delightfulsaladpie

I think I signed up mostly out of curiosity, it's a little harder to approach people to talk to them, for me anyway, and this felt a little closer to being able to do that without overthinking it too much.

Oh, no, I haven't. Social media is interesting but it's not really something that I used before town, I guess I'm more used to talking in person with people. But sometimes I'm not so great at that either. I don't mind it though; I don't really know if people say more or less about themselves when there isn't a name attached to it; is it more comfortable for you? I think it might be a little more for me just because people sometimes don't really know what to think about me in person.

- Ornate

I dunno if this is more comfortable for me. I'm not shy at all-- never have been and never will be! But it definitely is different. This conversation has its own flow and then if we were in person, it'd be a whole other flow! Kinda like different genres of music! Letters feel slow and contemplative, like maybe a ballad or a folk song, while talkin in person has always felt more energetic. Like a rhythm dance.

Or that's the way I see it!

But I like both. And I'm hoping at the end of this, I've at least gotten to know some more people and made new friends. :)

Speaking of, are you coming to the ball? I hope so-- then we could meet!

I'm hopeful to meet some people as well; it sounds strange to say that I've been around a lot of people most of my life but not really close to many of them. It feels like a start at least, hopefully.

I think so, it sounds like it'll be fun! I have to start figuring out what to wear I guess.

- Ornate

As for the ball-- good to hear! I'm getting awful excited. I need to figure out if I'm gonna bust out somethin' old and familiar or maybe scout around for something new. I just love all the balls that Swynlake throws. It's always a chance to dress up!

Dang, that sounds delicious! I have had tzatziki sauce before-- it's real good! Not so much the chicken gyro on account of me being vegetarian, which maybe I should have clarified before you went ahead and gave me a rec. But that's quite alright! I am sure I could whip up a veggie gyro no problem and that tzatziki sauce would taste amazing right on it!

So you love cooking? What else do you love?

omg im so sorry! Yes you should totally be able to modify it for a veggie one!! Or any kind of alternative and it should still be super delish!

Yeah I enjoy cooking, but.. I also like working out or sports in general! I'm pretty active, I like to go on run daily and I'll try any sport possible, it's all fun to me. How about you?

Ohhh, how fun! I'm not exactly sporty, but I don't like to sit around either. I love going on walks or runs or zipping around here or there. I like to go to yoga sometimes or them zumba or aerobics classes down at the gym? You know those? And in general, I love to dance. Tap dance is probably my favorite! Do you like to dance?

Really? I know not everyone is interested in these kinds of things, and we're all writing a lot of different letters, so I didn't want to bore you. I know I can talk a lot when it comes to things like this.

Oh that's amazing! Now I feel like I need to find out lots more about her. The nice thing about wikipedia is it does cite its sources, and apparently there's a book called Famous Women Engineers in History that gave some of the information, but it'll probably tell me about a lot of other interesting people like that. I'll have to see if I can find it and learn more cool facts.

I don't know if its always strong to be the first at something. Sometimes I think its just that you want something badly enough you know how bad it would be not to do it. Or you're in a place where you have no other choice. Sometimes if you need something badly enough and there is no one else, you have to do it yourself.

Sorry. Maybe that doesn't make any sense.

You said you aren't a math/science person. What kinds of things do you like?

Gratefully,

Pretzel

Well see, all those scenarios, to me, require a fair amount of strength. It takes guts to want something so bad, and it takes guts to keep going when you feel like you got no choice. Maybe there is a difference, but I guess that difference is not so apparent to me. But then, I'm not really the first of anything-- and thank goodness for that!

As for the things I like, why, there are so many! I love music and performing the most. I love reading, though too-- I especially love poetry. History ain't bad at all; I find it fascinating. Let's see... I also like fashion and getting dressed up and shopping, especially thrifting, and spending time with my friends and getting my tarot cards read!

What about you?

Yeah! I thought it was neat and the owner had been really nice. I do think we need to bring back....... at least another restaurant or something! Not to be American but... an American food place would be nice.

