Monday, November 22, 2010

Tell-It-Like-It-Is Thanks

I think it's safe to say that most of us are quite thankful for many things, and when our turn comes around at the Thanksgiving table, it is likely that we'll share them aloud: food, clothing, our homes, our family and friends, good health, and so forth. Truly, I am thankful for all of those things.

But the Thanksgiving holiday brings the additional opportunity to express thanks for other things; things that we don't particularly announce at the Thanksgiving table but that I am truly thankful for every day. So, in keeping with my tell-it-like-it-is style, I've decided to share some of those things with you, my readers.

I am also deeply thankful for:
*The girl scout moms, who do most of the work with my daughters' troops, enabling moms like me to help out in a volunteer capacity, yet without having to attend Leadership Training, which involves camping outdoors in winter.
*The dancing school people, who help impart good morals to my children, who for some reason listen to them but not to me. (www.studiofivedancecompany.com)
*The weather in NC, which allows me to write this blog on November 22, wearing a tee-shirt and jeans while having all of my windows wide open, with the heat turned off.
*My cat sitter, who cat-sits even when the cats are not home.
*My ex-husband, who is taking my children on vacation to visit family, thus enabling me to enjoy not only a five-day reprieve from the kids, but also facilitating the greater procrastination of my need to drive them fourteen hours to New York myself.
*My current husband, who is so helpful and supportive that I refrain from telling people because they become green and irritated.
*My next husband... just kidding! (Thanks Mark, for laughing at my jokes too.)
*My two children and two stepchildren, all of whom rarely have meltdowns (even when I do), and none of whom are criminals in any way, shape, or form.
*My fellow writers on the Backspace Writer's Forum, who are just about the only people in life I can count on to be brutally honest at all times, yet with good intentions. (www.bksp.org)
*The fact that there is not a gigantic lit-up tree full of cat choking hazards in my living room. Yet.
*Online Christmas shopping.
*And of course, my sincere thanks to all of you who follow my blog; I appreciate your support.

Okay, I'll stop now. Because really, this list could go on and on and on.
What about you? What are some of the less obvious things you're thankful for this Thanksgiving?

Thursday, November 4, 2010

Five Things I Learned This Week

1. Clubbing, which begins no earlier than 11 pm, was a lot more fun when I didn’t get up at 6 am every day because my kids’ school days start so early. And when I had friends who wanted to do it with me.

2. If you join a gym, you can drive by and say “That’s my gym.” You can wear the t-shirt, carry the membership card, and pay the money. But if you don’t go there and work out, you won’t actually become any more fit.

3. There are some friends with whom there is no choice but to phone at a time you know is inconvenient for them; the only other option being to call at 3 am to shoot the breeze because really, there is no time during normal waking hours when you’d both be available.

4. When applying a fake cat nose to one’s face, do not use "Outlast" lipstick because you are too lazy to search for normal lipstick that would have washed off without practically having to apply a chemical solvent.

5. When waking a teenager, begin by finding the wire peeking out of the blankets. Follow it along, and if you come across an iPod, reverse directions. Eventually you will arrive at the earbuds, which are in the head of the near-comatose teen. (More waking a teen tips in this humorous article: http://shine.yahoo.com/channel/-/user-post-how-to-awaken-a-teenager-on-shine-2402224/)