400 and Counting...

It seems everybody collects something. I'm not sure why we, as humans, are fascinated with certain things enough that we will fill cabinets, shoe boxes, shelves and drawers with items only a few others might actually appreciate. Even when the things collected might be of monetary value, how often are they never sold, simply to keep the collection intact and growing? That in itself is almost more fascinating than the actual items. 

While I have a variety of hobbies, when it comes to collecting, there’s really only one thing that I’ve gone all-out with, and that’s key chains. I love them. For as long as I can remember, I’ve always been intrigued with all the different kinds of mini trinkets hanging from key rings. Something about them just absorbs my interest. When I go on vacation, my first souvenir is almost always a key chain. Some of my favorite gifts? Key chains. In my purse, on my desk, in a box and in my car? Yeah. Key chains. So since I'm this obsessed, I thought I'd share part of my collection with you.

As far as I know, this was my very first key chain.

Not only is it special because it was my first, but it has a lot of sentimental value. I was very young – probably just five or six years old. I can remember sitting on my grandpa’s knee as we played this game, trying to get those little balls into the colored dips. All in blue, or one each in blue, red and yellow. I remember agreeing with him that blue was the hardest (though I don’t know how that’s possible). I’m sure he was better at the game than I was, but it was so much fun. My grandpa died when I was seven, so that’s probably one of the last memories I have of him, and it’s still precious to me.

Since then, my collection has grown to over 400. I have key chains from twenty-five different countries (thanks to missionary friends).

…and from thirty-one different states in the US (even if I haven’t been to all of them myself).

I have key chains that can come in handy, such as mini screwdrivers, scissors and more.

There are some that are in my “favorites” category, even if I’m the only one who knows where they came from.

I’ve got fun key chains that provide entertainment.

Some are cute novelty key chains. (Yes, Mr. Potato Head actually comes apart, and yes, the Etch A Sketch, Magnadoodle and yo-yo work, too.)

Still others are quite old – some of which I’m not sure just how old they are or even where they originally came from, but they’re still cool to me.

I’m not sure if I’ll ever stop adding to my collection…I doubt it. The only problem I have is finding a way to display everything. At the moment, most of my key chains reside in a box…a very full box...which will more than likely soon become two boxes. Of course, on certain days, it’s rather fun to dump it all out on the floor and rediscover old treasures. And besides...if they were all hanging up, I'd have to dust them.

Are you obsessed with certain objects or themes? What do YOU collect?

Litter Boxes, Paper Cuts and Chicken Salad

I set my alarm for an earlier-than-normal time this morning. Fifteen minutes early was all. Just enough extra time to prep my lunch and not make me late for work. Good thing I did get up early.

I rolled my aching body out of bed, forcing my mind from a terrible fog. Oh yes. Lunch. That's why I was rising early. I needed to prep my chicken salad so I'd actually have something IN my wholewheat, low-carb tortilla. As I entered the bathroom though, I discovered my cat had "missed" her litter box. It was at least a ten-minute cleanup process, and I still hadn't even gotten out of my pajamas yet. Fantastic.

As a result, I ended up running late. Thankfully I did manage to prepare my lunch before walking out the door though. After getting to work, my day became a series of paper cuts, forgotten tasks, internet trouble, bruises, finicky equipment and news that one of my manuscripts did not place in a particular contest. Whoever said Mondays were bad had not yet been introduced to Tuesdays.

Thankfully I have an office buddy who surprised me with breakfast, I was able to take a break for my martial arts class, and my chicken salad wrap? Yeah, that turned out to be pretty tasty.

I guess the only moral of my story is if you decide to rise fifteen minutes early in the morning...you might want to make that twenty-five minutes, just in case. Especially if you have an ornery cat like mine.

A Furry Good Neighbor

I may not have imaginary friends, but I do tend to accept local wild animals as my good neighbors. One such neighbor is a brown squirrel. If I was quicker with a camera, I'd have a picture of him, but alas, you'll just have to use your imagination. Most would say he's just an average squirrel, but I tend to think he's on the cuter side of the scale. He's scared me half to death on multiple occasions by clinging to the large maple tree that's right beside my sidewalk. Only when I'm about three feet away do I realize something at my eye level is staring at me. I haven't figured out if he's extraordinarily brave or extraordinarily ornery.

