The Ol' Time Flies Syndrome

We are at the end of another year.  Amazing how quickly time passes.  Someone recently answered my question about the passage of time with the explanation that when we are very young, everything is new and unexperienced.  Taking everything on the full spectrum of our beginning lives in takes attention span and time if you will.  That makes the passage seem slow. Christmas, Easter, summer, and school  getting out, becoming a teenager, getting a drivers license,  the Prom, you name it, "never" gets here!

Now, presently,  we've seen and experienced much and as a result we  have become excruciatingly aware of how quickly our time here passes.  It is truly "in a blink of an eye"--- just as we have read. We, as like flowers,  fade within a day.

Another year is on the horizon of our days; and it is my most sincere wish that we all of us make it as kind and loving as humanly possible.  Each day is an opportunity to try afresh.  To make our lives count.  To "do unto others" and be the kindness that another might need whether human or animal.  It matters.

Taken in the spring.  

A Wonderful Day

Guys, all the family were together yesterday and that made it the best of days.  The weather was nice yesterday and today.  Yesterday we were all together for gifts and dinner.  So I didn't walk.  But today, my middle boy and I went to the park and hefted ourselves around the park six times for our own good.  He will go home to Charlotte Saturday- which I wish was not happening; but he teaches and school will be resuming Monday.

Here is the sky Christmas morning standing freezing on the deck in jammies again.   So pretty.

I have eaten as though nothing matters these past two weeks.  I will actually be glad to get back on the wagon of sensible eating again.  You think you want to eat all that junk, and when you do...it never seems to turn out well.  My stomach is never glad of my indulgence.

Katie got some wonderful presents form her boycat furriend.  And also from some girlcats that she loves.  Their momma sent an advent calendar,  some Katie toys and some kitchen towels with their State's name on it which I LOVED because I love that State after having lived there for awhile.  And a coffee cup mentioning my love for black cats.

Look what the middle son did yesterday evening with the at least...well and truly, third of a cup of real butter (at least) that was put on my potato.  I scooped it off as quickly as I could to avoid the extra 400 calories melting into my potato.  I forgot to say "put it on the side please".

Katie posted this picture of the superior artistic skills involved this morning in her bloggie.  All my boys are cat men.

Better (and more kind) Than the Alternative

I had several experience the past two days that gave me a lot of food for thought.

1.  Yesterday I went to the pet food store I always go to.  I had had a coupon in the mail for 12% off.  I put it in my wallet and headed to the store.  I bought a new (ahem) jumbo sized litterbox for her...and a new bag of dry food.  Her wet foods as well.  The entire thing was ninety some dollars.  I whipped out my coupon after the fact, and the cashier was kind enough to refund my money and start again with the coupon.  She wound up having to re-do everything singly, not in a clump of goods which was time consuming for her.  After several minutes, it was totaled and my coupon wouldn't work.  She studies it and it was half a month out of date.  I thought Dec. 29 and it was Nov. 29.  After all of that other part of what she through to help me, and it was a lot!  I said "well, guess I'll have to bite the bullet".  She said, "No, I'm honoring it." I was so surprised and so glad of that wonderful thing.  It saved me quite a bit.  As thought I didn't even have to pay our usurious 10% sales tax and then some more.  I was in a happy frame of mind all day.  It pays to be nice always-- and I always do try.

2.  Then, today I went to the drugstore to pick up another family members prescription.  I was called Darling, Sweetheart, and Honey throughout.  The pharmacy tech was a 30 some year old female behind the counter.  I'm not at the stage of one foot in the grave yet.   But I sure ain't no Spring or even Summer chicken. 🙀  I will admit, I don't care for the terms when they are applied to me ( just there at that store)  unless it's some luscious man of course who is saying them. The phrases could be looked at as condescending.  However, I smiled and  I was my usual self.  On my way out...the title of this particular blog came to my mind.  Before I got in the car, I was grateful to be thought of in so nice a way as to be called those endearments however over-used they may be in terms of speaking to someone older. Far and away better to be considered a dear and a sweetheart than the unsavory alternative.  I am always treated very well there.  I've been a customer probably 20 years.  I get hugs occasionally from the female pharmacist (even older than ME!)  and genuine big smiles and a little humorous conversation from several of the Pharmacists, and two of the male techs back there.  I love to laugh and so do they.

However, for  a short while, deep inside where I kept it, it annoyed me to be called those sweet things...for the reason I said.  It made me feel ancient.  AND... maybe I am the only one who doesn't know I am....  However, getting in the car I was smiling again and knew I wanted to tell you about it.

XX

Childhood Christmas

The thrilling excitement I felt as a girl,  especially from ages 8 years through till marriage.

As I mentioned, the excitement about Christmas as a girl between those ages was just past description here.  I don't have adequate adjectives or adverbs to do so, it was that exciting.  I thought I was going to bust wide open, I was that excited.

