November Days of Gratitude #5

You probably thought I wax gonna take the night off because . . . weekend? Well think again you guys! Because the November gratitude train stops for no one and no thing.

And for that, we are quite thankful. (Especially those of us who value punctuality and tight scheduling.)

Today, I am thankful that Jamie Buchman has provided a new way to teach my children about how they fall short from my astronomically high standards. 

Here's the backstory.

Last night I was sitting up late, maxin' and relaxin' after a long day of work. And while Lynda slept on the couch, I chose to watch some old DVR episodes of Mad About You. Unfortunately, one of the recorded episodes was a clip show ("The Test" if you're curious). Fortunately, it featured one of my favorite 15 seconds of the series.

(Helen Hunt, you can paper my roll anytime.)

 

So, just substitute me for Jamie/Paul for my kids and keep everything else the same. In my mind, this scenario happens nearly every single day. Why can't they learn to put a new roll on? And, certainly I've asked this question before. But I'm trying to be understanding, I guess. This is just what I do.

 

I get up in the mornings and survey the rooms. If the kids are awake, they've probably left their fans on. And when I go into the bathroom, it's certain that the nightlight is still on, even though it isn't needed in the daylight hours. But it's no problem to switch that off (to save bulb life, don't 'cha know) because I've got to be in the bathroom anyway to pull the bunched up shower curtain back closed again (to help it dry and . . . because it looks better that way. And while I'm at it, I'll notice the probable lack of toilet paper because odds are, the toilet isn't flushed anyway.

 

And, for that last one  . . . I don't really mind so much, at least not in the morning. Chances are, if they remember to flush the toilet I'll be in the shower and will get scalded with suddenly hot water. So, they've learned to hold off on that.

 

BUT . . . if they learned just to listen to see if the shower was running . . . I wouldn't NEED to check on them about it.

 

BUT, but, but . . .

 

. . . this is about gratitude. And while I found another instance of the problem this very morning . . . I am grateful that Jamie Buchman is here to help me lead them to water.