Where was my thermometer?

So a few years ago, my girlfriend says "Have you ever noticed random shoes on the side of the road?"  Me: "No, never."  She says "Me neither, until Kenny mentioned something about them, and now I see them all of the time."   And wouldn't you know, the very next day I saw a random shoe on the side of the road.  It actually gives me the giggles everytime I see one. I imagine what the event was that got the shoe in it's current state. Was it an angry girlfriend chucking a shoe at her boyfriend as they argue about how he's driving? (I know that 99% of the Handeland agruments are traffic/driving related) The shoe narrowly missing the boyfriend and flying out the window? Who knows, but it's always funny to me.

Well, last week as I was driving home past the soccer park, I notice a pair of soccer cleats, not on the side of the road, but hanging over the utility line above.  Normally my brain would conjur up some funny scenario about how that happened, but all I could think about was some dejected little dude walking home with the saddest face because somebody chucked his shoes.  Then, as I round the corner into our little community village I saw a fresh loaf of bread in the middle of the road. Again, instead of getting the giggles because some mother said to her fighting children "I will throw this loaf of bread out the window and you will not get peanut butter sandwiches if you touch your sister one.more.time."  Nope, the ol' brain couldn't go there. All I see is the sad face of some hungry little girl with big pleading eyes just wanting a simple slice of bread. 

This is not normal. Seriously. I have a sunny disposition. Being a Debbie Downer is not only a pet peeve, but just not in my character makeup. Seriously. My college roommate and I invented The Silver Lining Game. It would go something like this:

Me: "Liz, I had the worst day ever. I had to sit and wait for a tow truck to come get this abandoned car. The tow truck was two hours late. I had gut rot. There was not a bathroom for miles. If I left, I'd have to pay the tow company twice, and potentially get fired. I sat in my car doubled over in pain, clenching my cheeks for hours"
Liz: "You should be thankful you have a sphincter. A lot of people in this world don't."
Me: "You're right. I guess this wasn't the worst day ever. I guess I could be without a sphincter."

OR,

Liz: "I can't believe you didn't remeber to pick me up. I had to walk all the way home and now I have shin splints. Some friend you are."
Me: "You should be thankful. There are people wandering around out there without shins to splint."
Liz: "You're right. But you're still not a very good friend."
Me: "Yeah. Wanna go get some beer? I'll drive."
Liz: "Yeah. Ok."

So, I'm not really sure what happened that day I saw the soccer cleats. Maybe it was fever? A little case of the blues? Lack of a job/reason to brush my hair on a daily basis? (I've washed my hair regularly since our move to FL, but only really brushed it once. That's another story.)  Whatever it was, I am happy to report that yesterday I drove by the shoes and immediately saw the funny story.