• Beth is indeed a challenge.

    Something rare has just occurred. I’m recounting this event having just lived through it moments before. Thrilling, isn’t it? I’m sitting here in my doctor’s office, making sure the latest allergy shot won’t kill me, and who gets up to have their shots checked? It was Mrs. Weeks, Beth’s kindergarten teacher (and one time teacher of the middle child in my first family). We graciously engaged in the kind of small talk that two people that hardly know each other engage in. Without any subtle transitions, I dive into the issue which comes immediately to mind, “so how is Beth doing?” She answered, “well, Beth is Beth.” Yeah, I know. She adds, “Beth can be a challenge.” “Sorry” I answer. Sensing that she is digging herself a hole, she decides to dig it deeper, “It’s o.k., so long as I don’t have any other challenges.” I think to myself, “is this supposed to make me feel better?” Sensing that she has dug even deeper, she finishes the conversation: “she is a very bright child though.”

    Have you ever had a conversation with someone and come out of it with no idea where you stand?

    On the bright side, Beth has now received happy grams on three consecutive days. If nothing else, things are improving.

    Well, I’m home now and Beth has just announced that she has let loose with “a great big poopy.”

  • Sanibel is swell.

    This weekend was the trip to Sanibel, and it was everything I hoped it would be. Well, that’s not quite true. I had hoped the Gators would fare better, but that didn’t have anything to do with where I saw the game so I can’t hold it against Sanibel. You probably won’t find this a stretch (having read the last paragraph), but I like to relax. This weekend presented plenty of opportunities to do so, much to my wife’s chagrin. She was a good sport though, and suffered through all of the mindless relaxation with nary a complaint. We indulged her restlessness and went shopping, and found some killer deals on clothing we desperately needed at the local outlet mall. If you ignore the Gator game, the weekend was a complete success.

  • To have or have not.

    It’s not like I’ve got a whole lot of choice. I’m not a disciple of “The American Dream.” I will acknowledge that people have some influence over their affluence, but I am a firm believer that dumb luck plays a role for some people. I believe that I may perhaps have had some choice, but I made it. Many people have a great drive to achieve monetary success and don’t. Don’t tell me that they didn’t try hard enough. Don’t tell me they all weren’t smart enough. In my case, I never cared to try, but that’s another story, one that I probably won’t tell. Most of the time I’m happy with what I have, but occasionally I lust after what I don’t. I don’t go looking for those things, but sometimes they are thrust in front of me. Most of the time I easily come back to my contented, satiated state. Today, for reasons I don’t wish to specify, I’m having a little more trouble. It certainly feels better believing that I don’t have a choice.