A favorite author

One of my favorite authors is Robert Fulghum. His book “All I really need to know I learned in kindergarten” was popular in the late 1980’s. I bought the poster too. Still have it.

"All I really need to know about how to live and what to do and how to be I learned in kindergarten. Wisdom was not at the top of the graduate school mountain, but there in the sand pile at school.

These are the things I learned:

• Share everything.
• Play fair.
• Don't hit people.
• Put things back where you found them.
• Clean up your own mess.
• Don't take things that aren't yours.
• Say you're sorry when you hurt somebody.
• Wash your hands before you eat.
• Flush.
• Warm cookies and cold milk are good for you.
• Live a balanced life - learn some and think some and draw and paint and sing and dance and play and work every day some.
• Take a nap every afternoon.
• When you go out in the world, watch out for traffic, hold hands and stick together.
• Be aware of wonder. Remember the little seed in the Styrofoam cup: the roots go down and the plant goes up and nobody really knows how or why, but we are all like that.
• Goldfish and hamsters and white mice and even the little seed in the Styrofoam cup - they all die. So do we.
• And then remember the Dick-and-Jane books and the first word you learned - the biggest word of all - LOOK.

Everything you need to know is in there somewhere. The Golden Rule and love and basic sanitation. Ecology and politics and equality and sane living.

Take any one of those items and extrapolate it into sophisticated adult terms and apply it to your family life or your work or government or your world and it holds true and clear and firm. Think what a better world it would be if we all - the whole world - had cookies and milk at about 3 o'clock in the afternoon and then lay down with our blankies for a nap. Or if all governments had as a basic policy to always put things back where they found them and to clean up their own mess.

And it is still true, no matter how old you are, when you go out in the world, it is best to hold hands and stick together."

"ALL I REALLY NEED TO KNOW I LEARNED IN KINDERGARTEN" by Robert Fulghum. 

He has other books too. Maybe, Maybe Not, Uh-oh and It Was On Fire When I Lay Down On It are just a few. I laugh out loud when I read them and giggle and snort and get the giggles some more. His books are cleansing to my sanity and gives me a breath of perspective that perhaps I was lacking at the moment. I’ve wished that I could write like him. Or maybe learn how to get the jumbled garb floating in my gray matter into coherent sentences on paper (or computer monitor as the case may be).

I now follow his journal entries on his website, www.robertfulghum.com.  I’ve witnessed a wedding where the officiant (Mr. Fulghum) was dressed as a panda, his ongoing battle with the creatures that take over his winter home in Southern Utah aka mus musculus (mice.) I’ve sat with him on a park bench on a hill in a Seattle Cemetary pondering the beginning of life and death and all the things that happen in between the two. I’ve also learned that Hippopotomonstrosesquipedaliophobia is the fear of very long words.

He brings the mundane to life and offers a new perspective.

Sandwich Nirvana

Typically the day after Thanksgiving is spent have pumpkin pie for breakfast, turkey sandwich with cranberry sauce for lunch and generally grazing though the leftovers. I’m working today so that didn’t happen. I didn’t even have enough time this morning to craft a masterful turkey sandwich for lunch; plus there wasn’t any left over cranberry sauce and I can’t have one without the other. So I did the next best thing. I bought a sandwich from a local shop in Park City called Leger’s Deli. They create masterful sandwiches that make your mouth water and are worth the extra $. You select your own bread, meat & cheese.  My choice today was ham & swiss on sourdough with mayo, tomato, lettuce with just a touch of Dijon mustard. It was pure heaven.

Self Diagnosing the problem

I used to think that I had Reverse Seasonal Affective Disorder because when we get long stretches of sunshine-y days I get cranky. I need the clouds. I grew up with them. They bring me serenity. Plus my aging light sensitive eyes need the break from the UV rays!

Out of curiosity I looked up Reverse Seasonal Affective Disorder. That’s not what I have. Here is what the Mayo Clinic shows as symptoms of R-SAD.

Reverse seasonal affective disorder
In some people, spring and summer can bring on symptoms of mania or a less intense form of mania (hypomania). These can include elevated mood, agitation, and rapid thoughts and speech. Reverse seasonal affective disorder is a form of bipolar disorder.

