Convertible People

I will never own a convertible. I'm not one of those people. On some peripheral level, I understand the appeal. It's probably like motorcycle enthusiasts: the wind in your hair ... the sun beating down on you ...

If I want to feel the sun, I'll go to the pool or I'll go on vacation. Don't get me started on the wind in my hair. I don't have convertible-friendly hair. The wind can mess with it on a good day. After a ride in a convertible, I bear a strong resemblance to Gilda Radner playing Rosanne Rosannadanna on SNL.

My friend and neighbor just bought a new convertible. I think it's her third. She is kind and will often let me ride with her to a mutual destination. She laughs at me because I spend the entire trip holding my hair.

Worrying and Stress

I'm all for safety. I wear my seat belt. I will never be on a motorcycle again but if I did, I would wear a helmet. The baby had a helmet for bicycling or in-line skating. I rode a bicycle, climbed trees and stood on people's shoulders -- never a helmet involved.

Now the entire country is up in arms about lead paint, especially in toys from China. Didn't we all sleep in cribs and grow up in homes with lead paint?

I have a friend who will not allow her dog to have rawhide bones. I know this because I made the mistake of giving one to the dog and she took it away. My dog would eat the sofa if I left her unsupervised so I'm not stressing about a little rawhide.

The husband grills a mean tenderloin. But, he cannot stand overcooked meat. So, if the pork is a tad pink in the middle and someone makes a comment, he asks for a moment of silence for all the friends we've lost to trichinosis. (None!)

I worry about all the normal things: oldies, my parents, kids, bills, health, business, the husband's stress level, etc.

Then, I worry about weird things: Did I leave the dog outside and might the oldies or the husband run over her? (She's not super smart and we all seem to be accident prone.) What is going on with my hair? Why can't I get my clocks in sync? (You know I have that obsession with numbers.) Did my sassy mouth get me in trouble? Do I owe someone/anyone an apology?

The oldies are headed back in two days. I'll give you one guess of what's on my stress radar today. So, I plan to go to Sheri's World and think about that tomorrow.

Motorcycles

To use a crossword puzzle word, I am "afeard" of motorcycles.

My dad had a bad experience in his youth and it involved a motorcycle. My friend (J) has lived her entire life with a father who was physically and mentally impaired due to a horrific motorcycle accident.

When the husband and I lived in our old house, the extremely wooded back yard butted up to a busy intersection. One night we heard the screech of tires, the scream of the sirens, etc. We ran to our little forest. There was a man who had skated through the intersection on his motorcycle and was lofted into one of our trees. He died.

Even after that experience, Big Daddy occasionally mentions wanting a motorcycle. He had one in his youth. I don't put my foot down about a lot of things but this is not going to happen.

(J) is married to a man with a motorcycle. They stopped by a few months ago and SHE WAS NOT WEARING A HELMET. Well, trust me. I read her the riot act. "What are you thinking?" I'm just grateful that she tolerates me.

Due to my father's accident and my mother's protective nature, I was forbidden to get on a motorcycle in my youth. Once (just once!) I broke the rule and went for a little spin with one of the neighborhood guys. I probably had a crush on him. I wore a helmet and we were very safe. My thought process was that I could do this and be home before the parents came home from work.

Then we pulled up to a stop light and my mother was in the car next to us. I was in BIG TROUBLE. It's almost 30 years later but I think I'm still grounded.