What I Love

My crazy right-wing husband, sleeping in late, waking up and thinking it's a workday and then realizing it's Saturday, the way Riley wakes up next to me and immediately smiles when she sees me, cuddling with all three of my girls - or any one of them at any given time, the smell of coffee more so than the taste of coffee, Chai tea, any kind of milk (not dark!) chocolate, loud family get-togethers, laughing so hard I can't breathe and it leaves my face and my stomach hurting, crazy funny emails between me and my sister, or between me and my friend, Paula; snowmen decorations, getting my nails done, purse and/or shoe shopping, jewelry, singing a Christmas song in church on Christmas eve and then suddenly finding myself tearing up because of the tradition of Christianity that has been part of my life forever, the scene in Steel Magnolias when Sally Fields gives her gut-wrenching speech at the cemetery after the death of her daughter, freshly fallen snow; funny, mean things that Alex says, when Stephanie has her "blond" moments and we all make fun of her over and over again, being loved even tho I'm frequently a bitch to everyone in my life at some point or another, having multiple TVs in our home now so that I no longer have to watch "Strongman Competition" shows with my husband with glassy eyes as he gives me all their life stories and statistics (Oy!), soft cotton pajama pants, CSI (it rocks dude!), but only the original with Grissom, Dave Matthews Band, REM, my dog Zoe (cuz she's a little simple), getting an unexpected package, going to bed early, getting out of a jacuzzi when it's really cold outside, anxiously awaiting the next Dean Koontz or Stephen King novel; cartoons, books by Augusten Burroughs, the compassion I have toward gay people and the struggles they must endure in this life and the comedy they use to overcome; Spongebob Squarepants and Patrick Star, making fun of Polka music, well, pretty much making fun of anything has always been a favorite past-time, cooking something fun, fond memories of my mom and dad when we found something funny, buying a new book or CD, a piece of beautiful classical music that brings tears to my eyes, my crazy extended family, my immediate family, my friends, old and new, you.