Complaint Department

I know I should be more postive, I really should.  I have so much to be thankful for, and all that jazz.  But, the complaints pour forth from my mouth like that fizzy Coke Zero I spilled all over the end table and carpet last week. As soon as I make up my mind to be positive, something annoying happens. Like, I'm trying to get to work early, and I get stopped by a train that is just sitting on the tracks.  (Hello? Train people? It's this thing called "rush hour" and people are trying to get to work! Can you move your big, dumb, slow train out of the road until you are actually ready to go?) Or, I spill my Coke all over the carpet.  Or, my kids who are supposed to be doing their homework are wrestling on the floor after the fifteen hundreth time I've yelled at them to quit.  They giggle and laugh until someone actually gets hurt, and then there is yelling, and stomping, and arguing. (It's always fun and games until someone gets hurt, you know...) Or, the kitchen trash is overflowing AGAIN, and dangit! Why can't anyone but me ever take it out, and pleasestoppilingstuffontopofthefullcanforPete'sfreakin'sake!! Whew! See, I'm getting myself all worked up again.

It just happens like that, though.  My good intentions are always thwarted by annoying crap.  Oh, sometimes I'm good.  I'll try to think how grateful I am that I left for work early.  I'll grit my teeth and swiftly wipe up the mess.  I'll quietly count to three and then calmly give each little offender a strike on their behavior chart.  I'll keep my mouth shut and take out the trash, while trying to think of the things that other people do around the house.  But inside? I'm seething.  I hold it in for a while, until the next minor annoyance occurs, and then, BAM! The pent up griping explodes like a Coke that has been shaken up.  What good is outward nicety when the inside is bubbling away with aggravation and ugliness?

I heard an idea on the radio the other day about keeping a Complaint Jar in the house.  Everytime someone complains, they have to put some money in the jar.  My ears perked up briefly, thinking what a good object lesson it would be for my kids, but I quickly changed my mind after a (disturbingly satisfying) image of myself popped up.  I'd be standing there, with a fistfull of dimes poised over the jar, as Clink! WHY DOES EVERYONE yada yada yada...and Ka-chink! HOW COME YOU ALWAYS blah blah blah...and Ka-ching! AND ANOTHER THING! Yeah, maybe that's not such a great object lesson for the kiddos afterall.....

Yes, I know-I need to work on my attitude more.  I need to pray about it, and repeat all the Bible verses about thankfulness and such that I can think of.  I need to remember those starving kids in....well, lots of places.  I need to think warm, fuzzy happy thoughts about how much I love my family, and how grateful I am to have a job, and a home, and...and... you know. 

But, in the mean time, maybe I'll just start taking a different route to work.

Photo from: http://cfbstubbs.pbworks.com/w/page/12272262/Habit-1:-Be-Proactive

Bringin' Back the Mojo

Oh, yeah! I have a blog, don't I? Maybe I ought to post something more than once a month or so, huh?  The thing is, I'm just not feeling the blog writing mojo this year-hopefully I can get back into it.

I decided to participate in My Little Life's Five Question Friday to help get the mojo flowing again.  (Does "mojo" flow, or does it just exist in a solid form? Gaseous vapor, perhaps? Hmmmm....)  Anywho, here goes:

1. Have you ever forgotten your child in a store or at school?

You know, I honestly don't think I have.  I'm not sure why that surprises me so much, either.  There was once, though, when my daughter was about 3 and was throwing a screaming fit through Marshall's that I would have liked to forget her, LOL! I had recently had a baby, and I remember crying all the way home thinking, "Why, God? Why can't I ever have any time for just me?" Ah.....the good old days.....


2. Where did you go on your very first date? (Like...first first, not first with your spouse or current significant other!)

My first date was a double date at age 15.  We went to the mall, walked around the food court, and then saw Pretty Woman.  I was rocking some acid washed jeans, rolled up at the cuffs to show off my neon green scrunch socks.  I topped my stylish ensemble with a fluorescent pink, long sleeved shirt.  I was rocking a spiral perm, complete with curled bangs, and "wings" at the sides.  Seriously-I used to hold my long hair straight out at the sides, douse it with some Lady Breck or Aussie Sprunch hairspray, and then shoot it with the blow dryer so that I got a good 4-5 inches of it to stick straight out.  Lovely.  Combined with the braces, I was one hot mama.  I suppose it's a sign that I remember more about what I wore and how I looked than I remember about the actual date...

3. What's your "silly" fear? (We're not talking water and heights.)

I'm freaked out by images of those green aliens with the big, almond shaped eyes.  Other than that, and sometimes being a little afraid to walk into a dark room, my other fears are less silly-to some people anyway.
4. Confrontation: do you cause it, deal with is as it comes, or run far far away?

I not only run away from confrontation, but I take a cab to the airport and fly away from it.  Just the mere thought of any type of confrontation makes me nervous.  However, if something needs to be said or done, I will do it-if no one else will.  I'm more of a diplomat than a peacemaker at all costs. When I was a kindergarten teacher, I was often the one "chosen" to speak up about some injustice or problem, because I can generally handle situations tactfully without losing my cool.  Although, the older I get, the more outspoken I become...  Then there's that whole "when I get mad I cry" problem, which embarrasses me, so I get madder, and cry harder.  I prefer to take the head in the sand approach as long as possible.

5. Wood floors or carpet?

Wood floors look nice, but I also like the softness and comfort of carpet.   Right now, they both need to be cleaned, so I'm not happy with any of it.  I've always thought that a concrete floor with a drain in the middle would be kind of awesome from a practicality standpoint-hose it down once a week, and we're good to go!

Ok, there we go.  I'm not going to link up at My Little Life this time, but I encourage you to go over there and check out the other posts!