More Than I Wanted to Know

We just received an email from the owners of the large dog and incontinent pup currently boarding in our home. May I refer you once again to previous posts? The themes of You'll Kill Yourself and I've Got the Answers are perfectly illustrated by excerpts from the email. I don't think I need to say another thing other than to restate the obvious: The kiddies love to rattle Granny's cage!

"Aaron's turn:
Vang Vieng is surrounded by what I think are called Karsts or jagged peaks that are breathtaking. We spent the last couple of days tubing, caving and eating; these are hard times for us. Van wants me to mention that she's been doing the cha-cha-cha since we left Vietnam. GOD knows why, but she seems to be pretty proud of it. We'll be doing some biking tomorrow into the Karsts and exploring some more caves. Van's been begging me to let her try a specialty here ("happy shakes") and she's upset that I won't let her...

Van's turn: (she always has the last word)
Five bucks a day in a nice, clean hotel makes this place more bearable. And if you eat conservatively, you can get away with spending $3/day/person on food. Tubing was excellent. Aaron jumped off of this really high and "sturdy" swing that was made up of bamboo and rope. Not to mention this was erected on the side of razor-edged rocks. Make sure you tell Grandma the details as I'm sure she will be very excited to hear about this. All and all the 3 hours ride on a tube down the river was fun...And Grandma, please remind Mom, remember she promised not to fix the pup... "

I've Got the Answers...

Kenju at http://justaskjudy.blogspot.com/ writes one of my favorite blogs. Today she challenges us all to a quiz. As in Jeopardy! we know the answers. We need to come up with the questions. Here are mine.

Referencing "Four-Legged Friends" (my very first post!) in the February archive might shed some light on my questions.

Thanks Kenju. This was great fun!

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1. Yes
Are cats certain to identify and leap into the one unwelcoming lap in the entire room?

2. Never!
Will I ever appreciate this intrusion?

3. Completely
Does the cat understand my aversion?

5. Hardly ever
If not a cat, does it ever occur to me I'd like to have a dog?

6. Hallelujah!
What will I say when my grandson returns from 4 months abroad and picks up the large dog and incontinent pup currently boarding at our home?

7. Hawaii
Where do I deserve to fly (first-class) for boarding the large dog and incontinent pup in our home?

8. Almost all
How much of the time do I dream about the time we will not be boarding the large dog and incontinent pup in our home?

9. Are you kidding?
Would I, under any conditions, at any time or for any reason host the large dog and incontinent pup in our home at another time?

10. The first time

When should I expect my children to cave in and host the large dog and incontinent pup in our home...yet again?

You'll Kill Yourself!

I've always operated on the "dead in the street" principle. This means I automatically imagine the worst-scene scenario when it comes to physical safety and the likelihood of danger and disaster. I can't help it.

When I was a child I was taught (not to contradict Mr. Rogers--whom my grandchildren quoted when I expressed concern) that I could actually go down the bathtub drain. I guess I've always considered water pretty dangerous stuff because I religiously taught my son Jack that anything over his knees was "certain drowning depth." He's still resentful.

In reaction, it seemed to me, he was almost downright irresponsible when it came my grandchildren's safety. They were allowed to touch hot ovens, crawl up steep stairs, climb towering trees and just generally decide what they felt safe and confident doing.

Whenever I visited I tried to bring some sanity to what I considered a dangerous situation for the children. "Make sure your shoelaces are tied," I'd remind my granddaughter as we stepped on the escalator. "Your leg will get cut off if your shoelace gets caught." Although she giggled hysterically it made a lot of sense to me at the time. However, I think I've learned to relax a bit.

I'll always be vigilant but I was pretty proud of myself this weekend. Our family spent 3 days at a nearby ski resort. Everyone was there---children, grandchildren and great-grandkids. The only folks who didn't ski or snowboard were Darling Lily Ana-age 1, Jack, who only skiis uphill and Granny Lucy who knows snow is just frozen water! Anyway, the things I saw and heard about my family doing on that mountain should have sent me into cardiac arrest.

But I even surprised myself. Mostly I just said, "Don't talk about it!" But of course they did---embellishing things, I'm sure for my benefit. The thing is, that for the first time in my life I'm choosing to share pleasure, fun and happiness instead of anxiety, fear and pessimism. I certainly don't mean to say it's an easy choice---it feels so familiar and comfy to react to things negatively---(and deep down I still believe my fears are well-founded.)

I guess getting older has made me willing to embrace the philosophy of, "I'd rather be happy than right." At least I'm trying to do that every day. And I think I'm finally getting it.