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Springing into spring

Happy Spring! As April begins, so does the month-long celebration of me. I'm a big fan of birthdays and think they should be celebrated. After all, without them, you wouldn't be here!

So every day, for 30 days of April, I do something to honor the fact that I am here and to be grateful for the life I have. It's the little things...

April 1: Chick-fil-A treat. Mmmm. Waffle fries.

April 2: Today's celebration brought to you by the sun, lighting the Earth for billions of years (spent 20 minutes on a park bench near a lake, just being).

April 3: Easter celebration with the fam and dyed Easter eggs with a Hello Kitty(tm) kit, courtesy of Mom.



April 4: Movie day! Feet up and flicks on. "The Dark Knight" for the zillionth time, and a trip to the independent-and-still-around movie store for a nighttime feature film. Ahhhhh.

What's to come? I can't wait to find out!

Ring a ding-a-ling

I checked the car seat. I looked in the cubby between the seats where receipts, pennies and lint go to to die. Under the seats, in the back seat. I stretched my legs straight, pushing my torso closer to the car ceiling, tapped my left and right pockets. Nada.

Where is my cell phone?

I reluctantly went back inside, where my phone must be. Checked the counters, the tables, even the bathroom. Dirty pants pockets, empty, too.

After about 10 minutes, it was time to resort to the Marco Polo approach.

I picked up my land line and called my cell.

Inside you, the time moves and she don't fade.
The ghost in you, she don't fade...

As the Psychedelic Furs ring tone bellowed, I turned behind me and started to walk toward the coats on the wall hook. It seemed to be coming from that direction, until I got closer, anyway. The chorus started again and the sound... was it coming from the right? Following the sound, I walked right, then forward, then right again. Still, no phone in sight.

I called again to restart my favorite group's singing. I turned quickly as the sound again came from behind.

"I've done a complete 360," I thought.

Then I remembered.

Walking through the grocery store parking lot, my mittened hands couldn't hold the pile of id/credit/debit cards, coupons, keys and my phone. I put the keys and the coupons in the left front pocket, the debit and other cards in the right. And for the first time in history, I put my cell phone in my back pocket.

That's right. The call was coming from inside the pants.

Random Thought Thursday

A one-thought edition

* Do workers at the grocery store look at receipts for the day and wonder... "this customer bought filet mignon... and Spaghettios. Enigma."

Buried

Hi. *waving a hand through piles of snow* I'm buried under a few feet of snow. It's like Snoopy's snow cone machine exploded! That little red shovel just isn't going to do either. Anybody got some syrup? Making snow cones may be the only way to get allllllllll this snow outta here!

Posting to resume next week.

Nature's miracle

As the flakes began to fall, I settled in for a long night. It was going to be a big one. There was nothing to do, but wait. And watch.

Some cursed the white falling from the skies. I chose to appreciate the wonder of winter as it piled up on my car and against my sliding glass doors, ensuring I wouldn't get out easily or any time soon.

After almost 24 hours of being at Mother Nature's mercy, the plowmen allowed me to venture out. Slowly. Surely. One block at a time. No more than 20 mph, most often 10 or less. I got to the store. I took the long way home, which took longer than usual. But I didn't mind. After more than a day of gray, the sun had made a late-afternoon appearance. The clouds parted as it set and the sky filled with hues of purple and orange, the likes of which I haven't seen in a long, long time.

You can curse the trouble when it comes or you can observe and not judge, move through and experience, knowing something good will soon appear again on the other side. If you're willing. If you let it happen. It's only natural.

Random Thoughts Thursday

A "cough cough sniff sniff sniff" edition

* Thank you, whoever shared your cold germs. I'm enjoying its visit in my sinuses.

* Please pass the tissues. And the RI-Co-LAAAAAAAAA.

* Chuckle passing a car wash the afternoon after a snow shower: "Yes, we're open. Salt eat cars."

* Dear Mother Nature, please keep the foot of snow they're saying we're going to get this weekend. Yesterday's 2 inches was lovely. The 2 feet in December was paralyzing, but pretty. Really, I'm good with snow for a long time. Thanks.

* Get it while it's hot! An article about a Delaware artist in The News Journal.

* I'm going to get tea whilst it's hot. Maybe that will help my sinuses. Sniff.

Nerd alert

Call me Hermoine.

A session was left off the schedule for a class I took. When asked if we wanted it put back on the schedule, most of the class voted no and the teacher said he'd get all the information in the remaining sessions.

I objected.

Teacher and I talked. I explained that the course should include all sessions and an administrative mistake shouldn't keep us from getting all we're entitled to. Plus, it's easier to learn material in the proper time. Missing one session makes that more difficult. He explained that he'd take that into account when teaching and testing.

"You know, I've never had a discussion like this," he said. "Most students want less time in class, not more."

"I know," I said. "I want more homework, too."

This is not a test

We will return to our regularly scheduled blogging this Sunday! WOO!