Cuppa Happiness

Photo by Aurelian Săndulescu

Did you know that on this day every year the nation commemorates coffee?

You know, it's that wonderfully hot--or cold--fragrant, rich brown liquid that usually draws at least an "ahh" from its consumer. I won't ask if you're one such consumer. Considering the fact that 57% of Americans consume this little bit of heaven in a cup every day, and yours truly is among that demographic, I'm going to assume some of you are with me.

Coffee is so much more than a beverage, wouldn't you agree? Consider it. Some of its finer attributes include promptness, flexibility, and variety. Like Tom Hanks said in one of my favorite movies, "For only $2.95, [you] get not just a cup of coffee but an absolutely defining sense of self." And what other beverage has such a bevy of nicknames?

More than that, coffee can be one of your best friends. It's often the friend that gives an excuse for a first date. Coffee is the friend who holds your hand during sad and difficult news. It can be the only thing that binds two otherwise completely unalike people. And coffee is the good friend who encourages us 57% through early mornings and long afternoons.

No wonder there's an entire day dedicated to this remarkable beverage. So, hey, if you forgot to sit down with your hot cuppa today, don't fret. We can commemorate this day ANY day!

Why don't you make a little time, grab a (human) friend, and bond a little over a good cup o' joe!

Truth from the Pig Skin

Photo by Valerie's Genealogy Photos

It's football season.

Admittedly, I've never seen a game. (Unless, of course, you count the time it takes me to pass the television on my way to the book shelf. I do know that shoulder pads and sacks are involved--but then again, the same applies to shopping.) I am more of a water polo girl. Believe it or not, I used to be a fierce competitor in the pool.

Recently, my husband came into the office here at home and pulled up a sports site over my shoulder so he could check the score of a game. I was intrigued by how intense the coach looked while mapping out some goals on a clipboard. And I realized something:

We could learn a few things about goal setting from sports.

1. There is always a definite purpose. Get the basketball through the hoop. Shoot the soccer ball into the net. Kick the football through the posts. No team goes onto the field expecting to "figure it out" as they play.

2. There is always a plan. The huddle before a play--in any sport--is to re-affirm what the course of action will be. Likewise, players are pulled from the field, taken off the court, or booted from the pool if they divert from the plan. It's essential to make a plan when things are calm and then carry out the plan when things are tense.

3. There are always complications. Sports would lose their spectators if rivals didn't exist. And what is the point of a rival except to thwart the plan of the team? Certainly the first time a football player is tackled, the team doesn't leave the field. Teams don't call it quits when the opponent scores against them. They work harder, run faster, swim better.

4. There are wins and there are losses. And, regardless of if the championship game is a victory, there are usually second chances and "next seasons" and opportunities to improve on previous games.

So we win a few and we lose a few. But we make the plan, keep the goal clearly in view, and we endeavor to improve on our performance every time we seek to grow in an area.

Even I know Brett Farve has been sacked over 450 times. If he can keep returning to the game, so can I.

Retail Me . . . Retail Me Not

Photo by transp

I am sitting in front of my pile of neatly clipped coupons.

I snagged $123 worth of coupons from Sunday's paper. And no, I did not clip any coupons for things I wouldn't use (like strange hair removal products or fiber cupcakes)--Not that either of those products is something I would be afraid to tell you I buy ... really.

I admit, the tallest glass of chocolate anything would not taste better than my coupon stack looks right now.

So I'll keep this post short and sweet. If you are a coupon maven, you need to check out the following site:

http://www.retailmenot.com/

This is a website that features more than grocery-related coupons. It's going on my list of websites.

With all the money you save, you can send me flowers. Or jewelry. Or maybe books.

Change Clothes

Photo by Editor B

It's that time of year again.

The left side of my closet is full of bright, summer, lightweights, while the right side of my closet is slowly filling with sweaters, jackets, and sweatshirts. Admittedly, this is my favorite time of year. But I hate one aspect of it:

Switching out my clothes.

