Can you relate to this? I was surfing the web, looking at all things Christmas when I came upon this quote. I immediately understood it.

I moved out of my parents’ home for good when I was 22. With the passage of time I have moved further and further away, although I have been back to visit several times each year. Often when I go back, especially at the holidays, I am still sometimes longing for “home”.

As I have gotten older, I realize that I am yearning for, not a place, but a time, a time when I was young and had no responsibilities, a time when Christmas, and even life itself was beautiful and magical. As we age we see the ugly side of the world. We acquire responsibilities and worries.

That doesn’t mean that I don’t enjoy Christmas. I do. Now I simply must enjoy it within the context of an imperfect world.

Sounds silly, but sometimes I worry about that. What if I can’t think of anything to write? What if I bore the people who read this? What if it’s just not interesting?

But according to Master, Ray Bradbury says 85% of what one writes is crap. The other 15% is good. That’s why it’s so important to write a lot. One must produce a lot of crap in order to produce the 15% worth reading. The literary equivalent, I suppose, to kissing a lot of frogs before finding a prince.

I am humbled that anyone reads about my inconsequential life. Thanks you for doing so, especially those (few) of you who don’t know me beyond this blog.

But there is one person who I fervently hope reads my words. That is my Master. I want him to read this because it reveals much about me, who I am, what I think of things, how I feel. I wish to share these with Master, as I wish to shave everything.

And I know Master does read this because he wants to know all about me. He loves me.

Currently I am dealing with problems with vehicles. My son came home from college at Thanksgiving break and said, “Can we get the brakes in my car looked at?”

Well, to make a long story short, I had the car looked at and found out
1) of the brakes going to each of the four tires, only one was working
2) one of the headlights was out
3) the front tires were bald
4) it was leaking antifreeze
For a $700 car, it doesn’t seem worth fixing.

I also own a van that I’m not too fond of. Perhaps it is time for two cars in the family? I was considering this. And last night when I got to my van after work, I found one of the windows broken out. I filed a police report. The officer said he often sees windows shatter due to the cold. Master does not believe that, however. The glass from the window was all in the parking lot, not in the van, indicating that if someone broke the window, they went into the van to do it. That would seem strange for a vandal.

Anyway, here are my options.

1. Buy another cheap car for my son, keep my van.
2. Buy a more expensive car for my son, keep my van
3. Buy a cheap car for my son, a more expensive one for me, trade in the van (okay, I don’t really consider this an option. I’m not going to buy a nice vehicle for me and leave him in one that may break down soon.)
4. Buy better vehicles for both of us, trade in the van.

I haven’t decided what I am going to do. If I am trading in the van, they will take it minus the window. If I’m not keeping the van, I’m not fixing it.

I would like to talk Master at length about this, but, although he knows the situation, he hasn’t had time to talk lately.

It wouldn’t surprise me, though, if I have two different vehicles within a week.

Note: This is not another movie review, nor is it a bemoaning of all of the things one must do before Christmas. What is it, then? I guess you’ll just have to read it.

Long ago but not so far away, people didn’t decorate as much for Halloween. A few Jack ‘o lanterns, maybe a witch in the window. Now you can buy all sorts of decorations, from lights in the form of pumpkins to light up ghosts and goblins for your yard.

I never got into that. I figured people who did just couldn’t wait for Christmas to do their decorating, so they used Halloween as a reason to start early. Whatever. To each his own.

Then I saw what I consider to be our local Nightmare. One house has some lighted pumpkins and a ghost left over from Halloween. On either side of these decorations, they have their pine trees all decked out and lit up for Christmas! I never thought Halloween and Christmas mixed well even in the movie, and I’m certainly not impressed with this ornamentation. I just hope it doesn’t become the next thing.

Hey, if you want to decorate, be my guest. Knock yourself out. But take down the trimmings from the last holiday before you put up the trappings of the next!

Okay, I finally watched it. I watched the movie Saw. I will admit that I did it under protest. My oldest son from college insisted that I watch the movie. “It’s a good movie,” he said. “It’s not just a slasher movie. It has a twist and a point to it.”

I should say that when I watch a movie, I wish to primarily be entertained. I like feel-good movies that end up “happily ever after”. I know life doesn’t work that way, but that’s why I like movies where everything turns out for the best in the end. This is my escape from reality.

Well, Saw is definitely NOT that type of feel-good, escapism movie. Generally, when I heard people (usually kids) talk about the movie, all they mention are all the gory, bloody parts. Although those were in the movie in abundance, they weren’t the point of the movie. I won’t spoil it by telling you how it ends, or revealing “who dunnit”, but I will pass along the message from the movie, because it is a good one. Life is a wonderful thing; it is precious. Don’t take what you have been given for granted.

Maybe not my usual type of movie, but it had a shaker ending and a good morale to it. If you want something to make you think, perhaps this is it.