*the gratitude-a-thon

First of all, MY APOLOGIES FOR NO GRATITUDE YESTERDAY. I have a good excuse! 

I was sitting at my kitchen table with my coffee writing some posts for the gratitude-a-thon on Sunday, when my friend Mindy called me and said, “I have a crazy questions for you, Norman (her awesome husband) can’t come with me to the Green Innauguration Ball, would you like to come? The catch is, we have to leave in an hour.” I was outta my mind thinking I might get to see my not-so-secret crush, Barack, the night before he was sworn in for his second term, but she quickly squelched my fantasy, and told me he most definitely wouldn’t be there. “Still,” I said to myself, “it could be a once in a lifetime thing.”  “Shut up,” I said back to myself, “I have too much to do.”  “But, you should just go,” I said more loudly to myself. “YOU’VE GOT STUFF TO GET DONE,” myself said even more loudly back. I asked her to give me ten minutes to think about it. I hung up the phone. My husband looked at me and said, “I’ll take care of the homeland, GO.” And in that moment, when I could have easily said no, I said yes. Spontaneity. To steal a phrase from Tom Cruise (when he used to be normal) “Sometimes you just have to say WHAT THE FUCK.” And so I did. While Peter got online and bought me plane tickets, I ran upstairs, threw everything that could be considered black tie into a carry on, all the make-up under 3 fl. oz. that I owned, and called a cab. We arrived in D.C. at 3:30 to sunny skies and 62 degree weather. Our hotel was sleek and modern. We stretched out on the bed for 5 minutes before we both started trying on dresses and polling attendees Mindy knew via text, on the very vital: short or long (I only had short and shorter). Anyway, we primped and hopped into a cab to a truly fabulous, totally renovated, LEED certified, exquisitely furnished townhouse, where I met several people who knew Mindy, my rock star friend. And let’s talk about Mindy for a moment. This is the mom of my son’s girlfriend. People think it’s a little strange that we’re friends, but it’s nothing but normal. Yes, we met because our kids are boyfriend and girlfriend, but we’re friends because we like each other. Anyway, she is the most down-to-earth, unassuming rock star you’ve ever met. She has a long and enviable history in mission-driven work. Currently she is the president (and founder) of a non-profit called Ceres. Go check out their site, which explains everything they do better than I can, but basically Ceres talks to companies about sustainability by appealing to their bottom line. Their pitch: adopt sustainable business practices, or there will be no business. I love that. No environmental pleas to save the planet, just a super smart, black and white argument no business can ignore. Brilliant! Anyway, back to my spontaneous 24 hours. With our V.I.P. I.D.’s dangling from our necks, we waited for a few moments to get our photo taken outside of the Newseum, where the ball was being held.

 

There, I found myself standing next to my pick for winner of The Voice, the tall, bearded, super namaste, Nicholas David. I forced him to take a picture with me, and attempted to tell him I had rooted for him all season long, loved his music, and his vibe, but instead I just made some sounds that I’m sure convinced him I was from a yet undiscovered tribal community in the bowels of New Guineau. The party was lavish. Eight floors of awesome. And Patriots fans rejoice, there were giant wall-sized tv’s everywhere broadcasting the game (thought you guys could use a little good news, given the loss.). The highlights: Mindy knew everyone. It was fun to watch her mingle. I was hit on by a like 90 year old, but hey, I’ll take it. The entertainment was fabulous. In fact, we headed down to the second floor stage just in time to see Joe Biden

give a little green speech. And then there was music.

Will.i.am sang “I’ve got a feeling.” And there was Trombone Shorty, Sheila E, Mayor Hawthorne, and my guy, Nicholas David, plus a bunch of other people, too. In between, people like Tate Donovan and Bill Nye “The Science Guy” introduced politicians like our own Congressman Ed Markey, and EPA Administrator Lisa Jackson. When we finally left around 12:30, we headed into the street for a cab. But forget it, there were none to be had. Every street corner was barricaded and guarded by policeman. Washington was effectively shut down. I had on sheer sleeves, and a scarf as a coat (it was 62 when we arrived!). Mindy had on high heels that she was ready to get out of, so she took them off, and allowed her dress to drag on the ground. We continued to try and conjure a cab, but instead we walked 12 long and freezing blocks, until we found a rickshaw bike to take us four blocks for $20, but there was a blanket and even though we were almost killed seven times, it was well worth it. We happily stripped and got into our warm pi’s and talked in bed like 7th graders  before we fell asleep. We left at 6:00 a.m. for a re-routed ride to the airport, because now ALL OF WASHINGTON WAS SHUT DOWN. I watched people heading to get a space to watch the inauguration and stared out the window at the monumental symbols of our nation’s capitol on Martin Luther King Day and the day our first black president would be sworn into a second term. Spontaneity. Yes.

 

 

We here at the gratitude-a-thon have decided that Saturdays and Sundays will just be a visual gratitude. Have a great a weekend. Stay grateful! 