It is nearly time for me to pack up and move out those items I won't be wearing until next year.

Here are some "switchover" ideas I've culled from readers and research:

1. Eliminate what you don't wear. (Research shows that we wear 20 percent of our clothes 80 percent of the time.) If you're not wearing it now, why would you wear it a year from now? Unless you suffer severe memory loss or plan on undergoing a total personality makeover, you'll still hate it.

2. Keep only what fits. Truly, the closet is not supposed to be a scrapbook of memories. Unless you're King Tut, your closet isn't big enough to hold onto the items you can't even wear.

3. Wash your clothing before packing it up. This seems like an obvious tip, but it's such a pain that it doesn't always happen. Why add more laundry to the pile?! (I typed and re-typed an answer, but they were both unkind.) Remember to empty all pockets and mend all rips or missing buttons.

4. Give it away. Whether taking out the old or bringing in the new, consider giving out-grown items to someone who could use them. Who among us hasn't received a bag of clothing and marveled over it? (Likewise, if the items are stained, don't give them away. Rip them up and use them as cleaning rags!)

5. Only keep out what you will wear this season. As you unpack last year's boxes, keep in mind that you don't have to hold on to what you will not wear. Just because it comes out of the box doesn't mean it needs to go into the closet.

One reader passed along this helpful hint. When switching over her seasonal wardrobe, she places the boxes in a spare room and pulls out items to wear on a daily basis. Once she has worn the item, she places it in her closet. What doesn't get worn by a certain deadline, she eliminates as something she is no longer using.

Happy switchover!

Carpe Diem, Stop and Smell the Roses, Et. Al

Photo by TANAKA Juuyoh (田中十洋)

One good adage deserves another, right?

So why are these quaint phrases fraternizing today? Because they have a message for us.

Sunday is Good Neighbor Day. What have you done to celebrate? Today, my 3 kids and I took a handmade 40th-anniversary card, a mere gesture, across the street to a sweet couple who never had kids of their own. They've looked at my kids and others in the neighborhood as their family. In the card, we put a picture we had taken of the couple and my kids. You might have thought we gave them the world.

Perhaps, for them, we did.

I’d like to stop and smell the roses in the calendar of life, to really invest myself and my family in celebrating or commemorating these holidays. And I can't think of a better way to celebrate than with my kids.

So carpe diem, and join me as I invest in our culture and my family, as I teach my little ones to embrace these adages. And in true House Honcho style, we'll take this journey together and I'll share a little about my experiences from time to time.

Take a look at your calendars. Start planning. And don't forget, the early bird gets the worm!

Paper Weight

Photo by rocknroll_guitar

The scary monster that lived under my bed as a child has turned into paper.

That's right. I find paper everywhere in my house. It's the beast I am always trying to tame. As a full-time writer and editor, paper is my permanent co-worker. It follows me to work, sits with me at dinner, and stares at me from my night stand when I'm trying to sleep.

I hate that I have not gone digital. 64 percent of people supposedly do their banking online while I run around the house swatting at floating pages.

One week, I printed so many pages for a project that I came home one afternoon and planted a tree.

Sometimes I think the tree knows it was used.

So this is my new plan. I have chosen Friday--the day we focus on our office space--to be my paper management day. On Fridays, I will take a walk through my house, identify any and all paper that threatens my sanity, and I will file, recycle, or store.

Your days are numbered, Paper.

Equinox, blah, blah, blah

Photo taken by Trisha

Delicious Autumn!

It is that time of year again when we open our windows, fire up the oven for potato soup, and plan ... for pumpkins.

My family takes pumpkin carving very seriously. We could really care less about dressing up or soliciting candy from people we've never met ... really all we care about is carving.

Two years ago my sister-in-law initiated the whole pumpkin fest. We drove many miles away, picked out the pumpkins that swore they would make us proud, and we came home to carefully gut and cut. It was incredible fun, and we have since carried on the tradition.

