The Friday Five are *almost* on break...

[magnetic_pole]

First and most importantly, a very happy birthday to you, shadowycat! We don't have anything here yet to share, but enjoy:





This week's thefridayfive:

1. Are we losing the art of listening? As one of life's listeners, I can only say that I'm still listening. :)

2. Have you ever interacted with the police? In a significant way? In the US, just once, when I was in (read: caused) a minor car accident as a teenager. Thank goodness. One aspect of my life in which I've been very, very lucky.

3. Do you like being alone? Love it. Do not get enough of it. The better half even goes out sometimes to give me some space and is always disappointed when I'm surprised to see her again. "You're back already?" I ask every time. "That was so quick!"

4. Who would you share your passwords with? You know, really, I ought to do a better job of sharing them with *myself*, seeing as I don't have any written down and my memory is just not what it once was.

5. What are you grateful for today? Girl Scout cookies. Thin Mints and Samoas, to be precise. I had to package them up just now to prevent further snacking.

And a question for you: Do you have a favorite Girl Scout cookie, folks who live in places with Girl Scout cookies? If not, do you have a favorite packaged cookie or biscuit?

Hope all's well, everyone! I'm down to about 72 hours before spring break, and believe me, I'm counting every one. More soon!

Comments

[breathedout]

Thin mints by a LANDSLIDE, but they have to come straight from the freezer.

[magnetic_pole]

\o/!

The idea was that half of this box (one roll) would go into the freezer for that exact reason...but I'm not sure there will be any left to freeze. M.

[shadowycat]

Thank you, Maggie! It was a good day. :D My favorite Girl Scout cookie is definitely the Thin Mint. I like them frozen. If I'm not careful, I can eat a whole sleeve of them without realizing how many I've scarfed down. Mmmmm............ ;D

[magnetic_pole]

Oh, I understand the Thin Mint problem all too well. :)

Delighted to hear you had a good day! May this next year be filled with family, friendship, and small fannish joys. M.

[topaz_eyes]

Here they're called Girl Guide Cookies, but... the chocolate-covered mint ones. Definitely the chocolate-covered mint ones. (Though we will not say no to the regular cookies either.)

[magnetic_pole]

So far the chocolate-covered mint cookies are three for three! I always look on the table where they're being sold to see if they have twice as many thin mint boxes as the others, but that never seems to be the case. Who buys the other ones? It's all very mysterious.

Lovely icon, by the way! M.

[topaz_eyes]

They sell them at the same time? We usually see 2 cookie drives. The regular cookies show up sometime in spring, and the chocolate-mints in fall.

[magnetic_pole]

They've got their own cookie drive?!? The thin mints have arrived!!!

(Just the one in spring, here.)

Another dreamy creamy icon...M.

[topaz_eyes]

Definitely two drives are better than one. :-D We didn't have the thin mints until 1995. (I used to be so envious when I heard it was cookie time in the US! Actually I still am. We have only the 2 types. There's what, like 11 different types available in the States?) The two drives might be due to manufacturer availability. The Guides changed manufacturers in 2003 from Mr. Christie to Dare Foods.

I really do need a cookie icon... ;-D

[magnetic_pole]

Oh my word, 12 types! (I had to look right now, since I could only name four or five.) Somehow there are now a dozen choices for almost every consumer good, it seems. It's a bit overwhelming! M.

[topaz_eyes]

I'm happy enough with the thin mints and sandwich varieties. Though I do wish they had the GF cookies up here, so the Miss can enjoy them too.

[magnetic_pole]

I wouldn't be surprised if the GF ones showed up in your part of the world soon. I don't know how your experience has been, but it feels like there are more GF options every year... M.

[out_there]

Good luck on those 72 hours!

[magnetic_pole]

Omg thank you. Slightly too much to do in too little time! Hope all's well, A. M.

[out_there]

Life is pretty good at the moment.

[magnetic_pole]

Excellent! M.

[write_out]

You're an excellent listener!

