Photo Per Day #25: Thanksgiving 2010

Happy Thanksgiving y'all. Today's picture is not of the succulent turkey that my brother-in-law Jim prepared. Or of the gorgeous spread that he and my sister offered at their home. Or the blazing fire. Or the smiling faces. Or the beautifully illustrated label on the wine that my mom bought. Instead, today's picture represents what families of nine year old boys know inside and out: how to stave off a holiday meltdown. Today's picture is of Son #2 at the supermarket picking out a box of store bought stuffing because he doesn't like the fresh mushrooms and delicious sausage in my sister's moist, homemade stuffing. Welcome to parenthood 2010. Dysfunction. Love. Thanksgiving. Whatever it takes for happiness.

Photo Per Day #24: Got the Time Tick Tick Ticking

Sooooo excited for Thanksgiving, a four-day weekend, the kickoff of the Christmas season, dinner at my sister's house, food, family fun, etc. Alone at work, I can't stop looking at the clock on the wall outside my office door. Got another day to get through . . . No such thing as tomorrow, only 1-2-3-go.

Ring in the Season

Long weekend. Fabulous meal. Awesome family. So much to be thankful for.

Caught up on missed episodes of Glee. (Mr. Schuester. Hot.) Watched the parade. Watched The Longest Day (which is strangely compelling for nine year old boys and painfully boring for eight year old boys--what a difference a year makes). Played basement soccer. A little driveway hockey. Played Life. Star Wars Monopoly. Connect Four. Had my girlfriend across the street over for wine. Avoided the Black Friday shopping stupidity. Decorated the house and tree. Helped Son #2 make a gingerbread house. And now, excitedly, it's beginning to look a lot like Christmas.

(This list reads just like my diary in the fourth grade except that every entry that summer said pretty much the same thing, "Played kickball." And then I listed every player: Misty, Alexis, Rich, Mary, Sallie, Chris, Christine, Dave, John, James, etc. Fascinating stuff.)

Anyhoo, isn't this Kate Spade ring perfect for the holidays?

I'd be the envy of everyone. Everyone!

Haven't Got Time for the Pain

What's better than heading to Redeemer Presbyterian on a Sunday morning for the best sermons ever preached? Why, discovering that the west side service is right next door, that's what!

I would trudge through hell and high water to get to Redeemer. Blinding snow. Tempests. A plague of locusts. Frogs swarming upon land. Anything. But yesterday, as I passed the Ethical Culture Society on Central Park West, I realized that I could literally roll out of bed and head over in my jammies. So I did. (Actually, I put pants on. As an aside, some fashionistas that we saw yesterday while out and about at the Bryant Park Holiday Fair didn't bother wearing any pants. Color me old but I still think pants are useful especially when your dress, er sweater, doesn't cover your booty. Moving on . . .)

Much to my chagrin, my favorite preacher was not preaching this morning; however, the Reverend Scott Sauls gave a great, great, great sermon on suffering. Not about mild suffering like the kind endured when one stays out way too late at The Gingerman and Rattle N Hum with dorm mates from college (hypothetically speaking, of course) but about deep, groaning, life suffering like the kind endured when you repeatedly implore, "Is this it? Really?" and wonder why, when you have so stinkin' much, you are still not happy. And, as we all know, this is one of my favorite subjects.

One of the not-entirely-new analogies given was that of a father holding down his daughter during her first well baby visit at the pediatrician's office. As she's given her shot, she cannot help but feel betrayed by the very man she trusted. But she, at too young an age, cannot know that this pain that she's enduring is ultimately for her health and well being. Likewise, we can feel betrayed by a God who allows suffering or we can strive to be thankful for all the good in the world that we're incapable of seeing or understanding.

As Thanksgiving is this week, I'm choosing the latter. We closed with the hymn, "Now Thank We All Our God" but I'm singing Carly Simon right now.

Til you showed me how, how to fill my heart with love,
how to open up and drink in all that white light pouring down from the heaven

God is amazing.

Happy Thanksgiving!

As it was in the beginning (one love!)
So shall it be in the end (one heart!)
All right
Give thanks and praise to the Lord and I will feel all right
Lets get together and feel all right
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I love Thanksgiving. An entire day dedicated to being thankful for our blessings -- of which I have many. As much as Thanksgiving will forever remind me of NYC and countless holidays spent with my grandpa (not to mention the requisite Black Friday trip to Bloomingdale's), I woke up thinking about a more recent Thanksgiving today. Specifically, when my brother Mark and his wife were in town from North Carolina a couple of years ago. My sister-in-law Stephanie and I stopped by a local country dive bar called "The Roost." When we arrived, we were the only people there so we called everyone to join us. Even Grannie, who really doesn't drink, came for a cocktail.

An hour later (maybe two?), this place that I had previously never heard of was packed to the gills with line dancing. Yee haw! There was a really cute (alcohol talking?) DJ named David Lee wearing a cowboy hat and teaching us all to dance. Yes, us. That is until we got kicked off the dance floor for not paying the cover charge . . . no perks for getting there early?

I've since learned that The Roost is hopping all of the time. Who knew? Needless to say, I've never been back. But if Steph is interested in driving back up here, I'm willing to pay the cover!

Happy Thanksgiving!

Happy Thanksgiving!

Oh wait, that was last week. Anyhoo, here goes . . .

Things I'm thankful for:

• My family, friends, kids, health, job, life, etc.
  
• God
• The fact that I can go from indoor garage at home to indoor garage at work and circumvent some of the horrors of the Rochester weather
• The fireplace in my office (albeit unused)
  
• The holiday season and everything it entails (i.e., carols, lights, candles, shopping, giving, receiving, incense, warmth, celebration)
  
• My leopard-patterned, rubber rain boots
• Stinky's warm, furry, purring body
  
• Hugs
  
• The body's amazing ability to heal itself!
  
• Massages, facials, mani/pedis, acupuncture, etc.
  
• The full, pink roses that unexpectedly popped up in our backyard recently
• The joy of repeated visits from the Tooth Fairy lately
  
• Vacation days -- even (or especially) when they're spent rummaging through boxes and throwing out tons of useless stuff or donating it to the Salvation Army
  

While I was cleaning all this crap out of the basement last weekend, I found my godmother's high school graduation ring from Cottonwood ID circa 1928, my worn-out gingham nightgown from childhood, a "love letter" from some guy named Ian who apparently I worked with at Xerox but I cannot remember, an email from a girlfriend who died of breast cancer in 1998, a number of books that I have wanted to read and countless pictures of my hubby and me from 20 years ago, Brazil, my 30th birthday party, grad school parties, etc.

But the email from Gisella ripped my heart wide open and reminded me of how fleeting life can be. I burst into tears and Son #1 came running over. "What's the matter mama?" and I told him why I was crying. He then put his arms around me and said, "Don't be sad about her death; just be really happy that you had her in your life at one time."

So, yes, the main thing I am thankful for at this moment: all of my relationships including those that have now ended or are solely maintained from afar. Without them, there is nothing.