A Meditation on Tiny Things

During dinner last night at the Great Wall Restaurant in Florence (review forthcoming), I had an epiphany: I don't like baby corn because of the flavor, texture, or stir-fry sauce holding properties of baby corn. I like it solely because it is tiny. This is not an unusual thing for me. Of course, like most other people I like puppies, and kittens, cute little lambs, and most other baby animals, as well as, you know, babies. But I also have an enduring love for tiny Dr. Peppers (you know, the six ounce size), painstakingly hand-painted miniatures, and those tiny little dictionaries that someone gave me when I was a kid. Basically, if you make it smaller than the real thing, but also almost exactly like the real thing, I will make a squeaky noise and be attracted to it. At least I'm not the only one.

However, I feel that I am simply going with the tide of popular culture on this one. Consider this: isn't an ipod nano cuter than a regular-size ipod? Aren't all electronics getting smaller and smaller, until one can foresee that at some point they will be so minute that they will be implanted in our forearms, or something? I also think that the word "tiny" itself is kind of small and adorable. Adding "tiny" to any conversation, or its less popular (to me) variant, "teeny," is sure to win the hearts & minds of most Americans or, more importantly, me and my sister. And aren't we always hearing that we should appreciate the little things in life? Well, I appreciate the little things in life because they are little. And that makes me happy.