The Busyness of Being Busy
Winter is wrapping up, so we’re unwrapping ourselves from thick winter coats, gloves and knitted caps. We’re sweeping out fireplaces, throwing open windows to refreshing spring breezes, and hanging faux flower wreaths on front doors. And we do all of this in great expectation of what the warm weather months ahead will bring in their usual busyness. We plan vacations, pull out the grills in readiness for BBQs with the neighbors, and start ordering seed packets for spring planting. It’s a renewing time of year, a time of rebirth, and a time to let out that pent up breath we seem to hold all winter; Ahhhhhh… To me, however, the busy months ahead can be a bit daunting, too. I think about all that I need to get done, and my calendar is getting covered up like a plate of food left unattended by an ant mound at a picnic. (See, spring really is on my mind!)
Why is it that we are always so ready to look ahead? Is it because we’re afraid we won’t be ready? Or are we afraid we’ll miss out on something if we don’t plan for tomorrow today? I looked through my calendar and every month has dates already written in through the end of the year. Crazy. I always hear people talking about how fast time flies, but maybe we help it pick up momentum by looking so far ahead. Just maybe we’re propelling ourselves forward much faster than we otherwise would if we just enjoyed the day at hand; not the days to come, but the day at hand. But, no; we have to plan today what we’ll do ten weeks from tomorrow, and on that date, we’ll be planning what we’ll be doing ten weeks from then.
My niece is coming in for a few days’ visit next week, and I already have the dinners planned and activities scheduled. How do I know that the night I’m planning on having blackened chicken salad we might prefer to have pizza? Or the day we’re scheduled to take a hike, we might not feel like being couch potatoes and watching some old black and white movie classic? Now I know where the expression, “the best-laid plans go awry” comes from. It’d be an interesting thing to see how much plans change from those we scheduled in advance. I think we should put a bright blue dot on every day on our calendar where we had something planned but ended up doing something else entirely different. My guess is that a great percentage of those long ago scheduled plans end up being changed after all.
Now, don’t get me wrong; in this fast-paced world, I know it’s necessary to schedule things so that we’re all in sync, all on the same page with plans, all end up at the designated place at the designated time so as not to waste each other’s time. But, I think we waste a lot of time trying to ensure that we won’t waste any of it. All things considered, I think we might just be missing some pretty cool things in the here and now when we’re so busy looking ahead.
Saturday, March 25, 2017
Strange Days
It’s St. Patrick’s Day, and I’ve enjoyed watching how different people celebrate the occasion. Chicago dyed its river green; bars are serving green beer; and shamrocks decorate storefront windows, while the smell of corn beef and cabbage permeates the air in many restaurants and pubs. Another tradition that marks this day of Irish celebration is the practice of wearing green. But, if you’re not, then you’re subject to a sharp pinch without any apology attached.
Of course, there are many more largely recognized and celebrated holidays, but there are also lots of obscure ones that we hardly ever hear about. For example: I heard on the radio that this past Tuesday was National Potato Chip Day. Hearing that compelled me to go buy onion dip and then to do a search for other strange days where we loosely pay tribute to something or someone that doesn’t really deserve a day, but gets it anyway. And I also wanted to look for days that do deserve to be observed or made a point of, like perhaps a National Kindness Day, or a National Forgiveness Day. What I found amazed me, and, at times, made me shake my head in absolute perplexity that each of these should be given even a moment’s pause, much less a whole day of recognition. Here are some of my favorites:January 3rd – Festival of Sleep Day. So, what, we sleep through the celebration?!
January 7th – Old Rock Day. Whoever thought this one up was as dumb as a…Surely, you can fill in that blank.January 16th – National Nothing Day. No comment.February 1st – Hula in the Coola Day. Really, folks, I couldn’t make this stuff up.
February 9th – Toothache Day. Shouldn’t it be Non-Toothache Day we celebrate?
March 19th – Corn Dog Day. Okay, I’m in.
March 20th – National Aliens Abductions Day. What on Earth!?
April 30th – National Honesty Day. So is it all right to lie the other 364 days of the year?
May 3th – Lumpy Rug Day. I’m…well… just speechless.
May 16th – National Sea Monkey Day. I thought those were little plastic figures in a Milton Bradley game.
July 3rd – Compliment Your Mirror Day. Translation: Compliment Yourself Day.
July 22nd – Rat-Catcher’s Day. This date happens to be my friend’s birthday. I’d rather drive lit bamboo sticks under my nails than to tell her what she shares her special day with.
July 27th – Take Your Plants for a Walk Day. And then walk yourself to the nearest mental health facility.
Sept. 5th – Be Late for Something Day. What’s special about that? Most of us celebrate this on a daily basis.
Oct. 7th – International – yes, INTERNATIONAL – Moment of Frustration Day. Don’t know about y’all, but my day usually consists of about 20, 000 moments of frustration.
Oct. 23rd – National Mole Day. The kind on your skin or the kind in the ground?
Nov. 8th – Cook Something Bold and Pungent Day. That oughta keep those pesky neighbors away!
But, finally, after scrolling through all of these other days that we need not mark on our calendars, I saw it. Hallelujah! November 13th - World – yes, WORLD -Kindness Day. Thank God! However, I did notice that it took us almost the whole year to get around to it, but, at least we finally did! All things considered, I’m delighted to report that my faith in mankind has been restored. I’ll just pretend that Have a Bad Day Day isn’t observed six days later.
