Fourteen years ago, in a tiny seaside village along the coast of Spain, a colorful broom sat in a housewares shop, promising the user joy when sweeping the floors. I had not seen any cleaning utensil this gorgeous in my homeland. Never mind that a broom does not pack easily in one’s luggage, never mind that it’s an odd souvenir to acquire, I just knew my daughter would love it and would want it when she had a home of her own! (My lame justification.)
Well, the broom traveled in my husband’s golf bag. My daughter loved it – although it’s seen fourteen years of use and she no longer wants it. And you can now find these colorful brooms here in the USA in many stores. No need to travel overseas with a golf bag.
Sometimes you have to open the cupboards and closets and clean the cleaning supplies. It was time. Since Thursday was the cleaning day of yore, I decided to reinstate it as major chore day once again.
I found four cans of window cleaners, none of which I purchased outright. Two were from replaced windshields – a promo gift? One from the window guy, Alberto, and one from my sister for a Christmas gift. So, I decided to use them. Everything is super sparkly now! Imagine that?
Apparently you are supposed to use the cleansers rather than dust them off? Moving on to the broom. Now there’s another story!
For two nights, I sat facing the jigsaw puzzle, trying to finish the bottom quarter of darker pieces and foliage. It was painful. I just couldn’t get anywhere.
I awoke yesterday, sat down on the opposite side, and finished the bottom third of the puzzle in short shrift, viewing it upside down. Then I realized I had completed the entire sky the prior evening, viewing it upside down. Epiphany on the Ephiany!
Directional dyslexia. I don’t know if it’s a thing, but I sure have it. (And no one needs to chime in on my seeing things upside down, by the way.) Thankfully, my sister is great with directions and kept me going the proper direction in NYC many moons ago as I attempted to show her the sights. I would walk out of a building and turn the exact opposite way we needed to go. She got us home. My daughter got me home in England when she was about 12 years old, after driving through the countryside roundabouts and getting totally turned around. Perhaps that’s why “tour guide” never made its way to my bag of tricks.
I do ascribe to the mantra, “Not all who wander are lost,” even though I seem to be lost regardless of wandering.
Watching the Science Channel episode of “Phantom Signals,” my ears perked up in between packaging ornaments and vacuuming tree needles. They were showing the singing, “Colossi of Memnon.” Singing? I never knew that little tidbit.
These huge statues used to “sing” when the wind drifted through the cracks that formed in them. They were revered for spiritual purposes, and named for the Greek warrior, Memnon, of Trojan War fame. Apparently when he died, his mother wept loudly, so they figured the statue was emulating her. Something like that. When the statues were moved by someone – who thought it was best for them – the singing stopped.
Anyway….over 50 years ago I saw the photo of these giants with teenie little people by them…thank you, Mom and Dad for the Childcraft Encyclopedia. I knew I would travel to Egypt. Fast forward to turning 50 and my husband making my dream a reality. However, I never knew that we would even see the Colossi. I just knew we were traveling the Nile and visiting the pyramids and temples. I nearly leapt out of my seat on the bus when I realized we were driving to this attraction as we went to the Valley of the Kings! What???? This wasn’t even on the itinerary. Apparently it’s not a big draw.
Obviously, they were still singing and I heard them as a child. Traveling in my memories.
It was a news story, of sorts. Leave your Christmas decor up all year. Some recommendation from some psychologist on some local news channel. Brings us happiness and joy……….
Those of us in Colorado can handle leaving decor inside and out until the Stock Show, mid-January. (I wonder if the City and County Building lights are still burning until the canceled show would have ended?) If we citizens lived by that mantra and displayed our decorations until the Stock Show, that truly would encompass an entire year! Hopefully.
However, if I, Rene, left the tree in the corner, I, Rene, would have to actually connect the timer for the lights.
I think it will be easier to pack the whole shebang than to cave in and provide cyclical electricity to the tree all year. Plus, I really do need to vacuum in that corner.
“Mom, how do you always know what the theme of the year is?”
Such an innocent question from my son, who wondered how I knew it was the year of the camel last year, mermaid the year before that, and pineapple the year prior to that. I felt like I was divulging the Santa mystery when I told him that his aunt and I just made up the themes. There was no magic to it. Pineapples came from a dish towel given to me by a friend, mermaids from a friend coming out of sedation after surgery, and camels from a snarky comment by another friend. I guess be careful what you say or give me!
This year’s theme was randomly chosen when my sister and I were shopping at the beginning of last year, and came across an idea totally opposite from the dryness evoked by the image of a camel. Thus, 2021 is the year of the penguin!
Penguins are rather amazing birds, having evolved to “fly” underwater. A group of them is called a waddle when on land, and a raft at sea. They symbolize dreams, adaptability, family, and spirituality. While they were really chosen as the theme because we found penguin cocktail napkins on sale at the now defunct Pier One store, they can work for us as an inspiration this year. (I shall be striving to reduce my waddling as I renew my healthy eating habits. See…inspiration already!)
Enjoy this new year. Dream, be adaptable, cherish family, and embrace your spirituality. Also, be grateful we didn’t choose the mud skipper as our mascot for the year, as exciting and interesting as they can be.
There were so many inspirational quotes from which to choose, and I actually had written a rather thoughtful and poignant post for yesterday -New Year’s Day. I forgot to post it!
Obviously, it’s too late. Everyone has made a resolution, or has had a thoughtful day of considering plans for the new year, right? I managed to work on a jigsaw puzzle most of the day, sorting various shades of blue pieces. Apparently, when there is a puzzle in the room, there is clear and present danger of accomplishing little else.
My biggest plan for yesterday was to nap – replenishing the sleep I did not receive on New Year’s Eve, due to the leftover stash of Fourth-of-July fireworks my neighbors exploded. This could explain the non-posted post. It was a rather loud celebration, and I love a good show as much as anyone, but I wish they could have gone all-out on East Coast time.
I will say, this was the one nugget I held onto all day, from a favorite poet. It seems to be enough for now. Pretty simple, yet full of hope.
That could be the highlight! That and eating the leftover candy and breads before the new year’s resolutions take effect. Two days to enjoy our bad habits!
Well, I risk sending this out to the general public, because I think it’s GENIUS! The other thing is that I know my audience, and I hope they either won’t follow me today or they forget this. Thanks for the tip, Sis!
