Summer

I love summer. It's my favorite season hands down. I love the warmth, refreshing swims, and especially the light. Because even if you are working, you can enjoy the day and the light - before or after work. One of my favorite things is walking the dogs early in the morning - waking up with the world. Wouldn't it be great if we could at least have the light all year round? I could do without cold and I think I'd be fine. A little, fall-like chill every once and a while would satisfy the need for refreshing air and good sleeping weather.

Anyway, you get the idea. And when I expressed the above sentiment to the family about loving summer Michael said, "But mom, you are working" - as if I didn't get summer.

He's right to some extent. I don't get summer like they do. When school ends, you have this expanse of summer days and endless possibilities sweeping before you like an everlasting dream. But the season is still here and I am not dead yet. Plus I have a couple weeks vacation coming at the beach.

Also, I discovered something. You can go on a mini-vacation after work. I left work one day at 4 p.m. and took the boys to the beach. We stayed for only an hour or so but it was glorious. It was one of those 92 degree days and a good ten degrees cooler at the beach. The temperature was perfect - although it felt cool when we first walked up to the beach from the parking lot. The water was so refreshing. I felt very present enjoying that hour and very blessed to live in this gorgeous state.

I thought to myself, "Could anything make this more perfect - a beer for example?" No, the sun was just the right angle, the warmth on my skin was soothing. PERFECT.

In an aside, I was worried this morning because I lost my blog notebook with all my wonderful ideas I jot down. It's always in my purse and it is missing. Perhaps I left it at work. I'm pretty sure I did. Still, I felt a real loss. If all those humorous ideas are gone, there will be others but those are surely lost because I can't remember. Unrelated thoughts will be an addendum when I find that notebook. Until then, enjoy the most glorious season of all - summer!

UNRELATED THOUGHTS

• When a pack of women walked by me in the graveyard and admired Buster, one of them said, "Pollen?" in regard to the brownish, yellowish smudge on his back. "No, he rolled in something," I called and they recoiled in minor horror. Later I found out it was poop, pure and simple.
• Have an older friend who calls you kiddo. It won't bother you so much when you're in your 40s or older.
• Seen on Honey Dew Donuts sign: Peach Muffins Yahoo
• Boredom stifles creativity.
• I asked Michael, "What are you doing today?" Response: "Mom, it's raining." Duh
• Is it a coincidence that sun rhymes with fun and rain rhymes with pain?
• "Mom, are you thinking what I'm thinking?" Michael said this one morning - referring to me making him an egg sandwich. I thought it was funny so I did.
• When I asked Michael about my new painting he said (and I quote), "Mom, we're guys."
• Extreme coupon shopping - I watched a couple buy 35 rolls of paper towels and 50 bags of Cool Ranch Doritos. Why?
• Some of these cool summer mornings/nights I walk by houses literally with dollar bills pouring out their AC window units. Why?
• I told Daniel we had a dog once who only used the dog house once in his life - when he died. Daniel proceeded to tell me it was a "portal." Did any of my loyal readers use that word when you were 8?
• A radio show announced a free trip giveaway to Paris, France. Did they really need to say France? I suppose it could have been Paris, Texas.
• Daniel: "Mom, is your work fun?" "No, sitting in a chair all day is not fun." Daniel: "Hey that's what I do too in school." He then proceeded to tell me about how thinking about Matunuck and Maine helps get him through the school year. "Me too. Me too."
• Rule for living with teenagers: Speak only when spoken to.
• Aren't you glad I found my notebook so you could read all these incredible insights?

I wrote a poem today

To only look out, from these eyes
And not see myself grow old
The brown spots on my skin
That sprout growths

I long for the white marshmallow skin
I've seen in diners
Of rural, midwestern towns

Women whose flabby arms
Stayed in the shade
Their pale white faces belie the sun drenched damage

Oh, to only look out
And feel I am still a girl
Flawless

But I didn't know

Unrelated thoughts

• It occured to me that many days I feel like a typing monkey at work or a drone in a bee hive.


• Daniel wanted to be sick so he could use the computer, drink Gatorade and watch T.V. He got his wish and I told him I'd buy him Gatorade if he got what Matt had (5d fever, 2 d malaise). Day 6 was today!


• Now he wants to be well and didn't show me the thermometer saying "It's 98.6." When I made him take his temp. again he said, "Oh look it went up." He's ready to get back to school.


• There is something to be said for endurance. I made it 1 year at my job.


• Seen on the Honey Dew Donut sign : "Peach muffins are back." I didn't know peach muffins where such a big draw. In fact, I've never had a peach muffin.


• Daniel told me I had paint in my hair. I told him I thought it was gray hair. "Well, there's a lot of it, " he remarked. "I'm getting old ......" I remarked back. "Aren't you 43. . . . ?" he said. A few years short, but I'll take it.


• Bumper sticker: "Don't believe everything you think."


• "I've waited 56 years for this" said my mother in regard to moving/keeping all of her furniture from her 3,600 square foot house which sold for full price. This in itself is a minor miracle. A major miracle would be getting her to downsize.


• Beware of the coxsackie virus.

