Just Another Day

 I know that around the holidays people say they are really busy. And I am sure that they are. But I have been REALLY, TRULY busy in a way I haven't been busy for a very long time. Sixteen years, to be exact. You see, in one week, are moving. After sixteen years of being in this place, we are relocating. It is a very big change, for a very good reason, and overall a very positive thing. It's really and truly a blessing, to be honest.  I am not going to say why or where at this time, but suffice it to say there has been a home remodel for the past 7 months on top of the current moving process. Did I mention, I HAVE BEEN BUSY? There have been many Marie Kondo moments in the past few weeks for me, and I have donated an astonishing amount of things. You can accumulate quite a bit in that amount of time, and we have even done a fair bit of purging here and there too. But still, so much to go through.  As I have grown older, I am realizing that things are just, things. I am try...

No, sorry to disappoint, this is not a show with hot questions and even hotter wings. Although we do adore watching it, and our favorite guest by far was Conan O'Brien. If you haven't seen the show, it's possible that Conan's episode may not be where you want to start. The sheer unhinged insanity of it might spoil every other episode thereafter. Or, possibly it will make you hate the show altogether. It could go either way, really. But, if you do enjoy celebrity interviews with actually thoughtful questions, you should seek Hot Ones out.  No, this post is about my hot takes about things. Many things. Unrelated things. ALL THE THINGS! HOT TAKE #1 Zipper merging is great, fantastic, wonderful. Except 9 out of 10 people, at least in Southern California, can't, or refuse, to do it correctly. When traffic is moving slowly, 20 cars piling up to merge all the way at the very end of the merge lane is definitely not the way it was designed to be used. This also leads me to w...

I have been forced to conclude that I am by far the weakest link in the group when it comes to Escape Rooms. It's taken about 5 or 6 times, but finally I am here to acknowledge publicly that I don't have what it takes to complete these things.  My daughter and husband? On it. They stride about the room, proclaiming insightful observations about the various objects in the room and how they might be interconnected. They often have flashes of brilliance that lead to exciting breakthroughs and the next clue.  Me? I am definitely TRYING to be insightful, but I tend to just sort of point out 1 or 2 slightly useful things, and that's about it. I think my biggest accomplishment on the last room was discovering that a picture frame could be opened up. Invaluable contribution, I'm sure.  Sigh... Not to mention I am absolutely terrible at combination locks. I have no idea why, but if my life depended on my skills to accurately and quickly line up 5+ lines of a combination lock, I ...

 Well, the Celebration of Life went off with nary a hitch. My sister pushed back on the flowers, so I figured if she was that invested in not doing formal arrangements, so be it. I wasn't thrilled with how the flowers looked, but overall they were fine. My standards are probably too high for my own good. I was super lucky in choosing a really great caterer, and they did a beautiful set up, as well as the food being pretty delicious! My mother loved a high tea, so we went with a lot of things from a high tea menu, along with some of her favorite desserts. More than one person told me that the menu reminded them of times they spent with my mother and that was really very meaningful to me.  It is exactly why I went in that direction and I think it really paid off.  Also, I know that the event really provided a sense of closure for my Dad.  I think this type of tribute to my Mom was something he had been wanting to do, and I am glad we were able to finally execute it....

Well, my whisper campaign worked? We will be hosting a Celebration of Life for my mother in October. Not quite at the year mark, but close enough, I guess.  One interesting thing is that apparently my sister and Dad discussed it without me and then my sister just sort of informed me it was happening and on what date. And then I was expected to plan the majority of it.  Which. Is fine. I am currently not employed and my former job had me planning galas for 500, so this is definitely in my wheelhouse.  However, I just felt like old patterns were being repeated and not in a good way when I was not even involved in the discussions about the event and then just told about it. I mean, maybe I had made plans for that day! Maybe I had bought tickets to a concert or something! They would never have known because they didn't ask!  Many of my friends were outraged on my behalf, and I don't blame them. My sister may perhaps have, ahem, control issues. I think part of it may come...

I have determined that my family is...unusual. Well, I have always known this. The one year anniversary of my mother's passing is coming at the end of September.  We did not hold any kind of memorial service for my mother. For a number of reasons, I think. She was cremated, her death was so unexpected and fast, and it came right around a bunch of family birthdays and holidays. I think it felt at the time like we would be scheduling a memorial around a birthday or Thanksgiving and that just seemed like a huge bummer and we didn't want to do that to people. From August to January the majority of our family has their birthdays and of course all the major holidays.  But I do know my mother, and the Leo in her would want some kind of acknowledgment of her passing.  She would love to have a fancy room with beautiful flowers and people dressed up and speaking about her in glowing terms. I KNOW this IN MY BONES. She would be kind of insulted to just have nobody do anything at all...