Dear Kid,

Today is National Armed Forces Day. (It’s also National Waiters and Waitresses Day which I suppose in some instances is like being in battle, but since the worst that will happen in a restaurant is a chocolate stain, I’m going to focus on Armed Forces Day.)

Sometime in the past (after History was born but before the current millennium), there were Days in the US set aside to recognize the different branches of the military. President Harry S. Truman (who really had no middle name—just an initial) established a single holiday “for citizens to come together and thank our military members for their patriotic service in support of our country.”

On August 31, 1949, Secretary of Defense Louis Johnson announced the creation of an Armed Forces Day.

Today is a day of graduation parties, of finishing high school and looking ahead to the next chapter.

For those going to college, congratulations, study hard, and read DearKidLoveMom. For those going into the work force, congratulations, work hard, and read DearKidLoveMom. For those going into the military or an ROTC program, congratulations, serve proudly, and thank you for your service. And read DearKidLoveMom.

To all those who have served or who are currently serving, we thank you.

Love, Mom

Dear Kid,

‘Tis the Season.

To graduate that is.

Fa la la la la la.

Graduations mark a transition, a time of going from one adventure to the next. From one kind of learning to the next. From High School to lounging on the couch before summer actually begins.

IRL (in real life) there aren’t graduations. We move on from one job to the next and never get to wear a cap and gown. The mortar board is a distinctly education-based recognition system.

Sometimes there are celebrations marking the switch from one thing to the next. Happy New Job! Happy New Home! So sorry to hear your division closed and you’re out of a job—let me know how I can help.

Happy Retirement! Congrats on the new addition to your home. Welcome to the family!

Sometimes there are littler things to celebrate. Another year around the sun. A new car. A new pair of shoes. Another new pair of shoes. And one more pair of new shoes because they were on sale.

The big graduations are important times for celebrating. The little times are important for celebrating too because that’s real life.

Happy Friday!

Love, Mom

Dear Kid,

It’s National Napping Day!

Sleeping is no mean art: for its sake one must stay awake all day. ~Friedrich Nietzsche

OK, it’s not. It’s Fatigue Syndrome Day.

Not Chronic Fatigue Syndrome which is a real and significant disorder and should be treated by medical professionals.

Just Fatigue.

As in, eyelids shut. As in, head nodding during class. As in, I’ve been staring at the screen long enough and it is time for some zzzzz.

Life is something that happens when you can’t get to sleep. ~Fran Lebowitz

It’s not easy getting enough sleep when you’re in college.

Heck, it’s not easy getting enough sleep when you’re not in college. (My wonderful purple Fitbit is kind enough to remind me daily.)

People who say they sleep like a baby usually don’t have one. ~Leo J. Burke

According to My Friend the Internet, there is a good bit of evidence showing that we don’t know how to sleep correctly. Which is weird since it’s one of those things we’ve been doing since birth.

Consciousness: that annoying time between naps. ~Author unknown

Turns out that we were better at sleeping before electricity interrupted things.

B.E. (before electricity), people would go to sleep shortly after sundown for their first sleep. They’d get up for a while in the middle of the night (probably to check the chickens) and then settle down for their second sleep.

Unless they lived some place hot, in which case they only tossed and turned in the heat and then took a long siesta to make up for the lack of sleep.

Sleep is a symptom of caffeine deprivation. ~Author Unknown

For those of us that are required to jump leap slither out of bed each morning in order to go to work, caffeine is a friend. An important friend. An enabler.

Happy Good Morning.

The best cure for insomnia is a Monday morning. ~Author Unknown

I don’t know what that makes Thursday morning. We can talk about it after my nap.

Love, Mom

Dear Kid,

Happy Sunday!

It’s the 8^th and all across the land, people are celebrating the essence of the day. Yes, that’s right. It’s No Socks Day. (Didn’t see that one coming, did you?)

In honor of No Sock Day, I am not wearing socks (see how that works?).