Signs and symptoms of reverse seasonal affective disorder include:

·         Persistently elevated mood

·         Increased social activity

·         Hyperactivity

·         Unbridled enthusiasm out of proportion to the situation

This is definitely not me. However, looking at the symptoms of ‘regular’ SAD sounded more like me:

Fall and winter seasonal affective disorder (winter depression)
Winter-onset seasonal affective disorder symptoms include:

·         Depression  (check)

·         Hopelessness

·         Anxiety (check; though that may be bills relatedJ)

·         Loss of energy (double check)

·         Social withdrawal (this is normal for me anyway)

·         Oversleeping (I call it hibernating)

·         Loss of interest in activities you once enjoyed (I battle dysmythia anyway)

·         Appetite changes, especially a craving for foods high in carbohydrates (well, yes)

·         Weight gain (unfortunately, my BMI is dangerously high)

·         Difficulty concentrating and processing information

 

See, I always thought that winter SAD was more lack of Vitamin D from not as much sun exposure. Shows how much I know!

Courtesy of

http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/seasonal-affective-disorder/DS00195/DSECTION=symptoms

The problem with lunch hour

I am most productive in the morning. I get to work, turn on my computer and get all my programs logged on, plug in to Pandora and then I’m set to start working. Then lunchtime comes around. I may or may not be hungry but I know I need to get up and take a break. They say it’s good for us and I don’t disagree. The problem is that my giddy up gets up, goes away and doesn’t come back.  After lunch I have a hard time getting back into the swing of things. It’s near impossible some days. (image courtesy of horseclipart.com)

The other problem is that if I decide not to bring lunch but go get lunch then I spend my lunch hour getting lunch and not eating. By the time I get back to my desk from my venture into drive-thru land or the grocery store that my half hour is up and then I spend time eating when I should be working.

Overall I am doing better with not eating out but the gal on the other side of my cubicle wall had gone and gotten Teriyaki Grill for her lunch. It made my mouth water and I gave in. Chicken and Shrimp Teriyaki was lunch and it tasted great!

I discovered ‘He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named’ thwarted my good efforts

I forgot that when we let every one know we are trying to better ourselves in a public way that ‘everybody’ includes ‘He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named’. I forgot about him until I realized that since I decided create this blog following my path to financial freedom my finances GOT WORSE! Oh, I mean I let them spiral out of control.

I had the credit card companies calling me multiple times a day. I finally got smart and put their phone number in my phone and then set it to go to voice mail automatically.  Ha! You thought I was going to say I got smart and paid my bill…no such luck.  I was and still am trying to get above zero  in my checking account. The nice part is that I do get paid weekly by direct deposit. However, I still have the big bills to come out such as rent and my car payment.  I did get a couple of the bills caught up; now I just am behind on half of them. *sigh* I don’t like being behind on bills. I finally REALLY saw what it does to your credit when you are good and conversely, when you are bad. I don’t like being bad.

I did make my own executive decision to karate chop my Christmas budget. After Christmas I’ll post pictures and reveal how little I spent; which also means I have to remember to take pictures as I go J

Back to the subject:  Now that I realize bad evil people are trying to thwart my financial success it means I have to be extra diligent in praying for constant guidance and direction. The Lord’s miracles can be truly small but awfully mighty at times.

One of the things I realized through this journey is that my finances, unfortunately, were one of those things that fell off my plate when I ran out of room in my life. I work two jobs and go to school full time. Days off are extremely rare. My house is a total disaster! The floor on my spare room is buried under about 3 feet of ‘I’ll throw it in here and deal with it later’.  I’ve come to terms with the fact that later means when I’m done with school next summer. I have to find my kitchen first.  

I just had a disgusting thought.  1 year ago my total debt was under $17,000. Currently it is around $60,000. Next year it will be around $78,000. That’s enough to make me ill. Last year I had a car that was considered paid off by the bank, $14000 in Student Loans and roughly $2300 in credit cards. I still have the $2300 in credit cards and have added $18000 to the $14000 Student Loans and have a new car valued at $25000. Next year we can add another $18000 in Student Loans! If I’m smart and wise I’ll use my tax return money and pay off Visa, Master, Firestone and Goodyear. Though I’ve never, ever gotten a 4 digit return hopefully I’ll get more than the $300 I usually get since I can claim being a full time student for the next two years!

Which is the lesser evil?

Forgot to set up my auto-pay bills last month...Whats worse the late fee or going (further) in my overdraft to pay them?