Thanksgiving Pointers

I've learned some very interesting things this Thanksgiving. First of all, apparently "manly men" don't like to drink coffee out of "sissy" cups and, according to my grandma, I am an "old maid!" Oh, the joy of coming together at family gatherings! ;-D Yes, grandma was kidding about the old maid thing...... well, mostly anyway...... I think. ;-) Sigh! Oh, well... there is a bright side to still being single. It's called FREEDOM, baby! :-D That's my silver lining and don't even think about taking it away! :-)

Well, apparently it was "Give Cindy Pointers for When She FINALLY Nabs a Guy Day." Were any of you aware of this? I wasn't. Maybe it was because our Thanksgiving party was so small this year. It was just my grandma, my parents, and myself for the actual meal and then my Uncle Jim and Aunt Diane stopped by later. It was during the meal when Grandma started teasing me about being an old maid and lecturing me about how I need to make sure I learn how to be a good homemaker– you know, keeping the house clean, learning how to cook, sew, etc. First of all, might I just say, I CAN cook...... when I want to. ;-) Some people seem surprised to hear this. I thought one of the ladies from church was going to fall out of her chair when she found out that I do cook once in a while. I could practically hear her chin hit the floor. Sister Annette, I'm looking at you! ;-) Okay, now I admit that I do need to get my apartment in order; it could be a tad neater after all. Okay, okay it's pretty close to being declared a Federal Disaster Area, and I'm pretty sure I saw a hazmat team snooping around the other day. ;-D But, come on, sewing!? It's a handy skill to have and I have actually sewn my own dress before, but I am by no means proficient in the art. Is it really a seal the deal kind of issue? I don't think so... oh, good gravy, I hope not because I just MAY stay single! ;-) This is the second time this week I received this kind of lecture. Sister Annette, I'm looking at you! ;-) Is someone trying to tell me something? Okay, okay, I'll clean my apartment and learn to make some more dishes... sheesh! But might I just say that, for the record, I have hosted two dinner parties at my place now... never mind the fact that I've actually lived here for about 6 years. O:-) But I digress...

Anyways, part two of "Give Cindy Pointers for When She FINALLY Nabs a Guy Day" came after dinner. We each had found a place to curl up and take a Thanksgiving snooze for a couple of hours when my aunt and uncle showed up. After about an hour or so of visiting with them and partaking of my traditional sport of bantering with my uncle (a favorite pastime of mine, heh, heh, heh). I decided to get up and surprise everyone by making coffee to go with dessert. Now please understand, I am not a coffee drinker, usually. On the rare occasions when I do drink it, I have to doctor it up so much that there isn't much coffee taste left. Therefore, I usually don't make coffee. However, I CAN make it. So when I offered to serve them each a cup you should have seen the shocked looks on their faces! I thought I was going to give my parents and grandma a heart attack! What can I say? I guess I got caught up in the warm, fuzzy feeling of being with my family and I wanted to be nice. By the way, I just want to point out that: See? I can be a hostess when I want to be, just in case certain parties doubted this... Sister Annette, I'm looking at you! ;-) They all enjoyed my coffee, but there was one complaint from the menfolk– the cups I poured the coffee into. Now, my grandma usually has regular-sized mugs, but I couldn't find them. Therefore, I used what was available– smaller teacups with flowers on the sides of them. Oh, yes, my uncle and step-dad had a few words about THAT before they even took one sip of coffee. LOL! They asked what was up with the "sissy" cups? They went on to inform me that men don't like drinking out of "sissy" cups and that I'd better learn that before I get married. They said my future husband would be having a fit if I served him coffee in little "sissy" cups like the ones I used on them. I tell you some people are never satisfied! LOL! So I told them to just stick out their little pinky fingers and just suck it up, I couldn't find the bigger mugs! :-D Oh, yes, I am going to be quite the catch someday. ;-D It was all in fun, but now I know, "Don't serve "manly" men coffee in "sissy" cups!" ;-D

Well, we all had a good visit even if apparently my family seems to think I need to hurry up and get married off already! LOL! Actually, I don't think it's a huge deal to them about when I finally do get hitched, they just want me to be happy. They do enjoy teasing me about it though. However, I do think my parents would like me to give them a grandchild someday. Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa!!!!! What a scary thought! ;-D I'm not saying I've ruled out having children, it's just an absolutely terrifying prospect to me and I'm in no hurry. Pardon me, I need to go wipe off these beads of sweat now! ;-)