I don’t like the whole getting older thing, but as my dad used to say, “There’s only one alternative.” And he was right, so I’ve tried to mimic my mom’s take on getting older. The woman loved it!  She did not have one issue with getting older. NOT ONE.  While I would rather let my upcoming birthday pass by unnoticed (except for any gifts of the sparkly jewelry variety), my mom never missed a chance to celebrate, and always said, “I feel great. I look great,” on each of her birthdays. Now, she didn’t say that in some arrogant, self-involved way, but in a “Aren’t’ I lucky to be alive, to have made it this far,” way, which you just had to envy. My mother had a real joie de vivre. She saw the best in things, was unreasonably optimistic, extremely warm and hilariously funny, and she REFUSED to let aging make her feel anything less than awesome. She threw a pink plastic roller in her dyed hair (Clairol’s number 36 Chestnut Brown) to give it volume where it began thinning on top, shimmied into a Playtex panty girdle everyday, hoisted her ample breasts into her 38 DD bra, painted her strong, model-like fingernails and toes Misty Mauve from Revlon, donned the best designers she could afford, always put on her red lipstick, stood up straight, smiled big, and welcomed aging like the Munchkins welcomed Dorothy to Oz. She was quite something, my mom. And a very good role model for someone like me (who loves the wisdom of aging, but not the special effects). I wish she could help me celebrate next week, but she died 22 years ago this month: Lung cancer (PLEASE DON’T SMOKE. AND IF YOU DO, PLEASE QUIT TODAY, IF NOT SOONER.). She wore her age proudly, right up until the end, when she donned leather pants and a cashmere sweater to accessorize her bald head, after her first round of chemotherapy. Talk about gratitude. I am so grateful this woman was my mother. She was a special kind of person, and among other things, she taught me not to let age diminish me. Thanks, mom. I’m working on it.

 

I don’t know what it is, but I am fairly certain that I’m addicted to cucumbers.Yes, people, my gratitude for today is for a vegetable frequently the punch line of a dirty joke. YOU DO NOT WANT TO GET BETWEEN ME AND MY CUCUMBERS. Now, let’s be clear, eating is one of my favorite things to do. I try to keep it on the healthy side, but I LOVE food, and I don’t want you to think this cucumber thing has anything to do with me being a militant vegetarian, not that I haven’t been. I spent seven years in the land of of no meat, but then one day I had a burger, and well, that was that. I’m crazy for cheese. It is possible that I could spend a day eating bacon, like some people spend a day at a museum. I love me a good steak. I’m a fool for pasta. I could eat my weight in bread. I never met a french fry I didn’t like, and you don’t want to leave me alone with whip cream. But I have got to say, that I look forward to my cucumber conglomeration everyday. I prefer the pickling cucumbers, the small, sort of thick skinned little guys, but they’re more a summer thing, and they’re really hard to peel because of their size, but they have the best crunch and taste. I find that Whole Foods often has cucumbers that are bruised and on their way to being inedible (What’s the deal there, Whole Foods?), and that stores like Star and Shaw’s have much more reliably healthy ones. I skin the cukes, then slice them lengthwise, and then into bite sized pieces. I use this ridiculously expensive olive oil that’s so good, I would like to drink it, and which is not my everyday oil (only i do use it everyday for my cucumbers), a sprinkle of course Kosher salt, and a sprinkle of Lemon Pepper. MMMMMMMMM. I admit it’s not exactly a sexy thing to crave, but there it is. Thank you, my little green friends. You make my day!

I can’t even tell you how much I love it when I’m somewhere, and a stranger smiles at me. Generally I’m so disarmed by this unusual friendliness, I look at the person quizzically, wondering if maybe I know them. I quickly flip through my mental book of faces, and try  to make an I.D. When I can’t, and I realize I don’t know the person, I try to smile back, but when I start to return the gesture, instead of my regular broad, toothy grin, my mouth contorts into some sort of awkward seizure-like Olympic gymnastics program, and then the person is gone. Now, I don’t know why my mouth does this, instead of just being able to casually return the smile like a regular person would do, but it pretty much seems to happen every time I’m in this situation. I’ve often wondered about it, since i am actually extremely happy and impressed to have someone who doesn’t know me at all give me a smile, because I realize it means they’re just a nice person who smiles at other people, and likely someone who might possibly think that this is something we should all be doing to make the world a slightly better place (which I agree with, if i could just get the action down). But what the hell is going on with my mouth, I want to know? I have considered several options. A) I am used to living in Boston, where people are not terribly friendly and slightly suspicious most of the time, and thus I am shocked by any rogue smilers. B) I am a little bit afraid that the smiler might be ready to take my wallet, or my bag, or my phone, and this is the reason my mouth looks like a cross between a childbirth scream of pain and a sneeze. C) I am not nearly as nice as I think I am. Or, here’s another idea; Having a stranger smile at you is a particularly life-affirming, a sort of physical cue that says, “hey, we’re all people in this big crazy thing together.” And that, quite frankly is not necessarily something you run up against everyday, so when you do, it can take you by surprise, and cause you not to know quite how to act (or in my case, exactly what to do with your mouth). Although there is this one other possibility, which is when my daughter read this, she told me she did the exact same thing! She even showed me what her mouth does, and if i’m doing the same thing she does, I can’t believe people have not run screaming from me before. So, I guess it could just be genetic. Anyway, I feel good for a very long time after a stranger smiles at me, even if I can’t quite smile back. 