 I recall lying there in bed each year...after having  gone to bed voluntarily much earlier, waiting hours trying to go to sleep.  I was so excited about Christmas morning I could hardly sleep at all till long after everyone else had long gone to bed.  They were all old as the hills it seemed to me.

Now, truth be told I had been peeking for a good three weeks prior to Christmas.  I knew things were hidden in the large closet so I would sneak in there to look at what they were.  I tried with all my being not to look but I did.  I knew I would not have surprises on Christmas, but I couldn't help peeking.  I probably was not too clever putting them back either.  My mother sent loads of things a month before Christmas and they were absolutely opened early by me to try on...I couldn't stand it.   I knew they were going to be very pretty clothes and they always were.

But my one of my brothers got the best of me when I was just turned 12.  There was little under the tree that night when I forced myself to bed early.  And Wayne, my brother had been droning on about how he said the white shoe skates I wanted  so badly and so desperately were too expensive, and he was just warning me not to get my hopes up as Dad said they were too expensive for him... he would say.  I believed him.  I always did.

When all our gifts were opened Christmas morning, I was putting things away, when my brother came in with a large gift wrapped box saying it had been  missed and not put under the tree.  I opened it, and guys, it was my so so hoped for pair of white shoe skates, a great skate box and POM POMS too.  With bells!  I know I hollered!  I was like a kitty with extra whiskers and two tails or something I was so excited!  There were even a dozen tickets to go to the weekend skating times at the arena.

Floating on air...happier than being in a bakery with all my faves...smiling till my face hurt...little screeches I am positive, and running and about knocking Dad down with my thank you hug!

One of my best most memorable Christmas's ever.  Did you anticipate like that?  Were you giddy with excitement?

XX

Got to Thinking

Since I spoke of childhood a few days ago,  I thought I would finish that topic with a couple of goofs I made.

I was a Freshman in High School. One day, the bell had rung and we had changed classes.  I was settled into English class quite comfortably at my desk with my legs crossed. The foot of the (right) leg that was crossed over my left knee, was then tucked behind the calf of my left leg.  I was all pretzeled up with my legs twisted every which way.  Forty- five minutes went by.  The bell rang again signaling the end of the period; and when I made to get up my legs were paralyzed.  Truly.

They were unmovable.  The classroom emptied including the teacher and there I was frantically trying to unhook my foot from its place behind my calf with my hands!  I had NO feeling whatsoever in my legs.  Really.

After I arm wrestled my foot from its place behind my calf, down to flop on the floor with STILL no feeling, I was starting to panic.  I pried my leg from its perch over my other knee and tried to stand  to get feeling in my legs while holding onto the desk.  Minutes had gone by and kids were coming in and one was needing to occupy my chair!  Had to get moving somehow someway.

I stamped and danced about getting some more blood flow into my legs till I was finally able to leave the room but in a peculiar stumbling way.  It took several minutes to make it to the next room.  That was seriously the most worrisome thing and the stupidest I had done to that point.

Except the time I accidentally jammed a compass point into my palm in 7th grade.  Oh.  Ouch!  I did get sent to the nurse's office; and I tried to spin it put into the rest of the afternoon but she was on to that would-be ploy of mine.  Got sent back to my room.

The time I sneezed in 6th grade and something unfortunate happened to the chair of the student in front of me lives on in the annuls of embarrassment in my mind then-- and even now if I am unfortunate enough to think of it.

BUT time marches on...and I am not there any more.  WHEW!

Are you about ready for Christmas?  She is, I'm not.

OH NOES!

Oh my gosh, gee whiz, jiminy gee...today I walked outta the rest room in a very public place, the hospital, with a peculiar whispy sound following me.   I stopped.  Looked down and around.  Toilet paper!  I had walked out trailing TP on my shoe bottom!  Holy cow.  That was a first.

Or was this worse--- when I was in 5th grade and my underwear's elastic band gave totally out and my drawers dropped.  They really did.  On the street.  At least the other kids didn't see that. No passers by at the time (yes, it's engraved in my memory) but cars were passing and I had to step out of them and pick them up.

Another embarrassment was when my best friend and I took a 6 mile walk for pity sake and it was a school day.  We'd walked 4 of those miles on a dirt road called Alexaulton Creek Rd.  When we came out to a 4 lane highway from the dirt road, and were going to walk it to get back to town, a car passed, then stopped. The driver and his wife looked at us and pointed and said, "GET IN THE CAR"!  We did.  We were silent all the way back to our separate homes and got  chewed out every inch of every mile along the way.  Both for playing hooky and for being two 12 year olds walking out on the public highway and on a dirt road.

They didn't tell my Dad.  Don't know if my girl friend's parents were told.  We never brought that embarrassment up to one another again.

Ah.  Childhood memories.  I got a million of them.