Songs from my new album

can be found on You Tube. Here are the links:

Big Boned Gal

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=taABZxD4JwQ

Woman I Know

http://youtube/RsORs3huPxs

Daddy Daddy

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=INDgfCwBmgI

Country Road

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ar9b6Rdolgo

Does your furniture have a hold on you?

Have I written about this before? How women of a certain age have a penchant for wanting to hold onto all of their furniture. I am talking all of the good stuff they have accumulated throughout their lifetimes. Take my mother for example.She lives in a 3,700 square foot home and is seriously contemplating staying put 1,000 miles from family because she wants to keep ALL of her furniture. Say what? She expressed some such notion this way: I waited my whole life for this. . . Not me. I feel like I could move into one room easy. Downsize me to a monk’s cell and I could be happy. The simplification and the shedding of possessions would make me very light. Very light indeed.

Somy mother is contemplating staying ALONE where she is - in her dream home surrounded by her beautiful things that she has waited her whole life for.

But I’ve got my eye on a 1,100+ square foot little place for her less than a 10 minute walk from the house. This would be perfect and cozy for one but she worries about the lawn, snow etc. and wants a condo – even though she’s not in a condo now. She is obsessed with the pricey condos at Wakefield Meadows because, you guessed it, she can keep all of her furniture in the 2,200 square feet. The cozy cottage I’ve got my eye on has a nice brick fireplace and hardwoods, it’s one level, with a nice yard. I think there’s even a sunroom of sorts. Practical –yes. Dream home – no. And there are three boys within a ten minute walk or a three minute bike ride who can move her lawn and shovel her walk. Also, we can conveniently pick her up to drive her places rather than travelling across town to get her. Note: she will not be driving herself much longer.

This is not a furniture survey of one mind you. I have witnessed this recurring theme with two other older ladies. My poll of three has all living in houses far toobig for them. And in my mother-in-law’s case – she has two houses. One is for furniture and one is for living (I am not kidding).

This (waste) wouldn’t be an issue if multiple generations still lived together.

A friend said he had one word for my mother: IKEA.

I have one word for my friend: YES.

Things are just things but when you are in your 80s apparently not.

Unrelatedthoughts

• I think John Travolta probably did offer reverse massages to the masseurs.Supposedly lots of Hollywood stars are gay and pretend not to be. Who knew?
• I think the odds are high that I will be the one to find my boss (80) dead in his office. Confession: I periodically think about this when I see him cough or gasp for breath.
• How to get your teenage son to hate you more? Tell him you are taking him for a phone upgrade and detour to the barber for a haircut. Note: I have not actually done this.
• Poor Matt has had a high fever for 5 days – probably just the flu but blood work may tell a different tale. I told my boss if I get what he has I’ll be out all next week. I told Matt that this illness could kill an elderly person. . . .but I did not tell my boss this.

Lottery dreams

Like many of you, I have been fantasizing about the MegaMillions jackpot. In fact, I bought my first ever lottery tickets today. Two of the tickets were random combinations of numbers but for one I picked the numbers myself. As I read out the six numbers to the clerk, 201101 – another customer began laughing. Silly me. There are no zeros. I told the clerk I better fill out the card. So I did and picked 01 02 10 11 20 02. What I was trying to do was use some combination of these numbers: 201 1010 2011 as my father died at 2:01 p.m. on Oct. 10, 2011. The more I looked at the sequence the more I noticed a pattern and thought this might be my key to the abundance I desire – 2011 010 2011 does not seem like a random sequence to me. Perhaps it was a sign. (This is what boredom at work can lead to). Well, 01 02 10 11 20 02 was about as close as I could get to the death numbers and when I arrived at the counter with my card – again the customer was laughing at me. I almost said something about this being my first time but decided to ignore him. Ha, just wait until I win. Meanwhile, the clerk was very nice and asked me if I would like to keep the card. “Why?” I wondered. “In case you want to play it again,” he said. “No.” This was my one and only chance. All or nothing.

Daniel wants to go to Costa Rica if I win. I explained we will go to Costa Rica if I win but it’s pretty hard – something like one in 175 million. But that number is changing every second as 1,200 tickets are sold per minute. Matt chimed in from the other room and told me to be positive. Well I am very positive. So positive – these thoughts of abundance have had me smiling all day long. I feel adrenalin and endorphins surging through my body.

What would I do with a cool $300 million? I would do the same things I want to do now but don’t have the money for. Make sense?

-Stay in Matunuck all summer and/or buy a house there.

-Take annual trips with family – but first Costa Rica.

-Donate 10 percent to charity and set up a philanthropy (for the disadvantaged).

-Retire and manage my philanthropy/philanthropic pursuits.

-Fix up house - new walkway, new rug/or wood floor, convert garage to family room, build new garage, repave driveway, paint, new appliances including a gas stove (stainless) – you get the idea.

-Buy an investment property that would generate monthly income.

-Buy Doug a new car.

-Consider giving some money to family/friends/church.

-Play tennis three times a week.

They say money doesn't make you happy. Well I am already relatively happy so that's not an issue for me. And I'll have lots of time to blog about the hapiness effect of all this money when I win. Stay tuned.

