Are You There God? It's Me, Dawn

Don't be like me.

I repeat...do not be like me.

Don't go to the mall on a Saturday over winter break.  That's when the teenage animal returns to its habitat in droves.

I survived...but it was touch and go.  *shivers*  I was almost trampled by the flirting alone!

(But Bath & Body Works is having their winter sale!  Oh...and so is Vicky's!!)

You know how I told my fam that I didn't want gifts this year, because I'd rather give my loot to charity?

And remember how I've been thinking about my grandma a lot this year...especially with the ironing I've been doing?

Mind you, I hadn't said anything about thinking about my gram or anything to my mom.

What'd she give me for Christmas?

My grandma's old cookbook with her handwritten notes AND the Bible they give to widow's from my granddad's funeral.

Oh. My. Goodness.

I've never received a better gift.  Ever.

In the days when King Herod ruled, there were three wise men, also called *magi*. One night, the wise men noticed a very bright star shining in the east.

The star was a sign to them, that a king had been born; so the wise men set out on a journey to follow the star and find the newborn king.

The star led the wise men through fields and over mountains, until they arrived in Bethlehem, where it stood over the place where Jesus was.

When the wise men arrived, they found Mary, Joseph and Jesus; and the glory of the Lord shone all around them. The wise men knew that this truly was the King of kings, and they rejoiced with exceedingly great joy; and bowed down before Jesus and offered to Him their treasured gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh.

And the angels in Heaven rejoiced, for they also knew that Jesus was the Son of God.

God sent the angel Gabriel to Nazareth, a town in Galilee, to a virgin pledged to be married to a man named Joseph, a descendant of David. The virgin's name was Mary. 

The angel went to her and said, "Greetings, you who are highly favored! The Lord is with you."

 

The angel said to her, "You have found favor with God. You will be with child and give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus. He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of his father David, and he will reign over the house of Jacob forever; his kingdom will never end."

If you're at the mall today (peace be with you!), then be sure to smile at the sales clerks...they need it.

If you're with the fam today, laugh at your dad's jokes (that you've heard a million times already)...it's the right thing to do.

If you're with the little tots today, mercilessly torture them into good behavior with warnings that Santa may not stop by the house if they keep it up.

If you're with the bigger kids today, mercilessly torture them into good behavior with warnings that you kept the receipt...and aren't afraid to take their stuff back.

If you're with your mom today, let her cook for you...she wants to, so set the table and fill the water glasses and compliment her on her yummy food.

If you're sad today, get up and out of the house and do something fun...workout, volunteer, smile and say hello to everyone you see, give an extra big tip to your waiter, whatever.

Let em get mad
They gonna hate anyway
Don't you get that?
Doesn't matter if you're going on with their plan
They'll never be happy
Cause they're not happy with themselves

Na na work what you got
I'm talking bout things that I know
Na na work what you got
It's okay show yourself some love
Na na work what you got
Don't worry bout who's saying what
It's gonna be fine
Work what you got
--"Work That", Mary J. Blige

I have been wearing the grooves off of this song...it's from Mary's new album.  It's just about being true to yourself...don't worry about the haters.  Haters hate, winners win.  And we, my friends, are winners. 

Plus the beat is hot!

The song is just so true.  I remember when I was younger, I worried so much about what other people thought...now it's just not that important.  I used to do stuff/say stuff/wear stuff because I wanted to be like everyone else...so that they'd like me.  Luckily I eventually figured out what Mary says in this song...those folks were unhappy, so they were bound to make me unhappy too.

Nowadays, I love me and all my (many!) quirks.  I'm still trying to be a better person, but it's not about fitting into someone else's mold.  I can't believe how much energy I used to spend trying to make other folks happy.  *shaking head*

Like Mary says, it's okay for me to show myself some love...if I don't, who will?

I may not have all of my stuff together, but what I have...I'm gonna work it out!

So, I woke up this morning and thought, I know!  I'll ask on the blog today and that'll help me.

But when I got to the gym, my mouth dropped to the floor.  I watched in amazement as a woman, scarf on head, danced through the weight machines.  I think I stood beside my car for a full minute while staring at her.  Then I got in there...and she was singing out loud.  Very out loud.  Dude...are you serious with that?  Are you really singing and dancing at the gym?  I just shook my head and laughed.

Later in the morning, after I got my eyebrows done (thank the Lord!  I no longer look like a sheep herder), I went to get some gas.  And in a tremendous case of "don't judge a book by its cover", a man in coveralls, putting oil in his truck (which was hauling something or other)...starts asking me about hybrid cars.  I'm such a schmuck because I kinda thought he was a goober and here we are having an intellectual convo, comparing and contrasting the virtues of the hybrid Camry vs. the Prius.


Anyhoo, the question was:  am I supposed to get the new dude a Christmas gift?  It's two months next week.

Christmas is almost here and I feel light as a feather since I’m not weighed down by pressure.

What pressure?  To find the right gift.  The gift that says “I love you” or “I put lots of time and effort into this”.

Why no pressure?  Because I got my family small gifts and cards with actual handwritten sentiments and with the money I saved…I was able to give to charity.

Before I sound like I’m patting myself on the back…I was still a shot in the arms for the American economy:

• $60 on Christmas cards, birthday cards, scotch tape, wrapping paper and labels
• $20 to send the gifts at the post office (many thank you’s to the lady at the PO who told me that there was a separate rate for books…which all of my gifts are)
• $60 on flour, sugar, butter, milk, brown sugar, eggs, vanilla, chocolate, food coloring, powdered sugar, and white chocolate (all organic except the coloring of course) for the various cookies I make each year
• $150 on the small gifts I got for the fam
• an untold amount of labor spent mixing, stirring, baking, frosting, and…um sampling the cookies.  Let’s not even talk about the constant washing of dishes (seriously, I could have hired day laborers and they would have been busy!)

I’m neither complaining nor bragging…I just thought I was supposed to be paring down.  And I did…so why did I still spend so much?!

Perhaps one day my fam and I will be able to celebrate Jesus’ birth (isn’t that what Christmas is all about?!!!) as well as be the celebrated consumers that we already are.

...marry someone of a different race than you?

...eat a whole cake/pie if you knew you wouldn't gain weight?

...marry someone of a different faith than you?

...cheat on a test if no one would find out?

...be happy with your day if you had to relive it Groundhog Day-style?

...adopt a child?

...give up a child for adoption?

Any more "would you's"?

Given my sketchy history with dudes, I've been waiting to mention this...but there's a new dude. 

He's been around for a bit over a month now.  He digs me (the real me).  He's funny.  He's smart.  He thinks I'm funny.  He's feeling me (he told me so).  I think he's funny (he is) and he thinks I'm goofy (I am).  He's new to the area.  So am I.  He's into working out.  So am I.  He's good looking. So am...wait, that would be tacky to say, huh?

So far so good.

We'll see...