Five Things that Don't Suck, Saturday Edition

1. reading a book
2. writing a book
3. looking at books
4. thinking about books
5. books

Five Things that Don't Suck, New Project Edition

1. when a new project is just an old project in disguise, so when you take it on, you can tell yourself you're really clearing out old work
2. projects that are so fascinating you can't help yourself
3. realizing something doesn't suck, even though you thought it did
4. not really needing sleep anyway
5. maybe being able to reset myself creatively

Five Things that Don't Suck, Parental Arrival Editon

1. a clean house*
2. clean laundry*
3. a fridge full of ingredients for well-planned, healthy meals*
4. their hilarious tiny dog**
5. sneaking in a few more hours of writer time first***

*theoretical
**Mousse, but he thinks it's spelled the other way
***really should be cleaning the house and going grocery shopping...

Five Things that Don't Suck, Drive-In Edition

1. not needing that little speaker hanging on the window anymore
2. Mike and Ikes
3. being able to put the dogs in the car and hang out with them at the movies
4. double features
5. when the 2nd movie is so terrible you start actively rooting for the tornado*

*it might seem at first glance like this means the movie sucks. Well, see my very first post if you want to know my thoughts on that. The movie IS terrible--truly terrible--but we had a great time, so how can that suck?

Five Things that Don't Suck, Robin Williams Edition

1. not romanticizing suicide
2. the National Suicide Prevention Hotline*
3. a culture where we can speak openly about depression and other mental health issues
4. intervening with people you love
5. loving people for who they are

*800 273-TALK (8255)

Five Things that Don't Suck, Old Friends Edition

1. seeing a friend you haven't seen in decades--decades!--and having it seem like no time has passed*
2. maybe being a little early for meeting said friend and spending some time in the Harvard Coop's poetry section**
3. not being the guy on the red line using his iPod as a phone to tell his mom all about how sick he is, how he feels like he's going to throw up, how long it's been since he's pooped,*** and how much pain he's in while he's taking the T to the hospital
4. the fact that said guy had a friend with him who was clearly worried about him
5. high school kids declaiming Shakespeare**** on the same train

*except you are no longer 12
** 65 bucks means I got out of there cheap
***3 days
****incorrectly, but I'll take what I can get

Five Things that Don't Suck, Big Projects Edition

1. having the time to think about what's next
2. clearing out some space
3. planning
4. scheming
5. a complete inability to rest on my laurels