The Lightness of Being

I love tragic love stories, and love foreign films and books. Several years ago, I read The Unbearable Lightness of Being, and found it to be a very deep, slightly disturbing book, brilliantly written. I followed it with the film, which was good but in my opinion, very loosely based, and as always disappointing compared to the book. But it had Daniel Day-Lewis, so WIN!!

For years, the message of the book disturbed me, because as often as I would re-read it, I just couldn’t grasp it. I’m not a concrete thinker by any stretch, but this was beyond my scope, even at the tender age of 21. Ok, perhaps because I was so young, then. In any case, it took me several years, and one epiphany, but I finally got the message. That concept of the “lightness of being” finally clicked.

And I know I can never feel it. And that’s a good thing. The lightness refers to being carefree, thinking only of the immediate, the “now”, whatever will make you happy and satisfied for YOU. Doing what I have to do, FOR ME, is never an option. I can never give in to the child-like selfishness, because I would then be forsaking those closest to me. Don’t get me wrong: I do small things for myself, like the bubblebath ritual and attending Wine Night with my friends. But I never let those things take precedence over anyone. I can’t. It goes against the very fiber of my being to do so. And in retrospect, I never understood it because I never have felt the need to feel the lightness, such as it is.

You may ask if I need to feel it now that I understand it. The answer is no, I don’t. I’m just glad I FINALLY figured out that little enigma from my youth, and can now shelve the book without a backward glance.

The movie, however, is still nice eye candy 😉

Happy 237th Birthday, U.S. Army!!

On this day, in 1775, the Massachusetts Provincial Congress appealed to the Second Continental Congress in Philadelphia to assume authority for the New England army, because as we all know, THE BRITISH WERE COMING!!! (I hope my friend Katie has a good laugh!) So, allegedly at the behest of John Adams, Congress voted to take the NE Army and conscript it for use in all colonies (though no written record exists for that vote). However, they did vote to “to bring in a draft of rules and regulations for the government of the Army,” thus, the birth of our U. S. Army.

Being an Army wife, I am partial to this military birthday, for it is two-fold.

Today is also Flag Day!! On this day, the Second Continental Congress passed the Flag Resolution of 1777, which officially adopted the flag of our new found country.

When I arrived in Texas, it was the summer of 1976. Everything was red, white, and blue, and I thought this was the most color-coordinated country in the world. My dad explained that we were celebrating a very important birthday, and so began my love affair with History.

Long may she wave!!!

Crossposted everywhere I’m at 😉

It’s Wednesday, and I Have No Idea What to Write

I woke up from a bad dream where I was drowning, and looking up through the water to the surface, and thought, “Wow, the light filters so nicely.” Even in nightmares I am distracted by SHINY!!

Sometimes shiny isn’t pretty. Sometimes you see the shiny and you start hearing “DANGER, WILL ROBINSON!!!” Like when you go to the store to put a pair of shoes on hold for a friend, and find out that the World Trollbeads are being released in the US for only two weeks.

DAMN YOU, FINANCIAL DIET!!!

But alas, sometimes shiny is not to be. So for now, I’ll content myself with the shiny I see around me. Remember, even broken glass has a shiny beauty of its own 😉

Findings and Inspiration

A few…. holy cow…. almost a year ago now, I bought two small curio cabinets with the intention of doing something creative. And then something shiny happened and forgot completely about them. I left them in their bag and placed them under the desk for future use, only something always came up for me to do instead.

That’s the curio cabinet in it’s natural state. It has possibilities!! All the little boxes got me thinking about all the little findings I have to fit inside them, each box telling a little story of its own. I kept thinking of what tableaux I could make in each section, the Steampunk screaming at me to go in that direction, but the romantic in me also prodding me to do something a bit more feminine. So far, this is what I have.

Yes, the bottle of poison has charms that say “4” and “Life”. I’m a sick person, I admit it!! But the juxtaposition was too delish to pass up. I keep lightbulbs, washers, nuts and bolts, any keys I find, wire, even screen mesh for use in my altered stuff. I can’t really call it art, though it is artistic. I do know one thing, though. I won’t end up owning it. I seldom keep the stuff I make. I can count on one hand what I have kept for myself!! But the joy is in making it, and in the giving. I just hope it finds a loving home.

But for now, I have to go scour the local hardware store for more findings. You can never have enough copper fittings 😀

Monday Random

That’s basically my excuse for not having a coherent post.

Son left for his ROTC Leadership training today, so the house is very quiet. Not because he is a loud kid, though his voice is deep and does carry. No, the house is quiet because there are no explosions, or gunshots, or aircraft, or HUT HUT HUT, or anything remotely resembling warfare coming from the game console upstairs.

Eldest went in with her dad to work today. That usually means she will either A) do grossing* in the Lab, 2) assist in an autopsy, or iii) begin learning phlebotomy.  I’m thinking it will be #2. Last time she assisted at an autopsy, she ended up teaching the resident how to gross a specimen.

Little One has once again commandeered the remote control to the family TV. Her choice of venue this morning? Game Show Network, while she waits for The Alfred Hitchcock Marathon. She hopes to see The Birds while I clean the bathroom. She knows I do NOT wish to see that film ever again, and has kindly told me when it will be on, so I can avoid it. She can be very considerate in that regard. Sometimes.

