Cary Pohlhammer

Some of my favorite things are coffee, literature, and art.

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r/OldSchoolCool - Diner waitress, New York City, 1955

201 votes and 11 comments so far on Reddit

This what I love about vintage photos. There is clearly a story going on here. This looks like the kind of thing you would find in an old copy of Life magazine. She appears to be on her break, but the look on her look is so contemplative. What could she be thinking about? What else could be going on in the photo? What time of day is it? So many stories could be written around this one photo.

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That thing, that moment, when you kiss someone and everything around becomes hazy and the only thing in focus is you and this person and you realize that that person is the only person that you're supposed to kiss for the rest of your life, and for one moment you get this amazing gift and you want to laugh and you want to cry because you feel so lucky that you found it and so scared that that it will go away all at the same time.

Drew Barrymore in Never Been Kissed

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Wondering if you're happy is a great shortcut to just being depressed.

Annette Bening in 20th Century Women

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They're starting to die on us.

Cynthia Nixon as Miranda Hobbs on Sex and the City, on why men never seem to call.

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Enough is as good as a feast.

Julie Andrews in Mary Poppins

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And I'm bleeding And I'm bleeding And I'm bleeding Right before the lord

Zella Day (”Seven Nation Army”)

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You really think I'd make a derogatory remark about a person just because he's a shrimp?

Valerie Harper as Rhoda Morgenstern on Mary Tyler Moore

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Body Image

I’m thankful for my body because I don’t have a problem with it. If you look at me standing on the street or something, the only thing you’d notice is that I’m roughly overweight. There doesn’t appear to be anything much, but there are still places that aren’t perfect, and I’m OK with them.

It’s kind of rare I’m sure, but I can grow a monobrow. And those can be quite unattractive. When I see hair building up in the middle of my eyebrows I tend to shave it, just because it would look awkward on my face. Speaking of my face, I have an overbite because my two middle teeth are a little big. That’s why when my lips are closed, there’s still an opening because of my teeth.

On my back, I have a big hairy patch. I don’t have much hair on my back except for the bottom and the tops of my shoulders. But on one side of my back, there’s a big hairy patch which appears to be a birthmark of some sort. It doesn’t bother me of course, because for one, I don’t see or feel it, and also because I don’t care that it’s on there.

The one thing about my body that’s been brought up before is my stomach. it’s been said that I’m overweight and that I should lose 20 pounds, but I don’t care. I’m one of those people that can eat whatever I want and not gain a pound. Somehow my body tends to stay between 215 and 220 pounds. I don’t often get full when I eat either, or at least rarely. My body hasn’t tried to get the best of me, which helps to not having any issues with it - despite what a few others might think.

And by the way, the daily prompt was to write “I’m thankful for my body because...,” which led to me having to discuss my body image

Currently listening: “I’m Kissing You” by Des’ree

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Enjoying Creativity

Today I will enjoy nature or creativity by working on my writing. Not just with this daily writing prompt, but with a mermaid story I’ve been working on. Nature has been kind of awkward today. The clouds were dark and dramatic with various spots of a blue sky, and it didn’t rain all day. I can still exercise my creativity.

I’ve always had a thing for mermaids and other fantasy beings, and I’ve been attempting a mermaid story told in chapters, but I’m not referring to it as a novel or book. Maybe a novella, which is a rather short piece, but too long to be considered a short story.

So far it’s about a man who sees an injured mermaid in the ocean of his friend’s beach house in California, and the man finds out that the mermaid’s soul belongs to a witch, another mermaid, but with more power. It sounds cliche I’m sure. And I’m confirming that I am not taking any inspiration from The Little Mermaid. As much as I love it, I’m trying to be original with it.

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10 Things That Make me Smile

1. Flattery

I know how this sounds, and it comes off as rather abstract, but I can explain it. I’m a grocery store cashier and I occasionally get a compliment from a customer. Whenever I’m flattered, I sink my head down and raise my shoulders, which I can’t help. And recently, I helped a woman load empty boxes into her car and she gave me a hug and a kiss. I was walking through the parking lot back to the store smiling like an idiot because I got a kiss. Even in my social life and such I’m easily flattered.

2. Puppies

How can someone not smile at a puppy smelling a flower? Or the sight of a puppy sleeping with its eyes closed? Or when they’re smiling, showing their teeth and everything? I am a huge sucker for puppies and dogs that I can’t help but smile and feel my heart raising at them. There are dogs that I think are cuter than others, and some that aren’t that cute at all, but the cute ones certainly get me.

