Highs and Lows
Hey there, fellow NaBloPoMo’ers… how’s it going? I hope everyone is having fun so far! Before I get to the main point of this post, I want to share a huge high from my week. November 1st fell on Wednesday, and as luck would have it, I have Wednesdays off from work. This Wednesday I went for a nice long run, then came home, got into my pajamas (not the pajamas I actually sleep in, my daytime pajamas- you DO have daytime pajamas, don’t you???) lit a scented candle (pumpkin spice) and settled down with my tea TO READ EVERYONE’S FIRST POSTS of NABLOPOMO!!!!! I just loved it so much. I’m excited to reconnect with old friends, and discover new-to-me blogs (and bloggers who will be future friends.) Yes, I know it’s a lot of work- but it’s so worth it. I also want to give a special shoutout to all the people who are not formally participating in NaBloPoMo, but are reading and cheering us on from the sidelines. THANK YOU! At first my intention was to make this post a list of highs and lows from the week. But to be honest… I didn’t have any serious lows. Okay, my thumb hurts a little and the cat threw up on my shoes… but overall, it’s been a great week. You’re probably thinking I’m like the guy from the Lego movie (“Everything is awesome…”) and yes, I do sing that song occasionally! But along with the highs come some pretty deep lows. I get really sad when things end. I hate coming home from vacations. I get down when the Super bowl is over. The first time the Starbucks barista hands me my drink in a plain white cup after Christmas feels like a knife through my soul. Let’s not even talk about December 26th. So much sadness. I was intrigued by B’s post yesterday where she explained that she doesn’t celebrate any holidays. Her reason is that she hates the commercialism (well…I can’t really argue with that.) I know someone else who doesn’t celebrate holidays and for him it’s a spiritual practice. He doesn’t believe extreme highs and lows are healthy, and prefers to live his life on a more even keel. Then there are people who celebrate holidays, but in a more casual way. My husband likes Christmas, and Thanksgiving. He also likes Labor Day and Memorial Day. They’re fun, but not worth getting TOO excited over, or too depressed when they’re over. He’s always ready to move on to the next thing. I’m pretty sure if I tried to live that way, it just wouldn’t work for me. I would feel like I was missing out on all the fun, and then when the holidays were over, instead of thinking “Ah, well at least I stayed on an even keel!” I would regret not having experienced it to the fullest. I don’t know if it’s the way my brain is wired, or if it’s just from years and years of doing it this way, but I’m doomed (blessed?) to live with my extreme highs and lows. Luckily the lows never last too long- the next exciting thing is usually around the corner. How about you? Are you a “B” or a “Jenny?” when it comes to holidays? Or somewhere in between? VERY IMPORTANT QUESTION- is it “pajamas” or “pa-jah-mas?” – Let’s not have any nonsense over this. I’m from the midwest, and we say “pajamas” THE WAY THE WORD IS SPELLED. Do you spread “jahm” on your toast? Of course not! Have we suddenly become British? No! (Any readers from outside the US have a pass to pronounce it as you please.) Header photo by Mitchell Luo on Unsplash