I haven't been particularly inspired by anything lately...although there's really always a lot to write about if truth be told. I could go on about some of the serious things that have been on my heart or some folks going through this or that that have been on my mind a lot. But some of what I'm learning isn't quite ready to spill out yet...kind of like when you're baking and the cake is almost...but not completely done. If you try to take it out too early...you pretty much ruin the time you spent getting it to that point in the first place.
Although cake batter in its most basic form is among my favorite things in the world...but I digress...
I could go into why I feel the way I do about a number of subjects, or I could be completely honest all of the crazy stuff that seems to happen to me...because I just pretty much expect that it will.
Or I could write because someone has asked me to log my impressions of something I'm involved with...but like a college freshman in English 101 staring on a blank screen...I'm waiting on what can only be described as "a vision." And it will come...in time.
But here I sit...with scattered thoughts of the past two weeks. So, I'll just throw them out there. Those random things that I recall. You know...those little points in time that make life what it is.
So here goes...
Recently, while on vacation, I spent a number of hours on hold for various things. I don't know about you, but I tend to get a list of things that need to be done and I tuck them away mentally...or just make a list that I promptly lose. When I actually sat down with a pad in one hand and a pen in the other, I couldn't think of jack squat that needed to be done. Eventually I remembered a few things and realized that almost all of them involved calling a company to get something straightened out. This generally does not end well.
I ended up on hold for forty forevers...listening to such classics as "Tequila." Believe me...Pee Wee Herman's version was far better...
Yes...lovely isn't it? I can't replicate what I was listening to...but here's Pee Wee's version...
I do remember thinking "Whoa, this is an interesting version..." and noting that it was actually elevator music. I mean, these days, it is really difficult to find it anymore. Most companies put ads on while you are on hold, or have that annoying operator that comes back every 33 seconds to make sure that you know that you are still on hold 14 minutes later. Even the grocery stores...a place that could definitely be counted on for elevator music...has now gone mainstream. When you are cruising frozen foods and hear "Smells Like Teen Spirit" it is just wrong.
I suppose missing elevator music either means that I am getting old...or I am just to the point where I realize that some things just run their course. You get attached to a certain brand, flavor, or lipstick color and suddenly the powers that be quit making it. This has happened to me so many times that I no longer get all worked up over it. But boy do I get excited if I happen to run across something that I haven't seen in awhile...
A few years ago, I bought numerous candy bars from some kid raising money for selling World's Finest Chocolate. Why? Because some of my starter fat cells came from a combination of this concoction of milk chocolate and almond pieces...and Big Chic. (Big Chic is the place in my hometown that makes the best fried chicken on earth.) I was a little weepy as I wrote the check...because it had been years since I'd laid eyes on a bar of "band candy." For most of my junior high and high school career, we raised money for various trips, uniforms, and upgrades by selling World's Finest Chocolate. Sadly, I haven't seen any since.
I also wish that I could find a bottle of Jungle Gardenia. It was the perfume my sweet Gammy wore every day...and why I so strongly associate gardenias with her. They quit making it years ago...but they did sell the formula to Coty...who put it out briefly sometime in the 1990s.
I also miss some cereal that my mother used to buy called "Concentrate" or something like that (hey, I was eight...sue me). It had little flakes...and I remember eating that instead of Captain Crunch or Frankenberry or whatever everyone else was eating. Every so often I'll try to find it in the aisles of a new store...but alas...no. Ah! I remembered that I have something called "Internet" that would allow me to find it. See the pretty gold foil box? I miss it.
I also miss the colored candles that used to sit in everybody's windows at Christmas. My grandmother had gold ones that looked orange from the street. Other people had red, blue or green. We all used colored lights on our trees instead of white ones. I do love the sophistication of white lights on trees...but I miss how unbelievably tacky we were...yet how beautiful those memories are to me.
This walk down memory lane...simply because I was listening to "Tequila" on elevator music. And while I was listening, I was probably doing three of four other things at the same time. That whole multitasking thing is a skill set that might have been a survival technique while I had little children at home and requiring a lot of my time...but these days...I really prefer just doing one thing at a time.
Maybe I am getting older. Or maybe I just want to appreciate everything that comes my way because I know the truth. People move, die, or change. Life adds challenges and takes away some of those little things that enriched our days. Nothing lasts forever here on the big round orb. (Except, of course, the picture of my mother without makeup from Christmas 1992 that she swears will be the only surviving photograph of her 100 years from now).
So, I'm going to multitask less...and focus more. Enjoy the "good stuff" that I have and quit saving it for a special occasion. I mean...seriously...EVERY day is a special occasion. If you're here and drawing breath...that's a good enough excuse to do something that you love...just because. Oh, there will always be those show-stopping memories...zero birthdays, graduations, and weddings...but why not just track down some product that you have loved and lost or light that really great smelling candle that you haven't burned because you've been waiting for something.
And if you see some kid selling World's Finest Chocolate...send them my way.
No comments:
Post a Comment