M&M's

I just finished sorting the reds out of a big bag of dark M&M's. I'm allergic to them; the red dye #5 turns my neck red. Same with MSG...Anyway, it reminded me of sorting M&M's as a kid.

Whenever I was given or bought a regular-sized package of M&M's, I would carefully spill them out on a table or counter and sort them by color. Next, I would eat the ones that made the groupings unequal. Finally, I would grab each color group in one hand and fill my mouth at once. Needless to say, my M&M's never lasted long. I never saved any for later, and rarely did I eat one at a time. I have never been able to savor anything that sent my taste buds tingling.

I wonder if this sorting was the beginning of my organizational skills or were my organizational skills in my DNA? Is there anyway to find out? Not that it is important. Just curious.

If you are wondering at my eating M&M's at my age (62), there are two reasons. One: I munch on them when I write. When the words are just flowing so quickly and easily, munching helps slow me down, because I cannot type faster than my brain can think at those times. Two: My husband and I take our own candy to the movies to eat with the popcorn. Ummmm.

New Year

Well, my little chickadees, it is 2010. Thank God! I hated 2009. It was full of illness in my family, stress, disappointment, and little joy. I was not impressed by anything, except the stupidity of narrowmindedness of too many Americans.

BUT, it also presented me with the best Christmas present ever: My oldest son, Judson, and his wife, Amy, are expecting again. They told me on Dec. 18th and I was jumping up and down with glee. That will make eight grandchildren and probably the last. My daughter, Merideth, and other son, Tyler, are finished having children, at three and two respectively. My husband's daughter, Megan, has a sweet one-year-old and isn't talking about having anymore either.

Babies are my utter pleasure in life. I delight in showering them with love and making them smile/laugh. It was what I was born to do, next to writing.

My husband hates when I "mother" him. We were married for less than a year when our first grandson, Calvin, came along in 1999. So, as the grandchildren kept coming after that, my mothering instincts resurfaced and haven't ebbed since. The only thing that has ebbed is my energy level. I'm not 30 anymore!

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Health tip

Since the summer ended and school resumed, colds and flus have returned. Several members of my family have been ill on and off since September. I have been lucky so far or maybe I have a protective regimen.

Every morning I take L-lysine and zinc. When I have been exposed to a sickie, I take another one of each every 4 hours for 48 hrs. I use alcohol(91%) on my toothbrush before brushing. I wash my hands a bunch, especially after shopping and handling money. I do not touch my nose or eyes until I've washed my hands.

These habits seem to have kept me fluless for a couple years.

Back Home Again in Indiana

"Back Home Again in Indiana" is one of my favorite songs. It always comes to mind, when the weather here in central Texas turns chilly and damp - like today. It's gray, on/off drizzly, and in the 40s. The leaves of what few deciduous trees we have are on the ground or about to be blown to the ground.

Red, orange, and gold leaves aren't abundant like in the midwest, east, and northeast. Mostly they are green or brown, but in the hill country we are blessed with "real" trees: live oak, sycamore, maple, and another variety of oak with smaller leaves. These are the only trees that grow "tall." Few grow above a second-story house, which bugs me. In Indiana there aren't any scrub mesquite or palm trees, thank goodness. I really dislike those species. People who never leave Texas do not have a clue what real trees are like.

A few years ago my husband and I lived in the Santa Cruz mountains with the towering redwoods all around us. Now those are TREES and I was in heaven.

In Indiana most houses have basements. God, what glorious structures! They are cool in the summer and warm in the winter. We made the most of our basement with playhouses and rollerskates.

Most of Texas doesn't have basements because of either the shifting sand or the impermeable rock.

Although I'm not pleased with the topography and biology of Texas, the people of the lone star state are quite friendly and homespun - for the most part. Those who aren't are either California transplants or snooty Republicans...but that's another post.

Holiday humbug

Tomorrow's Thanksgiving and then will come Christmas/New Year's. These holidays used to be more meaningful when I lived away from family. Now that we have moved back to Texas and into the heart of the family, holidays just aren't special. We see my parents a couple times a week, sisters several times a month, grandchildren and children daily, weekly, or monthly. Every time it's like a mini-reunion. Geez! How much love can I take?

I'm not a conversationalist. I'm an observer and writer. I say something when I have something to say. Chit-chat bores me; however, several of my family members talk enough for both of us.

I keep Christmas for the grandkids. The rest of us don't need presents. Good grief! We can buy what we want or need. I don't have room for more stuff.

I'm thankful all year round. I don't need an appointed day dictated to me. Ugh!

Happy Holidays to you!

Dad's home

Mom and I brought Dad home from the rehab facility Friday morning. He can't drive for another couple weeks and is using a walker for stability. He's starting to pester me about playing golf again, but that is totally up to him. His heart is now strong, but his body is still weak. He needs to build up his muscle strength - not that he was particularly steady on his feet before.

He's looking good, considering he had open-heart surgery on Oct. 21st. It was touch and go there for a while, with up to 15 of us at a time in the waiting room crying. We just weren't prepared to lose him. The surgeon had little doubt about his survival, although he never told us why he was surprised that we were concerned. The fluctuating of his heartbeat/rate after surgery was to be expected. His heart had to remember what to do, after being stilled for almost 4 hours. Well, he may have expected the disregulation, but we sure didn't. We were totally shaken when the ACU(acute care unit) nurses working on him told us not to leave the hospital.

That's all behind us now. Dad is back to his bossy self again, but he has a good excuse to rule us from his roost.

Earmuffs

What's wrong with earmuffs? I'm the only one in my family who uses them. I can't help it; my ears are sensitive. So, when the temperature drops below 50 degrees, out come the earmuffs. They may look out of place on the golf course, but my ears love me. Public courses don't have enclosed carts, so my ears are snuggly as the cold air rushes by.

In the cold Indiana winters earmuffs were a necessity when I was a child. All the other children used them, including my younger siblings. I used them in Massachusetts, as a young mother. But now, I am viewed as a sweet eccentric for using them at my age here in central Texas.

I really don't care. My ears are mine to protect.

I do several things the rest of my family deem as quirky, but they are a part of my uniqueness. Everyone has quirks and their own identities. We are all unique.

That is why I hate fads. Too many millions become sheep as want to look alike. Women will style their hair so they look like the news commentators, even when their faces don't look good in that haircut. Even some of the commentators don't look good in those one-of-a-kind hairdos.

The same goes for men who shave their heads no matter what their skulls look like and lodge sunglasses on the back of their necks. And then there are the idiots who wear their pants at their crotches, so they have to waddle to keep their shorts/jeans up. Why? If they want their underwear to show, just wear underwear! At least you can be assured they won't be robbing you. They couldn't possibly run away. So let's just smile/smirk at them!

And, girls, girls - Goth? Puleeeeassse, you are begging for help, you are lost, you are hiding your true beauty.

Not to mention piercings and tattoos. I saw this one young woman in Austin with tiger-striped legs. I thought, poor girl. What are her children and grandchildren going to think?!

All of these things are attention-getters, pure and simple. You want to shock people? Screw the world, I'm different from the establishment?

Give me a break! Where is your uniqueness, your individuality? Go against the flow! Be happy with yourself. Stand up straight. You ARE special!