Bah! Humbug!

Today, as I sweated my butt off to the oldies but goodies, I got to thinking about all the pet peeves in the past week that made me want to rear my ugly head of sarcasm and intolerance. As I looked around my mirror-filled workout room I noticed that some people actually had the audacity to show up with make-up infused faces, fresh blown-out hairdos, and reeking of perfume that wafted through all the sweat and gore. I thought to myself, "What the heck? Are these people serious about working out, or are they seriously trying to impress those of us who show up in our sweats, with our hair scooped up in sloppy ponytails, and the fresh scent of mint toothpaste mixed with baby powder deodorant as our eau de toilette?" And then as I looked around, my attention turned to people on their phones and it made me think about texting and walking. No one ever mentions anything about texting and walking. These people are dangerous, too! They walk like a drunk person, weaving back and forth across your path. You literally have to become a defensive walker in order to avoid a collision with them. And have mercy if you are in a hurry behind one-good luck in maneuvering around them. Speaking of phones, how about those voicemail messages that take forever to retrieve? First you have to listen to the prompt, then you have to listen to that lady (who she is I don't know) tell you how to listen to your messages (for the millionth time) and then you get to listen to the one-sided conversation about why you didn't pick up in the first place and it goes something like this...."Hi, I'm not sure what you are up to or what you are doing? Maybe you're driving or shopping or in the bathroom..."  So by the time you actually hear the real point of the message you might as well have just called the person in the first place and bypassed the whole sordid affair. So as I lamented about lost time with voicemails, I thought about Christmas shopping and the holidays- is it already here?!? Where did time go?? Which led me to think about those blogs about families cancelling Christmas this year because of bratty children. Forget about teaching your child ALL year long to be giving, caring, and compassionate---naw, we'll just save it for the holidays- let's obliterate Christmas. My pet-peeve list goes on and on...from crazy drivers to rude people who pop my personal bubble in checkout lines.

Then, I had to stop myself. What have I become? Why am I being such a negative Nelly? It's Christmas time. Time for love, time for cheer, time for some good ole yule tide! Yet, I see this marquis above my head flashing SCROOGE with an arrow pointing down at me. This can't be. And I started to think. Maybe during this time of year I can find my patient and accepting self, and rather than grouch about petty things I could focus more on the positive side of things. Now, I don't know why it is that when it comes to Christmas everyone contemplates a little bit more.  We try to be a little nicer, a little cheerier, a little more of something extra. And I guess I am one of those people. Whatever the reason for the season is, I know that each year brings potential to do more...to act more...and to think more. 

And as I watch my glamorous work-out partners begin to sweat, I smile a grinchy smile, as I see their mascara begin to run and their hair to deflate.  And I come to the conclusion that we all end up in the same place- messy and tired human beings. But that's okay, because in the end we are all together in this thing called life!

Live Large and Be Free!