Rainy Days & Mondays

This notorious Carpenters song has been circling in my head all day like a plane waiting for clearance to land. Even though Karen obviously didn't have EVERYTHING figured out...she definitely knew what she was talking about when she sang this song.

I'm not looking forward to the climatic changes that will occur in my part of the world in a few months. (Hey, it's Florida. Our kids sweat their booties off on Halloween night, even when they have smart, beautiful mommies who tirelessly hunt down a costume that breathes...which is next to impossible to find, by the way.) Over the past few years, I've learned the power of the weather over my psyche. It's stronger than Prozac.

On the bright side, I shine with optimism throughout the summer and spring. I'm energetic and yearn to be outdoors doing things completely out of my nature...like, plant flowers and weed. This year (and you may want to sit down for this one), I actually came close to asking my husband to teach me how to start the lawn mower. Yeah! Thank God I came to my senses! Whew!! I'm positive I would have lived to regret that one very quickly...

On the flip side, what a bummer a rainy day can be. What's even more depressing, I tend to carry this sort of depression through the fall and winter, as well. Last year, I started to come to some conclusions as to WHY my emotions seem to be so hypersensitive to weather....I'm lazy.

Really. I am.

The bottom line is, I can't stand having to work harder because of the weather. I do NOT like having to tote an umbrella. I despise wet feet and pant legs, not to mention frizzy hair. (The bane of my existence.) I cannot stand having to dawn jackets, hats, gloves, and skarves just to step outside. I don't like real shoes...or socks...or, for that matter, TIGHTS. I also do not enjoy having to add layer upon layer of clothing to a body that really needs to shed a layer or two to begin with.

But alas, I have not yet taken up permanent residence in my own castle in the sky. I "get it" that I can't have my lovely summer soul year round...nor can I enjoy that elusive money tree that continually evades my capture. So, for now, I'll suck it up and cover up.

Until, that is, I move to Bali.

My One Regret

Summer is such a wonderful time of year for me. I love how relaxed, how carefree, how stagnant I become.

Now, you might be wondering, if I was so relaxed, carefree and stagnant, why wasn't I blogging more this summer?

Um, hello? When I said I was stagnant I was not referring to my rear end...well, too much. What I was referring to was my BRAIN.

I remember, as a child, going back to school each year after seemingly everlasting summer vacations and realizing that I had lost all dexterity in my hands. My muscles actually forgot how to write. The simple act of holding a pencil in my hand felt oddly foreign to me. It was a feeling much like trying to write a word that you're sure you know how to spell, but for some reason, at that moment, you stare at the letters like they're Greek until, finally, you turn to a neighbor and ask, "Does that look right to you?" At which time they nod and look at you with suspicion, wondering what person in their right mind forgets how to spell their own name...

Try as I might, I have not been able to figure out a way to function in the world as an adult without picking up a pen or pencil for two months. At the very least, those pesky sales people demand I sign the credit card slip. This may be the reason I've developed the tradition of offering other body parts an opportunity to atrophy during the summer months.

While I am not a person who has experienced much success at truly relaxing (I'm neurotic, remember?), I do enjoy rotting my brain. I have to admit that I have many fond memories of summers spent camping out in front of the predictable agenda of daytime television; sitting Indian style* at my coffee table, enjoying a homemade spinach, tomato and mushroom personal pizza for lunch, watching Starting Over; rocking sleeping babies all the way from Regis & Kelly to the end of Martha Stewart. For a few months of every year, I take pleasure in watching General Hospital. I even enjoy the initial stage of momentary confusion (and it is truly only momentary) while I try to fill in the blanks of a year's worth of storyline.

I'm sorry to say that I did not wallow in my summer this year as I have in years past. Perhaps it was the presence of my little shadows. Perhaps it was their own strong opinions about what channel we should be watching. Perhaps it was the absence of any sleepy little babies requiring multiple daily naps. Perhaps it was the growing workload accompanying my growing family, or my growing sense of responsibility to the world around me (a.k.a. screaming children, barking dogs, and my ever-expanding behind) compelling me to get up and do something.

I strive to live a life that will allow me, in the end, to look back and say, "I have no regrets." This summer, I failed. I regret that I did not spend more days in my pajamas, watching mind-numbing, slightly entertaining, daytime television this summer...because I love that.

I suppose there's always next year.

*I know this term is, apparently, politically incorrect now. However, this is what we called it when I grew up and it is what I THINK when I think of sitting cross-legged on the floor. In my classroom I call it "criss-cross", or when I taught 1st grade, "criss-cross applesauce". But this is my blog and I can call it what I want, so there.

One of My Newest Faves

I remember being a child and going with my grandmother to this really eclectic little store in town where you could get things like white restaurant dishes and papazan chairs and cheap glassware and floor pillows and neat little oriental boxes. You may have heard of the store, I think it was called "Pier 1".

Yeppers...the cheap Pier 1 of my childhood is now extinct. R.I.P., baby. Don't get me wrong, Pier 1 still has great stuff to drool over; over the years, they've expanded their merchandise to include upholstered pieces and extremely overpriced...well, everything. I love to window shop there - but rarely ever make a purchase anymore.

However, this summer I've fallen in love with, what I consider to be, today's version of yesterday's Pier One -- WORLD MARKET. That's not to say that they don't have some hijacked prices from time to time, but they still have an awful lot of sweet deals that I just LOVE to snatch up!

For instance, I just love my new pot holders. (Oh my goodness, I've resorted to blogging about pot holders...what does this say about me?) They're cute and, as I described them to Big Girl, happy.

I also have become addicted to my pumice sponge. It's just like the ones the girls at the nail salon use when I get a pedicure! Now I can give myself a not-nearly-as-relaxing-or-graceful shower pedicure!

World Market also sells one of my favorite wines. This is the only place I've seen this label...but that doesn't really mean THAT much, considering I don't shop for wine in very many places. (If it isn't on my beaten path, chances are I won't get there.) The first bottle of this wine I bought was a very thoughtful decision, like all that I make. I liked the bottle. It was purty. And it comes

in a variety of different designs! Fortunately, the wine inside has lived up to the bottle's reputation.

I also adore the refreshing lemon and sage kitchen soap and lotion set I scored. (Really, Jenny? This post might be an all-time low -- adoring soap?) Its light, fresh scent is a perfect match for the clean, soft feel it leaves on my hands after I wash my hands 500 times (a little compulsively, I admit) throughout the course of preparing a meal for my family. I've also, at times, found myself walking past the sink in the guest bathroom to wash my hands in the kitchen because I prefer this soap! (Which really is not as unsanitary as it seems, folks. I leave the door open when there's no company at home, don't you?)

And, I have to be honest, I'm not the only one who loves World Market in this house. Big Girl has developed a passion for this shopping wonderland, also. Her favorite item? Fruit Stripe gum. Which I find especially amusing since this was one of my childhood favorites, too.

I could go on to tell you lots of other reasons for my newest love affair - like the great tote bag I got for FREE (no purchase necessary) to celebrate the start of "Discovery Days", or the FREE Fandango movie ticket I got with my purchase this week...but I think I've said enough.

This is getting embarrassing.