I'm writing today's blog with no intention. This is a first. I usually sit down with a subject that I want to chat about and then work on covering all of my points. It's the Project Paper lover in me.
Yes, I was one of those dorks who loved to write essays or term papers in school. "What? We have a project due? Excellent! This should balance out those shitty test grades I got from never studying."
(My mother is cringing if she's reading this. She's fully aware that I had the worst study habits and it's done nothing but burn her biscuits all of these years.)
Today I'm gonna just sit my arse down and write.....let all of those lovely words in my brain flow out. No subject.
(this is me staring at the page)
You know what?
I'm freaking tired.
I'm tired of all of the bullshit going on around us. I'm tired of the political chaos. I'm tired of logging onto social media and seeing people argue as if their nasty words mean anything more than a way to cause pain. I'm tired of the hate. I'm tired of the schedule of life being flip flopped every time I think I'm getting used to the 'new normal'. I'm tired of seeing no toilet paper on the shelves at the damn store. And I'm tired of being tired.
To go even deeper, I have a whole list of crap that exhausts me on an internal level.
I don't sleep well, yet I always want to lay down. I'm depressed after discovering that I had bunch of friends who say hateful things on Facebook that don't match my beliefs. I'm hurt because I have people in my life who I adore, yet don't reciprocate my level of personal investment, so I must "let them be." I'm anxious about my daughter getting a good education and what it will mean if I don't do my part at a home well and she begins to slide. And chocolate doesn't taste right anymore.
Yet, there are people who have far larger worries than I do. And we all need to keep that in mind. We need to maintain perspective. It will foster gratitude.
Positive mindset, my peoples. I'm struggling to maintain it, but I'm trying.
We have a popular saying at our house that makes us giggle. We got it from my friend, Trish.
Trish and I were standing in the yard between our houses, talking about life and when there was a pause, she sighed, crossed her arms over her chest, eyebrows raised, and nodded knowingly, while saying, "Tough times, Vic. Tough times."
I don't know what it struck me as funny. It was so worldly and knowledgable, but it also made me think, "These things ARE tough, but it could be so much worse."
Also, she has the BEST facial expressions EVER and makes me laugh constantly, so I'm sure that factored into it.
So, as we approach the season of giving thanks, I say two things to you:
Yes, these are indeed tough times. We must cut ourselves some slack and just try our best.
But we need to remember that times are tougher elsewhere. Be compassionate. Use your gratitude to bring awareness to what's going on around you. And be gentle with those who are experiencing something different. We all are on separate paths.
I can't just end this on such a serious note.
I've been sending my daughter to school with a joke of the day. It started out as just ONE joke for ONE day. I thought it would be cute to put on her note in her lunch. (What is a cat's favorite color? Purrrrrple.)
The following school day, she asks, "Mommy, can you do another joke?"
Okay. No problem. I get on the internet and find another one. (What do you call a big pile of kittens? A MEOWntain.)
The following school day, she's getting dressed and she says, "Mommy, you better get down stairs and get working on your joke for today. I share them with the whole class."
Excuse me? Suddenly, I'm required to provide humor for her 4th grade class? Like, this went from something cute, to a job. Add that to my list of shit that will stress me out.
And then I think, 'One day she won't want jokes. And maybe she feels good entertaining the kids. And the teacher seems to be cool with it. Bust out your funnies, girl. These are tough times."
I will leave you with a few clean jokes I found along the way. I find them to be more entertaining when you try to imagine them when reading them the second time. Cuz you always have to read them twice. Enjoy.
- Two fish are in a tank. One says to the other, “How do you drive this thing?” (get it? The OTHER kinda tank)
- Just got attacked by 6 dwarves. Not Happy.
- Two fish swim into a concrete wall. One turns to the other and says, “Dam.”
- Larry was an old piece of lasso who steps into a bar one day for a drink. The bartender looks at him suspiciously and says, “Hey, Pal, we don’t serve ropes here.” Larry steps outside, ties himself into a clove hitch and unravels one of his ends into a feathery mess. He goes back inside and in a low voice says, “Beer, please.” Bartender says, “Hey. aren’t you that rope who was just in here?” Larry replies, “No, I’m a frayed knot.”
