Realistic Reasons Why Having A Lot Of "Stuff"Does Not Make You Happier

1. More stuff to keep track of.

2. More stuff to clean.

3. More stuff to pack if you're moving.

4. More stuff for your kids/grandkids/pets to destroy.

5. Not remembering what stuff you have when you go into your storage room.

My Annual Oscars Rant

Dear Planet Earth,

The Oscars are not a popularity contest. The Oscars awards given by the film industry for artistic and scientific (yes, scientific) achievement in film. If you want to watch an awards ceremony for movies that were really popular, may I suggest the People's Choice or MTV Movie Awards? If you don't like the Oscars, don't care about the movies and film industry professionals who were nominated, and don't want to sit through a three-hour event, then just don't watch it. No one is forcing you to turn your tv to ABC on Sunday night. Pop in a movie from Redbox, or watch a different channel. And do all of us who do care about the Oscars a favor: stop whining, and leave us alone.

Sincerely,

Fans of the Oscars

56 Songs On My Road Trip Playlist

In no particular order, they are...

1. Rockin' Down The Highway - Doobie Brothers
2. I Can't Drive 55 - Sammy Haggar
3. Violet - Savage Garden
4. Lost Highway - Bon Jovi
5. Life Is A Highway - Rascal Flatts
6. Take It Easy - The Eagles
7. Real Gone - Sheryl Crow
8. Every Day Is A Winding Road - Sheryl Crow
9. Steve McQueen - Sheryl Crow
10. Keep The Faith - Bon Jovi
11. Desert Rose - Sting
12. Route 66 - John Mayer
13. Albuquerque - Weird Al Yankovic ( Yes, I listen to the whole thing.)
14. Holiday Inn - Elton John
15. My Father's Gun - Elton John
16. Dancing With Myself - Billy Idol
17. Listen To The Music - Doobie Brothers
18. Smooth - Carlos Santana feat. Rob Thomas
19. Raise Your Glass - Pink
20. Amoreena - Elton John
21. Country Comfort - Elton John
22. Love For Sale - Bon Jovi
23. Hotel California - The Eagles
24. So What - Pink
25. Running On Empty - Jackson Browne
26. Layla - Eric Clapton
27. Harmony - Elton John
28. Empty Sky - Elton John
29. Where The Streets Have No Name - U2
30. In God's Country - U2
31. Trip Through Your Wire U2
32. Té Dejo Madríd - Shakira
33. 500 Miles - The Proclaimers
34. Chicago - Kate Voegele
35. We Built This City - Starship
36. Ventura Highway - America
37. I Got A Name - Jim Croche
38. America - Simon and Garfunkel
39. Jump - Van Halen
40. Old Time Rock n Roll - Bob Seeger
41. The Biggest Ball of Twine in Minnesota - Weird Al Yankovic
42. Respect - Aretha Franklin
43. Up Around The Bend - Creedence Clearwater Revival
44. Free Bird - Lynyrd Skynyrd
45. America - Neil Diamond
46. Paradise City - Guns N Roses
47. Marco Polo - Loreena McKennitt
48. Wanted Dead Or Alive - Bon Jovi
49. Gypsies, Tramps and Thieves - Cher
50. Here I Go Again - Whitesnake
51. The City Of New Orleans - Steve Goodman or Arlo Guthrie
52. Go Cubs Go - Steve Goodman (it's a family thing - we're Cubs fans)
53. Get Over It - The Eagles
54. Life In The Fast Lane - The Eagles
55. Blaze Of Glory - Bon Jovi
56. Alice's Restaurant  -  Arlo Guthrie

Why I'm A Homebound Gypsy

I have a lot of fantasies about almost every kind of travel. Route 66 by motorcycle, the U.K. by train, Eastern Europe with a backpack, and the Greek islands by yacht top my list.

The sad truth? I don't have a passport, don't have the funds, and have never been further out of the country than Tijuana, Mexico (back in 2002 when it was safe enough to visit). The most exotic place I've ever been is Honolulu, Hawaii, and quite frankly, most of that was on someone else's dime.

True, I've been places. New York, Chicago, L.A.,  and San Francisco, for example. The problem is that some were back when was single, and the others were pre-economic crisis.

