Failing to Bits

My friends will tell you that my dreams are nonsensical and completely implausible. Yet I will follow the thread to the very end when I realize that no, this is not really happening, I am still in my pajamas. A champion worrier, I have even had anxiety dreams on behalf of others. Like the time the client I work for was facing the difficult task of selling colleagues on yet another idea from the higher ups, I dreamed we were teaching bears to tap dance, and I was quite good at it.

This morning, I dreamed I was vying for a blue ribbon at the State Fair. I was competing against a dozen or so women who all looked a bit like the lady on the Grandma Brown's Baked Beans can (for those of you unfamiliar, a pleasant looking, elderly woman with slightly blue hair). We were showcasing our preserves. Unfortunately, the market for pickled Brussels sprouts has not been discovered yet, and I did not win. However, I did get an honorable mention. I woke up before I discovered what the honor was, but I'm sure it was probably something like packaging a roll of antacids with it, or some other thoughtful gesture. The winner was some upstart with a bad perm and a jar of pretty pickled beets.


My father was big on hobbies. Nearly every year he'd try his hand at something new. He would approach each new passion methodically, as any engineer would, yet there was always a little something different. His first boat was a rather small dingy with an outboard motor, so naturally, he subscribed to Yachting magazine. He decided to try making wine, but rather than use the abundant supply of fruit from our yard (berries, grapes, plums, pears, cherries, and apples), he chose turnips. The wine was horrible, but he and his friends drank it anyway and fondly remember it as the most gawd awful hangover ever. I've learned that self-taught skills are often the most satisfying and rewarding, but the results are unpredictable and sometimes the "story" is the best part.

So today, as of this moment, I will be learning more things the hard way, and (hopefully) laughing while I'm failing to bits.

(This bit of mindful meandering is the result of a mother who should always get what she wants, family who have told me to DO something, and a generous and long-suffering friend who really deserves much better.)