Well that we know of! Avocados could be sentient for all we k now. Yeah I wouldn't eat it plain lol. I need to do something or it feels too boring. I'll look up some good avocado recipes or a fancy avocado toast to try.

Hmmm - that's a tough one. I personally really love cooking so I'm just trying new things all the time. Omg actually though you know what I'm obsessed with and that's like perfect for meal prepping?? These greek chicken gyros with tzatziki sauce?? omg they're SO good and you can just prep and cook off anything you need to but then just assemble them when you need them like at work?? ugh 10/10 highly recommend!

Toast

Dang, that sounds delicious! I have had tzatziki sauce before-- it's real good! Not so much the chicken gyro on account of me being vegetarian, which maybe I should have clarified before you went ahead and gave me a rec. But that's quite alright! I am sure I could whip up a veggie gyro no problem and that tzatziki sauce would taste amazing right on it!

So you love cooking? What else do you love?

I think I signed up mostly out of curiosity, it's a little harder to approach people to talk to them, for me anyway, and this felt a little closer to being able to do that without overthinking it too much.

Oh, no, I haven't. Social media is interesting but it's not really something that I used before town, I guess I'm more used to talking in person with people. But sometimes I'm not so great at that either. I don't mind it though; I don't really know if people say more or less about themselves when there isn't a name attached to it; is it more comfortable for you? I think it might be a little more for me just because people sometimes don't really know what to think about me in person.

- Ornate

I dunno if this is more comfortable for me. I'm not shy at all-- never have been and never will be! But it definitely is different. This conversation has its own flow and then if we were in person, it'd be a whole other flow! Kinda like different genres of music! Letters feel slow and contemplative, like maybe a ballad or a folk song, while talkin in person has always felt more energetic. Like a rhythm dance.

Or that's the way I see it!

But I like both. And I'm hoping at the end of this, I've at least gotten to know some more people and made new friends. :)

Speaking of, are you coming to the ball? I hope so-- then we could meet!

Fixing things is only part of my job and its not even the main part which is why i don't have a lot of time to do it. But it's probably my favorite part when I can. I'm not the best, but I like to learn how things work and how to make sure they can stay working.

Wow that's amazing! That's the best story. I mean, I do think the history of coin purses is interesting, but its partially because it leads you to things like that! Because coin purses can be made out of all kinds of material and people have used them for a long time. And once you start looking at the purse, then you might look more at the textiles, and that means you might research what kinds of dyes get used in different places. It all just makes you think about how many people are part of making one thing, even when it seems really small.

Why do you like textiles so much?

Okay, so I had my calculator on my left. Did you know the first electronic calculators were made all the way back in the 1950s? But the first sort of pocket sized ones like we have these days weren't made until the 1970s. Before that, people used all kinds of different things to calculate numbers and equations. The first mechanical counter was actually invented back in 1623!

I probably shouldn't give you the whole wikipedia page. I only read some of it but I think i want to read more. There was this bit about this woman named Edith Clarke that seems really interesting...

Anyway. This email is already getting really long. Sorry.

I'm glad you had fun with this!

Nerdily,

Pretzel

Too long? I was hoping it was gonna keep going and going!

Dang, now I feel like I really should have done the wiki deep dive like you told me to do. I had no clue all that about calculators, but you know, they really are a miracle machine in my eyes. Lord knows I'd not be able to rub two numbers together to get their sum without the use of one of those! And this is why I'm not a math or science person, generally speaking.

Meanwhile, that Edith Clarke lady? Well, you left me on a cliffhanger, so I went and looked her up myself. She's known as the Smart Grid’s ‘Founding Mother.’ Ain't that something! And the first woman to first woman to earn as MS in electrical engineering from MIT!

Granted, I think being the first of anything is rather lonely. You got to be real strong to do somethin' like that.

Anyway, feel free to send me long emails at any time. Who needs a museum wehn I got pretzelarrow in my pocket? :)

Now hold on! What you got against the south? You ever been? There's great food in the south!