I'm glad you've had very little interaction with the police. It's a nerve-wracking experience, even when you're not the focus. Ugh.

#3. YESSS. You and I are 100% the same here. Brian and I are lucky in that we have space in our house to be alone, but I love love love the few times I have the house to myself. Brian will give me all the space I need and want, but I have to remember that he needs A LOT more contact and togetherness than I do. It's always a WIP in finding the balance that makes us both happy. :)

Samoas, Thin Mints, Shortbread! As for other cookies, my favorites are McVitie's digestives (chocolate and plain), vanilla wafers, and frosted animal crackers. NOW I WANT ALL OF THEM.

So close to break! You can do it!!

[magnetic_pole]

Ah, I didn't even know that the Girl Scouts did shortbread! (The short annual sales make me clutchy--if these are going to be the last cookies I get for a year, do I really want to waste time trying something new?)

MCVITIES! Chocolate-covered is my favorite, but the plain have their appeal, too. I think one reason I bonded with my college roommate (the one you saw recently on IG) was that we both loved them so much. Back before they were as available as they are today, she once mailed me a pack after visiting the UK...but a pack missing a few, because she couldn't help herself as she was packing them up. R was horrified but I understood the temptation. :)

You and Brian seem to have worked out a good rhythm for alone and together time. Does he sense it, or do you have a way of communicating it to him?

I'm finding I need even more time alone as I get older, and I'm starting to recognize the signs (irritability, over-stimulation) a bit better. It's a life-long project, getting to know yourself. :) M.

[write_out]

I rarely buy Girl Scout cookies, for some reason. I never seek them out and I don't understand why! The last time I bought any was a couple of years ago when one of my coworkers was selling on behalf of her friend's daughter. We don't come across the Scouts in the wild too often; I think we drove past one group last weekend, but they're the only ones I've seen. I guess no one goes door to door anymore!

I am cracking up over the missing cookies! I don't think I blame her. :) One of the grocery chains here- Shaw's (not our regular store because we both hate it)- carries a lot of British imports, from custards to candy bars to brown sauce. I will indulge every so often and get McVities and a Bounty bar. I try not to do that too often, although to be honest, I could eat McVities all the time and never get sick of them.

He's good at picking it up, but sometimes I've got a bad poker face. If my need to alone time is dire, it can be obvious. Heh. We are both mostly good at asking for what we need, but there are times we cross signals. I can be selfish with my time and attention.

It sounds like you and R have worked out a good rhythm yourselves?

I'm with you on needing more time to myself as I get older. It really is a life-long project!

[magnetic_pole]

That's great about the British imports at Shaw's! I noticed our stores got more things from elsewhere about...five years ago? Ten? You used to never find McVities anywhere, and now you can get them at Giant (our local grocery story) if you're willing to pay for the privilege.

I could also eat McVities all the time, too. R tried making a homemade version a while ago--I should link you to that recipe.

A bad poker face can be a good thing. :)

When R and I were first living together, she was puzzled when I got irritable, and I couldn't figure out why she would start to annoy me. Her favorite story is about when we were living in a studio apartment in Cambridge. "I can't concentrate," I said. "I'm way over on the other side of the room!" she said. That didn't satisfy me. "But I can hear you breathing!" M.

[kelly_chambliss]

An interesting batch of questions. I'm so with you on #3 -- I've adored being alone since I was old enough to do.

I keep a list of passwords -- it's nine pages and counting! Insanity.

GIRL SCOUT COOKIES! I am such a fan, though sadly, I seem to have missed the whole sales period this year. My top flavor -- Thin Mints, of course. Anything else is sacrilege. I do love the peanut butter patties, too. Never cared much for Samoas; I like coconut and chocolate both, but I'm not a huge fan of most caramel.

[magnetic_pole]

I remember being in college and hearing my mother say she'd never been to a restaurant by herself. It was such an odd moment. The moment I was able to do things by myself, I started doing so, even going out to eat or get a cup of coffee. In fact, one of the reasons I love coffee shops is that there's such an acceptance of the fact that it's great to be out by yourself among other people.

