Ask and ye shall receive

I work with small children. This leads to conversations that teeter between the endearing and the bizarre. That having been said, I had one of the more moving ones of my life today. I took one of my little fellows with me to wait for the school buses to arrive today. For matters of discretion, I'll just say Jay.  He's 5 and has a little trouble communicating with others.  I don't mean verbally, just connecting. It's causing him some troubles in Kindergarten.  As we waited, we played a little game where I asked him a question and then he asked me a question.  It was mainly about food and home. Apparently 2 of Jay's favorite things. One of his fist questions was who lives in your house. I replied that my mother and I do. On his next turn, he asked me where my Dad was? I told him that my Dad had died. His response was "Oh...I didn't know that".  I peppered my turns with questions about food, his room, his cat.  So, I assumed that I had braced myself for his next question. "What did your Dad look like?". Wow. Simple question. Yet, so not ready to answer. And good Lord, why not? Why am I not ready to answer a 5 year old as to what my father looks like? Because, it's not what he looks like...it's what he looked like. Looked. So, without a glance at my 5 year old counter-part, I glibly answer him. "Gosh, tall with grey hair. He wore glasses. Nice eyes. " I glanced at him. He was barely looking at me. "huh" was his response. I asked the same question of him. And his response was easy. He looked at me after he answered and said "Are you still sad?". "Yep" And Jay paused. For a long time. I mean, long enough that I thought he had moved on to another train of thought. And then he said:  "I'd be sad for a long time too."  He's 5. Five!!!!!! That is why I work where I do. This is why I get paid the crap salary. For a child who communicated perfectly when he needed to. I love my job. 

A teeny tiny television rant

I may be the only person who is actually watching the show Life on Mars. I think I've just continued to watch it because I can't really believe that ABC kept this show but threw Pushing Daisies, Eli Stone, and Dirty Sexy Money under the bus. Life on Mars on its best days is confusing. Do you know what makes it even more confusing? When you show episodes of a serial television program out of sequence. This means that a show that is difficult to follow becomes virtually impossible. Sigh. I'll just add it to the list of things I need to remember when I take over the world. Air television shows in order. Do something about that Ryan Seacrest fellow.  The list grows ever longer. 

I am Steeler Nation

So, a rather pompous person that I met recently found out that I am a rabid Steeler fan. "Oh" he snorted. "You're one of those". Those? THOSE???? What the hell does that mean I queried oh-so-politely. "Oh, you know. One of those sheep that just follows the masses." Really. Well, for the record, sir, I am not a sheep but a member of a tribe. A tribe known as Steeler Nation. We wear black and gold proudly. We love our team win or lose. We write songs to express our joy. Swing our towels and drink our beer. Praise and armchair quarterback with equal fervor. We greet each other with a automatic "Go Steelers" to begin and end our conversations. My tribe is strong. My tribe is part of who I am.

I wish I had said any of that. But I didn't. I did the only thing I could think of at the time. 

"Baaa"

A shining hat of hope

The hat truly speaks for itself. Inauguration day? For that, I have no words. I am politically overwhelmed. Bedazzled if you will.  Currently, I am picking myself up and dusting myself off. How are you? 

Fresh

The kids in my group all know my favorite saying. In fact, they tend to recite it with me when annoyed or whisper it quietly when being corrected. "Every day is fresh with no mistakes in it". Fresh. What a wonderful word. Rolls so nicely on the tongue. It makes you think of good smelling things. Of  crunchy apples and clean sheets. So, for me, this new year is fresh with no mistakes in it. No year is mistake free. Hell, I don't think I can get a mistake free day. So this is what I strive for:

To try and think the positive FIRST before going for the negative. 

To read 

To peek out of my emotional burrow and get back into the game

To seek friends who treat me with the same respect I give them

To give my friends more respect :P

To spend more time with family

To travel

And to actively find the funny in the darker moments of my day

If I mess up--well, every day is fresh. 

A Linus moment

Every Christmas, I need a Linus moment. You know, the penultimate moment of the Charlie Brown Christmas special when Linus says "That's what Christmas is all about Charlie Brown".  It doesn't have to be religious, I just need someone or something to awaken my Christmas spirit.  I was at work and there was a gentleman that was leaving one of our Prime Time units.  Prime Time is a place where the elderly come to stay for the day while their children/loved one goes to work. Sort of like adult daycare, though I hate calling it that.  Anyway, I was walking past this gentleman who was leaving, when he stuck out his hand to shake mine and said "You are a good, strong, woman. Merry Christmas." His daughter was clearly embarrassed and tried to hurry him along. I shook his hand and told him "You made my day. Merry Christmas." He responded by saying, "Christmas is a time when everyone should know their worth.". I was moved. Completely moved. It was my Linus moment. I felt the Christmas spirit in me. And now I decorate. I bake. And I am going to make sure that the people around me know their worth.  Merry Christmas indeed. 

Eight Things

Okay, over at Laura without Labels (one of the blogs that I regularly delight in) she posted a list of eight things about herself.  Basically eight things that don't need to be known. Not because they are extremely personal--but things that are not necessarily advertised about yourself.  As I have stated in previous blogging, I love lists. Ergo, my Eight Things. 

1. I used to smoke a pack a day.

2. I own the Growing Pains soundtrack on CD

3. I have eaten a delight known as duck's blood soup

4. I helped to build houses in St. Croix after a hurricane

5. I met Ted Nugent and Coolio (but not on the same night)

6. I adore musical theatre

7. I am 50% Polish and 50% English

8. My first car was a yellow Mercury Grand Marquis

No tagging anyone, just love list-making.  If you want to write your own, send me a post. We can compare absurdities.