Thoughtful Toddler - Episode 2

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Perfect Harmony

When I was a little girl, my mom used to sing "I'd Like to Teach the World to Sing" all the time.  I so enjoyed listening to her voice and would try to harmonize with her.  The melody was simple and beautiful, an easy song for a child to learn and love. 

I was delighted as could be whenever Coca-Cola's commercial featuring this wonderful song aired on television.  I already knew all the words (yay!), except for a few minor changes courtesy of Coke's clever marketing people.  Even better, it was the first time I had seen a TV ad full of people who looked like me.  40 or so years later, the ad still brings a smile to my face.

And, yes, I'm still a Coca-Cola girl.

Mrs. American-Commuter

Tuesday, on my way home from work, I was surprised to see that the Halal meat store was gutted to the studs. Hmm, when did that happen? I wondered how long the building had stood like that, unnoticed though I pass it twice a day, five days a week. I looked at the other drivers stopped in traffic next to me. Not a single person was looking at anything other than the view out the windshield. I made a mental note to pay more attention to my surroundings on F Drive, the street on which I spend the majority of my commute.

Happy, happy, happy, happy Chanukah!

Chanukah gift giving wouldn't be complete without the gift of Adam Sandler:

Mrs. C and the Dreidel

Yesterday I received a package and a letter from my dad:  

I remember Mrs. C., your kindergarten teacher, gave you a dreidel. I had never seen one of those before either and so this was new to me, too. As I recall, Mrs. C. also taught you a little Jewish history to go with the dreidel. Anyway, while walking around the JCC, with some of the most beautiful arts and crafts on display, I ran across this dreidel. I thought of Mrs. C and had to get this for you for Chanukah.

The Manifester

On Wednesday evening, S. and I were fortunate enough to see a screening of California State of Mind: The Legacy of Pat Brown.   This inspiring documentary was written and directed by the former governor's granddaughter, Sascha Rice.  The film illustrates how deeply Governor Brown loved our beautiful state, proven through his resolute efforts to promote progress on every level.  He had visions of an efficient, flourishing state, where civil rights and first-rate education were standard for its citizenry.  More than four decades later, his remarkable achievements continue to propel California.

http://patbrowndocumentary.com/trailer/index.html

http://patbrowndocumentary.com/home/index.html

Happy Friday!

A classic holiday treat, The Fruitcake Lady:

The Highlight of 2012

I was asked today, “What was the highlight of your year?” The year is, of course, not yet complete, but I can still answer unequivocally that the highlight of 2012 was my cousin, P.’s, wedding. The ceremony and accompanying three-day celebration were very, very special in every imaginable way. For their festivities, P. and R., the bride and groom, chose a private-lake reserve, nestled among majestic redwoods and peppered with lovely cabins and tranquil spaces for camping. A hiking trail bordered the spring-fed lake and there were canoes for exploring the nooks along its serpentine periphery. Each day I plucked and ate apples from one of the fruit trees growing on the property; deer ate those that speckled the grass underneath. At night I would gaze in awe at the plentiful stars, warmed by the campfire, good whiskey and the presence of friends old and new. That Saturday P. and R. made their pledge, under the aegis of a canopy of heritage oaks and their friends’ and families’ effusive love.

Thoughtful Toddler, PhD - Episode 1

Thoughtful Toddler, PhD - starring C.F., toddler extraordinaire. 

Thanksgiving List

This is happening, people.   I know, I know.   It’s terribly trite and everyone makes one, but goldarn it, I’m thankful for stuff!  I’ll try to keep my list short as you’re probably busy scouring the Internet for a super innovative – yet not inedible – cranberry sauce recipe (hint:  it doesn’t exist).  Now then...

Happy Friday!

Something beautiful to kick off the weekend...

Carla Morrison, "Eres Tú"

Convo with My Mom

Me:   “Hi, Mom!  Happy Veteran’s Day!”