What depresses me most some days is that I never knew I would be interested in backpacking across Europe or traveling cross-country by bus until about a year ago. My husband and I were considering an overnight hiking trip, and I searched Google for a suggested list of items to take. I ended up on a website about the *other* kind of backpacking,  -- http://travelindependent.info/index.htm --which led to travel blogs, and I've been obsessed ever since.

Now I am 32, fat, boring, with a husband, 2 kids, a mortgage, and a guilty conscience that kicks in any time I start harboring fantasies about said backpacking-across-Europe trip. I discovered it too late in my life. By the time my kids are grown, my bills manageable, and my guilty conscience faded, I will be 50.

I'm not giving up, but I am willing to face the reality that family trips to Disneyland, maybe 1 more time to Chicago, and various cheapy local trips, are probably it for me. No Spain, Greece, Croatia, or Isle of Mann. My only hope for significant income is becoming a published novelist, and any writer with an adequate sense of reality knows how likely that is. So, for now, I travel via travel blogs, travel memoirs, Google Earth, and the Travel Channel. And that's ok, I guess.

Las Vegas 2011, The Basics

(Ratings are out of 5 *'s)

New York New York Hotel and Casino:
Check-in- *****
Room- ****
View from the room- *****
Location of room in hotel- *****
Food options inside hotel/casino- ****
Location on Las Vegas Strip- ***

Gallagher's Steakhouse- ***

Jimmy Buffet's Margaritaville- ****

The Stratosphere Tower Observation Deck- ****

Riding The Deuce- *****

The Bodies Exhibition- ****

The Titanic Artifacts Exhibition- *****

The Shark Reef at Mandalay Bay- *****

The Habitat at The Flamingo- ****

The Lion Habitat at MGM Grand- **

The Bellagio Fountain- *****

Visit to Gold and Silver Pawn Shop (Pawn Stars)- ****

Sleep

I think I've reached that age where sleep is more important than a lot of other things. I fell asleep during the last few minutes of The Black Hole... Not because I was bored, but because I was that tired. I would ponder whether I feel that old normally, but I'm too tired. Yawn. Good night.

Breastfeeding - My Thoughts and Opinions

Among women, especially those in their childbearing years, breastfeeding can be a very heated topic. Up until my oldest child was born, I hadn't thought I had much of an opinion on it. As it turns out, I do.

With my son, I had just assumed that I would breastfeed exclusively until I went back to work, then pump as needed after that. What actually happened is that I gave up on breastfeeding the day after we came home from the hospital, tried pumping for maybe 2 weeks, and after that went to formula. As it turns out, for physiological and psychological reasons, breastfeeding does not work for me. I am, by necessity, a full-time working-outside-the-home mom. I have limited waking hours with my kids (and for doing housework), and I feel my time is better spent taking care of my whole family and getting quality time with them, than going through the problems I have in breastfeeding and pumping.

I tried breastfeeding again with my daughter, and had the same problems as before. That time, I went to formula by the end of the first week. I plan on 1 more child, and I will be going straight to formula.

I can hear the die-hards telling me any breastfeeding problem can be overcome, that I gave up too soon or didn't try hard enough. That's fine, they are entitled to their opinion. The fact is, I did what was best for me and my family. I firmly believe that, and I will not be made to feel guilty by the die-hards.

I feel that every new mom (medical conditions aside), should at least try breastfeeding. They should be given coaching if wanted, rather than having it forced on them. No mom should be made to feel guilty who has at least tried to breastfeed, regardless of her reasons for switching to formula. Yes, I agree that breastmilk is best, but formula quality has come a long way, and there is no medical proof that formula feeding is, in any way, "child abuse."

I also feel that, while I support moms who choose to breastfeed in public, they need to keep themselves covered while doing so. Personally, I am uncomfortable with a woman exposing her breasts in public. (For any reason!)

Both of my children were exclusively formula-fed after the first 2 weeks, and I have yet to notice any ill effect. I also have no regrets.  I will continue to support moms in whatever decision they make, whatever their reasons, because let's face it- being a mom of an infant is hard enough without the fanatics breathing down your neck.