The Week: Jan. 14, 2011

2011, thus far, is full of contradictions.

I don’t know what to make of it. A dozen days in, and every five minutes, I change my opinion on what the year will be like. Thus far, it’s been punctuated by crappy moments – of both the national-newsworthy and the incredibly-personal variety.

I just found out a few days ago that a family friend/relation by marriage died, one month after being diagnosed with cancer. I had hoped Rand and I could have visited her on upcoming trip to London in a few months, but obviously it won’t be working out that way.

And just as I decided to throw in the towel for the night, and perhaps the whole month of January, I opened up an email to see a photo of a friend of mine, holding her brand-new son.

The pendulum keeps swinging. Crappy things happen. Then good things. I realize it’s true of everything, of any time, but in the last few days, it feels distilled. It leaves me not knowing what to think.

It seems too early to give up on 2011. Besides, I have such high hopes for this year. There are things to see. New babies to visit. So in the spirit of upbeat news, here are the links for The Week. I hope they make you smile.

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In the interest of being positive, I suggest you look at things in this manner.

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OMG. OMG. Space paintings. YAY!

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I cannot stop laughing at this. That man should be declared King of the Internet, if he hasn’t been already.

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A story from Southwest Airlines that won’t make you want to tear out your hair: a pilot holds the plane so a bereaved grandfather can say good-bye (Okay, fine – this one doesn’t count as “upbeat”. Nor will it make you smile.).

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Artist Theo Jansen creates giant structures from … Oh, forget it. I won’t do it justice. But his work is incredible. Just click on the link.

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I’m completely digging this random fact generator.

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Oh, dear god. Giant scary spiders are bad enough. But ones that are SMART ENOUGH TO PLAY DEAD AND THEN ATTACK WITHOUT WARNING? So not okay. And I’m not even that scared of spiders to begin with.

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10 of the strangest unclaimed airline baggage items EVER. I had heard the tale of Hoggle before – I just didn’t want to believe that he’d be left, abandoned, like he was.

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Great works of literature (and a few duds), minus all the unpleasantness.

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Expletives + Seahawks + hometown pride = win.

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I was never that into the series, but this collection of comic strips based on old Nancy Drew book covers had me in a fit of giggles. (via Philip from A Lifetime of Worry)

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And lastly, I wanted to end on a seriously high note: this blog entry about returning home for the holidays, written by the brilliant Deanna. It absolutely made my night when I read it, and I hope it does the same for you.

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That’s it for this week, folks. Go hug someone you love, and eat lots of chocolate – because life really is wonderful, and far too short.