Mom:  “Happy Veteran’s Day.   You know, I could get a lot of stuff for free?”

Me:  “Um, oh…”

Mom:  “Free breakfast here, free dinner there, free whatever.  Yeah.  But I’m not going to do that.”

Me:  “OK…?”

Mom:  “OK, have a good day, hon!”
 

Holiday Manifesto

Do you hear that rumble?  It’s the holiday juggernaut rolling into town!  Before it gets here and squelches the life out of you, remember:  you don’t have to sacrifice yourself for the holidays.  I know what you’re thinking, “But, but, but…table settings and Black Friday and gifts and perfectness and blahhhhhh…”  STOP.  Recall childhood and your favorite memories of this time of year.  Find joy again in leisure and conviviality, in gathering and play.  Covet the simplicity of contentedness, rather than the fantasy of perfection.  Kith and kin don’t care about the stain on your tablecloth or that you served store-bought cheese logs; they care about you.  The holidays are meant for enjoying time with family and friends so in these coming weeks, make time for the people you love.  Make time for yourself.

 

The Kinfolk Manifesto demonstrates how lovely simple gatherings truly are.

Vive ut Vivas

Two years ago after my dad retired, he and my stepmom moved 3,000 miles away. Before their migration to the right coast they had never lived more than a car ride away, so I was ambivalent about their pending adventure. I felt excited for them, but also a deep sadness. My dad and I have always been like two peas in a pod, sharing many of those inscrutable familial qualities that are difficult to describe, yet readily perceptible to even casual observers. Our relationship is facile and meaningful, never forsaking substance for fun and vice versa.

Día de los Muertos

The day which we fear as our last is but the birthday of eternity.

                                                                                        ~ Lucius Annaeus Seneca

Celebrate today with those you love and for those you'll love in this life and the next. 

Dia de los Muertos - 2011 from Eli Vazquez on Vimeo.

Happy Halloween!

Halloween is upon us! This fantastical break from the norm is the holiday season’s clarion call.  Ushering us away from summer’s final, languid whispers, it's the perfect instrument for arousing us from early autumn dreaminess. The anticipation, festiveness, and excitement for Halloween reawaken our holiday-muscle memory, minus the toil, expense, and crazed over-scheduling that November and December offer in abundance.

Happy Friday!

The haunting "Hotel Plaster" by Nicole Atkins:

Wishing you a spooky and festive weekend!

Customer "Service"

“I share your frustration.” Has there ever been a more specious statement uttered? The entire genus of customer service sentiments – “I completely understand”, “I can see why you’re upset”, etc. – evolved for the dual benefit of giving the customer the impression that someone genuinely cares, while not having to put forth any actual effort on behalf of the customer.

Sparkly Happiness Forever

I love America. There’s no shortage of ways to waste time and/or resources and that’s a big part of what makes us great. I also love weird stuff. Sadly, the U.S.’s production of weird stuff has fallen way behind Japan’s, which is why it’s such a challenge to find the really good weird stuff in neighborhood stores. How lucky is it that I can turn to the World Wide Web (Shout out to the 90s! Holla!), a confluence of ludicrous merchandise and time-sucking websites? Herein are some of my faves.

Know Your Audience

One of my high school English teachers used to regularly admonish us when assigning composition topics, “Know your audience.” This is sound advice for casual conversation, too. I present Exhibit A (actually it’s the only exhibit):

Touch Me

S. and I walked downtown with our pups over the weekend. As we passed a wizened, disheveled homeless woman, she reached out and grabbed S.’s arm, blurting something I didn’t understand.

ZOMG! It's Christmas!