(Though you couldn't pay me enough to reveal whose face I plan to place on a pumpkin this year.)

Really, does it not say something about my family that we can all sit around a table with knives the size of our heads and no one commits a crime by night's end? I love my family.

Anyway, the photo above is the result of our first pumpkin carving phenomenon (which happened to fall very close to the presidential election). I seriously recommend that you plan an autumn family gathering of your own. You'll be glad you did.

Happy Autumn,

Chatty Tuesday

Photo by Fluid Forms

If time could stand like statues ...

As is the case with anyone you meet on the street, there is more to me than meets the eye. I know. You're thinking: brains, beauty, brawn. [Insert loud, annoying buzzer of shame.]

I am talking about adoption.

18 months ago this week, my husband and I began the process of adopting a little boy from an orphanage overseas. These 18 months have been long and exhausting. [Read that to mean "difficult" and "disappointing."] Never did I realize that the toughest work involves sitting still and waiting.

We've waited, alright. The worst kind of Manhattan traffic has nothing on overseas adoptions.

Birthdays have passed, holidays have flown by, and still we sit and wait. Worse than him growing up without us is us growing older without him.

The tiny room we prepared months ago for his arrival needs dusting--something we never thought would happen before its occupant arrived. I vasilate between wanting to dust it and not wanting to see it while it's empty.

Today--for the first time in months--I can truly say we started to sense movement on our case. Really started to feel it--like a train slowly gaining momentum to move down the track. Tomorrow we should receive information AND pictures. Pictures! How I will want to smooch those photos, and it will hard to explain to the cashier while I hand over my 15-cents-a-print why I--a grown woman--am joyfully kissing cardstock.

I don't even care.

I believe in my heart that I might just be on the eve of motherhood. No. I feel no abdominal contractions (hallelujah!) but I feel them in my heart.

Here's to waiting a little bit longer ...

Works Like a Charm (Bracelet)

The time has come.

I want to share with you my couponing system in the hopes that (if you are looking for ideas) you will find this to be helpful. And yes, you can claim my ideas as your own. So long as you don't try to tell me that you created this work of art by yourself, no one will ever get hurt.

[Deep breath]


Photo taken by Trisha

The photograph won't win any awards, but the system is fantastic. I use a seven-pocket/portfolio combo that I picked up at a office supply store. Because time does not always allow me to stop and clip coupons the instant the flier shows up in my mailbox, I file the page (or packet or pamphlet) of coupons in my file folder to save for a rainy day.

This is perfect because it helps tame the paper beast that always threatens to take over my house. And it means I won't lose the paper just because I don't have time to deal with it at the moment.

When time permits, I pull out the pages and cut away. (This is a great exercise for movie night or phone conversations or as an alternative to panic attacks.)

When the coupons are trimmed, I file them by category in the smaller red accordian file that fits perfectly in the larger system. (I do this because I'd rather not drag the entire filing system to the store. The red file allows me to "grab and go" and leave the uncut fliers and coupons at home.)

I use the front, mesh section of the filing system to store coupons that I plan to give someone else. Why not think of others while couponing? (Though a word of caution here. It is best not to give people coupons about things that might be considered sensitive. You know ... don't give anyone a coupon for hair removal or high power SPANX. Just saying.)

Hope this spurs some couponing prowess.

The Stuff of Vision

Photo by brian.ch

It's not about the stuff.

Homes are comprised of things, there's no doubt about it. Much of the time we disparage between not having what we think we need and having too much of what we do not need. But our homes are about so much more.

John Piper, in answer to the question, "How can eternity influence a mother's daily tasks?" said the following:

"If she is totally circumscribed by her little home—with no vision for the world—then I think her domestic scene is probably going to shrivel up on her, and she is going to feel that it is small and constraining. But if she sees it in the wider context of what she is a part of in the missionary enterprise, I think every detail of her life can take on a global significance, indeed, an historical significance."

