Greetings from Gumdrop Falls

I was born in Gumdrop Falls. Granted that was not the given name of our town at the time.  Nor is it now.  But when my friend Jennifer first referred to our quaint New England town by that name, well, it just stuck. 

When I mentioned this fictional name to my husband he said, "I don't get it.  There are no falls and we don't sell gumdrops."  Really?!  Hopefully my readers are a little more creative.... And for all I know, The Old Store (pictured above) may actually sell gumdrops!  Anywho...

If you're not familiar with Gumdrop Falls, I'll give you a little mental tour.  There is one (I repeat, one) school where preschoolers and eighth graders alike attend.  The big transition to middle school occurs by traveling, not across the street or to another building but, rather, down a flight of stairs.  I kid you not.  High school, however, is attended outside town lines. 

When my husband and I first returned to my birthplace, after spending the previous five years in Washington, D.C., I was shocked to learn there was not a CVS pharmacy in town.  In truth we moved from Gumdrop Falls to the next town over (one with a CVS I might add) when I was only six months old, so my memory of it thirty some odd years later was virtually nonexistent.  The closest pharmacy is a 15-minute car ride away, which can feel like an eternity when your child is screaming and needs his medicine.  In fact, aside from the local I.G.A, a bank, post office, a couple churches, library, and a few other small businesses, to get pretty much anywhere outside this idyllic community takes 15 minutes or more. 

This Cheers-like locality, where nearly everyone knows your name, has been home for my family for more than a decade, and it is from here where I share stories of my small-town life with you.

My Brain is Fried!

Remember the 80's commercial with the egg? "This is your brain."  Then the egg is dropped into a sizzling skillet, "This is your brain on drugs."

First, let me start off by saying, No, I am NOT doing drugs!

But, yes, my brain is fried.  And it took my friend's blog and her link to this nearly two-year-old New York Times article to find out why.

It's been going on a few years now.  My inability to remember the simplest of things.  Just yesterday I was at a 5K race and someone came up to me who I've met and I knew I knew her.  I could tell you where I met her and who our mutual friends are.  But for the life of me, I couldn't remember her name until hours later when I was back home.  Ellen! 

It's beyond frustrating.  I was concerned enough to mention it to my doctor a while back to be sure I didn't have some form of early onset Alzheimer's.  I have trouble remembering why I walked into the kitchen or what I was going to say next.  I've driven the wrong direction when heading out for an errand or dropping a friend's child off at a house I've been to a hundred times.  It's not all the time, and maybe it's not even every day, but certainly enough for me to think, this can't be normal.  Actually, it turns out, it is.  At least in my case.

Where our brains are concerned, a lack of sleep certainly doesn't help keep things fresh.  And sure, it can't hurt to try taking vitamins for memory...so long as I remember to take them.  But the real culprits, so it seems, are also my favorite gadgets: my iPhone, iPad, and the television.  (My inner voice screams, 'the iPad? Say it isn't so!')

Simply put, our brains need a break.  Makes sense, right?  I mean, they don't call them Crackberries for nothing.  When I'm at home alone all day and want to have some connection with the outside world, the first thing I do is open my iPad.  I'm surprised someone hasn't invented a way to strap this thing to my body because I carry it with me everywhere.  Well, no, not everywhere.  The bathroom is generally off limits.  But close.

Don't get me wrong, I am in NO WAY saying iPads, or iPhones or anything of the techno-gadgety sort are bad.  They are the way of the future and I am 100% on board.  But, like everything else, moderation, moderation, moderation.

If you were to peer into a window each night at my house (no, this is NOT an invitation to do so), you would probably see the following: the television would be on channel X, Y, or Z while I sit on the couch with my iPad playing some mindless game (hmmm, starting to see the connection too?) while my husband looks up occasionally from his laptop at the kitchen table behind me where he agonizes over ads, spreadsheets, etc.  Work stuff.

Now there is no telling my husband to put away his computer when he has work to be done, but I can certainly focus my brain on one activity or the other, not both.

Yes, my brain is fried. But at least now I know why. And I can do something about it!