3. Some episodes of a TV show

When it’s the night of a season premiere, I get excited to be back into my show. Sometimes I’ll count down the hours in a day until the show starts. It could also be a specific night. Like a season premiere, season finale, or maybe an anticipated guest star that I want to see. Whenever I saw promos for the next episode of Nashville at the end of one, I always got anxious with a big smile on my face to see a preview of what to expect.

4. Try Not to Laugh challenges

I watch a lot of Try Not to Laugh challenges on Youtube. For a lot of them, there are things I just don’t find funny, and others that I can fight my laughter on, but when I start smiling or laughing, I do it so easily. Despite that there are so many video clips out there I don’t find funny, I easily laugh at the ones I do. It’s hard for me to fight it at times.

5. Certain foods

This one sounds a little weird. If I taste something really good, i find myself smiling like an idiot at the taste of it. I’ll keep this one short and avoid examples, but I won’t lie, there are some foods and such that I find good enough to make me smile.

6. My writing

When I write my fiction, I try to purposely add a sense of humor into various scenes. Naturally, I think I’m clever when I think of them. When I read them over later on, I can’t help but smile at my own work and grin at my cleverness. This one kind of makes look narcissistic, but still.

7. Fandoms

I love being part of fandoms. Now I’m not completely into them as I never attempt cosplay for certain characters (but that’s not to mean I wouldn’t) nor have I ever written fan fiction, at least successfully. My fandoms include Marvel/Avengers, American Horror Story, Disney, and Once Upon a Time. I love when I get to talk about those things with other people. I have a friend who I always see Marvel movies with, and it’s always nice to discuss out opinions with each other about the Marvel fandom and the Avengers.

8. A good book

I love books. Of course I read a book that I don’t end up liking, others I read that are still good and worth the read, but then there are other books that will stay to my heart. A book has to bring me down emotionally for me to find it good. Oddly enough, that kind of thing would make me frown instead of smile, but knowing that I read it kind of does. I recently finished The Bridges of Madison County by Robert James Waller, and as good as it was, it brought me down, but at least it held a small place in my heart.

9. Metaphors and symbols

For some reason, I find myself smiling at some metaphors in life. For example, there are crows that surround a certain tree in my neighborhood, and I find myself smiling at the fact that crows are a symbol of death. That’s not to say I’m intrigued by death, but that fact that a crow is the symbol of one. Also, rabbits are a symbol for spring. That’s why we associate rabbits and bunnies with Easter. Needless to say, I have a fascination for metaphors, including some of the ones we deal with in our everyday life.

10. How other people see me

This one kind of ties into the flattery entry in number one, but it’s not just about being flattered. People have told me how charming and respectful I am. I even heard from my parents who know some of the people I know, and my parents tell me what they’ve heard from others. I start to wonder what exactly I say or do to other people. All I do is be me and maintain a certain level of small talk, and suddenly I’m so so charming. Regardless of that, it actually does warm my heart a little bit when other people tell me what other people have said about me.

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The King of Queens

Today I will take a break all to myself by ___ because ___.

I’m actually writing this post after the little break to myself. Every few morning, I like to sit in my pajama bottoms with a bowl of cereal and watch an episode or two of a sitcom. Most of the time it’s the show The King of Queens. I took the break for myself because it was the morning and I wanted to have my cereal.

Those mornings are just time for myself because I don’t have to be anywhere, I don’t have to meet someone, and I don’t have to think so much. That’s why I choose a show that’s a sitcom with either a studio audience or a laugh track. It’s morning and I’m out of bed, but I’m not fully awake yet. It’s always comforting to watch something I don’t have to think carefully about in the morning while digging into a bowl of Cinnamon Toast Crunch.

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Happy Memories: A 29th Birthday

Here’s where I’m supposed to write a happy memory of mine and incorporate all my senses except taste. It took a few minutes, but I decided to make my happy memory kind of recent. And it’s nothing compared to big life moments, like graduating high school or an addition to a family. I have to admit that I’ve never been married nor do I have children.

This moment was my 29th birthday. I know, I’m choosing a birthday. I never thought anything was special about being 29. It’s an odd number age, it’s a prime number, and it’s nothing big like an 18th or 21st birthday. But this day was special for two reasons.

One being that I went to a book festival that day. Every second weekend in June, on the Saturday and Sunday, Chicago holds a big book and literature festival. I’m not sure how long it’s been going for, but this was the third year that I went. It just so happened that one of the days was on my birthday. My birthday is June 10th, so it’s always the second weekend. I got to spend my birthday commuting to the city for the festival, look at all the bookstore kiosks that I want, and even stop to say hello to a writer friend who was promoting his books. I got to have the day for myself, I didn’t have to go to work, and it was a really sunny Spring day. Just a day for me to have myself.