And so this week we'll wash and clean and straighten--important tasks that we are called to complete. But we'll do our best to influence for that which is eternal along the way.

Truth for Thought

Photo by Aunt Owwee

Once in awhile an old truth, said in a new way, resonates in the soul.

Tonight I was going to show you my couponing system (very cool and very helpful, if I do say so myself). But then a friend said something that has stuck in my mind ... and the couponing will have to wait. Here is what she said:

Splurge on experiences, not stuff.

And I thought, "You know? That's the whole mission of House Honcho, really." Well, actually, my thoughts are never quite that succint. Usually they're a running ticker of all kinds of things--interspersed with memories of dinner and books and shoes--but really, that is the essence.

Experience is so much more valuable than clutter. The home isn't meant to house new things we'll never use. It's meant to house a family whose main collection is comprised of experiences.

And so, I will leave you to think about that truth and consider the effects it might have on your home.

Bubsy and Other Embarassing Words

Photo by Randy Pertiet

It's something your great grandparents never dealt with.

(No, I'm not referring to talk shows, Halloween decorations, or cleaning the bathroom.)

I'm talking about passwords--those pesky little names or numbers you must accumulate to protect everything from your bank account to your business e-mail and everything in between.

In honor of Friday being the day we focus on the office, here are some tips for keeping yourself safe:

1. Don't use the same password for every site. Reason goes to show that if someone figures out your favorite child or song, they'll unlock your entire life.

2. Be careful what you write down. If you must write down your passwords, do so cryptically enough that someone else's discovery of your list won't mean your entire life is destroyed. (i.e., Avoid writing MY LIST OF PASSWORDS at the top of the page. And never put this list on the fridge.)

3. Keep it to yourself. Change your passwords from time to time, and never, EVER tell untrustworthies what they are. If you do need to enlist the help of someone who receives your password (such as the "trustworthy IT guy") change it as soon as possible.

Here is a great strategy for creating passwords and keeping 'em straight:

Choose a password that pleases you: 1970Bubsy and then add the first word of each site in front of it to keep the password unique for each site. So your bank account might be Bank1970Bubsy and your church prayer list might be Church1970Bubsy and your e-mail might be ... you get the point.

Someday, we'll exchange our little phrases for biometrics, and our great grandchildren will have a hay day discussing what their ancestors did for safety. Until then, stay safe.

Will Work for Food

Ralph Waldo Emerson's home

An article in today's edition of The New York Times caught my eye.

New caretakers were needed for Ralph Waldo Emerson's house--located in Concord, Massachusetts. Apparently, the couple that fit the bill were a pair of 27-year-olds, one of whom has "a deep tan and residual ski hair" while the other "thinks of the clothes dryer as a satellite closet."

Nice.

The article intrigued me, and while I chuckled over the fact that these new caretakers had to ask around to figure out who Ralph Waldo Emerson was before accepting the job, I marveled at this quote:

“With women’s lib, the whole domain of domestic work has been relegated to the back of women’s minds," [Bay Emerson] Bancroft said. “How do you clean a house well? It’s a mundane task, but there’s a total art to it.”

And I puzzled over the anomaly that--on one hand--America prizes the homes of the deceased while overlooking the homes of the living. What an honor to clean the home of a long-dead writer ... what a meaningless job to care for the home of husband and children.

Really?

There is an art to home management, make no mistake. But better to enjoy it while alive.

Let It Flow

Read about this chart at howtogetfocused.com

I get in the upwards of 100 e-mail a day.

Between my day job, writing projects, and personal coorespondence, I do a lot of e-mail reading. When you weed out the SPAM, unsolicited, or unwanted e-mail, that takes my number down to ... oh ... 99. So I am learning every day how to hone the skills involved in thoughtful, quick review. I love to linger on one response to the neglect of all the rest.

