40 Thanks

With Thanksgiving just a week away, it is customary to make a list of things for which we are thankful. Like most people, I am thankful for family, friends, freedom and many other "big" things. I think it's also important to ponder the "little" things in life that we often take for granted. So, in honor of the first Thanksgiving since I turned 40, I will now share 40 other things for which I give thanks:

1. Applesauce. Something we tend to stop eating as adults, until we have kids of our own. Tasty and easy to eat!
2. Remote controls. I'm old enough to remember the stone age of getting up to change channels - how barbaric!
3. Microwave ovens. Hardly a day goes by without using this time-saving device.
4. Backyard. We're making a lot of wonderful memories playing with the kids out there.
5. Indoor swimming at the Y. Great exercise and fun family time all year long.
6. Atari. Hours of fun when I was a kid.
7. iPod. The ability to listen to my favorite songs when I want is great.
8. "Weird Al" Yankovic. My favorite musician. His songs have given my countless hours of enjoyment.
9. Skee-ball. Lots of fun down at the Shore, even if my wife always gets a better score.
10. Wall-to-wall carpeting. Personally, I think the warmth and softness underfoot is infinitely better than hardwood floors.
11. Tape. Helps me perform the "miracle" of repairing torn kids' books.
12. Library. All the books you can read - for free!
13. Parades. Like the song says, I love a parade.
14. Songs before bedtime. Every night before the kids go to bed, we sing "Take Me Out To The Ballgame" and "Jesus Loves Me". Everybody sings along.
15. Pizza. As a kid, I didn't like it. Now I'm making up for lost time.
16. Dishwasher. Another modern convenience that is too often taken for granted.
17. The Simpsons. Has provided me more entertainment for less money than anything else I can think of.
18. Boogie boarding in the ocean. Catching a wave and riding it to shore is awesome.
19. Airplanes overhead. My son loves to point these out to us.
20. Apples. Red Delicious or MacIntosh.
21. Eating outside. A special summer treat.
22. Snow blower. Don't know why I waited so long to get one.
23. Piles of leaves. Still fun to jump in, not just for kids.
24. Indiana Jones. Yes, even the 4th movie.
25. Water. Another thing that's too easy to take for granted.
26. Sesame Street. Debuted the same year I was born. Wonderful memories.
27. Peanut butter cups. Best candy ever!
28. Boardwalk. One of the many great things about living in New Jersey.
29. Ice cream. Especially in a cone on a hot day - keep licking before it melts!
30. Hawaiian shirts. What us cool guys wear in the summer.
31. Post-Its. Keep my organized.
32. Glasses. I can see now!
33. Baseball. Quite simply, the best sport ever invented.
34. Orange juice. Perfect way to start the day.
35. Lighthouses. Love climbing to the top of the Barnegat Light House.
36. Statue of Liberty. Inspiring.
37. Convertibles. Never owned one, but I like the sense of freedom they convey.
38. Bicycles. Fun way to get around.
39. Parking garage. We have one at work. Really appreciated on rainy days.
40. Reading stories. Great bonding time with the kids.

Daylight Saving Time

A couple of weeks ago was the latest installment of a truly bizarre semi-annual ritual. The government tells everyone to change their clocks and watches by an hour, and we dutifully comply. I have several problems with this situation:
1. Where does the time go? A common expression in Autumn is that we "gain" an hour by turning the clocks back. This is not true!! That hour was actually stolen from us back in the Spring! I am hereby demanding that from now on, this hour be repaid every year with five minutes of interest.
2. It is unnecessary. Manipulating the clocks obviously doesn't affect the number of hours of light per day. That is solely determined by the tilt of the Earth. So any difference is merely an illusion. Some will say that without the time change, it will be dark when kids walk to school in the mornings during the winter. First of all, kids don't walk to school anymore. Parents wouldn't dare allow their precious little flowers to have to get exercise. Secondly, shove a flashlight in the kid's hand and he'll be fine. Thirdly, anyone walking in the evening is now in darkness, so what's the difference?
3. The Energizer Cartel. In recent years, we have been instructed to change the batteries in our smoke detectors when we change the time on our clocks. As a result, millions of still powerful batteries are discarded and new batteries purchased. How convenient. It seems obvious to me that the battery companies invented daylight saving time, waited patiently for decades, and then rolled out their evil plan to boost sales.
4. Government control. Doesn't the government have better things to do than to invade our homes and manipulate our precious clocks and watches? Numbers never seem to be the government's strong suit. Stand up and tell your elected officials that only after government on all levels starts living on balanced budgets will we allow them to invade another vital area of our lives.
So stand up with me - it's time for a change!