things i tell myself though they ain't really true

we tell ourselves stories don't we?
i realized this this morning after eating a huge bowl of postal cafeteria oatmeal, which i do on most mornings.
the story i tell myself about my oatmeal is that after i eat it, i can then eat as much crap as i want
because somehow the oatmeal will act as a homeopathic Drain-o and purge my body of all the hydrogenated, sugar-filled cookies, brownies, muffins, and little debbies that i also consume nearly every morning.
oatmeal is rightfully touted as one of those majorly healthy power foods.
but i'm thinking i may just be better off without it.

the things we'd save from a fire

With the recent wildfires in southern california,
i have been thinking about
which material possessions i would grab
as i dashed from my flaming abode.
the kids, husband and bunny are safe.
i guess i would throw my fireproof strongbox out the window
knowing full well that it's not really fireproof
and that only half of the important papers that should be in it, are in fact, in there.
family photos, of course..(if i only knew where they were.)
john menihan's art work
my journals
the kids' artwork and writing
my curious george purse ( with my wallet in it hopefully..it would be a drag to have to get a new license).
and my red sneakers.
i find that i can deal with any difficult life situation more easily
when wearing the red sneakers.
i really don't feel attached to too many "things".
not that i don't want lots of stuff.
i just don't have lots of stuff.
i think i like looking at stuff and wanting stuff
more than actually owning it.
owning stuff is a pain because you have to put it somewhere
and then remember where you put it.
and you have to USE it or else you feel guilty for
buying it and not USING it.
the other day i was looking at a catalog
filled with items to help with meditation practice.
i showed jonah a zen clock that bongs a nice chime throughout the day to remind you to be mindful.
i also showed him a neat meditation mat.
then i reminded him that my birthday was swiftly approaching.
he shook his head and said "Mom, did Buddha sit on a mat and have a meditation clock?"
"No, Jonah, he probably did not".
"Then I really think that you don't need one either".
guess he gave me a little lesson on non-attachment!
Did I mention that Jonah was born on Dec.8, the day of Buddha's enlightenment?
So Buddha didn't have a clock or a mat , but i bet, if he could have, he would've had red sneakers.

Reunited

i know that things are just things, but some things have the power to make me enormously happy.
the color red is one such thing.
Curious George is another.
my Curious George purse changed my mood every time i wore it.
i lost the purse several months ago and while i tried to carry on with "life as usual.." there was a real sadness connected with this loss.
i bought the purse right before jonah was born almost 11 years ago.
his first gift.
which i quickly co-opted.
i have never seen another one like it.
my purse has been the envy of many women. total strangers have approached me to proclaim their fondness for it.
when it vanished,
i tried to retrace my steps, to no avail.
the last few months i have looked and relooked, finally giving up and accepting that i may never see it again.
tonight while looking for a winter comforter i found my favorite fashion accessory
hiding on a peg in a closet underneath a hoodie.
what a complete rush of joy
to see george's happy monkey face again!
there are some things
that go beyond thingdom.
my red sneakers.
my elvis power ring.
and george.
welcome home buddy.
it's crazy how much i missed you.

new word...and new magazine

two days ago i learned about a new boomer oriented magazine at work.
wally brought it over to show me.
it's called geezerjock and features articles for and about aging weekend warriors.
you can even buy geezerjock clothing at a place called bluehair active wear
oddly enough, a friend went to the doctor yesterday. he was dressed kind of sporty-like and didn't his doctor call him "GEEZERJOCK"? I'm not kidding.
you can tell that boomers are editing all of the major mags now.
AARP had a teaser on it's cover about 10 ways to look better..
didn't AARP used to run teasers about 10 ways to feel better?
we boomers are so vain. yes, carly, we do think the song was about us.

and now for the word that i learned today.
i was reading an article in New York magazine entitled "Everybody Sucks". the graphic on the first page of the article was a computer keyboard. in place of individual letters on the keys, each key was adorned with a put down...for example: nut job, dork, freak, fugly..and then i saw it...SADULT!!!
wow! that hurts. rather be a nut job than a sadult!

side effects

last friday my son came home from school sick.
the next day i started feeling like garbage.
on monday i took my son to the doctor for a strep test.
the quick test came back negative.
two days later find out he was positive.
go to my doc for a throat culture.
it was negative but they decided to start me on penicillin just in case.
after a few doses i'm not feeling any better AND my mouth starts feeling sore inside.
i go home and check the medication info for side effects..something i am loathe to do because once you read them it can scare the hell out of you.
i scanned the patient prescription literature.
there it was.."mouth sores may occur".
and then i read this:
"ALTHOUGH UNCOMMON, YOU MAY DEVELOP A BLACK,"HAIRY" TONGUE WHILE TAKING THIS MEDICATION. THIS EFFECT IS HARMLESS AND USUALLY GOES AWAY AFTER TREATMENT".
now i'm feeling really sick.
too bad it's not closer to halloween..could be a great addition to a werewolf costume.
wonder what the side effects of the medicine they give you for "BLACK HAIRY TONGUE" are?

objects of my obsession

we all need to have our happy place.
mine has always been the ocean.
this baby is more accessible..and i can always fill it with sand if need be.

i think the carriage house is the winner.
of course it needs a few more windows
but other than that
it's perfect......
i'm in love!
just goes to show,
one woman's shed is another woman's creativity castle!

(click on it to enlarge)

How much for a bushel of apples?

Last sunday i took the kids for a drive to a nearby apple farm.
we needed to get out of the house, enjoy the day, and buy a bushel of apples.
pretty straightforward agenda.
we got to the place and it was a mob scene.
wound up parking in a field quite a ways away from the building.
in order to get to the building you had to walk through the field which would have been no big deal EXCEPT for the fact that on that particular day there was an "open house" for these shed-type buildings set up there.
i tried to walk on by, but they were calling my name.
there were many models to choose from.
all were dolled up with windows and shutters. one had a FRONT PORCH. another had an upstairs.
i've given up on the vespa and now am fully fixated on building an adult playhouse in my backyard.
what would i do in there?
sit.
look out the window.
listen to music.
write.
read.
paint.
lie on my back.
can't i do those things in my house?
yes.
but it's different in a creativity shack.
outbuildings have figured into my life in a magical way since childhood.
my dad's sister had the "little house" down by the pond (and pavilion!) in her backyard.
she and my cousin used to paint and create stuff down there.
our neighbors in fairport had a barn in their backyard...right on Main St.
it was a kids only barn . we hung there constantly and felt like we were out in the sticks..far from our sterile suburban lives.
my first boyfriend also had a mini barn in his backyard and i probably loved it as much as i loved him..and that was A LOT!!
after moving to East Rochester our pet goat, Clea, even scored her own imitation log cabin in her pen.
it's my turn now!
the person in charge of the open house could see she had a "live one" in me and gladly gave me fact sheets, phone numbers and info about the fall sale ..along with a price list. for a 10x10..only $68.00/month . that is of course without the windows and shutters....and no porch!!
we bought our apples.
and some carmel sauce to dip them in.
donuts.
milk.
pumpkin pie.
but i left my heart there in that field with a bunch of vinal clad glorified tool sheds.
two weeks ago there was an article in the sunday paper about a growing trend towards people building adult playhouses rather than additions.
it feels good to know i'm not alone.
now i've got to check out the town zoning laws.
and convince my better half.
after all, he built a sauna out there years ago.. and it looks lonely.