Here is a helpful chart that I discovered today. Hopefully it will resonate with some of you.

Keep it simple.

So Many Ways to Save

Photo by theogeo

You know what time it is.

Calling all coupon mavens...

In lieu of September being National Coupon Month, I would like to share with you 5 websites that are uber-helpful when becoming a couponing genius. (I am currently building HouseHoncho's Top 100 websites, so if you know of better sites than these, please let me know!)

1. http://www.coupons.com/ (really basic address, really awesome site)
2. http://redplum.com/ (ah-ma-zing)
3. http://www.blogger.com/www.smartsource.com (not visiting this site is = not smart)
4. http://www.blogger.com/www.meijermealbox.com/ (offers the ability to plan AND save)
5. http://www.blogger.com/www.e-centives.com (this site will give you every incentive to return)

The more I understand couponing, the more I question why anyone wouldn't give it a try. I, for one, am not of the coupon-worship variety, but I will certainly save a penny if it is possible.

In my next coupon post, I will show you the system that has made a world of difference for me.

More really good stuff to come soon. Stay tuned!

Prayer Is a Privilege

Photo by ben. seid

Prayer affords us the ability to be involved in God’s sovereign work in our lives.

At no other time is this opportunity felt so strongly or appreciated so fully as during the difficulties and complexities of life.

Our hearts are most pliable to prayer when God alone knows what we are feeling and facing. Our hearts are more peaceful when we seek the Giver more fervently than we seek the gift. Our lives are more blessed during difficulty—if we maintain an internal posture of prayer—than during any time of prosperity or success when prayer is an oversight or afterthought.

This week, let us take our concerns and cares to God.

Big Thoughts

Photo by David Barrie

I know. I don't usually philosophize on this blog.

Just to let you know that I'm okay, on Monday I'll be back to tell you about the neighbor who has left her "welcome" snow man out all year. I was truly tempted to yank it out of the ground today and drive off. But that would be wrong. Almost as wrong as the fact that the snow man is wearing a straw hat.

Moving along ...

Tonight I want to tell you a story.

A few years ago, I was taking a foreign language class taught by a teacher who was particularly popular for yelling at random students or sending timid first-year undergrads flying out of the country to avoid her pre-requisite language boot camp. (At one point I considered a move to the Federal Islamic Republic of the Comoros Islands.)

So one morning, we were sitting in class when a student received a call on his cell phone. There was a collective gasp that:

1. He would dare to bring his phone to this teacher's classroom
2. He would actually excuse himself to answer it

When he eventually came back into the room, we all ducked in anticipation of what would happen next. It was like that spot in a movie where you can actually feel the flames or smell the gunsmoke. We were all going to experience what came next.

The teacher turned to him and said, "What was so important that you felt you could leave my classroom to take a call?"

To which he replied, "A plane just crashed into one of the Twin Towers."

Our teacher was speechless. Our class was stunned. Our school was saddened. And tomorrow, 9 years later, I will marvel once again at the way our country was strong.

Many perspectives were changed that day. A lot of trite things suddenly looked less important.

A Little Night Truth

Photo by emrank

Loss is never easy.

Forgive me for straying from my rule that inspirational blogs are limited to Sunday.

Today--shortly before I was given the news that I could lose someone dear to me--I attended the funeral of a five-year-old. So my blogs about laundry tips and coupon tricks will need to wait.
Here is what I know for sure:

It is a theological reality that the perfect will of God for our lives at times includes suffering. Very few people are exempt from dark days or deep waters. Whether a person's difficult days include a season of winter in marriage or a verbal stoning on the job, the heartache of wayward children or the insecurity of financial ruin, difficulty is certain.

None of us will travel the same path in life, but most of us will experience suffering.

Here is what I also know: God is in control. He does all things for our good and His glory. To the point that He was willing to send His own Son to the Cross, He does what is best.

As I began this next phase of traveling a road on which I am largely unfamiliar, I will cling to that.