Also, now this isn’t anything super special, but at 29, I’m the age that my mother was when she had me. Despite that it’s a odd, prime number, it’s still good knowing that I’m as old as my mom as when I was born. It also means that next year I’m going to turn 30, which I’m neither excited for nor anxious. I’m not exactly sure how to feel about it. I should also say that the reason I seem to have something against the number 29 is because I like even numbers. It would be one thing to be 23 (another odd, prime number) because you’re transitioning from young adult and getting out of college to getting introduced to the world of being an adult. But when you’re 29, you’re already an adult and just going about your life.

Still, it may not be that great of an age, but knowing how I spent it will always old a memory for me.

Currently listening: “Runnin’ Outta Moonlight” by Randy Houser

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A New Roommate

Day 2 of the 30 Day Stress Relief Challenge is to write what’s going well in my life.

Since May I decided that I wanted a roommate in my apartment. I have a system of paying bills and I was able to get rent taken care of, but it was decided that I should have a roommate. Mostly for paying rent. It took longer than expected because while I wanted a roommate, I also liked having the independence. I made flyers and put them around town and signed up for the website Roomie Match. I looked at dozens of questionnaires, reached out to people, and talked with people over coffee. One day I decided to call one of my Roomie Matches to get connected to him quicker. Sure enough, he returned my call, we met over coffee, and after a few days he accepted my offer. It wasn’t that difficult of a process, but it took longer than expected. Mainly because of my lack of motivation to actually look for one. I decided to admit that the hard part is over, I have a roommate now - a nice, friendly guy - and everything will be easier when it comes to paying rent.

I know that while talking about rent, it shows I have some financial issues and things, and that’s obviously a big part of my life. I don’t talk much about it, but maybe I might find a way to add tidbits of it throughout the month.

Currently listening: My Kinda Party by Jason Aldean

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Appreciation + Intro

It’s been a while since I posted on Tumblr, and I felt like getting back into it. I’m a writer, (unpublished, but still) but I guess most of my ideas are written into fiction. I don’t often write about myself because I like keeping big parts of my life private. I don’t mind an anecdote, but I feel like my story is not worth a memoir.

I recently came across the 30 Day Stress Relief Challenge, and decided to get back into Tumblr by giving that a try. I’m already off to a bad start because it’s Day 2 as I’m writing this. So I’m posting twice for Day 2.

I chose the Street Relief Challenge, because I suffer from anxiety and I often get into moods for no reason. For the latter, I’ll have a night where I don’t feel like laughing or smiling and what I’ll do for an extra effect is listen to emotional or encouraging music like I’m part of a montage of some sort. What I love about sad music is that I rarely cry so it doesn’t often affect me. If anything I feel my heart aching at times when I watch a sad movie or something, but I hardly ever emit tears from my eyes.

Another reason I chose it is because I want to exercise my writing with prompts. I always gets ideas of my own and I try to rely on prompts, but for some reason i have trouble figuring out what to write. And maybe writing about parts of my life will help me to exercise my writing creativity. So here’s what was meant to be for day one: “Appreciation Day. I’m thankful for what I have because...”

I like that there are people who like me and treat me with respect. I tend to charm and flatter a lot of people just by being me. Honestly, I didn’t think I was that friendly. But I’ve heard from my parents or something how someone else feels about me.

I’m also thankful because I have my two writing groups who tell me I’m a good writer and are always eager to see more of my work. It kind of makes me smile to see people compliment me.

I guess there are more things, but I don’t want to crowd this post with too many words.

I’m also going to end my posts with whatever music I’m listening to or movie or TV show I’m watching as a reference for what I was doing at the time of my post. I hope that this challenge goes well. i tend to start neglecting daily challenges, so I’ll wish myself good luck and post real soon.

Currently listening: My Kinda Party by Jason Aldean

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Gatsby, pale as death, with his hands plunged like weights in his coat pockets, was standing in a puddle of water glaring tragically into my eyes.

F. Scott Fitzgerald as Nick Carraway/The Narrator in "The Great Gatsby

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Feelings are scary. Sometimes they're painful. And if you can't feel pain, you're not going to feel anything else either.

Judd Hirsch in Ordinary People

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It wouldn't be Thanksgiving without a little emotional scarring.

Michael Vartan on Friends