Facebook Holiday Cheer.

So Christmas is just around the corner and Facebook is full of good cheer.  At any given time you can find photos of Christmas trees, cute little kiddies on Santa’s lap and holiday cookie recipes.  Its all very fun and festive.  And distracting. I’ve sat down to write a post like five times.  Between Pinterest and Facebook, I’m struggling to remain focused.  I’m on holiday overload!

Because I’m so frigging generous, I decided to spread the cheer and share a few of the Christmas fun that I’ve been enjoying:

Disclaimer: I found these on Facebook.  I don’t know who created them… however they are genius.  Kudos whoever you are!

And you thought it was gonna be all Christmas trees and Santa!

Parenting Advice - or "PA"as the cool kids say....

I think it’s important to understand your kids.  Not act like and dress like them (yea. you know who you are – ok, so sometimes that’s me…), but to relate to their interests. Acknowledging their world. I Facebook, Twitter and blog.  I know all about planking. I listen to Adele. I’ve witnessed a Wii Dance Party and I’ve watched Jersey Shore.  I do not approve. 

In return I’ve tried to teach them things from my generation.  Unlike our parents who told stories of walking in snow uphill both ways, I try to educate them in useful things.  Like when I quiz them on 1980’s hair bands.  Fyi, I no longer except “some old guy” as a valid answer.  My girls have watched most every Molly Ringwald movie, Weird Science and the Vacation movies.  I’ve explained the concept and allure of “big hair”.  They do not approve.

Most of our family communication is via text.  Although never when driving! Because I hear that’s bad.  I kinda feel like this is one way that connects us.  I’ve learned to understand their abbreviations, horrible spelling and short answers. And they’ve come to expect my longer, more detailed texts- which they lovingly refer to as “a book”.  I’ve even written a blog post on lol-ing.  So I’m hip and happening.  Despite the fact that I say things like hip and happening.

So when the following text conversation occurred, I was a bit shocked to find that I may not be connecting the generations as well as I’d hoped. 

Me: Are you going to go workout with me tonight?

Daughter: IDTS

Me: What?

Daughter: What… what?

Me: What is that acronym?

Daughter: What’s an acronym?

Me: *sigh* never mind.

By the way.  It means “I don’t think so”.  I suppose we’ll have to work on that.  or should I say…. “iswhtwot”.

PS: When my teenager checked this post for accuracy…. She didn’t know what “iswhtwot” was.  I win!

PSS: I had to explain it to the Hub too... maybe I don't win.

The perfect storm. Not just about bad weather conditions!

So there’s a chance that I have short term memory loss.  No really.  I can’t remember anything anymore.  But that’s not the big problem.  Along with my well documented ADD and my secret procrastination this short term memory loss (or STML, as the cool chicks say) is like the perfect storm of insanity. Three ailments you do not want to have in tandem is STML, ADD and procrastination.  Because what happens is you postpone things, get distracted, then forget about them.  This is why my Pulitzer prize winning novel has yet to be written…. Well, not the only reason, but it contributes! 

So given my sad mental state, I’ve taken to using sticky notes every time I need to remember things.  They are stuck everywhere.  I write down things like refill a prescription, send an email on that project at work, pick up kids, never go out on black Friday.  Clearly the post it notes are not a fail-safe.  I also have taken to using my cell phone to make to do lists and write down ideas that I want to blog about.  My notes section of my phone will have little phrases or ideas that don’t really go anywhere, but I fear if left in my head… will disappear.

So after last weeks’ phone incident, I’ve been trying to remember some of the ideas I had lost.  And some of my best thinkin’ time is when I drive.  Who needs to worry about traffic and road conditions when I’m thinking of blogging, vampires and wondering who sings that song on the radio.  However, a recent conversation with my daughter revealed that I am not a good driver when texting.  Something about “all over the road and driving five miles an hour”.  Whateve… hater.  But in an effort to set good example, I’m trying to NOT text and drive.  Basically I don’t want to be THE reason they change the law from teens who text and drive to adults who text and driving.

Fast forward to today. In an effort to be all “safe” and crap, new phone in hand, driving home, I heard a song that I need those teenagers to download to my Ipod.  While at a stop light, I bring up my “notes” app and hit the voice recognition button.  At this point, I am completely convinced that my new phone will not give me the problems that the lase one did.  (see here) Into the phone I speak “THREE DAYS GRACE - BREAK” (and no, I didn’t YELL it) and after what seems like three days (ha, get it... three days), the phone shows “crab grass”.  Yes.  Crab grass.  I’m no music expert, but I’m pretty sure Three Days Grace does not have a song called crab grass.  Although it might be kinda cool….

Then I realize that it would be a great blog topic… this whole STML and the new phone.  At the next stop light (yes, at a stop light) I enter a new “note” and say “crab grass”.  Yea.  It didn’t even recognize the phrase. The phrase it just typed for me.  It just gave me the circle of death “thinking” mode.  Then came up empty.

And so it begins... again.  The love/hate relationship with voice recognition. I had such high hopes for the new phone with its fancy new technology. So sad. Wanna know how I managed to remember the story, given my recently discovered disability?  Yea… I was like two minutes from the house and I repeated it in my head like 10 times and nothing new and shiny came into my line of vision.    

Do you think I can get meds for this? Do you think a doctor would even talk to me?