My Feelings Today

It’s taken me a long time to find the way I want to phrase this because I don’t want anyone to think I’m suggesting “conceal, don’t feel,” but there’s a difference between being open about your feelings and taking those feelings out on others.

And As Near As I Can Tell, He Was Right

As much as I wish this wasn’t true, some of the most life-changing advice I ever got from teacher was, “Don’t be a teacher; the education system in this country is bad for teachers now, and by all the signs it’s only going to keep getting worse.”

I’m Not Sure What’s Going To Happen Next

Today my son reprimanded me for playing my music too loud.

He wasn’t wrong (it was that kind of song), but I still feel like a fundamental balance of the universe has been disrupted.

Not Always, But Often Enough To Give Me Pause

And not long after yesterday’s realization, I realized another reason I’m reluctant to post negative things is because if I give it a couple of days, I often realize that I was being petty.

I Learned Something About Myself

Thinking about what I posted yesterday, I realized that when I do post something negative, I want to be able to put some sort of positive spin on it . . . and/or make it funny. If I can’t do at least one of those things, I don’t want to post it.

I’ll Talk To You Tomorrow

You know . . . for someone who named this thing “Candles & Curses,” I’m surprisingly reluctant to make negative entries.

After Due Consideration

I have to admit that I consider myself a considerate person, because be something good, bad, or just inappropriate . . . I’ll consider it.

This Doesn’t Mean They’re Not Supporting You

It is fully possible for someone to respect your right to make a choice about your life (like, say, moving across country to be closer to some girl), and to hope that it brings you happiness (and it did), but to still think it’s a very, very bad idea (my parents were understandably less than thrilled with my decision at the time).

Sometimes All You Need Is Perspective

While this has not be a good day so far (a story that I will never tell another time), it’s been surprisingly easy for me to keep thankfulness in mind.

Having a doorknob fall apart in your hands and thinking, “Wow! I’m glad something like that didn’t happen while I was driving!” can do that.

A Quick Candle For My Son

I want to commend you, son, for realizing that much of what people argue about today are indeed “social constructs.” (I’m presuming your mother introduced you to that concept because that’s not a turn of phrase I use.) Once you think about, you start to realize that it’s frankly impossible for every place that claims, for instance, to make “the world’s best pizza” to actually make the world’s best pizza no matter how passionately their fans argue the point.

Once you realize that, you can appreciate the different styles of pizza and pick your own favorite.