Life Unraveled

I noticed something on Thanksgiving day.  I was scrolling through my Facebook news feed and hitting the "like" button on pretty much every other post I saw.  I was thoroughly enjoying my virtual Thanksgiving as I perused a ton of thankful posts, expressing gratitude on everything from the joys of eating cranberry sauce from a can, to hearing a small child express what he was grateful for at the holiday dinner table.  All of it made me smile.  I began hitting the "like" button as if it were my job, and I must say I liked it.  Alot .  It was clear to me that everything is exactly what we make it to be.  On Thankful Thursday, Facebook became a tool that (by and large) was used to spread joy, gratitude and love.  I think sometimes it can be easy to forget that through this one website we are able to connect with each other in ways that can actually be uplifting and profound.  Amidst the daily jokes, ...

Sometimes I swear I can hear my grandmother's voice.  Tonight as I maneuverd my way through the busy mall, I could swear she was right there with me.  I'm not sure what triggered this particular visit.  But as I strolled along, I knew that I was not alone.  Not by a long shot.  My mom's mom, or Nani as all of her grandkids affectionately referred to her, was right there with me every step of the way.   It wasn't like a flood of memories came rushing back and brought her to mind.  No, it was more like her whole presence was there with me.  Still is now in fact.  I can feel it .  Nani has been gone from this earth for a long time, about 18 years or so if I am not mistaken.  I think of her often, and she visits me in my dreams quite a bit.  To say that I think she is watching over me most of the time is probably very accurate, at least as much as th...

We are all hiding something.  I am convinced of this.  Fact is, we are probably hiding more than we care to admit.  I contemplated this when I heard about the sex scandal surrounding Jerry Sandusky and Penn State.  I don't want to rehash any of the sordid details.  I will leave it to the media to air out all of the dirty laundry, since that is what they appear to do best.  No, what I really want to consider is how any human being can hide such indignities.  How can anyone smile, laugh, go about their daily business, and portray himself as a do-gooder when behind the scenes he was attacking and violating young boys?  And almost as shockingly, nobody seemed to have a clue as to what was really happening there.  At least they never admitted it, let alone tried to stop it.  Not his wife.  Not his friends.  Not Joe Paterno.  Nobody .  I could sit and judge this whole episode...

Looking back on a day that got away: 7:40am:  Woke up after 9 hours of sleep.  Felt fresh, ready for the day, and proclaimed to myself that it was gonna be a great one.  8:30am:  Made some coffee.  Fully caffeinated too, not the wimpy half-caf I have gotten used to.  Loved every sip.  The energy was building.  Yep, it was gonna be a good day. 10:00am:  Arrived at work.  Surveyed the situation.  Co-workers feeling sick.  One never even showed up.  Who cares!  I can carry everyone.  Maybe it was the caffeine talking, but I was convinced.  It was gonna be a good day, damn it.  Laughed and chatted with some regular customers.  So far, so good.  12:30pm:  Been on the register for hours.  Short-handed staff.  Non-stop line.  Coffee buzz wearing off.  Getting hungry.  Maybe I just need to sit down for a few minutes.  And oh by the way, is it me or does...