As for me, after the gutting of the kids’ bathroom, I shall be vacuuming my room and bath. I took the Wahl™ to both Hubby and Son’s heads, so there is hair everywhere.

Ok, I am not exactly innocent when it comes to hair strands all over the place. I do admit to shedding like a Pomeranian. But this time the fault is theirs.

Hope y’all have a great Monday, and don’t forget to every Monday, there is a Friday. No, I’m not sure what I mean by that, either 😉

* the study of tissue changes without magnification by a microscope. Basically you slice the tissue very thinly, apply a dye, and then look at the specimen. FUN!!!

4,000th Comment!!

Wow, I can’t believe that. This itty bitty blog has had 4,000 comments.

Yeah, ok…most are mine, because I talk a lot I wish to respond to everyone. Anyway, the honor goes to…

RABID ALIEN!! And with advice we should take to heart:

Two syllables: “Clay” and “More”. And always remember….”this side towards enemy”

This is where I would put up his avatar, but he doesn’t have one. However, if you wish to contemplate his visage, and that of his beautiful wife, click on the moniker. And if y’all want to talk about guns, The Lowry Place always welcomes it 🙂

I’m Officially a Cantankerous Old Lady

And I am being kind.

Yesterday, I was outside trimming the dead branches off my Pride of Barbados shrubs, bushes….whatever they are. They are supposed to grow to six feet, and mine are ten feet tall. Yes, I need a stepstool. Anyway, I was off in my little world of garden beautification when I hear kids walking into the cul-de-sac. Normally this is fine, but I know the kids around here are all gone for vacation somewhere. So I turn to look and see that they are walking up the sidewalk, tossing a football back and forth. “How cool,” I think to myself. I like to see kids being active.

And then the coolness factor stopped when they got on my crappy lawn to throw the football on a long pass!!!

Me: Excuse me, but you are on the lawn.

Kid #1: We are throwing a football.

Me: I see that, but you need to respect people’s property.

Kid #2: It’s just a football, man.

Me: That’s “Lady”, and GET OFF MY LAWN!!

The only thing missing was my shotgun.

The machete may have intimidated them, though. Now, I am not one to freak out if someone is on my crappy lawn, ok? The kids around the cul-de-sac have come and gone with their skateboards, bikes, rollerblades, whatever. But they had asked if it was ok. These kids took it for granted that the whole place was their playing field, and that is just wrong. Respect for other people’s property is something we were taught as kids. I get the vibe some of us are slacking off in teaching that lesson.

Now, I’m off to go dig some holes for yet another Pride of Barbados and a few Lumbagos. I can’t seem to kill those. If I start yelling at the birds to get off my lawn, I’ll know I have a problem 😉

Comfortably Numb

I am not one for a lot of excitement. I’m pretty much the most boring in my family. But that’s not a bug. It’s a feature.

At the school, I usually volunteer for the most menial jobs. My favorite is cutting the Box Tops to size. I can sit there and do that for hours. Counting band instruments? Count me in! Organizing tempera and acrylics? You betcha!! I love doing that stuff. It numbs the senses, letting me think.

Lately I have had the need for meniality. The more numb I am to emotional stuff, the better I function for the family. Compartmentalizing isn’t my strongpoint. Not by a long shot. But finding a way to do the everyday things that need to get done is important. Having a set of habits helps, such as the coffee ritual every morning. I now feel the need to yell at a speck of dust that dares to think to settle on the coffee table. It’s not an obsessive thing by any stretch. Ok, the yelling may be. I can’t help that. Ok, maybe I can. STOP JUDGING ME!!

Being numb isn’t always a bad thing 😉

Mirror, Mirror

That’s the title of one of my favorite Star Trek episodes. Parallel universe and Mr. Spock in a goatee. Doesn’t get any more fun than that!

Sometimes I feel like I’m caught in a parallel universe. I was in the bathroom cleaning up prior to scouring the counters when I looked up and thought, “That’s my MOM!!!”

Now, don’t get me wrong. My mom is a very good looking woman. I only WISH I looked like her! But it wasn’t that I witnessed her physical beauty in my mirror.

It’s just that I have her “11” between my eyes.

You know what I mean. The two lines constantly frowning, even when you aren’t worried or angry? Yeah, those!!! So, after I stopped ogling at the mirror, I did what any rational woman would do. I washed my face and slathered intensive wrinkle cream on my forehead, and started smiling at everything. Not even the dog having an accident wiped the smile off my face.

It doesn’t mean I won’t ever get mad. It just means I will be smiling while yelling 😉

68 Years Ago Today

I have full confidence in your courage, devotion to duty and skill in battle. We will accept nothing less than full victory!–
Dwight D. Eisenhower, June 6, 1944

I regret never taking the opportunity to visit Normandy while stationed in Germany. I did get to visit the  Luxembourg American Cemetery and Memorial near the village of Hamm in Luxembourg. The cemetery was established in December, 1944, by the U.S. Third Army during the Ardennes Offensive. General George S. Patton is buried there. Walking alongside the crosses, listening to the beauty, it felt as if Time was waiting for something. I think it still is.

These men had their victory. I pray we have in our spirit the same abilities to achieve our own.