And that's blowin my mind you haven't had one! You outta try one, Toast! A good, ripe avocado feels as indulgent to me as any sweet. It's smooth and creamy as butter, but it's got its own taste to it. And I just love that it comes with that lil pocket on the inside when you cut it open. Like dont you think it looks nice enough to curl up on it?

oops.

No I've never been to the south. I just feel like i'm supposed to have this vendetta against it. Though I really did like the restaurant that used to be here! That was southern food.

Maybe I've just been influenced by the people who say it tastes like dirt on its own and I haven't given it a fair chance :( now I feel bad. Omg wait a giant avocado that you can sleep in. I feel like it would be the perfect little nest

And hey, don't you worry-- the avocado don't got feelings, so I'm sure it ain't hurt. Just try one next time! though, don't just eat it plain, that's a lil crazy. Just try it with toast or toss it in a salad or maybe with your scrambled eggs and see about it then.

Since I"m giving you a recommendation, I reckon you outta give me one too! Go on-- what's a food I got to try?

First of all: dang, I am so sorry for the late reply! I somehow missed your email!!!

And what a shame, because I just love how you think about museums! I've never thought about them that way to be honest and now I'm kicking myself. I think we got to go a museum together as well, you and me. You got an interesting brain. I feel like you could just talk and talk, and I'd be delighted myself!

As for a favorite museum memory: here is where I confess that I have rarely gone to any. There is a science museum I went to once as a field trip when I was younger. There was this AMAZING butterfly garden. I just stood in there and let the butterflies come and land on my cheeks and fingers. It felt like heaven. So that's got to be the one.

How's your week been going? Any little happy moments happen this week you'd like to share? :)

That's okay! It's busy and there are lots of emails, but I'm glad to hear from you again!

Oh wow, you're really nice. I just like learning new things a lot, and things are really only boring if you don't pay attention to them. Like, I bet if you go to the wikipedia page for whatever is right by your left hand, you'll probably learn a whole bunch of new facts you never even thought about! If you do it, you should tell me what wikipedia page you end up going to.

I think that's an amazing memory. I've never been to a butterfly garden, but that sounds really special. I suppose you must have smelled nice to them too!

I finally fixed something at work that's been broken for awhile which was exciting! I've been trying to work on it for ages, and I finally figured out what was wrong which is one of the best feelings ever. Now it'll hopefully make more people happy.

If you could recommend one new thing for me to try, what would it be?

Happily,

Pretzel

Oh, you sound real handy! So you fix things for a living? Or is that just one part of your job? Fixing things is real important.

And of course I did your challenge! To my left, I actually set down my coin purse which I got a long time ago from a friend. I guess I could look up the history of coin purses? Do you think that might be interesting?

I'm not sure it will be as interesting as the history of THIS specific coin purse, which actually came my way from Guatemala! My friend visited there on a spring break and found the purse for me from this artist's market. The textile work is so beautiful. I got a real thing for textiles, let me tell you. So it was a great gift.

This was fun-- I know I didn't fully do the challenge, but you should do it too and tell me what you learn or what you think about!

No pumpkin, really??? I won't shoot you for that, but I reckon I love every single pie I ever met. What is it about pumpkin that turns you off? Not a spice fan? What about sweet potato pie? That's actually one of my favorites, besides probably a blueberry pie.

French toast is definitely one of the best toasts-- if not one of the fanciest. Only surpassed by avocado toast, which is a very self-important type of toast. But yum, I love avocado, so I'll indulge in it from time to time!

I think it's a consistency thing. Or a texture thing? I don't know it's weird, I just have never been a fan. I like to think I like.. pumpkin flavor? Like I'll eat pumpkin roll?? I never heard of sweet potato pie, but I just looked it up and that seems so southern (no offense). why wouldn't I just have... sweet potatoes casserole as god intended? But I also come from a brown sugar and pecan topped casserole area. Do you not have sweet potato casserole? instead just pie??

