On Being Lucky

Really - I couldn't just put a RABBIT's FOOT here now could I?

My mother, the Queen of Spin, instilled in me at an early age that 13 was a LUCKY number.  So, standing on the horizon of 2013, I’m expecting a lot!  In my heart of hearts, I know she pushed that belief in us kids because my oldest brother’s (and youngest nephew’s) birthdays are on April 13^th.  She wasn’t a believer in bad luck, so in our household, the number got flipped on its head.  There was never any worry of the 13^th floor in any building and Friday the 13^th, well that was just a “double” lucky day. 

I kick off 2013 with turning 50 this month.  Personally, it doesn’t bother me – chalk up another one for mom – who always said that age was just a number and since we didn’t have any control over it, why worry about it?  What I didn’t expect is the freedom that I do the closer I get to the day.  Somewhere in my head, 50 became the line in the sand.  You know… the one where I’m not trying to “establish” anything, or to “be” anyone.  It’s where I just get to be comfortable in my own skin and enjoy the groundwork I’ve laid down.  I’d be remiss if I didn’t point out the fact that I’ve gone to a few funerals in the past few years for friends my age or younger that really shook me up.  So, in their memory, I really don’t have any right other than to just celebrate it for the sheer luck and gift of being able to.

March brings the joyful celebration of 30 years of marriage to my confidante, best friend and soul mate.  Will it have been 10,958 days of wedded bliss?  Of course not.  But honestly, pretty darn close. A few years ago, I watched Susan Sarandon as Beverly Clark in Shall We Dance give one of the best descriptions of marriage I’ve ever heard.. "We need a witness to our lives. There's a billion people on the planet... I mean, what does any one life really mean? But in a marriage, you're promising to care about everything. The good things, the bad things, the terrible things, the mundane things... all of it, all of the time, every day. You're saying 'Your life will not go unnoticed because I will notice it. Your life will not go un-witnessed because I will be your witness'." And so, on March 19^th, Steven and I will have been each other’s witness for 10, 958 days.  And for that I am grateful, humbled and proud. 

Kitschy, Kitschy - here we come!

Summer looms with the “Amy & Steve hit Route 66” trip.  We’ll fly into Chicago, rent a car and travel the fabled ribbon of asphalt and concrete to LA and then fly home.   Over 2,000 miles in 14 days filled with enough diners, kitschy road side attractions, and historic sites to keep us laughing, learning and loving all the way. 

Around the house there is a front foyer make-over project with a built-in combination coat rack/storage bench that we’re pretty excited about.  We’ll be tiling virgins on that one as we place the tile floor in during that project (good thing it’s a small area to learn on)!

I’ve got some writing classes planned, hopefully LOTS of writing and some submissions to send out. Birthday celebrations for Abram and Steve along with a few surprises sprinkled in and it should be a busy year! And of course, there’s that whole “lucky” element from Mom.  I’ll have to pay closer attention to the lottery this year, just in case it wasn’t all spin.