Some weeks just aren’t yours for the taking. And I realize that. It still doesn’t comfort you when the sky is in the process of falling down around you, though. Maybe your Tupperware of tuna fish flips over onto your office carpet. Don’t worry, it’s an easy few days of unpleasant smells. Dog rips a hole in a priceless wool sweater you bought in Ireland? It’s just a sweater, nothing more. Your new refrigerator kicks the bucket? There’s a warranty. Even when the simple task of removing a ceiling fan to install a chandelier turns into the third World War over a stripped screw, it can be solved with patience and a $50 Dremel. Granted I had to beat up a hobo to get that $50, but still…

1. Patrick Stumph from Fall Out Boy - Dude can write a melody. FOB’s new album, Infinity On High came out this week and above everything else about the disc, Stumph’s ability to craft infectious melody lines shines through most. I may quibble about production, mastering or other things, but the shy song-writer behind the mic really does understand what it takes to write a catchy song. The vocal melody from Thriller has been on repeat in my head, even while sleeping, since Monday.
2. An 85mm lens (1.4 or 1.8 please) - The 85mm range is perfect for doing portrait work in photography. This week I’ve been obsessed with it, and my wallet aches for thought of indulging in one. For now, I have to settle with my kit lens. But some day…some day…
3. The Folding Chair - If I had one of these things, I would get zero work done because I’d be playing it all damn day. This must be one of the most useful (and cool) recent developments in furniture design. Now if only Ikea would make one. And then if Ikea would open a store near me.
4. Exercise in the morning - Although I was stiff as hell, and although it took our refrigerator breaking to necessitate it, I got my daily run in this morning. In the amount of time it takes me to get dressed and commute to work I knocked it out. I’m done for the day, and you have no idea how great that feels. Until I think about doing it again tomorrow.
5. A Dremel - I resisted getting one for awhile, because it’s another tool for me to play with pay for. But when a stripped screw forced drastic measures (greater than hanging from the ceiling plate to pop it out), I broke down and bought one for the cutting wheel. Tomorrow I’m polishing the dog’s nose with the buffer wheel.

And while the past seven days haven’t been the kindest, I have absolutely no room to air grievances. In the bitter cold front that has stalled over the Midwest, I still have a house, warm (holey) clothes and a car with a functioning heater. I deserve none of it. So if the worst I get handed is a handful of stupid inconveniences that make me whimper, I should be so lucky. Now about that hobo…