A couple weeks ago one of my cats became quite excited at the window. I went to take a look, and saw Mr. Squirrel, nut in mouth, searching for a new hiding spot for his treasure. Instead of looking out in the yard, he had spotted my flower pots. One by one, he checked them out, testing the softness of the dirt. He finally came up on the porch and found one particular pot that he liked. He very carefully parted the flowers, dug a hole, buried the nut, then patted everything back in place (including the flowers) to make sure no one would be the wiser.

It was one of the cutest, funniest things I'd ever seen. I didn't have the heart to scare him away from my flowers, and still haven't dug up the nut. I've noticed a few other holes in the dirt in some of the other pots, but I've just let Mr. Squirrel be.

More recently, a dead squirrel appeared in the street. I didn't even realize it was there until a gentleman in a pickup came by and cleaned it up. I felt terrible. I didn't know if it was Mr. Squirrel or not, but I'd sort of grown attached to the furry little guy, and to think he'd been hit by a car was rather sad. I knew there were plenty of other squirrels around town but they just weren't the same.

I watched out my window for several days, hoping I'd see Mr. Squirrel and prove it was some other poor creature that had been run over. We had several rainstorms, which didn't help much, as no animals came around at all. I began to believe that it really was Mr. Squirrel that I'd seen taken away.

Until yesterday.

Once again, my cat alerted me. I know, I know, you'd probably tell me that I could never tell the difference from one squirrel to the next, but let me believe and be happy, okay? THIS squirrel dared to drink out of a flooded flower pot and even came up on the porch to sniff around. He was so confident about it being his territory, that I was convinced it was, indeed, my Mr. Squirrel.

I don't know which one of his family members met their fate on my street, but I can't tell you how glad I was to see Mr. Squirrel alive and well, still claiming my flower pots as his own. And...I think I'll just let him believe they're his. After all, I'm a good neighbor, too.

Doughnut, anyone?

Happy National Doughnut Day! I didn't even realize that's what day it was until my mother mentioned it this morning...as we ate our breakfast pizza. Oops.

Another thing I didn't realize is that National Doughnut Day takes place on the first Friday of every June. (I think it's rather appropriate that it's on a Friday, don't you?) And another thing I didn't realize is that this doughnut-eating tradition dates all the way back to 1938 during WWI. (Take a look: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/National_Doughnut_Day) Fascinating!

What's even more fascinating is that International Jelly-Filled Doughnut Day is on June 8th, National Cream-Filled Doughnut Day is on September 14th, and Buy A Doughnut Day is on October 30th! I had no idea there were so many days to honor the soft, warm, sweet goodness of doughnuts!

So go have one. Even if it's after the first Friday in June. Because hey, they still taste good on ANY day.

Picture by Tracey Alvarez

A New Approach

It's the beginning of a new year. Well...it's not January 1st, but a new year can start on any day, as it leads into the next 365 days.

This day marks the beginning of a new year for me - a blogging year. After a lot of thought, research, reading and consideration, I have decided to revamp not just the way my blog looks, but how I post. I want to veer from all posts about all writing. Yes, I'm a writer, but I'm also a lot of other things, too. I'm a Christian, I'm a martial artist (or a "mardle arsist" depending on whether or not you get tongue-tied...inside joke, sorry), I'm a hobbyist/artist, I love to eat, I love rainstorms, I love watching clouds, I have 2 cats that are the loves of my life...the list goes on. So I've decided to quit boring you with posts that only talk about writing. I'm sure I'll throw one in here every once in a while, but I'd much rather just have some fun and let you get to know me a little better.

Bear with me as I continue to tweak my blog's layout and slide into a new groove - I'm still not 100% satisfied, but it's getting there.  The first big change was my blog's actual address, changed from writerburkum.blogspot.com to rachelburkum.blogspot.com. Using my name will be more effective and will be easier to remember for anyone who wants to follow my posts. I've got some new ideas lined up and am excited to share and also gain precious writing hours to hone my skills as I continue to work on my books.

Happy New Year!