(blueberry pie is really good though)

I like making stuffed french toast if I'm really feeling fancy. Though it's... like a very rare occasion because that's also just like a dessert at that point. I don't know if I've ever actually.... had avocado toast honestly? I mean I know about it! I work with avocados! but... I just haven't slapped it on toast

Now hold on! What you got against the south? You ever been? There's great food in the south!

And that's blowin my mind you haven't had one! You outta try one, Toast! A good, ripe avocado feels as indulgent to me as any sweet. It's smooth and creamy as butter, but it's got its own taste to it. And I just love that it comes with that lil pocket on the inside when you cut it open. Like dont you think it looks nice enough to curl up on it?

That would be a really lovely story. I don't wanna crush your hopes or anything! I think it's always possible! And even if you don't find "the one" through this, I don't think putting yourself out there could hurt, right?

Sincerely, Criticalable

Right. You got to do that anyway if you want to fall in love. Put yourself out there. Take a risk! Take a chance! Make a move!

You ever make the first move, Critical? How do you feel about ladies who do so? I'm taking a poll.

Oh, I love that! Any specific kind of bird? Or just all birds?

I feel like I’m a house cat at my core. There’s nothing like curling up in a sunbeam to take a nap. And I wouldn’t complain if someone else fed me and scratched my head lol

-West

Picking a bird would be downright so hard. But I could narrow it down. Definitely a songbird. A small and quick little thing. I don't think I'd have the brighest, prettiest feathers, maybe something a bit more humble to look at. But pretty in my own way.

And my, I love taking naps and getting my head scratched, so I relate! I think naps are underrated. I should be able to say naps are one of my hobbies without people saying I sound depressed!

A salad full of pie just sounds like the best option. But you're right it probably would be like... death to eat more than a single spoonful.

A favorite type of pie? someone at the farmers market makes a REALLY good apple pie?? it's kind of hard to top that one with ice cream in the summer. otherwise shoofly is amazing - big hater of pumpkin pie though. which is like a crime apparently but sue me

As for toast.......... French :)

No pumpkin, really??? I won't shoot you for that, but I reckon I love every single pie I ever met. What is it about pumpkin that turns you off? Not a spice fan? What about sweet potato pie? That's actually one of my favorites, besides probably a blueberry pie.

French toast is definitely one of the best toasts-- if not one of the fanciest. Only surpassed by avocado toast, which is a very self-important type of toast. But yum, I love avocado, so I'll indulge in it from time to time!

I like that idea! I don't think that's too forward at all. I think it's nice to be able to have plans and that one sounds like a lot of fun!

No, I don't really have a preference, I really like all of them. Which I suppose isn't very helpful for decision makings. But they're just so interesting! Plus sometimes it can be hard for me to figure out why something is in one place and not another. Like with art - do all paintings go in art museums, or should some of it be in science museums because of the way they invented new paints to make it happen? Or history museums because of what the painting is about? It all seems to have so many connections to me.

But the interactive parts of science museums is one of the best parts its true. There's a small science museum in NTO that I've been to once, although sometime I'd like to go to the one in London. I've read about it and it sounds amazing.

Do you have a favorite memory of a museum?

Regards,

Pretzel

First of all: dang, I am so sorry for the late reply! I somehow missed your email!!!

And what a shame, because I just love how you think about museums! I've never thought about them that way to be honest and now I'm kicking myself. I think we got to go a museum together as well, you and me. You got an interesting brain. I feel like you could just talk and talk, and I'd be delighted myself!

As for a favorite museum memory: here is where I confess that I have rarely gone to any. There is a science museum I went to once as a field trip when I was younger. There was this AMAZING butterfly garden. I just stood in there and let the butterflies come and land on my cheeks and fingers. It felt like heaven. So that's got to be the one.

