san jose one). it feels liek there’s barely enough room up there, and then they just have to get in front. Ugh!
Bridget
I have many things to whine about…but it is too late to formulate them now. But, if you are looking for “ageless” things, I use Burt’s Bees pomegranate eye cream and the radiance night creme, and I love them both. (I am twenty five, but one day one of my friends from college was visiting and I noticed that she was getting crow’s feet, so I freaked out and went all antiaging psycho.)
Whitney
Chris looks like a one legged daddy. Can I have your skittles? K, thanks.
Christina
This may or may not be trivial…my bottom is growing exponentially, and my belly jiggles like jello, which I don’t even eat, so that hardly seems fair. But I do not exercise and continue to drink soda out the wazoo…so can I complain? Not really. But I do. It’s much easier than getting Jillian Michaels out.
Sarah@Crazy Love Gamble Style
Next time someone forces you to do a neutral on the toenails (like that is going to happen anytime soon…) go with french, I thought it would look boring but it is shockingly pleasing. I usually like bright too but the french is even better.
kate
What is it with guys and HD? I seriously cannot tell the difference. I work at a TV station and when it was time for us to make the switch, we all piled into the conference room to watch our first show in HD. And then the show started. And I looked around the room at the faces of my co-workers to see if it had even happened. Apparently, it had. (I clapped with everyone anyway. I am a fraud.) Also, way too many green gumballs.
Lee Ann
OMG, it must be the moon phase or something! I love hearing all these things that drive us crazy. For the ENTIRE walk this a.m. with my girlfriend, I witched and moaned about my inconsiderate, just-past-teenage, two guy neighbors who rent the townhouse beside me. They recently got a dog, but they don’t walk him. They just open the door, send him over beside my front door, in front of MY kitchen window, and he poops. And they don’t pick it up!!! It’s 90 degrees here now. Do you know how nasty steaming dog poop smells??? Oh, Katie, thanks for letting me witch to the world. It helps.
Megan (Best of Fates)
When I was little my best friend, Maggie, had a stand up gumball machine in her living room, and I thought it was the coolest, most extravagant thing ever. I dreamed, I pined, I yearned for such a thing. Then I grew older and put my dreams away, letting them slowly fade into the horizon.
What I’m basically saying is I think that gumball machine scarred me for life.
Gumballs aren’t as innocent as people believe.
Spread the word.
Diana (A Little Bit of Life)
First off, I thought I would offer to take care of some of the candy tubs in your house. We can arrange a rendevous – include both the twizzlers and Laffy Taffy (But no grape or banana – blech)I’m of course offering this in your best interest.
My insignificant rant – I went away to the beach for three days last weekend and apparently left all my motivation there too. My house is a mess, there are dirty dishes in the sink and laundry that needs to be folded. Yet you will find me on the couch; every night.
I think I need a fairy godmother!
Nikki
So I leave for Germany tomorrow (terrible life right?) and hate that the boyfriend is giving me crud for not packing yet. He hasn’t figured it out yet that the more he comments about it the less motivated I become. I think it’s going to end up hurting me more than him in the long run when I forget something though…
Alyssa
My fiance’s car was stolen yesterday. We’re in quite a pickle right now. I don’t know what we’re going to do next.
Melissa
I politely asked my future MIL for the addresses for her side of the family 2 months ago and continued to politely remind her about until 3 weeks ago when I started harassing her about it. Last week I gave up, addressed all of the envelopes that I could (which means only my friends and family are getting invitations) and decided that I would just give her the leftover invites to send out on her own.
I dropped my invitations off at the post office yesterday morning. Yesterday afternoon, she gave me her list! So, I got to spend all of last night addressing envelopes. Yay.
Laura
trivial, insignificant things that only matter to me:
-at 5’6″ and 135 lbs, i was by far the fattest girl at my hot yoga class today. apparently you have to be smokin’ hot to do hot yoga.
-my spayed cat is somehow in heat. every single male cat in our neighborhood all of a sudden started knocking down our door looking for a piece of kitty action, and, by golly, they’re getting it. i blame myself for not teaching poor Duckie the virtues of modesty and virginity.
-i have a cheap bed from Ikea that keeps breaking, and whenever i ask my boyfriend to help me fix it, he zooms out the door like Speedy Gonzalez on Adderall.
-my roommate’s super controlling, manipulative, psychotic ex boyfriend has a deathwish for me for no reason. and he’s a creepy creepy dude. (example: he’s 34, she’s 18. that is creepy. creepy creepy creepy.)
Megan
We had a gumball machine when I was little! Red like yours! 🙂
My little insignificant thing is…I can’t tan anymore and it really sucks. I found a weird looking spot on me a couple years ago and the doc said…no mo for you! So…I’m white as a sheet coming in to summer and it sucks. Really bad. For the second year in a row. Don’t know if I’ll ever get used to it.
🙂
Megan
http://reddirtandcrazy.blogspot.com/