Random Ramblings, Musings and What Not

Reminders for myself...

The older I get the less tolerance I have for toxic people. My brain is an emotional sponge. Look it up. I believe this is a real, technical term. (It must be. I read it in O Magazine. I hope Oprah's not just making things up. We need our media queen to be honest with her people.) I tend to absorb the negativity and anger that others spew and then I have to purge those icky feelings from my brain. It's a time consuming process and has a negative effect on not just me, but my loved ones. Have you ever been cornered in a conversation and your heart starts beating too fast, your brain spins and your underarms sweat? Accurate, but not a pretty picture. It used to happen to me all the time. Not so much since I've learned to banish most toxic people and their poisonous conversations. I keep my good friends close because they are positive even when challenged and they can muster up a good joke when tragedy looms.

Middle age seems to be divided into two camps-those that are totally screwed up and can't come to terms with life's ups and downs and those that have learned to roll with the dips and curves. I prefer to surround myself with the latter but am guilty of trying to force the former to see my way of positive thinking. More times than not it's a futile effort. I'm a slow learner but I eventually get it. I do find it funny that the negative types seem to think the positive types are a bit crazy. I prefer to think that a touch of crazy is what gets me through the day. That, and a Bloody Mary at five o'clock.

Tomorrow always shows up no matter how much I worry about my life being over because ____________. Fill in the blank with any number of problems that can be blown up to appear larger than they are. Eight times out of ten tomorrow really is a better day. Those are pretty good odds.

Hidden agendas and veiled comments will not be tolerated. Please see my first musing at the top of the page. Just say what you mean. Spit it out. It's an easier way to live your life and aren't we all looking for ways to make life easier?


I was right. My son didn't need to take Algebra in the 8th grade. Judging by the extreme reactions of some of my fellow PTA members you would have thought I'd bungled my parenting responsibilities in such a way that there would be no chance for recovery. I was right about quite a few things that caused raised eyebrows. No one knows my kids like I do. I refused to make parenting decisions based on the status quo. (By the way, I have permanently crossed my fingers while hoping I don't have to eat these words. So far, so good. The kids are sane, productive and nice people.)

If your child is creative and wants to pursue their passion, you better make sure they're prepared to earn a living.  I have an actress and a musician. I love that they get to follow their dreams. I also love that they are learning how to earn a living outside of their passions. Good business sense can be taught. Continued success in the entertainment business is not guaranteed; the public is fickle and trends change. And what was Nicolas Cage thinking by buying all that crap?

"Youth is wasted on the young." Damn right, Mr. George Bernard Shaw. If only I could have put my current brain in my twenty something body. I keep trying to share my life lessons with those much younger than me. I really need to remember that they have their own journey and must learn their own lessons. I can't do that for them. The only thing I can do is give them the tools to deal with problems in the healthiest way possible in order to avoid being one of those screwed up middle age people. And maybe then, they won't need my recipe for the 5 o'clock Bloody Mary.