Tag: Robin Williams

11/10

“whenever a car waits for me to cross the street, I wave and mouth ‘thank you’ and rush across as fast as I can because I need them to think, wow what an 11/10 pedestrian” – Sarah J. Hass, X

This tweet just tickled me. I have been that pedestrian. And then I have admonished myself for being that overly grateful, slightly pathetic pedestrian. (Pedestrians have the right-of-way in Florida. Shouldn’t I walk confidently and stridently, at a normal pace, with my head held high?) I have also cursed under my breath, the 2/10 passive-aggressive, control freak pedestrian who meanders slowly across the walkway, phone in front of face, taking time to the smell the roses, while stealing a look over at me with a mean little smirk, seemingly delighting in my frustration.

I’ve honestly trained myself to be patient with all kinds of pedestrians, and even with all kinds of drivers, too. I’ve unintentionally run the whole gamut from 1-10 in both categories. And so I like to think that the person who I am annoyed with at that moment, is typically an 8/10 driver and/or an 8/10 pedestrian and just happens to be having an off-day. We all have them.

Are you passing on love or are you passing on pain? Heal your pain and pass on love.

Here is the question of the day from 3000 Questions About Me:

2883. What was the hardest thing about being a kid for you?

Little Spark of Friday

Image

Good morning, friends and readers! Happy Friday!!! Happy Favorite Things Friday!! On Fridays, I forget about delving deep, and instead, I list three favorite things, or songs, or websites, or whatevers, that have added some zest to my everyday life. I strongly encourage you to add your favorites to my Comments section. Isn’t life wonderful when we have a lot of wonderful things to experience and to enjoy and to celebrate?

Jeff Allen, comedian – I’ve been a little under the weather the last few days. (It’s nothing serious, don’t worry. I think that I’m just a little worn out from all of the atypical activity going on in my life, since about mid-April.) Anyway, I believe that laughter is the best medicine. So yesterday, I stayed in bed, and I watched comedians all day long. There are so many great comedians out there, but Jeff Allen makes me howl with laughter. He’s a clean comedian, and he is hysterical. (If you like to keep it clean with your comedy, check out any of the Dry Bar specials on YouTube.) If you need a big dose of laughter medicine, here’s a clip:

Evian Feed Your Mind Water – This is Evian water in a can! And yet the can is so sleek and elegant looking, you still know that you are drinking Evian. This mineral water is tasty, thirst quenching, zero calories and it is infused with both magnesium and zinc, which have been my go-to supplements since this whole COVID mess started. The Feed Your Mind collection features three different flavors of water. Splurge on this line of Evian. You won’t regret it.

Best Grilling Tip – I recently saw a clip on the internet about putting ice cubes in your burgers when you start grilling them, because it keeps the moisture all locked in and the meat is good and juicy, when it is ready to be eaten. It works! I even tried “the ice cube tip” on a tenderloin that I broiled in my oven and it still works!!! If you prefer not to break your teeth on your meat, get out your ice cube tray.

I hope that you have a lovely, enjoyable, awe-striking, yet comfortable and peaceful weekend, my friends!

Are you passing on love or are you passing on pain? Heal your pain and pass on love.

The Year of Acceptance

Happy October! I was not particularly fond of September 2020. Bye-bye September, don’t let the door hitcha on the way out! My theme for today is “acceptance.” (You: Oh great. Not this again. She needs to learn to accept “acceptance” and to move on.) I read a quote that made a lot of sense to me a little while ago, and I wrote it in one of my journals. I’m sorry, but I don’t know who to attribute it to:

“Knowing and understanding are not the same as accepting. Give yourself space to process.”

If ever there was a year that we have been forced to wrap our heads around things, 2020 would be it. Major changes and societal issues and health issues and economic issues, all on top of any of the usual personal life issues which any of us have to deal with in any particular random year, have made dealing with “acceptance”, practically an every day occurrence.

Like the above quote states, we can know things intellectually, without fully accepting these same things. We can understand, for instance, how wearing masks can help save lives. But have we fully accepted that wearing masks may become the norm for the unforeseeable future? Acceptance takes time. Acceptance is always the final stage in any grieving process. Acceptance is not equivalent to approval, but it is the knowing and the ability to sit with, “it is what it is.”

My daughter and I watched Good Will Hunting, the other night. We have seen the film several times, but it is one of those rare movies that is worth watching, again and again. The following scene is one of the most traumatic, poignant scenes in the film, that perfectly illustrates why knowing and understanding are not the same things as acceptance. Friends, the overwhelming events and negative circumstances of 2020 are not our fault. The strangeness and onslaught of changes that have come to our daily lives is not anyone’s fault. Hopefully, we will all be able to come to an acceptance of that fact, and just rise up and do our best, every single day, keeping our faces turned to the sun. Keep the faith!

Conehead

Josie, our 7 month-old collie puppy got spayed yesterday. Since she is an older puppy, she’s already about 45 pounds and pretty tall. She has to wear one of those giant cones on her head for about ten days, so that she doesn’t lick her stitches. She looks like a walking, furry funnel. Josie’s being an amazingly good sport about it all. I already know that I will learn a lot about being good-natured and rolling with the punches, from her. When I feel myself being annoyed when she nudges me, making me feel like I am being sucked in by a giant suction cup, I think about how aggravating it must be to navigate one’s surroundings, with a giant plastic cone wrapped around one’s head, especially, when you are a little loopy on pain meds, to boot. Watching her eat and drink with it, is the most fascinating thing to watch. As a claustrophobic person by nature, I’m in awe that the cone isn’t making her crazy. But that just doesn’t seem to be her way of being. She’s definitely a “go with the flow” kind of gal.

Ralphie, our lab, seems a little disturbed with the conehead chasing him around. His new friend seems a bit more ominous with a big plastic vortex surrounding her head. It’s kind of like when a lizard expands its throat or a bird fluffs out its feathers, even though you know that logically, it’s the same small animal, you can’t help but give it a little extra respect, wide berth and a little more breathing room. Maybe Josie is focusing on the positives of this conehead experience – more power, sympathy and respect.

I have a dentist appointment this afternoon, that I’ve been dreading. It will involve some drilling. I’ve already rescheduled it three times. As I look at my fluffy puppy, sweetly trying to gnaw at her chew toy while not being able to hold it steady in her paws, I am gaining some courage and inspiration. Josie is just happy to be home again with her new family who is crazy about her. She’s focused on the positive.

“You’ll have bad times, but it’ll always wake you up to the good stuff you weren’t paying attention to.” – Robin Williams in Good Will Hunting