So, as I was starting to say before I went off on my last tangent, we had a good Thanksgiving. Originally, my grandma wanted us to do ham and potato salad, but my step-dad and I both objected. We wanted a REAL Thanksgiving meal! Ham, was fine, but we didn't want to give up the mashed potatoes, dressing, and turkey! It's funny, but the last few years I've been wanting to try something different than the same old traditional meal, yet the minute someone tried to take away the turkey this year, I got all disappointed. However, Mom stepped in and save Thanksgiving! Yay, Mom! :-D I guess we really don't realize how much we value something until we lose it or are in danger of losing it anyway. You know I think we should all take a moment and count our blessings, especially when it comes to family. We may not always get along with our loved ones, but we shouldn't hold grudges. Life is too short and we could lose them at any time. Sometimes we get angry and hurt, but we all need to learn to just let bygones be bygones and focus on the good times instead of the bad. Believe me, I know it's not always easy, but the alternative is to grow bitter and that doesn't do anybody any good. I don't know where all of this just came from, but anyways, there, I've said it. Who knew you could learn something from a turkey? I know what you smart-alecks out there are thinking and NO, I am NOT the turkey! ;-D Well, anyways, I hope everyone had a Happy Thanksgiving, and for any people crazy enough to go shopping on Black Friday I'd just like to say, "¡Vaya Con Dios!" (Go with God) ;-D

Oh, What a Beautiful Morning, Oh, What a Beautiful Day!

Wow, what a beautiful Sunday morning! I know. Shocking isn't it? I used "beautiful" and "morning" in the same sentence! Not words I normally put together and I know all my night owl buddies KNOW where I'm coming from. Anyways, right now I'm sitting at the bus stop as I await for my, ahem, chariot to take me to church – well as close as it can anyway, I still have to walk a mile from where it drops me off, but that's okay. The sun is shining, the air is cool (thank you, Lord!), I've got my music gently playing from my ipod shuffle, life is good! Okay, seriously, what is WRONG with me? (no comments from the peanut gallery, thank you) Sheesh, I sound like a, ugh, morning person! Frankly, I think it's the weather that has put me in such a wonderful mood.

I missed the first bus I was gonna take, so now I have to wait 30 minutes for the next one, but I'm in no hurry; I'm just enjoying the morning. I stopped at the convenience store across the street from the bus stop, grabbed a Diet Peach Tea and a Lil' Debbie's Chocolate-filled Pie and have just finished enjoying my breakfast. I know, what a combination, Diet Peach Tea and a Chocolate Pie, such a nutritious breakfast! Isn't a diet drink supposed to cancel out the bad stuff you eat? ;-) Why else would people order a hamburger, fries, and a diet whatever? ;-D Besides chocolate is good for you, especially for men. Don't you mean women, you ask? No, I mean men… chocolate keeps us women calm so we don't kill the men! Ha! ;-D Oh, there's the bus…

After church…

So, the bus dropped me off at the stop, and when I crossed the street I noticed a familiar looking car pulled to the side of the road. It was a family from my church, offering me a ride. Well, I was really looking forward to walking because it was such a nice day, but I didn't want to be rude and it really was sweet of them, so I accepted.

You know as I was sitting in church today, I just got to thinking, what a wonderful church family! I am so blessed to be in the church I'm in. It really does feel just like a family. People help each other, love each other, we may have little tiffs now and then, but in the end we're family! Our church is small now, but as it grows, I hope and pray that it doesn't lose that closeness and feeling of brotherly and sisterly love. Wow, I really am perky. I guess I'm just feeling love today. Love, love, love! If I get any happier, I'm going to be seeing little cartoon birds and animals dancing around like Snow White! :-D

After church, I did get to walk back to the bus stop and it felt wonderful! People from church kept offering me rides, but I declined. It was just too beautiful a day to pass up! You know, sometimes in this fast-paced world we just need to slow down and enjoy the simple things in life…… like a walk on a nice Autumn day!

Bus Surfing

The other day I was able to experience something that most people don't get to on their daily commute– bus surfing! Yes, you read that right– bus surfing! What on earth is bus surfing you ask? Well let me tell you: When a bus is so crowded that you have no choice but to stand in the aisle, you must take a stance that keeps you from falling all over your fellow passengers and turning the bus into a mobile mosh pit. The most effective and most stabilizing position I've found, in my experience, is to stand with one foot in front of the other with one hand holding the bar that runs just below the ceiling and the other hand holding onto the bar on top of one of the forward facing seats. This puts you in a position similar to a surfer– okay if it looked like the surfer was about to fall of his board, what with one hand in the air and all. However, instead of hanging ten or hanging loose your hanging on… for dear life! It can actually be kind of fun especially when you get a bus driver who likes to whip around corners or when the bus hits a big bump in the road! I was very tempted to yell "Excellent! Surf's up! Cowabunga dudes!" during one particularly thrilling curve, but I thought they might transfer me to a different type of vehicle – one that's driven by men with little white jackets! So, I held my peace.

If you don't want to take up as much space, there is also the windsurfer position: grab onto one of the poles, plant your feet, and you're ready to go! It's not quite as stable as my stance, as you have a tendency to swing around, but it can be just as fun. Everyone who has had to stand during a bus ride has their own way of coping with the bus's inertia, but one thing they all have in common… they are hanging on to something. Believe me, you will never appreciate the makers of deodorant more than when you are either the surfer or the passenger seated next to the surfer!

So, if you are on a budget and you can't actually go to the coast, then take a trip on the city bus! Nothing could ever replace the beach but at least you won't have to worry about sharks or sunburns. If you're like me and have never surfed real waves and don't plan on taking the actual sport up anytime soon but would like to experience the same thrill, well then the city bus is for you. Surf's up! :-)