It's a sign of your brilliance that you have a list nine pages long. You had the foresight to recognize that this would become a problem and started early. I need to start now before my memory deteriorates further.

Sorry to hear the sales missed you this year! Perhaps someone else got some and will be moved to share? M.

[kelly_chambliss]

It's a sign of your brilliance that you have a list nine pages long.

Not at all -- just OCD paying off for once!

[magnetic_pole]

:)

[secretsolitaire]

Can you believe I don't have a favorite Girl Scout cookie? I can't even remember the last time I ate one. /o\

There were, however, these chewy white chocolate/macadamia nut cookies in the office earlier this week that I ate, like, five of.

[magnetic_pole]

Oooh...white chocolate macademia is one of those combinations that I never think I like but then find delicious when I have it. Excellent!

Hopefully someone in your office or among your friends will share. :)

I've had periods where I didn't cross paths with the Girls Scout sales--not because girls weren't in Girl Scouts or the sales weren't going on, but because they were being done more privately, by order, among families with kids, I think. (Heaven knowns Small College Town was filled with little ones earning their badges.) Now that we're back in DC in an area with foot traffic, there are three locations where folks set up shop--a couple girls, a couple moms or friends, and a few handmade signs extolling the virtues of the cookies. Hurrah! M.

[splix]

I'm one of that apparently .001% minority who hates Thin Mints. I'm not a big fan of mint anything though, so there you have it.

I'm not all that keen on Girl Scout cookies (I used to sell them as a brownie and a junior! Haaaated it) or most packaged cookies, to be honest. I wouldn't turn one down, probably, for a sweet kick, but I can taste the fakeness in them. I will eat those cookies from Panera or Jason's or whatever if we're having a box-lunch deal at work - they're much fresher-tasting to me.

[magnetic_pole]

R wants you to know she's with you on the Thin Mints. :)

R and I have this theory we developed around looking for Mexican food over the years--some people will take bad Mexican food just because they like Mexican food in general and in some parts of the worlds that's all you can find (this is me--R calls it indiscriminate, but I like to say inclusive), and some people will wait to find a good restaurant (this is R--selective). Lately I've been trying to take R's selective approach to cookies, which are much easier to find than Mexican food--wait until you find cookies that are freshly baked and amazing and pass up the lesser, package-cookie substitutes. But it's hard.

I hated selling them as a kid, too. But we sold so many things at my school that the cookies always seemed the best of the bunch--at least they were something useful that everyone would enjoy. Often the stuff we had to see seemed pointless. M.

[splix]

Yes! An ally! High five her for me, will you? :D

I think I fall somewhere in between you two. I love pizza, but there aren't a lot of good pizza places around here. The best joint is across the city, so not super convenient. Going there is a real treat. However, if someone brings a pizza in to work, I'd probably eat a slice if it was offered. Or my previous example with the cookies. Eh, not bad, but no real enthusiasm, which means I should probably be more selective and skip them altogether!

God, we sold garbage in grade school. We'd actually get these mini cardboard suitcases called "Christmas kits" that had pure junk in them - erasers, refrigerator pads, cheesy potholders, gift wrap - nothing you really needed. We had to go around the neighborhood with the stupid things. Can you imagine sending a kid door-to-door selling products nowadays? Junior Amway, I'm telling you.

We sold candy too, but yeah, that was good. :)

[liseuse]

I really wish Girl Scout cookies were a thing in the UK. The US internet evangelises about them and I want to tryyyyyy them!

As for my favourites, as you know I am a big fan of the Penguin biscuit! I also love supermarket own-brand ginger biscuits! And shortbread! Weirdly I am more a fan of savoury than sweet, but there are certain biscuits I just can't buy or I'll eat the whole packet (Hobnobs! Custard creams! Bourbon biscuits!).