And Miles to Go Before I Sleep

It is our best work that God wants, not the dregs of our exhaustion. I think he must prefer quality to quantity. ~ George MacDonald

I was asked at a church function on Sunday if I was enjoying my summer break. Flippantly I replied, "Not yet." Why? It is June 26 and I have yet to even begin the vegging out that summer has offered in the past. By now my house is usually in it's "summer state": cleaner than most of the rest of the year and I have been to the beach numerous times. This year: deplorable household conditions and merely 2 trips to the beach. I have brought this on myself, I know. I have managed to completely exhaust myself. Between my Saturday job, VBS, 3 trips to Virginia in 3 weeks (ok.....I did NOT have to shop as late as I did, but a girl's gotta shop!), and the upcoming trip to DC (that I am stressing about already because of the amount of preparation that needs to go into it), I am pooped!!! I hereby declare that July 6, 2007 will be MY official first day of summer break and I commit myself to at least veg out on THAT day. Back to the grind.....how much caffeine will THIS day require to deliver quality? I need to pencil in a nap on today's agenda....now maybe I can combine this with a trip to the beach.....hmm.

A Main Course of Laughter and a Heaping Side of Gossip

Dining out is a vice, a dissipation of spirit punished by remorse. We eat, drink, and talk a little too much, abuse all our friends, belch out our literary preferences and are egged on by accomplices in the audience to acts of mental exhibitionism. Such evenings cannot fail to diminish those who take part in them. ~ Cyril Connolly

I have NO remorse for the evening I spent with my accomplices Ethel and Jazzy in honor of Jazzy's birthday next week. The food was delicious. The gossip was juicy. The sights out the window were humorous and could only have been surpassed if someone had fallen into the creek. Ol' Cyril must have been a big loser with no friends if he truly possessed this attitude toward dining out......let him look down his nose at us for enjoying our evening of vice. I have not been "diminished" by my excursion into the world of dining out with girlfriends. On the contrary, I have been enhanced. Thanks, ladies!

The Shadow of Death

When you are born, you cry, and the world rejoices. When you die, you rejoice, and the world cries.
~ Tibetan Buddhist saying

Aging...people react quite differently to this process. Some embrace it. Others abhor it. Some see it as an adventure and ride it like a roller coaster. Personally, I have found comfort in it. I revel in the fact that I am married, have a stable career, a loving family, a home, etc. I feel "established" and "rooted". I am thankful that I am not in the single-scene. I am thankful that I am not suffering from ailments that arise from aging (okay...I'm not that old....give me a break here). I am blissfully content with where I am. Sure, there are things that I want: more money, a tidier home, less stress....typically what most people I know want to some degree. BUT, in the grand scheme of life I am completely satisfied. Having said that, the one thing I despise about aging is the fact that others are aging as well. Today Hubby and I attended a funeral of our friend's mother. This friend, MRV, also lost his dad 13 months ago. The frequency that we encounter death is increasing more and more. I know it will continue to increase as we age. I have faith that our loved ones are in a far better place, but it doesn't make the mourning completely easy. So, to sum it up.....that's what sucks about aging.