I went barefoot for coffee, sockless when Dad and I went out to run errands, and sockless when I planted the spinach we picked up on our errand run.

Ridiculously, it’s a little too chilly and rainy for socklessness, but I sacrificed my toes in order to celebrate. I’m just that kind of girl.

Happy Today.

Love, Mom

Dear Kid,

Have you ever noticed that we (and by “we” I mean people) tend toward different behavior in different situations?

I don’t mean that you behave differently at a Katy Perry concert than you do at a symphony orchestra concert, or that you behave differently on a job interview than you do at a frat party. I mean that depending on the stresses and stressors in your immediate life, we (again, people) react and behave differently.

For example, when I take the Puppy for his regular vet visit, I’m relaxed and at ease. If I take him to the vet because something is wrong, the stress leads me down Cheeky Lane, suggests a left at Sarcasm Alley, and comes to a screeching halt Smart Ass Road. This trip to Bordering on Rude is not my intent at all and as I hear myself I start apologizing to the medical professionals who I know are just trying to help. They (inevitably) tell me not to worry about it (translation: we’ve seen worse but it would be best if you’d stop talking and let us finish the instructions we’re trying to give you).

Their kindness, my stress, and the fact that 11 seconds have gone by generally leads to another “joke” on my part (and by “joke” I mean an attempt to be funny that falls completely flat) and around we go on the carousel again.

The veterinary professionals have – in point of fact – seen this behavior before (and probably without all the apologies). They see it several many times a day and completely understand the source of the worry that causes it. They understand, they forgive, and they patch up the puppies that don’t bother with commenting on the situation.

We tend to carry our stresses with us, like a bad taco (Happy Cinco de Mayo) into situations where they don’t belong.

When we’re stressed about something at home, we generally can’t leave it there (where it belongs) when we head out to work, or class, or a date. It tags along like an unwanted alien, disrupting our focus and causing us to behave in ways that seem incongruent with the time and place.

Scenario 1

Boss: How is your project going?
Employee (under normal circumstances): Fine thanks.
Boss: Great, let me know if you need anything.

Scenario 2

Boss: How is your project going?
Employee (under serious stress at home): Why are you hounding me!? I said I’d get it done and I’ll get it done! Stop treating me this way.
Boss: Huh?
Other employees: Oooh, we get to see an exorcism!

The next time you see someone behaving in a way that seems out of character, give them a break. See if they are ok, really ok. Listen for things that aren’t said.

And when they get around to apologizing for their behavior, accept the apology and move on.

Love, Mom

More Happy Cinco de Mayo here, here, and here

Dear Kid,

Speaking of colossally bad ideas, my friend Sue pointed out our next contender in the Are You Kidding Me? category.

Naked Gardening Day.

It’s a thing. It’s a thing on the first Saturday of May.

It is not a thing we will be doing at our house.

According to the Huffington Post, it is a great day to plant your seed(s). Don’t worry–it gets worse.

I am so appalled at the concept, I don’t even know where to start: Sunburn? Mosquitoes? Mulch and grass in places mulch and grass shouldn’t go? A poorly aimed weedwacker? Embarrassed petunias? People showing too much winter paleness?

The possibilities are horrifying and horrifyingly endless.

Although just because you are unclothed does not mean you are a hoe.

I talked to the Puppy about Naked Gardening Day.

Puppy: Fur.
Me: Fur?
Puppy: Fur. You need fur.
Me: It’s summer. Why do I need fur?
Puppy: Sunburn. Mosquitoes. Mulch and grass. Embarrassed petunias. Skin that’s blindingly pale. Fur solves the problems.
Me: Fur.
Puppy: Yep, fur.
Me: And the weedwacker?
Puppy: Run. In your fur.

The first people to participate in Naked Gardening Day were Adam and Eve. Even the snake was unclad according to most accounts of the story. They enjoyed N G Day right up to the point where they discovered the joy of custom fit fig leaves.

Not sure what you’re going to be doing next Saturday. But I know what I will not be doing.

Love, Mom