Table Topic

Photo by gaioum

It's so much more than a table.

Growing up, my family's kitchen table was the sun around which everything in our home took orbit. (My apologies to Copernicus who believed the sun orbited the earth. To him, this analogy would be confusing. Can you imagine?)

Our family ate our meals at the table, talked on the phone at the table (alas, the phone was still connected to the wall by a long, spiral cord), did homework at the table, shared family worship at the table, and carried long-into-the-night conversations at the table. (I learned about both life-changing moves our family would make at the table--and I both decided to dump and marry in the same assigned spot--two different men, I should clarify.)

We each had assigned seats and--even when we weren't eating meals--we gravitated toward "our spot." So I could relate to a gravestone I once saw which read, "Your spot at the table is empty." It was more than a reference to last night's main course.

It is safe to say that much of what I learned, I learned at the kitchen table.

When I hear that families are avoiding the kitchen table--in lieu of fast food booths or paper plates in the living room while watching the favorite show--I wonder what will be missed. It isn't so much the chair or wooden construct itself that kept me grounded through the years.

But in so many ways, it was the kitchen table.

Falling Ahead

Photo by miller vintage

Fall is my favorite time of year.

It's cool enough to heat up the oven for homemade pumpkin bread, yet warm enough not to chip ice cycles off the end of my nose. (Which I utterly appreciate.) I am planning to enjoy the pending fall season to its fullest.

The key--as always--is thinking ahead.

Here is what I am doing this week to prepare for Fall:

1. Inspecting the air sealing around the windows and doors to make sure there aren't gaps or cracks where cool air can sneak in and raise my energy bill.

2. Power washing the exterior of my home. (Good idea to do this BEFORE the water freezes on the outside of my house.)

3. Cleaning out the gutters. (Making way for more!)

4. Scheduling a fall furnace inspection. (Sounds about as fun as clipping Fluffy's toenails.)

This week promises to be busy, but I want to enjoy the winter without worrying about what should have been done back on a mild day in early September.

Are you with me?

Money, Money, Money, Mo-ney!

Photo by sushi♥ina

Money really does grow on trees.

If you consider that coupons are made of paper and paper is made from trees ...

September is National Coupon Month, and as such, I am going to take 10 days this month to discuss how coupons can positively impact your home. Please feel free to leave a comment with your own experiences. I know several of you are coupon mavens in your own right.

I always get a little green with envy when friends of mine post a photo on their blog of everything they bought for the incredibly low price of nothing. Ever seen those photos? "I bought 18 rolls of toilet paper and 12 cannisters of cookies and 9 packages of paper and the clerk owed ME money!"

Well. Couponing is a growing trend and each of us can experience the benefits if we take a little time to do our research.

Today's tip is simple: Manufacturers and grocery store chains will often post coupons on their Web site which you can print and take with you when you shop. No need to buy the Sunday paper. Additionally, many stores will actually accept expired manufacturer's coupons. Don't be so hasty to throw out the stack!

Something like $4 billion in coupons are printed every year in this country.

Time to start clipping?

The Silent Game

Photo by Pedro Klien

Just be quiet!

Because of the activities 24/7 in our lives--school is in session, sports are full-swing, the holiday season lingers right around the corner--it's hard to disengage from all of it to be still. This weekend I was in the grocery store when I observed two children screaming in each other's faces while their parent stood, wide-eyed and slack-jawed, staring at the contents of a half-empty soup shelf.

And I knew instinctively that the parent didn't even hear the arguing. Perhaps she was accustomed to hearing it all the time. Or maybe she needed it to think (the way I run a box fan at night to sleep).

Seeing this, I realized with a sort of clarity I didn't have before that I, too, get accustomed to the noise. I listen to music, I talk on the phone, I ineract with the people in my family. I even talk to myself sometimes! But rarely--when my eyes are open--am I silent.

Psalm 46:10 exhorts us to be still and know that God is God.

