It’s the Little Things

It’s been awhile since I’ve written here. I would like to sincerely apologize to my loyal followers — all 23 of you — and assure you that I am fine. Life is good. Thanks for your (completely unvoiced) concern. But a few things have been getting in the way of my blogging recently.

First and foremost, my family. Specifically, the humans I live with who have told me they don’t want me to write about them anymore. This makes blogging very difficult, as they have been my main source of material for my whole online life. So I haven’t made them any promises, but I’m trying to respect their wishes, at least for now, to some degree.

Second, my job. Okay, I don’t have a “real” job at the moment. But I have been doing a lot of freelance writing for other publications, for money. Not a lot of money. But, you know… more money than any of you people pay me to write on my blog. And it takes up a lot of my time. So there’s that.

Finally, life in general. It’s been a busy month. Lots of traveling — a family trip to the lake, a girlfriend trip to Key West (just before Irma hit), some smaller trips to visit family & friends in between… Life’s rough, I tell ya. Add in some volunteer work and weekend guests for every home football game (We Are! Penn State!), and, well, sorry blog followers, but you’re kind of low on that totem pole.

I know how much you missed me. You don’t even have to say it. But lucky for you I have some grievances to air, so here I am. Where would I be if I didn’t have somewhere to vent my frustrations over all of my first world problems? So here goes…

First of all, I’ve said it before and I will say it again: Some things were so much better in the 1980s. They just were. For example, earphones. Why do I have such a hard time wearing today’s earbuds?? Is my ear canal just weird shaped? How do people cram these things into their ear canal to such a degree that they won’t keep slipping out, and yet won’t puncture the ear drum?? I don’t know the answers to these questions, but I do know that I’ve been on a mission for 2 months to find some good old-fashioned Sony Walkman 1984-style, spongy, not too big, comfy, outside-the-ear headphones. Today I finally found some to order on Amazon. They’re orange, they’re spongy, they are just the right size, and they look just like the old ones I remember. Unfortunately, according to the Amazon description, they also are apparently the perfect accessory for anyone who enjoys dressing up like Star-Lord from Guardians of the Galaxy. So if you spot me jamming out in orange earphones someday, I promise you, I am not into cosplay!!! I just am sick and tired of the pain and agony that comes from shoving earbuds down my ear canal.

I do have to admit, though, some things actually have made life much better since the 1980s; for example, the invention of EZ Pass. We don’t even have any toll roads near our house, but those suckers are so great for traveling. I have been in love with my EZ Pass since day one. However, here is a fun fact that took me by surprise: Those little “transponders” don’t last forever. Apparently, the battery in mine died, because the last several times we’ve driven through toll booths, nothing lights up. Red light, green light, yellow light — nada. Our transponder is not being read.

The good news is, the bike rack on the back of my car seems to be concealing the license plate number from the EZ Pass cameras, so they have not tracked us down yet to charge us for skipping the tolls. However, since I am an honest person, I tried to obtain a new transponder today by calling the EZ Pass toll-free customer service number. Turns out, the account is only listed under my husband’s name, so the cheery customer service rep would not even speak to me at all. At least not to get a new transponder; she WAS more than happy to take my credit card information to replenish our account. Go figure. So, now the task of getting a new EZ Pass transponder falls to my husband. I am sure you realize what this means: Another several years of skipping through the toll booths. (Not that I’m implying anything negative about my husband here on my blog. Certainly not.)

Even my son’s school is annoying me today, from the red tape I’m encountering while trying to do a good thing through a volunteer position, to the sweatshirt I just bought at back-to-school night that has ripped right down the whole length of a seam after being worn once, to an unfair parking situation for my high school senior and his friends….

I know, I know, just a month ago I was writing about how the world was on the verge of nuclear disaster. I should just be happy that we haven’t blown up yet. Does anything short of the apocalypse REALLY deserve this level of bitching and complaining? Don’t ask me that question. Not today. I’m on the edge, people. I. Am. On. The. Edge. The little things will get you every time.

Thanks for listening; it’s good to be back!