Pleasures

I am frugal with some things. My dad taught me to use duct tape to fix a ten cent paper folder and it can last a lifetime. I used to patch my jeans until I was patching the patches. Sadly, I grew out of that work of art. I made my niece an octopus doll out of a kitchen mop, "Molly Moptopus". Sadly, it did not become a family heirloom. My best furniture finds have been discarded on the street or purchased at yard sales, including our wobbly dining room table and most of our dressers.

I am not frugal with some things. I have a maid, a babysitter, and would hire a butler if I could find one. I love expensive clogs, which are so much hippier than expensive heels and will save me the cost of foot surgery down the road. I will never be without an Iphone or a GPS, ever again in my life. I don't cook much and could eat Indian, Mexican, and Thai every single night. The kids keep us balanced in this respect as they demand mac and cheese and chicken nuggets shaped like dinosaurs.

In the middle zone are the pleasures we don't allow ourselves very often. Here are mine:

1. French manicures--my fingers feel very saucy as I am typing this entry.
2. 15 dollar magazine--could be archival quality, could be a limited edition, could be about Japanese snails but on occasion, get one of these.
3. The Good Stuff--be it a bottle of wine, the best paints, or Moroccan hair oil, sometimes you need to go top shelf.
4. Something you know your grandchild is going to get if you can just keep your child from ruining it. Ours is a wooden kitchen set in the attic that Emma may or may not have felt needed artistic embellishment. This is where my future daughter-in-law will sink or swim. If she says "that adds character", I will forever hold my peace about how she is raising the grand kids, if she refuses to take it as it is smeared with red paint and mouse nibbled, well....she gets the full benefit of my expertise as a family therapist.

I am a fan of the middle ground pleasures. They aren't my due, but I'm lucky when I recognize them and override the voice that tries to talk me out of them.

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