So tonight, I'll put away my e-games when the kids go to sleep.  I won't check Facebook.   I won't Draw Something or text anyone.   I know I won't wake up in the morning remembering everything I need, but it's a start.  Baby steps....

Laughter is the best medicine.

Gretchen Rubin is the author of The Happiness Project.  The idea for her book was not unlike my own blog concept at the beginning of the year: to list all the things I'm grateful for and see the transformation which can occur from the inside out.

Today on Gretchen's Facebook wall she asked the question, "What do you wish you did more on a regular basis"  I was suprised to see out of the 130 comments, only one other person had something even remotely like my response, "Laugh. At myself, at others, or just in general."

I recently learned someone said something unkind about me. Most of us are guilty of a bit of gossip now and then, and I'm sure this happens more often than I'd ever want to know yet, even so, it bothered me greatly.  I envy all those who can easily shrug off these moments in life.

So today, after reading Gretchen's blog, I'll follow my own wish.  I'll laugh.  At myself.  At others.  And just in general.

The Little Things

Sometimes when we look for things for which to be grateful we search inside ourselves for the big kahunas. The day changers. Other times we realize it can simply be the little things which make us the happiest. Today was a 'little things' kind of day, which began at the bus stop.

1. I am thankful my son still takes and holds his sister's hand as they cross the street to get on the bus each morning. This small, but critical for safety in my mind's eye, gesture tells me I'm doing a pretty decent job. At least for now. Or until dinner time when my daughter will inevitably whine that I'm making a meal she doesn't like and she wants chicken nuggets instead! Breathe, Amy. Just breathe.

2. I'm thankful for the Z-Pak. You know when you go to the doctor's because you've been feeling lousy for three weeks but have been too busy making sure everyone else is okay you ignore yourself? It's a mom thing. We all do it. So by the time you're finally at your appointment, listening to the doctor, you're actually hoping she tells you something's wrong? That was me today. So, yippee, I got my wish. Sinus infection = Z-Pak. Hopefully this will drive away all the headaches and overall crappy feeling once and for all!

3. I'm thankful when my husband makes it home on time for me to leave the house without feeling rushed to get to my monthly girl's get together affectionately called drunko. Whoops, typo, I mean Bunco. Ha ha. In truth, there is alcohol but I have yet to see someone labeled drunk. Clumsy perhaps, as I personally tipped over a glass of wine a couple months back, but that's as far as it goes. Overall, it's just a wonderful reason to get together with the ladies, and gab and snack while rolling a few dice.

4. I'm thankful it's no longer a full moon because there was actually a moment today in the Rite Aid parking lot when I was looking around to make sure a) I wasn't getting Punk'd and b) I wasn't about to get carjacked by a hidden partner of a lady who drove up, introduced herself just before I was about to get in my car, and began telling me her complete life story. No joke. My hairdresser told me she had a lot of crazies in yesterday. It was a full moon then. Maybe this lady was a leftover full-moon crazy? Either way, I wished her well, got in my car and locked my doors as quick as I could. I mean, really, lady. If I wasn't unknowingly part of some school psychological project, surely there are better places to get suggestions for safe places to take your son away from a soon-to-be-divorced spouse than the pharmacy parking lot!

5. Lastly I am thankful for my stamping friends who share their creativity each month. Not only do we get together to swap some amazing ideas and cards, but one of these wonderful ladies made me this fabulous iPad cover! Thank you, Suzan! You amaze me all the time with your endless talent! I'm not too savvy with a sewing machine, but I'd be happy to help you add some gadgets to your blog any time as a thank you!

Can you say, Cha-Ching?

As a result of my family's recent trip to Florida, I have another travel tip to share. This one falls under the do-as-I-say-not-as-I-do category. My tip is this: listen to your air hostesses/flight attendants when they tell you to check your seat-back pockets for any personal items. Oh, how I wish I heard this useful bit of wisdom before disembarking the airplane so we could have altogether avoided the loss of my daughters' pretty in pink Nintendo DSI game device, carrying case, SD card pre-loaded with her favorite tunes, along with all eight games received since Christmas 2010. Cha-ching!

