a cinco de mayo
public service motivational reminder:
some days you just lose your head.
(but there’s always at least one mini tootsie roll still up in there)
–“
“it’s a lot easier to lose your head than to keep it.”
– suzanne collins
not me, nor anyone in my family, but i love the spirit of ‘pocket pancaking’
all families are unique, with their own quirks, traditions, and ways of communicating – and the holiday season often serves as the perfect showcase for these interconnected elements. so when tonight show host, jimmy fallon asked his viewers to tweet funny examples using hashtag #myfamilyisweird, the responses did not disappoint. one person shared their relatives’ tradition of hiding leftover pancakes in each other’s pockets, while another posted a photo of a ‘hideous hand-me-down elf ornament their mother keeps trying to throw away each year, but hilariously ends up back on the tree. customs we cultivate with our kin can do more than just make us laugh, studies have long shown that establishing family routines and rituals positively benefits our health, relationships and well-being.
does your family have any unusual traditions? in my family we had a super creepy automotron mange-y looking furry toy cat that kept coming back. we bought it for a visiting grandie and just thought it was an ordinary stuffed animal, but what we soon discovered was that it would move or make noise at random times. people who received this gift ending up reporting that they kept in their garage or basement or closet, because it creeped them out so much. even with all that, they housed if for a full year, just for the opportunity to ‘gift it’ to someone else in family at the next christmas gathering. people went to great lengths to disguise it when wrapping, so the recipient would let down their guard and open it. we gifted it back and forth to each other for many years, until one year it just disappeared….
“remember as far as anyone knows we’re a nice, normal family.”
— homer Ssmpson
an adventurous visit to the michigan renaissance festival
way back when
in days of yore
i took my daughters
to this very shire
all of us dressed up
now my grandsons
have picked up where we left off
as brave knights
“look, it’s my duty as a knight to sample as much peril as I can.”
– Sir Galahad (Holy Grail)
people enjoying the day
being whoever they imagine themselves to be
villagers from far and wide are all welcomed here
no matter their dress or look or form
and what could be better than spying a kilted warrior brave enough to pick up his own hot latte?
—
“live every day as if it’s a festival. turn your life into a celebration.”
-shri radhe maa
walking through the city
i noticed
a lot of people
dressed differently
than the usual weekend attire
how fun to discover
that people from all over
of all ages and stages
had come to town to be part of
an ‘alice in wonderland’ immersive experience.
also fun to imagine them crossing paths with the families
who might be nervous
dropping off their child at the uni
visiting our city for the first time.
“what kind of city is this?!”
“this wasn’t in the brochure.”
“do you think they’ll be safe here?”
and this was only day one.
—
“when I used to read fairy-tales, I fancied that kind of thing never happened,
and now here I am in the middle of one!”
-lewis carroll, alice’s adventures in wonderland/through the looking-glass
on this day in 1959, hawaii officially became the 50th state
always wanted to visit
but the closest i’ve come
is when i was young and my dad announced
he wanted to buy a little radio station in kauai
i quickly got ahold of a hawaiian dictionary
forced/encouraged the family to learn the alphabet during dinner
only to discover it was just a fantasy job wish for him
years later, as an adult
i took hula lessons with close friends
we were not good at it
got into the spirit of the dance
did not get asked to perform in hawaii
but we had a a blast
you never know
where and when this skill will come in handy
plus, it’s impressive on a resume
i’ve yet to make it to hawaii
only a matter of time
third time’s the charm
aloha!
—
“dare to dance, leave shame at home.”
(A’a i ka hula, waiho i ka maka’u i ka hale)
-hawaiian saying
—
art credit: vintage hawaiian poster
remove glitter with play dough!
—
i have been told, more than once, but less than a million times
that people in my presence
inexplicably end up with glitter
stuck to them or on their food or in unexpectedly odd places
or see traces of it stuck to my face or hair or feet
while it is true that i do enjoy a great love
of the sparkling wonder that is glitter
i know there are those of you
who may need an easy way
to rid yourself, or your things, or your cake, or your abode
of all that remains
i have a fine gift for you
an easy and magical method to clean it up
you are welcome.
—
clearing up glitter can be tough. it turns out that there’s one easy way to get rid of those sparkles that spread everywhere. just grab some play dough and press it over the affected areas. that’s pretty much it.
—
“she who leaves a trail of glitter will never be forgotten.”
-some wise person