So It’s Not Exactly The Same Thing As “Being Funny”

Over the years I’ve heard lots of people postulating what is the core trait for someone to  be considered “attractive.”  Is it physical features, overall fitness, youth, material goods, or something more intangible like a personality trait?

Because what an individual finds attractive in others is personal (frequently intensely so), I doubt there’s one, simple answer that applies to everyone, but the closest I’ve ever managed to come to one is this:

It’s the sense that, one way or the other, that person could be fun to be around.

Probably, But I’ll Bet There Aren’t Many

Is there an impatience in the world greater than that of a child waiting for Grandma to visit?

I’m Fine, But It DOES Reinforce How We All Need To Do Things Differently Next Year

I made numerous mentions that my son’s 2nd grade year was hard on all of us, but I didn’t quite realize how hard it had been on me personally until I sat down today to assemble his work portfolio for evaluation and I started having unpleasant emotional flashbacks.

A Brief Silence

Silence, and a candle for all those people in your life you were once close to and now . . . for one reason or another, you’re not anymore.

I’ve Been Working On My “Person Skills” Ever Since

I spent the better part of my life believing I was a terrible person before I realized I wasn’t a terrible person, just an unskilled one.

So It’s A Trifle On The Warm Side

Today is a typical South Florida summer day.  Out my window I can see that the sun is shining and the birds are combusting.

We Can Only Hope

Ah, Mrs. Grundy, well over two hundred years old, and still just as spry as ever.  Will she ever slow down?

Now What Was I Supposed To Do Again Today? Oh, Hey, That Looks Interesting . . .

When the student is ready, the teacher will appear.

– Zen Proverb

When the student is not ready, distractions will appear.

– My personal addendum

I Was Deeply Offended (Because Her Joke Was Better Than Mine)

Lala got me some beard conditioner for Father’s Day because there have been one too many “Ouch!  Pokey!” complaints from the household of late, and I wanted to give some conditioner a shot.  When she gave it to me I found myself looking mildly askance at the brand name, “Naked Prince.”

“I prefer princesses, given a choice . . .” I started to say, but Lala both cut me off and topped my intended joke.

“Especially for rubbing on your face,” she concluded for me as innocently as it’s possible to say something like that innocently.

I’m Calling This One A Win

“Looks like we’re going to be cooped up here again,” my son sighed this morning, and to be fair, it’s rained so much here over the last several days that I wouldn’t be terribly surprised to find out the house had grown gills, so I understood where he was coming from.

Even so, one of the continuing challenges of parenthood for me is not reacting poorly to “kid drama” like coming into the room and making bleak announcements like the one above, but this time I think I did okay.

“Another way to look at it is to view this as a chance to do anything we want to do inside the house,” I told my son.  “For instance, I imagined it’d be pretty hard to play a game of Yahtzee while on a walk outside.”

He agreed.  He didn’t want to play Yahtzee (which mildly disappointed me), but he agreed, and we both got on with our day.