I am still holding out hope, and have even enlisted the help of St. Anthony, though as each day winds down with no word from Delta Airlines I realize a reunion for my girl and her games are becoming less and less likely. But these things take time, and good things come to those who wait--at least that's what I keep telling my daughter! For now, my fingers remain crossed.

Amy's Travel Tips!

Recently I was told I should write a book. Frankly, as flattering a comment as this is, I wouldn't have the foggiest idea what to write about. As I was leaving for a trip the next day, a friend offered a suggestion. "You should write a 'What NOT to Do Travel Book'," she said. Humph, I thought. Actually, it is a funny idea because I have had some doozy travel stories, though certainly not enough to fill a book. Yet.

With this in mind, I'll share some of my top tips (A.K.A. reasons to be grateful) when traveling:

1. Packing in advance does not necessarily mean you will remember to bring everything you need. My son packed his suitcase a good 24 hours before me and we forgot his swim trunks. I packed my items 45 minutes before we put the key in the ignition and I forgot nothing! Or, if I did, I haven't discovered it yet!

2. Should you arrive at your destination without something you need, you can almost always purchase it when you arrive. Thanks to Old Navy for our most recent quick, one-stop shopping jaunt for new UV shirts and swim trunks!

3. Should you discover the morning you are leaving for Paris that your passport expired several months prior, fear not. It IS possible to get a same-day passport AND make your evening flight. Even if it means driving to Philadelphia; talking your husband through your closet because, big shocker, you haven't packed yet; and leaving two cars in long-term parking to make it happen!

4. Should you ever arrive at Westchester Airport and realize your driver's license, and any other legitimate form of ID, is resting back at home, don't reach for the panic button. Be polite to the TSA agents because they are about to be your new BFFs. They will issue an immediate background check over the phone and ask you some basic questions (note to self, you can't ask your husband for help). If you pass the check you will feel like the luckiest person alive. Hell, maybe you are! You will be allowed to board the plane with your family and have a really great story to share with the relatives awaiting your arrival! And yes, this happened to me post 9/11!

5. FedEx is great for express shipping a driver's license, custom swimming ear plugs, or whatever else that's needed prior to the return trip home. It's quite possible that my parents now avoid my calls when I'm away in case it means they need to be put on another pronto postal mission!

Late Night Thanks

Today was bill day. Or rather, today was "holy shit, that's quite a stack, I better pay these bills" day, which leads me into the first item on my list of that for which to be grateful:

1. I am grateful I can pay my bills online, thus avoiding the pesky 44-cent stamps and a trip to the mailbox in my pajamas.

2. I am grateful if I find a bill is due on today's very date I can (and did!) go right to the credit card website with bank account and routing number in hand and get it there fast and free, despite there being a phone number to call with the same info and be slapped with a $15 fee...WTH?

3. I am grateful for 800#s and customer service reps armed with the power to erase late fees from my bills. Yes, I said bills plural. I admit it; there were two. It was a bad month. When CS rep #2 informed me I'd already used my special one-time-exception 11 months ago, I asked for a manager and lo and behold, the power was granted and the fee waived.

4. I am grateful for having the patience to make said phone calls. Having worked in customer service right out of college, not only was I lucky enough to meet my future husband but, it was there I learned that people with headsets can RULE THE WORLD! Okay, maybe that's getting a little carried away....

5. Lastly, at least on this subject, I'm grateful that I am free from my bill paying duties for another few weeks.

6. I'm grateful for my scrapbook pals because after five years since taking an anniversary trip to Paris, I am NEARLY ready to order my book. Just a few more journaling additions and tweaks from the writer....

7. I am thankful I'm not Cinderalla because the clock is striking twelve and I am not dashing down some stairs in only one shoe!

8. Ahhh, fleece sheets. Okay, seriously. How many times do I need to be thankful for the puppies before you realize their greatness and go out and buy yourself a set?!?

9. I'm thankful I can hit the send button and know I am out for the count. Now if I can just keep my eyes open long enough....

10. I'm grateful for my friends who read my blog! Thank YOU and good night!!