Service of Looking on the Bright Side
Monday, March 10th, 2014
When things aren’t going my way I try to look for the bright side—there’s so often a silver lining if not for me, then for someone. It helps divert a train of thought headed towards gloom.
Lighten Up
Feeling exhausted because you lost an hour due to the Daylight Savings time change? Some will be grateful to leave work in daylight.
Park It
Those who park on city streets on the east coast must celebrate this difficult winter. They’ve enjoyed weeks of forgiveness from alternate side of the street parking rules.
I did this for only a short time years ago. What a rat race it was zipping out early to grab a spot and sitting in the car until 8 a.m. adding to morning chores of walking the dog and getting dressed so as to arrive at work on time. And on certain evenings there was another car deadline to add to all those at the office which involved a heart-in-throat dash back home to move the car and grab a good spot only to begin again the next day.
Quiet Mice
Speaking of rodents—as in rat races–or more precisely, mice, homes and apartments prone to these pesky mammals have benefited from the cold. I don’t know where they’ve gone but we’ve seen evidence of almost none this winter. That meant a huge savings on mousetraps. I’m chicken so we use an expensive trap. I’ve saved literally $100s in addition to not having to deal with them which is best of all.
What’s in a Name?
Anyone watching the Oscars last week knows that John Travolta’s mispronunciation of singer Idina Menzel’s name—Adele Dazeem is what he called her–gave her far more traction than had he mouthed her name correctly in introducing her [photo left] and her song. I’m sure Travolta wished that people had done what the song’s title suggests: “Let it Go.” From Sunday night through the next day his faux pas was repeated far and wide on traditional and social media.
You are Cordially Invited
I love having something fun to look forward to. We’re invited to a St. Patrick’s party with appropriate food at the home of great friends whose other guests are consistently lovely too. Can’t wait!
I Can’t Believe I Did That
When you can’t forgive yourself for a dastardly act or mistake, think of Pope Francis who admitted to taking a cross from the open casket of his dead confessor. The cross was on the priest’s rosary. Pope Francis kept it in his pocket until his dress changed to wearing a cassock so now he hangs it from a pouch underneath it. He reaches for it when “a bad thought comes to my mind about someone,” Nicole Winfield wrote in “Pope confesses he stole his late confessor’s cross in hopes of having half as much mercy” that I read in her Associated Press story on the Minneapolis Star Tribune website.
If things aren’t dire or excessively bleak–in which case little but time helps—does thinking of silver linings help you emerge from the blues?
