On Turning 54

As I laid in my bed, middle of the night, several nights ago, I decided I wanted to blog about being another year older.  Yes, unfortunately I am sometimes coherent enough at that ungodly time of night to have those kinds of thoughts, and actually remember them in the morning.  But I decided to address this by creating 5 Top Ten lists....plus 4 randoms.  That's 54.  As is often the case, this post is more for my own amusement than anything.  Peruse at your own risk.  The management claims no responsibility for your boredom and/or amusement level.  Oh, and the following lists are NOT, I repeat, NOT, in any order of importance or relevance.  The contents of each list are not, either.  Just rambling, random thoughts.  You've been warned.

Top Ten List #1: Animals I Like

1. Panda bears
2. Penguins
3. Big dogs (nothing yappy for me, thank you very much!)
4. Otters
5. Horses
6. Giraffes
7. Tigers
8. Elk
9. Macaws
10. Hummingbirds

#2: All-Time Favorite Movies

1. Mary Poppins
2. Forrest Gump
3. Tootsie
4. Silverado
5. Lord of the Rings Trilogy (yeah, I coulda counted them as 3, but that didn't seem right.)
6. Singing In the Rain
7. Seven Brides for Seven Brothers
8. White Christmas
9. Back to the Future
10. Cinderella (original Disney cartoon version)

#3: Best Sing-A-Long-in-the-Car Songs

1. Poor, Unfortunate Souls (I do a KILLER Ursula the Sea-Witch!)
2. Old Time Rock and Roll
3. I Dreamed a Dream
4. Yesterday
5. I Call Your Name (Mamas and Papas version)
6. Supercalifragilisticexpialadocious
7. I Saw Her Standing There
8. Since You've Been Gone
9. Hallelujah Chorus ( I can still make it through 97% of the alto part)
10. The Rainbow Connection

#4: Pet Peeves

1.  People who don't refill ice cube trays when they're empty
2. Parents who end any direction they give their child with "OK?"--like they're asking their permission.
3. Incorrect usage of their (Those are THEIR toys.), there( Put them away over THERE.), and they're (THEY'RE not going to put themselves away!)
4. Incorrect usage of to ( Let's go TO the store.), too (Can the dog come, TOO?), and two (No, we will only be gone TWO minutes.)
5.  Don't even get me started on apostrophes.  CONTRACTIONS and POSSESSIVE, people!  NOT plurals!!!!!!
6. Pictures hung crookedly on walls.
7. Toothpaste tubes squeezed in the middle.
8. Business marquees with unintentionally incorrect spelling.
9. Foul language---in my mind, the use of it drops a person's (POSSESSIVE) IQ every time it's (CONTRACTION) used.
10. Trash cans that are overflowing, and no one can seem to find the strength to pull out the bag and tie it up.

#5: Things I Like About Me

1. I have all my wisdom teeth.  And my appendix.  And I never broke a bone.
2. My smile.
3. I can find SOMETHING to like about almost anyone.  I don't have any enemies.
4. My choice of spouse.
5. I can usually make people laugh.  Even if it's at my own expense.  It doesn't bother me.  I tend to find myself amusing, even if nobody else does.
6. I don't embarrass easily.
7. I enjoy reading--to myself and to children.
8. I find joy in simple things. (See the end of #5)
9. I'm not a jealous person.  I admire what others have or do, but I don't yearn to be like them. For the most part.
10. I can carry a tune without a bucket.

AAAAAAnd, finally....4 Random Things.

1.  The Pixar short "For The Birds" will usually make me laugh so hard my stomach muscles hurt.
2.  I still bite my fingernails.  It's worse when I'm stressed.
3.  I really, REALLY wish the hang-up clothes would hang themselves up.
4.  I tend to say 50 words when 5 would do.  I know I do it, and I think I've gotten better at 'editing', but then I look at the length of this post and think.....nope. Not there yet.

And that's the way it was....Cindy's 54th birthday reflection.  Thanks for listening.