Random Frustration All Over the Place

My mom used to love the phrase "if you can't say something nice, don't say anything at all." I have tried for the most part to uphold that; however, it has come to my attention that I have been saying less and less because of this and sometimes you just have to say something maybe not so nice in the nicest way you can. Yeah, I know that I'm not making sense but that's okay too.

One of my pet peeves is people who are grouches when they first wake up in the morning (or whenever). You know the ones, they wake up barking at everyone and everything, ticked off because they have to be awake and part of the functioning world. I'm not talking about people who don't say anything until they get that first cup of coffee (or whatever). Those are okay. I'm talking about the ones that vent their spleen until they are leaving the house and then have the audacity to say "I love you" before they leave. Grow up already!

What is this fascination/addiction that people have with plastic surgery? Don't like something? Well, snip it, clip it, suck it out or pump it up. I'm all for looking the best you can but I think that, barring an actual physical deformity, you should attempt to do it with what you have. Botox, collagen injections, cheek lifts (both sets).....what ever happened to beauty on the inside being so much better than "beauty" on the outside. Because I have seen a lot of these people and if this current trend continues we will be developing a whole new breed of people-like beings who look more like aliens than real humans Give me my wrinkles, give me my graying hairs.....I have earned every single one of them. Just don't give me too many;)

To the parents who are involved in the class action suit against Nickleodeon and the cereal companies for advertising and marketing sugary cereals and snacks to children under the age of 8: GET OVER IT! They have done it for years. Remember Tony the Tiger, Toucan Sam, the Sugar Smacks frog, the Honeycomb bear? Okay then. The only difference between then and now is this: my parents told me what they were buying for me to eat. See, they had the jobs and made the money so they could do that. I didn't realize that 4 year olds were running households and making the financial decisions these days. If you don't want your small children to eat sugary cereals and snacks, don't buy them and put them in your house! Buy something else, like........oh, I don't know.....FRUIT......or.......ummmmm......VEGETABLES. You know, the red and green and yellow stuff they sell in the store. And if your kids don't want to eat it, then let 'em go hungry. Beleive me, they won't starve to death before they decide an apple or some celery is better than nothing. You are the parents, they are the children. That's why most of us are taller see? So people can tell the difference.

Meanwhile back at the ranch.....it's good to be back. Was off on sabbatical for a little while. Had some pressure to get rid of, some junk to take care of. You know that whole recentering, refocusing thing that we all need to do from time to time.

Hey, it's great to be back home again:)

Peace alllll...........

I Don't Get It

I'm not the smartest person in the world. I know, I know....no one would have believed that if I hadn't said something. I mean, I can understand the usual stuff, like how to balance a checkbook, how to program a VCR (even though they are almost obsolete now), and how to parallel park. But life isn't full of the usual stuff. It's full of the quirky and kind of left of center things that I can't seem to wrap my brain around. For instance:

Why did my 3 year old come into the living room today on all fours with the dog's leash draped over his shoulders? And then proceeded to scratch at the front door?

Why do they call Lifetime "television for women" when my husband (and a lot of other guys I know) watch it all the time? (even though they would gnaw off their own arm rather than admit to it)

Why do my kids never want to eat what I give them but they will eat what I'm eating (even though it's the exact same thing)?

Why does my husband get all bent out of shape for days over a letter from the IRS when a simple 20 minute phone call (made by me of course) took care of the situation?

Why does my husband wait until I am in the throes of PMS to be particularly irritating? I swear it's not me....really, it's not.

Why are men harder to understand the older I get?

Why will the kids eat all of the ketchup on their plates and none of the hot dogs?

Why do the kids and the dog follow me into the bathroom and stare at me while I am....ahem....taking care of things? Can't a person pee in private around here!?

Speaking of which, the kids and the dog are asleep right now, so let me go take care of something. (Watch 'em wake up;))

Peace allll.............

Peace and Privacy

I have had my dealings with the local news. In 1997, when our home burned down and Briana died and in 2001 when Rachel's son was murdered, it was considered "newsworthy" by our city newspaper and by the news stations. And so in both instances they reported the story and hung around for a little longer than I thought absolutely necessary trying to wring every last ounce of grief that we had out of us for public consumption. It got to the point that we did not even want to leave the house for a couple of weeks for fear of someone asking us "how are you feeling?" with a camera in our face. Some things need to be dealt with in private.

As I read the reports about the miners in West Virginia, my heart goes out to them. I refuse to watch the coverage on the television because I think that most of it is nothing more than an attempt to sensationalize this as much as possible. If I were to see these people go from exhiliration to anguish one more time, I think I may have to wring a newscaster's neck. Some things need to be dealt with in private.

I understand the need for news. I understand that people need to know what is going on in this country and in this world. I understand that most people have an insatiable curiousity about other people's lives. That is all perfectly normal. However, when it comes to a situation as tragic as this one, I think that these people who have suffered such a horrible loss should be left alone for a while. They need a moment to deal with what has happened within themselves before they are expected to deal with it in front of the entire nation. This is not a puppet show....this is real life, real tragedy, real grief. These are real people, not actors in some sort of twisted reality show. Some things need to be dealt with in private.

The families of these miners have my fervent prayers. But CNN, Fox News, etc., etc. will not have my support as long as they continue to engage in this type of yellow journalism. Please, guys, take it off the loop and give these people the peace and privacy that they are desperately in need of.

And that's all I have to say about that.

Peace alllll..........

New Year, New Day

Happy New Year to all and I hope everyone made it through their New Year's Eve festivities with minimum damage.

I was going to create a list of resolutions for myself for this new year but then I thought better of it. Resolutions are not things that one necessarily WANTS to do but rather they are things that they feel compelled to do in the quest towards becoming a better person. Losing ten pounds or learning a new language is not going to make a difference in who or what I am. Well, then what will? I'm not really sure...but I have made a list of things that I think will help me enjoy life more, some things that I have done many times, some I have never done.....ever. These are not resolutions, but plans.

This year I plan to:

catch fireflies in a jar
make a daisy chain
pitch a tent in my backyard and camp out with my kids overnight
go fishing
go kite flying
lie face down in the new grass of spring and not get up until I know that the scent of new life will stay with me forever

go wading and catch tadpoles or minnows or whichever I can catch
take my kids to the beach for the first time
go hiking in the woods

bake more cookies
go outside and play
build a snowman
make snow angels
make cloud pictures

walk in the rain (without worrying about catching a cold;))
jump in leaf piles
build a tree house

enjoy more sunrises and sunsets
sleep better
look at the stars
laugh more

Will all of these intentions make the world a better place? Probably not. But hopefully getting back to the simpler things will work towards making me a better person. And I think that's where it starts.

Happy New Year!

Peace alllllll................