Oh those offensive words, Happy Holidays :>)

   It is not quite December and already the defensive backlash begins.  2 simple words sure stir up a lot of people. I am not talking about the N word or the F word.. I am talking about Happy Holidays. On facebook in the past week I have already had it crop up on my feed a number of times.... the Keep the CHRIST in Christmas and I wont say HAPPY HOLIDAYS. Here is a response I sent to a facebook friend.
      I like Happy Holidays....from Halloween until The Feast of the 3 Kings there is so much to celebrate! We once had a Jewish toddler, a Hispanic preschooler, and 2 black children in our foster home, plus our own children. So we just celebrated all the days, reading stories, lighting candles, making the appropriate food, discussing meaning. There was no reason for anyone to feel defensive or politically correct. It was a joyous time. When people say "Happy Holidays" to me I say "right back at you". I do not take offence or feel they are trying to take Christmas away from me. No can do that. Why not say Merry Christmas back to them with a smile instead of feeling maligned? Are there forces in this world trying to destroy religion and faith? Absolutely. But for me, being bothered by Happy Holidays gives a small victory to the forces of evil that exist against All Faiths. We still set up a menorah each year in honor of that precious foster child. We still read the Kwanzaa story book too. We put up my mother's manger scene with the 3 Kings marching across the living room towards the Christ child. Plus, Santa kneels before the crèche in a wonderful kitschy tableau. Its all good.
     But then I am happy to sing Christmas carols all year long and I find it hard to be gloomy and reflective during Lent because I already know the happy ending that awaits!

Murmurings

  This morning the chickens were milling about the yard, happy to be free from their pen. They are so adorable in the morning as they bustle about overturning leaves and pecking at the sand and pine needles, looking for a tasty morsel. They make happy little murmuring sounds in the morning too as they do this task and that is the great thing about chickens. They are definitely ‘morning people.’

   I no longer have morning people in this house. You know, a real morning person might not LIKE to get up early, but when they do they are abundantly cheerful.  I would prefer of course to sleep until ten. But when I am up, happy little thoughts zip about, snippets of songs, the to do list, the promise of the day.

  Mary, Julie, Corey, Jamie, and Joe were like this too and we would all happily engage in conversation. But now everyone except me has outgrown this endearing little quirk. Even Bambam who use to whip about in cheerful energy prefers to dash outside and do his business and then sleep until a more civilized hour, like 9 a.m.

   So I am left to be amused and engaged with the chickens. Since today is grocery shopping day, they had extra cause to bustle about in joyous energy. On this day I clean out any leftovers from the fridge, in preparation for new food. So this morning they got to have a quarter of a stale loaf of bread that migrated to the back of the cabinet. They also got a whole bag of celery which I periodically buy with the intention to use and then somehow never do. They were particularly happy with some serendipitous broccoli that I never knowingly choose to cook, but is otherwise universally loved in this household, blech!

   I did give the bit of chicken and rice to the dogs since its seems rather cannibalistic to feed chickens chicken. They are carnivorous by the way. I had to coax the dogs outside however since it was rather dreary.

   It was in convincing the dogs to go outside that I even realized it was drizzling. Me and the chickens like the warm rain and since we wake up in a cloud of rainbows and butterflies we had not noticed the gray.

  But now the teens are off to school and I sit before my computer, about to pound out a few more pages of my Thesis. In my next home I shall have my computer near a chicken facing window so I can watch my bustling friends begin their day.

I shall miss the Ode to the Morning chicken style tomorrow since I need to be at the hospital before the sun even rises. But I am thinking that I shall make it a point to sit and watch the chickens during my recovery.

   While I certainly wished that Joe or Nikki were up for a rousing conversation, I had to content myself today with the little hens and a rainy day.  Don is still asleep behind me. Tim, Corey, and Yon are still snoring away as well. Perhaps I should take a page from my chickens’ day as I peck out words on this keyboard. I shall make little happy murmurings.

A little bit of fret

   A week from now my abdominal surgery will be all over and I will, for the 8th time, be recovering from surgery. I heard I will be overnight on the 5th floor which is the maternity ward. Wish it meant I was getting a baby as a prize for my hard labours, but that is not to be.
   As always there is a lot of pre surgical prep work. I did the hospital thing already, they took a bunch of blood and went over all the dos and donts. I spoke with the anesthesiology. Thankfully new advances in their field should mean I will not come to in an agonizing way heaving and retching. (Sorry if you were eating while  reading this. I shall refrain from any more graphic depictions.)
   I joked with the nurses and got all my questions answered and yes there will be an Ativan with my name on it as soon as I walk in the door. For whatever reason this surgery has me nervous.
   Not the surgery exactly. My curious mind has me spending hours watching robotic hysterectomies and reading up on procedures. I like that stuff.
    But what if there are complications? What will the pain levels be after and for how long? Will the recovery be simple and smooth like they promise?. Past expereince does not bode well for me, nor discussions I have had with other women who underwent the procedure.
    Nikkis birthday the day of surgery, Thanksgiving 8 days later and Yons birthday 11 days after that. What will my abilities be on those days? How does this all work out?
    Then there is my college course work, classes every Tuesday night from now until our big presentation on December 11. The very same day I will be going back to kindergarten.
  See, I am not exaggerating all the possible complications complications from surgery could impact!
   I do know I will be missing a Friends Thanksgiving and another friends wedding. Although perhaps I can crash those two parties via skype. Then there is the fact that even if my surgery goes absolutely perfectly without a hitch, I still will not be able to take care of my Special Friend.
   Its funny. Although I have a great deal of anxiety I am not having a pity party. (Well not yet anyway.)
    There are many many friends and neighbors who have much deeper darker struggles than I do. Even at the very worst everyone will be able to muddle through until I am back on my feet. But I am a person who likes to plan and manage and the uncertainty is a bit disconcerting.
   Ah well.....Yon turns 40 this year and I do have his big plan all set and it can go smoothly even if I am flat on my back. I shall keep it a secret but look on the blog or FB on November 25 and you will see his smile.
  Plus I am nearly certain Mama goat successfully bred. If Matilda on the other hand is a Republican goat  then her forced breeding will not result in a kid but perhaps she is a Democrat and babies will be born;.}. They are both due April 3rd so although late Fall and early Winter might be rugged around here, for me anyway, there is always the promise of Spring.