How's your week been going? Any little happy moments happen this week you'd like to share? :)

Now that's a mighty good question. Which seems more delicious and/or adorable to you? ;)

I've never considered either of them. I'm trying to think if I'd rather like... a salad made up of various pies or a... pie that is just salad. I think the sweet tooth part of me wants a salad of pies. Like .. a big bowl with different pie fillings and crushed up pie crust as the croutons and whipped cream as the dressing....

but the... part of me that really tries to eat healthy and work out says I should just have a salad pie.

but uh... I'm sure both are equally adorable?

Toast

Dang, I never thought about a salad full of pie before! Now that's real delicious. Probably too stinkin sweet to eat but I'd give it a go anyway! That one has to be more adorable to me, I reckon.

But now I'm thinking about pies....oh yummy. Do you have a favorite type of pie, Toast? Oh, what about a favorite kind of toast, Toast??

What kind of question is that? Who ISN'T a marshmallow person? I like marshmallows all kinds of ways in fact! In my hot cocoa, making smores and naturally in a fine rice krispy treat, one of my favorite goodies of all time! I reckon the marshmallow has to be up there in finest human inventions.

Ooh, rice krispy treats! Have you ever made them with cocoa pebbles? That actually changed my life. I've also heard someone used cinnamon toast crunch?? That could be amazing, but I don't know what the texture would be like!

Okay, I know this question is from yesterday, but I think it's a good one! If someone described you as an animal what would the animal be and why?

-West

oooo ive never done any of those! But I do love me some cereal. Sometimes, that's all it takes to turn my day around: just a bowl ful of cereal and some oat milk to boot.

As for animal, well, it seems pretty simple but I've just got to be a bird! Because I think birds are just delightful too. In fact, everything I learned about being delightful came from them and listening to their songs.

What about you?

Hmm, well I'm still standing and walking around so I guess I haven't steered myself off the side of a cliff yet, lol.

But more seriously... yes, I think my gut is leading me to the places I'm meant to be. Even when I make mistakes, it's true what they say: you really do grow from them. And then I end up needing to call on those lessons when faced with other challenges, so I see exactly why I had to make those mistakes I did in the first place.

Maybe for some other people it ain't so clear. And it doesn't seem that clear sometimes. But... I got to keep the faith or I think I'd just lose all my gumption.

That's wild, that you haven't fallen in love yet! Is that what you're hoping for then? It would be awful romantic for you to fall in love over letters.

Well, good! I'd have to agree about making mistakes. They ultimately make us into the person we are now, or who we're becoming I guess.

I don't know if that's what I'm hoping for or not. I'd be happy making some new friends out of this, but if I happen to find love, I wouldn't turn it down. I do like the idea of it, though. It's a good story.

What about you? What are you hoping to find?

Sincerely, Criticalable

Oh, as a blushing, full-blooded romantic, I'm definitely hoping for love. This would be a wonderful story for a meetcute, don't you think? Meeting while writing letters! That just tickles my feathers.

Of course, I know it ain't good to latch onto the fantasy so I'm trying to keep at least one foot on the ground.

Maybe that's why I met you. You're gonna help me think more critically through this whole dang thing!

That would be amazing! I'd be happy to try a slice.

It sounds like you have strong instincts. That's a good thing, as long as it hasn't gotten you in too much trouble! Do you feel like it generally works out for you?

I guess I haven't been in love before, so I don't know if I'd be more of an over-thinker or a jump in head first type. I think with that kind of stuff you should try to trust your feelings, though.

Sincerely, Criticalable

Hmm, well I'm still standing and walking around so I guess I haven't steered myself off the side of a cliff yet, lol.

But more seriously... yes, I think my gut is leading me to the places I'm meant to be. Even when I make mistakes, it's true what they say: you really do grow from them. And then I end up needing to call on those lessons when faced with other challenges, so I see exactly why I had to make those mistakes I did in the first place.

Maybe for some other people it ain't so clear. And it doesn't seem that clear sometimes. But... I got to keep the faith or I think I'd just lose all my gumption.

That's wild, that you haven't fallen in love yet! Is that what you're hoping for then? It would be awful romantic for you to fall in love over letters.