Thought Bender

What is that you say? A thought bender is a lot like a drunken bender in that it's completely out of control, impossible to reign in and just has to run it's course, either leaving you completely sorry that you ever went through with it or stoked that you came out the other side intact and enjoyed yourself immensely. I go through these quite often. Well, I suppose I can use the excuse that I don't drink anymore but I'd still have thought benders even if I could go on the alcoholic ones (some days I miss those margaritas tremendously...sigh).

My current thought bender is all about simplicity. I want a simple life. Is there such a thing? I'm not sure but perhaps I should consult the Amish. I want to live away from the screaming sirens (and sometimes screaming inhabitants) of this suburb. A couple years ago our entire neighborhood was blocked off by police in pursuit of some, uh, 'bad guys' shall we say. Two were caught, but the one who actually shot at a cop two houses down from us escaped, via the river no doubt. About four months ago, one of the neighbors living around here actually pulled a gun on our local police representative who was going around the neighborhood to cite people for blight, but was also accompanied by lovely fire fighters who were offering to inspect people's fire detectors. Why pull a gun? Because he was angry that he might be cited for blight in his yard...he stated that the government was too much in "our" business. So, pull a gun??? Really??? Additionally, the Pizza Hut was robbed at gunpoint, it's about four blocks away, one bullet round was shot into the ceiling. I'm telling you, our neighborhood is nice, really it is, yet this is what living in the supposedly safe suburbs has become. This is not simplicity.

I just want to toss my Dish subscription out the window and opt for public TV and bunny ears (which will no longer exist as of February, humf), I want to get rid of the house phone...who really needs a house phone and a cell phone??? I want to live where my yard doesn't back up to four other yards, I want to live without fences, I feel so confined and everyone eaves drops around here. I want to go to town, instead of living in town. I want to get to know the people around me (not live too close to them though) instead of pretending we hardly exist to each other. I want to say hello to Sue and Dan who work in the grocery store in town and chit chat with Brandie at the coffee shop who knows what I always order. I want to show some artwork in the local coffee shop and meet up with other women who knit so that we can discuss our lives and new patterns we're trying. I want to go to Yoga at least once a week with a slightly neurotic teacher and some of those knitting buddies. I want to grow much of my own produce so that I know what goes into it. I want to know my children's teachers and I want my children's teachers to know them, i.e. smaller school, teacher accountability and one-on-one instruction if necessary. I want to sell arts and crafts at the annual Christmas festival held in old town, where I would imagine everyone knows and graciously says hi to everyone.

Maybe this doesn't sound so simple to some but to me it sounds amazing. I don't even know if this exists but it would be nice. I have a feeling this thought bender will be around for a long time. There's nothing like that around here that I know of and the hub's job is super stable so moving is not really an option at least not for now.

So I guess I'll just have to satisfy myself by fulfilling other thought benders, like the knitted fingerless gloves and a cute yoga bag that needs to be sewn. Countless others will follow no doubt.