The Golden Years

You can just see the head or hump of the camel.

When you are staying for a week in Florida in an over-55 complex, there are many rules to adhere to, especially if you have children who are under 16. Children are not allowed in the pools before 10 a.m. or between the hours of 2 to 4 p.m. Children under 14 are not allowed in the pool without supervision. There is no jumping, splashing, rough play in the pools. In fact, there is no nothing in the pools – there is a whole list. And the old people will glare at you when you walk in or when you reach your hand through the ‘security’ fence to undo the gate instead of swiping the pass card.

But if you are creative, you can find a way to have a little fun in an over-55 community. You can be like Daniel, and puff your swim shirt up like a Portuguese Man-o-War and float on your back by the old people – working hard to get a reaction. (I think he received a startled look or two.) Or you can secretly race the old lady swimming laps back and forth and again try to get a reaction. You can also imagine what it would be like to bomb off the side of the pool into a cadre of old people, complete with floatable noodles under their arms and dry hair, your giant cannonball cascading water all over and spoiling the serenity. Ahhhhh, this is the life. Except until your 16 you can’t use the pool tables either.

In an aside, our elderly neighbor told us about hoop snakes in Appalacia. These snakes nip onto their tails and roll down the hills. She told us this tale as if she found it completely believable.

Unrelated thoughts

I returned home and realized that our house sitter/my good friend had been staring at my bra all week, hanging prominently off the knob of my dresser. Sorry to spoil the view Nan.

After waking at 3:00 a.m. for our flight home, I was in near hysterics on the leg from Atlanta to Providence when I saw a woman in front of me stroking a large, wooden camel that rested in her lap. At first I thought this was a Chihuahua but it was too large. She put the camel away at one point but brought it out again for the landing.

Books to read: City of Thieves (must) and The Devil In the White City (not finished yet but awesome). These are both non-fiction but read like novels – the best of both worlds.

I can’t think of anything else that’s funny because that camel is overpowering.

The power of prayer

We were flying from Providence to North Carolina to see my mother and all was going according to plan. Daniel, 8, woke on his own before I had to wake him and once in Providence we caught the bus from the parking to the terminal no problem. We zipped through security and sat at our gate for a relaxing hour drinking tea, eating muffins, and reading the comics. And then the worrying began.

The man at the gate asked for volunteers to check their bags for free. I volunteered thinking I wouldn’t have to load my bag and Daniel’s bag into the overhead bins. It would be easier. Daniel was protesting. He didn’t want to do it. Daniel must have asked 10 times if our bags were going to arrive in New Bern – before, after, and during takeoff. “Yes, of course the bags will make it,” I replied knowing full well anything can happen.

Once we thought we were on our way, we proceeded to park on the runway for an hour due to heavy incoming traffic to Charlotte. Then the worrying began. We could easily miss our connection in Charlotte to New Bern and we would have NO bags. I wasn’t feeling hopeful about a later flight to New Bern as it is a very small airport and one flight a day was probably it.

“Are we going to make our connection?” Daniel asked over and over. “I don’t know. I don’t know.” Well into the flight, the captain came on and explained that connections to New Bern were doubtful. Now Daniel was very worried. He decided to pray. “Dear God, I pray we make our flight to New Bern and Meemaw’s today. Amen.”

I am not kidding, shortly thereafter the captain came on the intercom and said the New Bern flight had been delayed and we might just make our connection after all. We high fived each other from our adjoining seats.

Still, we were still quite late and we had no idea how long the delay was. So once in Charlotte, we sprinted the mile from A terminal to E terminal (a good mile) and were surprised when we arrived at our gate. They were not even boarding yet. A nearby passenger couldn’t help but notice our huffing and puffing and asked what our name was. When I told her “McGovern” she said “I think the attendant is looking for you.”

Turns out her seat and our seats 4 A, B were broken and that was the reason for the delay. We needed new seat assignments. Well, Daniel was convinced that prayer works and later that weekend he said he would pray for the Patriots to win their game. I said, “I don’t think God cares about a football game.” His reply: “I'm gonna try it.” Because you never know, you never know.

Unrelated thoughts

-It's time for new glasses when you think the dog has snow on his back and he is simply wet and what you are seeing is his white skin.

-It's time for new glasses when an OLD man in the graveyard is walking a dog you know. The next day you see the same dog with it's regular owner. "I saw your father walking your dog yesterday," I said by way of greeting. The woman said, "Oh that was my husband, he's a little gray." I still think he looked at least 70 while she could be in her 30s.

-When my boss, 80, told me an elderly man came up to him - I asked "What's elderly." He explained that he was all stooped over.

-I found an escaped darkling beetle in the hallway. This is Daniel's pet beetle.

-When the piano teacher calls he always says, "This is Dennis, the piano teacher."

-What do allergies, autism and hyperactivity have in common? They were not nearly as prevalent 30 years ago.

-Kids are so tuned into allergies these days that when Michael had friends over for breakfast Daniel said, "You should ask them if they have allergies." I told him I would just sprinkle peanuts in their pancakes." NOOOOOOOOOOOOOO