At some point each day this week, I am going to find a few minutes--apart from the time I spend in daily reading and praying--just to be quiet. I invite you to join me.

Laundry 4-1-1

Photo by Alex{G}

Saturday is laundry day at our house.

I know. For some of you, the laundry is done every day of the week, including Thanksgiving and Christmas. I get it. You're doing laundry even when Wal-Mart's closed.

So, in honor of whatever day the laundry gets done, here are 5 of my favorite laundry tips:

1. Cut the dryer sheets in half. They will still be effective and you will be able to wait twice as long before shelling out your hard-earned cash.

2. Pin socks together to avoid mismatching or disappearing singles. (If you lose both of the socks, will you ever know?)

3. Clean out the lint trap between every load of laundry. This is imperative if you don't want to deal with a pesky house fire.

4. Add 1/2 cup of white distilled vinegar to the rinse cycle to brighten the color of fabrics.

5. Fold your laundry before ever taking it out of the laundry room/area. This will provide the incentive to do it quickly and put it away without letting it sit anywhere too long. (Involve family members as often as possible! Many hands make light the work.)

Paper Queen

Photo by Randy Son Of Robert

I love paper.

It's a sad and painful admission for someone who simultaneously loves trees and wants to be the best possible steward of the earth. If this were a PA (Papers Anonymous) meeting, I would have to stand up and say,

"Hi. My name is [clears throat] and I bought 47 notebooks last week."

Truly, I did. There was a phenomenal back-to-school sale and I took them up on their offer. (And in case you think I bought these notebooks in lieu of sponsoring children overseas who go without food, I spent less on all 47 notebooks than I typically do on one. Yes, the sale was that good.)

So I have a problem. I love paper. What can I say?

But I don't want the nagging kind of paper taking over my house--the junk mail, the simple reminder slips, the scratch paper. So here is my strategy for containing the good stuff:

1. I took my name off of the junk mail lists. It's really not hard. Go to dmachoice.org. It takes a few months to really see an improvement, but it really does work. You'll think you were forgotten.

2. I set up online banking and bill pay. I set up reminder e-mails and monthly alerts. It's better than keeping track of paper bills.

3. I spend the first day of every month filing what I need to keep. The rest is sent packing.

4. I sort my mail--all of it--right by the recycle bin. Much easier not to set it down on the coffee table or find a stash in the fridge.

5. I do a "paper chase" once a week. I walk through my house looking for loose paper that needs to be destroyed. Amazing how paper multiplies, isn't it?

Paper is wonderful ... when it is contained.

Life Lessons

Photo by Firing up the quattro

One of the major differences between our society today and society 50 years ago is the way we interact.

Scientists have said that 150 relationships are the most we can truly and cognitively handle at any one time. Yet, I know few people who have more than a handfull of friends.

Oh sure, there's Facebook. (What's your name? Did we go to college together? Oh. Sure. We sat in the lobby of the bank that one afternoon complaining about the clerk. Your daughter's name is Sarah. You don't have a daughter? Well. I'll accept your friend request anyway. Did we attend the same middle school perhaps?)

Like I said, I don't know many people who have more than a handfull of friends. We hold people at arm's length. We're afraid to get invested--knee-deep--into the lives of those who might move away or go through something painful that would require us to emotionally feel around in the dark for what to say or do.

What we fail to understand is the true impact that good relationships have on our homes and our lives. Friends--true friends--offer a type of truth that family and acquaintances aren't always capable or allowed to extend. They hold up a mirror--by what they say and do--that allows us to see an accurate picture of who we are.

Tonight I sat in my living room across from my very dear friend and we talked about life. My dusting went undone and my blog (until now) sat untouched. I still have a pile of work calling my name. But my grandmother would be proud. (Except for the fact that I failed to offer my friend a slice of pie or cup of coffee. Next time, perhaps.)

But I--and my home--come away richer from the experience.