You Take The Good, You Take The Bad…

I am writing this column on an early mid-October Saturday morning as the rain pelts my window and drums on my rooftop. Of course, there will be no sunrise this morning, it’s that’s dreary.  Once again, I have the November issue of Movin’ Out completed, except for this column.  The month of November has always been a month of reflection for many people, a time to pause and count their blessings.

I thought I would write about all of the things that I am thankful for – BUT, first, I want to touch base on some major annoyances that cause me frustration.  (The other day my Mom and I were having a conversation about me holding grudges.  It’s true, I am guilty as charged.  I will hold a grudge even after the person is dead.)

Many of these annoyances are petty things that shouldn’t get under my skin.  But the grudges?  Well, those are a different topic and let’s just say that 42, 36, 31, 25 years later after the grievances occurred, I have every right to still be upset, mad, angry, and bitter.  #INEVERFORGET

Right now, I am very annoyed that the garment industry gives men’s clothing all of these deep pockets on their pants.   And then women?  It’s kind of an afterthought, “Oh, do the women want pockets in their clothing as well?  Let’s give them a teeny, tiny pocket to make the little ladies happy…”. Ummm, heck yes, we want pockets!  We want some of those deep pockets, too!  We want them in pants, in dresses, in sweaters and jackets and coats! We want pockets big enough to hold our cellphones, our car keys, a packet of Kleenex, some Werther’s candies, and an assortment of rocks, toy dinosaurs, and anything else that our kids and grandkids pick up on our excursions. JUST GIVE US SOME BIG POCKETS AND NOBODY GETS HURT!

I definitely understand that there’s a severe lack of workers, but it sure would be nice if fast food restaurants could open up their dining rooms again.  And those self-checkout lines at the stores?  Why is there a store employee just standing there watching everyone utilize these registers?  Why aren’t they running a register and getting the shoppers checked out faster? I actually stood in line at the self-checkout at the grocery store last month, behind a little old lady who was about 12 years older than me, who had TWO carts full of items and she had no clue what she was doing.  It took her about 5 swipes to get her Advantage card entered and then she didn’t know how to look up the produce.  She had so much stuff on the conveyor belt that she was continually stopping to shuffle her way down to bag some of the groceries up.  I so wanted to yell, “Get Outta My Lane, Lady!” See, what I did just there?  Wink, wink.

I’m tired, nay, I’m angry over the state of our Country, which was once strong and proud and magnificent.  And now, it is overrun by morons, and we have no leadership and it’s just full of hot-aired nincompoops.  $3.65 a gallon for gas?  (And I realize that’s cheap compared to a lot of other states right now.). Food shortages, paper shortages, worker shortages, automotive shortages. Cargo ships just sitting out in the ocean.  Come on, man – let’s get our act together and get America moving again, in the right direction.

I’m tired of the political parties fighting – both the elected officials and the “regular Joes” pounding their chests and pontificating on their social media accounts.  And yes, I am vaccinated, but I believe it’s a personal choice and people should not be forced to get the vaccine if they don’t want to. 

I’m all for a campaign to once and for all ban the ridiculous Daylight-Saving Time – let’s all refuse to “fall back” this year!

I don’t like pumpkin anything.  There, I said it.  Well, I do like the actual pumpkins in a pumpkin patch and carved as jack-o-lanterns, but that’s it.

MAKE HEALTH CARE AFFORDABLE AGAIN!  You know, like it was before the stupid Obamacare took effect.

Why, oh why can Jeff Bezos and William Shatner  go into space, but McDonald’s can’t get their ice cream machines to work on a permanent basis??  And bring back Dandee Corn Twisters!

Okay, okay – enough ranting!  Now it’s time for some gratitude.  At the top of my thankful list, as always, is my family and friends.  They love me, I love them, and they keep me in check and semi-balanced.  They are my world and mean everything to me.

I gotta say it, man.  Birds.  I am so thankful for my feathered friends.  Oh, the joy and happiness that they bring to my life.  And the squirrels and the chipmunks, the sandhill cranes, the geese, and ducks.  And the Eagles, the majestic Eagles.  Swoon.

Quoting one of my favorite authors, Lucy Maude Montgomery, “I'm so glad I live in a world where there are Octobers.”  The stunning fall foliage always takes my breath away and leaves me in awe of the beauty of nature.  Then again, I am blessed to live in a state where I get to experience all four seasons, and I may be weird, but I love the snow and cold.

I’m grateful for photography and sunrises and sunsets.  Morning walks on a deserted beach is my jam.  I’m happy for leisurely drives on backroads with no destination in mind.  Thanks Bravo TV for trashy reality shows that I adore and to the Hallmark Channel for sappy, cheesy, sentimental movies that make me cry – even when I have figured out the plot only 3 minutes into the movie.

I’m thankful for ham, sweet potatoes, pecan pie, ice cream, broccoli, peas, green beans, and  carrots.  (And since I’m being honest, I am also thankful for Chef Boyardee pizza and hot dogs.). Yoga pants with high waistbands are the bomb.  Fuzzy socks make my toes tingle.  Thank you, dear spouse, for the snuggles in the middle of the night and for pulling my leg, literally to get my kneecap to snap back into place.

Cuddles on the couch with a beagle, hugs from a sticky grandchild, my parents telling me that they love me, Facebook messages and memes with friends of all ages, funny, witty cards from my son, memories of loved ones who are no longer here on earth – these are a few of my favorite things.

I’m thankful for Mike McGough, who’s been a regular writer for Movin’ Out for 25 years and the friendship that has grown out of our business relationship.  I am so grateful to all of our readers and advertisers of Movin’ Out for the past 46.5 years – thank you, thank you, thank you! And a special shout out to Gerard in Massachusetts for the birthday card and for always giving me encouragement and support.

Who knows what the future holds for anyone?  I do know that there will joy and sorrow.  But, in life, you have to take the good and the bad and pray that the good triumphs over the bad.