Yeah, no it’s not. Not even a little bit. I was at a big-box store this week and they already have their Christmas merchandise on display. IT’S MID-OCTOBER. I want to fully enjoy fall and Halloween and after that, Thanksgiving, you know, the holiday before Christmas. Granted, the store's "Seasonal" section isn't exclusively rows and rows of teetering stacks Christmas cards, lights, ribbon, bulbs, stockings, and garlands; it shares the space with the slightly anemic Halloween area. When I spied the vastness of Hallowistmas, at first I recoiled and then stared suspiciously as if there was risk of being snared should I turn my back on it. It’s obscene in both size and content. There’s just something unsettling about the juxtaposition of sexy witch costumes and stuffed Mr. and Mrs. Clauses.

One ill-fated mom had a grave look on her face. Two boxes of glass ornaments or a tub of plastic ones? Her wriggling, importunate son was holding a bag of Halloween candy up to her face. Dear Lord, I thought, choose the plastic ones! When I encountered her again later in the cereal aisle, she had a few bags of candy, a sparkly pumpkin, a garland of fake cranberries, and both the glass and plastic ornaments in her cart. She didn’t make eye contact. I took this as a sign that she was appropriately ashamed of capitulating to the megastore pimp.

Don’t get me wrong. I love Christmas. LOVE. Hardcore. I just don’t want it all up in my shit until Christmastime. Right now I want to relax, have a mug of cider, and savor the splendor that is harvest season. Wait for me, Christmas; the day after Thanksgiving it’s all you, babe.

Happy Friday!

This is an oldie, but a goodie.  Ryan and Sheri Killackey took more than 10,000 photos and converted them into this amazing short film, A Day in California.  I hope it inspires you, as it does me, to revel in the great outdoors this weekend, wherever you are.

I Heart Geo

On my way home yesterday, I was stopped behind a Geo Metro at the light. “Geo” has the singular ability to warm my heart like no one else can; it was my first car. Encountering Geo is like running into my first love, as in Rusty my first “love” from preschool, not Carlton my first love from high school who transformed me into a living, breathing, burbling, hissing cauldron of wretchedness. Anyhoo, I couldn't help smiling when I saw that poor, beat-up little Metro yesterday.  It took me back to a time of freedom, of unworried fun, of youth.

Happy Birthday, S.

The month of October is very special to me.  Both of my beautiful godchildren were born in October and, of course, there's Halloween, so wonderfully weird, spooky, and nostalgic.  From my perspective, October is fall (my favorite season) in quintessence.  The evenings finally begin to cool and the days ease away from summer's fervor.  Taking in the air's earthy, herby fragrance is at once invigorating and calming.  And the colors!  The landscape is as vivid and saturated as the luscious fruits and vegetables of the autumn harvest.

I Hate Okra

Several of my friends and family have dabbled in online dating. Mostly, it sounds like a hideous experience with one exception: The Profile. I've been with S. since the dark times (1990) when there was no public Internet. I feel like I really missed out with regard to posting my official self-portrait and my dating dos-and-don'ts online, cached in perpetuity as countenanced by the gods (AKA website moderators). I realize that composing one's profile can be quite a chore, stressful even, for some; still, I hate to be left out of the loop. Plus, I feel like I could inject this process with a degree of candidness that might be...refreshing? I've mulled it over and offer you, my dear reader(s), my would-be online dating profile. I'm so excited!

Convo with My Mom

Me:  "Hi, Mom!  Did you have fun at the [annual party]?"

Mom:  "Yes, I had a good time.  Of course, a lot of people remember me.  I guess I didn't change very much.  This very fat man said, 'Remember me?  You were at my [hiring event]!'  I had to be polite and say, 'Oh, yeah!' even though I didn't remember him.  I guess he was skinny then."

Me:  "Ohhhkaaaay...well, I'm glad you had a good time."

Mom:  "Thank you, hun."

Hello!

It's here, y'all! Welcome to The OGG Fan Club!  The Original Glen Gingrich Fan Club is an inside joke between four friends. My ramblings will be a tribute to our discursive conversation that germinated the idea for this blog. A word of caution: things might get a little weird in here.

Enjoy!