Today I listened to radio program that referred to a potential outbreak of war and "setting ablaze the cinder block in the middle of that country" and I honestly didn't hear anything else he was saying after that. My mind was trying to figure out how a cinder block could be set on fire. I mean, it's all concrete...LOL, I am quite sure he should have said "tinder box*" (which sounds similar). Maybe he grew up saying the wrong thing because someone else said it that way. One of my neighbors used to say her dogs were vaccinated against "stemper" because she never really heard the word "distemper" and one of my relatives told the story about someone in the family who "got choked on their own lava" (meaning saliva) and we still chuckle over that today (although we never corrected her, she wouldn't have understood). There are lot of words that are mispronounced like that, and most aren't quite as funny.

Yesterday the mail brought me an unusual envelope from a law firm. It seems that by virtue of being an eBay user over the years, I was automatically included in a class action suit against eBay by some company.  There was a lot of legal mumbo jumbo that I never bothered to read, but the second page contained a check for my part in the settlement.  The check was made out to me for 36 cents! Between the check and the postage and the printing, these loony tunes spent over a buck to send me 36 cents that I never asked for.  Weird...

We turned off the cable on August 31st last year. After months of discussion back and forth about the pros and cons (pros being a financial savings, better use of our time, and the deteriorating quality of cable television programming, cons being missing the news and documentaries), we called the local providers and had them cut it off. For a few days we would find ourselves reaching for the remote to check the channels, but finally we discovered new ways to fill the previously wasted hours staring at the box.

From the not-so-bright department of online scammers comes this fascinating e-mail. The letter came from "Reservation Departament" which should tell you it doesn't come from inside the US. The subject line says, "Wrong transaction from your credit card in Mauna Kea Beach." Now, I've never been to Mauna Kea Beach, and have no clue where it is, but I would assume Hawaii. But the kicker is the body of the email itself! Read on...

Recently a young man died from injuries sustained in a car accident.  He was only 22 years old.  The accident happened a couple of months ago, and his brother and best friend died in the wreck. He was the only survivor.  Naturally his friends and parents prayed for his recovery and cheered him on, grateful he had lived through the terrible crash.

Somewhere in my childhood I saw a plaque that said, "The hurrier I go, the behinder I get!"  At the time, I was amused by the wordplay and how clever it seemed.  But today the maxim is all too true in my life. The to-do list keeps growing day by day, and I rush here and there, trying to accomplish the tasks and check off another item. Some days the check marks are impressive. But by the end of the day, the list looks as endless as ever. I've come to terms with the realization that it is unlikely I will ever see a day when the list is completed. The type A person inside me doesn't like it, but the pragmatic side of me tells me to get over it, that's just life.  We can become so focused on accomplishing the task that life rushes by and it's gone before we realize it. A dear friend told me long ago, it's not about the destination, it's about the journey. We can be so caught up in getting where we think we want to go that we never enjoy getting there.  And wouldn't that be a tragedy?