Day 126 - the first Saturday of May

 Today is the 7th day of the 18th week, the 6th day of the 5th month, the 126th day of this insane writing experiment and of 2023 and:

  • *the exact moment of the crowning
    Beer Pong Day
  • Bladder Cancer Awareness Day
  • Childhood Stroke Awareness Day
  • Coronation Day - King Charles III is crowned this day in 2023*
  • Free Comic Book Day
  • Herb Day
  • International Doodle Dog Day
  • International Drone Day
  • International Female Ride Day
  • International No Diet Day
  • Join Hands Day
  • Joseph Brackett Day
  • Kentucky Derby - this is the 149th running of the race called "the two greatest moments in sports"
  • Learn to Ride a Bike Day
  • Mariachi Day
  • National Auctioneers Day
  • National Beverage Day
  • National Bombshells' Day
  • National Crepes Suzette Day
  • National Fallen Firefighters Memorial Day
  • National Fitness Day
  • National Homebrew Day
  • National Nurses Day
  • National Play Outside Day
  • National Scrapbooking Day
  • National Start Seeing Monarchs Day
  • National Train Day
  • National Tourist Appreciation Day
  • No Homework Day
  • Revenge of the Sixth (( for those that think 'the sixth' sounds more like 'the Sith' than 'the fifth'.  YMMV ))
  • Russell Stover Candies Day
  • Pilates Day
  • Wildfire Community Preparedness Day
  • World Labyrinth Day
  • World Naked Gardening Day
  • the first day of Hidireliez - a folk holiday celebrating when the prophets Al-Khidir and Elijah met.

Quote of the day:
"Problems are not the problem; coping is the problem."
~ Virginia Satir, American author and psychotherapist who concentrated on family therapy


Sent this to my son, which triggered an entire discussion about his childhood because it wasn't athletic shoe commercials he paid attention to, it was cartoons. 

Back in the day, Speed Racer was a cartoon he really liked and watched whenever he could.  I kept an eye on it, and one day was sitting on the couch sewing when it came on, and I listened.  Speed was confronted with a situation in which his friend needed his help, and he started to respond, then he stopped, declared that while friendship was important, it was more important for him to win the race they were in, got into his car and zoomed away.  I waited for him to go back, even to check on his friend again, but all that happened at the end of the cartoon episode was Speed was waving his trophy around and his friend showed up and said that he was glad Speed had left him to win

Was this the values that I wanted my son to learn?  We talked later, and my son was perfectly okay with the decision Speed Racer had made, because he did win.  My son was already fixated on having to win every game - and because he was my firstborn, I didn't realize back then that all kids go through that phase, I was struggling with how to teach sportsmanship-like conduct when playing a game.  Speed Racer went on permanent ban, something he remembers to this day.

As I watch my daughter struggle with the two granddaughters as they each go through the "why play if I'm not going to win" perspective, I am vividly reminded of the time I cheated at checkers while playing with Grandmom Riley once.  She had left the room and I moved one of the pieces before she got back.  She looked at the board, looked at me, and told me that it was no fun playing when winning was all the other person cared about, then let me win.  I never cheated again because I didn't enjoy that win at all.  And sometimes I just let my granddaughters win even when I could beat them, just because I remember how important it felt when I was young.  And like Grandmom, I tell them that it's no fun playing when the other person has to always win and let it go at that.

But Speed Racer is still taboo in my house, so sorry.  

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