It’s St. Patrick’s Day, and I’ve enjoyed watching how different people celebrate the occasion. Chicago dyed its river green; bars are serving green beer; and shamrocks decorate storefront windows, while the smell of corn beef and cabbage permeates the air in many restaurants and pubs. Another tradition that marks this day of Irish celebration is the practice of wearing green. But, if you’re not, then you’re subject to a sharp pinch without any apology attached.
Of course, there are many more largely recognized and celebrated holidays, but there are also lots of obscure ones that we hardly ever hear about. For example: I heard on the radio that this past Tuesday was National Potato Chip Day. Hearing that compelled me to go buy onion dip and then to do a search for other strange days where we loosely pay tribute to something or someone that doesn’t really deserve a day, but gets it anyway. And I also wanted to look for days that do deserve to be observed or made a point of, like perhaps a National Kindness Day, or a National Forgiveness Day. What I found amazed me, and, at times, made me shake my head in absolute perplexity that each of these should be given even a moment’s pause, much less a whole day of recognition. Here are some of my favorites:January 3rd – Festival of Sleep Day. So, what, we sleep through the celebration?!
January 7th – Old Rock Day. Whoever thought this one up was as dumb as a…Surely, you can fill in that blank.January 16th – National Nothing Day. No comment.February 1st – Hula in the Coola Day. Really, folks, I couldn’t make this stuff up.
February 9th – Toothache Day. Shouldn’t it be Non-Toothache Day we celebrate?
March 19th – Corn Dog Day. Okay, I’m in.
March 20th – National Aliens Abductions Day. What on Earth!?
April 30th – National Honesty Day. So is it all right to lie the other 364 days of the year?
May 3th – Lumpy Rug Day. I’m…well… just speechless.
May 16th – National Sea Monkey Day. I thought those were little plastic figures in a Milton Bradley game.
July 3rd – Compliment Your Mirror Day. Translation: Compliment Yourself Day.
July 22nd – Rat-Catcher’s Day. This date happens to be my friend’s birthday. I’d rather drive lit bamboo sticks under my nails than to tell her what she shares her special day with.
July 27th – Take Your Plants for a Walk Day. And then walk yourself to the nearest mental health facility.
Sept. 5th – Be Late for Something Day. What’s special about that? Most of us celebrate this on a daily basis.
Oct. 7th – International – yes, INTERNATIONAL – Moment of Frustration Day. Don’t know about y’all, but my day usually consists of about 20, 000 moments of frustration.
Oct. 23rd – National Mole Day. The kind on your skin or the kind in the ground?
Nov. 8th – Cook Something Bold and Pungent Day. That oughta keep those pesky neighbors away!
But, finally, after scrolling through all of these other days that we need not mark on our calendars, I saw it. Hallelujah! November 13th - World – yes, WORLD -Kindness Day. Thank God! However, I did notice that it took us almost the whole year to get around to it, but, at least we finally did! All things considered, I’m delighted to report that my faith in mankind has been restored. I’ll just pretend that Have a Bad Day Day isn’t observed six days later.
Friday, March 3, 2017
Home Sweet Home
I was asked about my hobbies and interests recently, and I have quite a few, but they all revolve around the same thing: anything old. And I mean OLD. I love to do stained glass work, having been inspired by old church windows, and I enjoy needlework; the same kind the ladies learned to do by working on samplers hundreds of years ago. I also love hunting for antiques. My house is full of them. The older something is - and the more nicks it has it in - the better. I also have a passion for old homes; I’m intrigued by creepy cemeteries; I love Art Deco jewelry, and black and white movies. Heck, when I was a little kid, I really liked old people! Weird, I know.
There’s just something about the uniqueness of old things, and the fact that they survived long enough to have gone from being a “new” something to being an “old” something. I wonder about the stories attached to them, and the amount of probable “near misses” they had that nearly prevented them from achieving the venerable rank of old age.
There’s just something about the uniqueness of old things, and the fact that they survived long enough to have gone from being a “new” something to being an “old” something. I wonder about the stories attached to them, and the amount of probable “near misses” they had that nearly prevented them from achieving the venerable rank of old age.
As far as I’m concerned, one of the best places to see many wonderful antiquities is in the South. Now, that’s not to say that the North doesn’t have their fair share. I know they do. But since I live in that part of the country where collard greens, chow-chow and peanut butter pie are staples in any respectable household, I guess I’m just a bit partial to that place south of the Mason Dixon Line, with all of its glorious and not-so-glorious history. I love it enough to write stories about it, and many of my characters were inspired by true life characters – both the young and the old.
The South is certainly home to me, and has been for many generations of my family. Some have been gone for so long now that they can only be identified by their faded names written in script on the backside of a black and white scallop-edged photo or old tintype. But, even without having known so many of them, I believe they’ve manage to leave their unique marks on my soul somehow.
The South is certainly home to me, and has been for many generations of my family. Some have been gone for so long now that they can only be identified by their faded names written in script on the backside of a black and white scallop-edged photo or old tintype. But, even without having known so many of them, I believe they’ve manage to leave their unique marks on my soul somehow.
Home, with all of its many old attachments, can be anywhere on God’s green Earth, and, all things considered, I can’t think of a place I’d rather be. Give me my couch and favorite blanket at the end of a long day and, for me, that’s Heaven on Earth – especially if you throw in a good ghost show. Ahhhh….
Peanut Butter Pie
8 oz. of cream cheese
½ cup creamy or crunchy peanut butter – your choice
1 cup powdered sugar
8 oz. of cool whip
chocolate syrup
Beat first three ingredients and fold in cool whip.
Pour into graham cracker crust, then sprinkle with chopped nuts.
Swirl chocolate syrup on top.
Chill overnight, or freeze for later.
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