Joy in the Morning

It's the little things that make life so nice. The soft fur on my bunnies as I pet them, the taste of ripe fruit, the smell of lilacs, the color of my peace roses when they are in bloom, a really comfortable place to sit, a good book to read, my kids, time with my husband. Little details throughout the day add up to happiness. A huge house, a large bank account, professional acclaim, none of those things can bring what nature and companionship can.

This morning some quail with their tiny offspring was a source of joy. I ran from window to window to get a good look at them without disturbing them. There are only six this year. But what a miracle those six really are! They'll eat my strawberries, cherries, raspberries and peaches until the babies are full sized and the adults are rippling with fat for the winter but it seems a small price to pay to be able to watch them run in and out of our bushes and for the occasional treat of seeing these teeny little ones scurrying around with their parents. How grateful I am for the little bits of nature that come into my yard and gladden my life!

The Snobbery of Our Day

Another season of feeling terrible and another post. This is how it works. Once I've been sick long enough to be in a bad mood I post a rant. Cheerful isn't it?

And the more trivial the better right? 

This morning for inexplicable reasons I was thinking of blue toilet water. Yes, blue. Fun huh? But really I was reminded of an interior decorating article on do's and dont's for your home. On the list was blue toilet water.

Now for those of you who don't know there is a chemical you can put in your toilet tank that cleans your toilet bowl each time you flush and sometimes this chemical is blue.

You know where I'm going with this.

Who cares?

I mean really, what does it matter if toilet water is blue? I stick a white one in mine and for the first few unfortunate souls who go in there while it's brand new they suffer the risk of asphixiation for a few days because it has bleach in it. Technically, according to the article that's okay because the water is clear but what about my unsuspecting house guest who ends up passed out on the floor? Or my reputation when someone thinks I've slipped something in their kool-aid? But blue - no.

So apparently a visual sign that someone cares about the cleanliness of their bathroom and doesn't want to kill you is a design no - no. Hmmmm....

Let's put this in perspective shall we? Without getting too graphic here let's take a moment of silence to contemplate what we put in toilets (and no, I'm not talking about the plastic dinosaurs and such that every little boy inevitably will try to flush). Seriously, is blue cleaner you can see after each flush that bad? Frankly, I'd rather see that than any evidences of other activities that have taken place on this lovely shrine of our humanity (hence the bleach smell - let's face it, the blue stuff might not be strong enough).

But enough of that!

This post is about the snobbery in our society. My husband pointed out an article the other day about granite counter tops. Have you ever priced those things? Yikes. But now, since everyone has them no one wants them. This article said if you're selling you're home you'd better get rid of those outdated, boring things - you want something that will set you apart - quartz - which coincidentally or not coincidentally is more expensive.

Do people love snobbery so much because it makes them feel superior? As long as they can look down at their fellow men about something it gives them value of some kind albeit artificial at best. What possesses a person to sneer at another unless it's a deep feeling of inferiority?

OR is this really about getting us to spend more? It's a good ploy for it. You are not with it. You are irrelevant. You don't get it unless you buy this! Or buy that! Spend! Spend! Spend! Otherwise you are worthy of nothing but snickering derision.

Think about it, there's always someone feeling superior about something. Usually about things that do not matter. Are you wearing the right jeans? No - gasp! Are you wearing the right shoes? No - swoon. Are you carrying the right purse? No - faint.  And men, you are not exempt. So wipe the smug smile off your face because here are some gender neutral issues - do you have the right job, car, significant other? Ahhhhh!!!! Clothes, jobs, and cars! Oh my!