The Writing Desk of Jakebe Rabbit

andreal gave me five words to write about, and here they are!

( Cut to spare the friends list. )

pyat had this meme stolen from him, in the friendliest of ways. It's made the rounds before, but it tends to come back every once in a while. Which I don't mind, because it's a neat one.

Anyway, the idea is to respond to this post with "Words!", and I'll give you five words that remind me of you. You then comment on them in a paragraph or two in your own journal. Fun, eh? Well, here are my five:

Rabbits
My relationship with rabbits is a little hard to describe. Being in the fandom means you have a pretty close association with at least one animal, and rabbits are it for me. It's hard to explain how deep that connection goes, but it feels so right that I can't really imagine 'being' anything else. There's nothing about them that I don't find fascinating (yes, even the really gross parts), and the mythology that's been built around them is equally wonderful. Not only because it helps frame a path of self-improvement, but also because it says a lot about what we as people tend to admire and emulate. The rabbit as mythological symbol shows us that we can actually laugh in the face of adversity, to be cliche about it, and that it's not impossible to use our environment to our advantage and still be a part of it. At least, that's what rabbit means to me. Among many other things.

Bookstore
For five years I worked in two used bookshops: the Dickson Street Bookshop in Fayetteville, AR and Bookbuyers, Inc. in Mountain View, CA. Both were wonderful jobs in their own way, and completely hellish in others. I've noticed that bookshop owners tend to be packrats of the worst sort, and while they're really awesome people who have a genuine love for their books and the communities they serve, they're also kind of crappy businessmen. Despite their shortcomings, I miss both places dearly, and if the situation was different then I'd jump right back into the used bookstore business in a heartbeat. As it is, I'll have to content myself with the occasional jaunt through my old stomping grounds when I can manage it. :)

California
A recent trip to Kansas City showed me just how much I've fit myself in to the California lifestyle. I understand now why Californians have the reputation we do; we're seen as snobs and fitness freaks, hippies and latte-drinking jackasses. And to be honest, at least on the coast, we kind of are. ;) What's great about Silicon Valley, though, is that the culture is designed for everyone to seek out and enjoy excellence in any endeavor they choose. For all of our shortcomings and eccentricities, we really do just want to be better people and try to make the world a better place. In this little bubble of the world, it's easy to forget how things are elsewhere -- that what works here doesn't work everywhere else, and that sometimes our big ideas just won't meet the practical realities of the world around us. This place isn't perfect by a long shot, but I love the spirit out here.

Toob
I've known Tube for going on eight or nine years now, even though we've only been married for less than a year. It was an extremely long courtship. :) I feel incredibly lucky to have found The One so early on in life; it means I have such a long and happy marriage to look forward to. :) He's been there for me through the absolute worst, and we help each other with everything we need. It's hard to imagine someone who could be more supportive and loving. The best part is building up such a strange set of in-jokes with him. :D

Running
I started running a little while ago as an effort to get more into shape. I don't particularly mind my body, but...I just have this itch to be more active, to be able to walk around and do things without getting tired or sore too quickly. Running seemed to be the perfect way to build my endurance there. It turns out that it does a lot more; it's an instant mood-boost, it helps me build discipline that I need to actually get other things done, and it's a strange, spiritual tip-o-the-ears to Rabbit. Few things center me as well and as reliably as running does.

So those are my five words. Do you want some of your own? :)