Awe, c’mon, you don’t wear it? You should. Because if you’re using it right, it can enhance your mug in a seriously noticeable way. And who couldn’t use a little natural enhancement? Hey, I wish I looked like Heidi Klum, but unfortunately we would never be mistaken for twins  (maybe not even for the same species). But there’s a big difference between a bare faced me and the one who never leaves the house without a little eye pencil and some lipstick. I wish I was that natural looking beauty, who glows the moment she steps out of bed, but I’m just not that girl (and how many of us are?). But you learn to accentuate the positive (hey, it’s sort of like the gratitude-a-thon!). Anyway, I was not born with Angelina Jolie’s enviable and trendy smacker. Truth is, I have a mouth similar to Sesame Street’s Elmo. My sister used to taunt me about never be able to wear lipstick when I got older (thanks, so much, Joan!). So, you know, putting on some super shiny lip gloss makes me appear to actually have some lips. (And by the way, this is the best lip tip I’ve now read concerning thin lips in the 245,784 articles entitled, “How to make your lips appear larger,” which you can find once a month in at least one of the beauty magazines I read when I’m at the hairdresser getting my hair dyed, but that’s another post.) Let’s be clear, I’m not talking about plastered on foundation, and don’t even say the words “blue eyeshadow” to me, or it could result in a small stroke. I’m talking about looking-exactly-like-yourself-only-better make-up. A little blush to make you look like you’ve been outside, a little defining of the eyes, and a little swipe of some lipstick, and chances are you’re you, but cuter. And a word about bronzer: I could marry it (ok, that’s four words). I have always loved a good tan, but let’s face it, it’s not in your skin’s best interest, so relying on the stuff in the tube or the powder, is just smart. Anyway, I am so gosh darn grateful for make-up. Especially as I get older, it’s nice to be able to know I have a little arsenal that will perk up my face, when it needs it (like everyday).

Welcome back to, or welcome for the first time TO, the gratitude-a-thon. Now in blog flavor! The gratitude-a-thon began a little over a month ago, when a rather troubling and pathetic string of events happened in my family, which left me, by the beginning of December, feeling utterly and completely miserable. Historically, when I get into a particularly ugly-feeling place (which a string of troubling and pathetic events will put you in), I often grab a notebook and start writing down what I’m grateful for each day. I do it for as long as it takes to feel better. I’ve done it for like 15 years (on and off, of course). I mean, there are a billion things to be grateful for, once you start looking. Indoor plumbing! The color of the sky right before sunset! Utensils! And they can really change the way you feel about a situation, when you focus on them. Daisies! Fireplaces! Toilet Paper! Anyway, when the most wonderful time of the year began in early December, I was feeling pretty un-merry, and for some reason decided instead of a notebook, I’d use Facebook. I promised to write something I was grateful for every day of December. And well, a funny thing happened. People started to notice and respond. Suddenly, I heard from “Facebook Friends,” who I frankly didn’t even think read my posts. I got a message from a complete stranger when I wrote about my hometown, next to Sandy Hook, and how much my words about growing up in that close-knit, small town made her feel good about living there. I had an old friend ask me if she could start a gratitude-a-thon on her Facebook page because it had helped her to start appreciating “all her blessings.” And I had lots of people, in public and private messages tell me that they looked forward to the gratitude-a-thon everyday, and that I should keep writing it when December was over, or to write a book, or a blog. It was sort of amazing!

I went with door number three, the blog. So, here I am.

It’s pretty simple. I just write about what I’m grateful for, big and small. That’s it. But while it’s simple, it ‘s also very powerful. In fact, last week two friends forwarded me a great article in Scientific America, talking about how gratitude boosts the immune system and increases feelings of well being. Shut the front door!  I always knew it helped me to feel better, but now there’s scientific evidence! The article also talks about a site where people are invited to write their gratitudes, illustrating them on a map, proving that good stuff is happening all over (gratitude.crowdmap.com/)! You go, gratitude!

Because negative stories get ratings, the media gives 24/7 coverage to horrible events, and because we have the technological ability to stay plugged in every minute of the day (hello computer, phone, tablet, radio, tv, morse code) unspeakable-awful-miserable permeates our pores. No wonder, it feels like there’s so much bad stuff happening all the time. But I’m no Pollyanna. There REALLY IS A LOT OF BAD STUFF HAPPENING ALL THE TIME. But here’s the thing, I’m not trying to say there isn’t, I’m just trying to say, “HEY, LET’S REMEMBER TO LOOK AT THE SUPER, INCREDIBLE, AMAZING, RIGHT-IN-FRONT-OF-OUR-FACES-EVERYDAY, GREAT STUFF, SO THAT WE DON’T DROWN IN THE BAD STUFF THAT’S HAPPENING ALL THE TIME.” Carbonara! Mascara! Good coffee!  

That’s it. Hope you’ll come by often. Tell me what you’re grateful for. That would be cool. See you soon. Stay grateful! It’s good for you.