Well, we’re back. I won’t go into much detail about the trip except to say this: we appear to have lived through it.
Although, sometimes appearances can be deceiving.
About a million years ago, during the drive down, when we were still all chipper and optimistic and relatively well rested, we did have one real stroke of luck at the McDonalds in Kingston. We stopped there for lunch, and ordered food while I took the kids to the bathroom. Just as we sat down to eat, the place lost all power. Everyone else who was there was out of luck. The power was down for about half an hour, and when it came back up, the family next to us rushed over to order, only to find out that they needed an additional 15 minutes or so to get back up to grilling temperature. They were on the road to Toronto as well, so they decided to just leave without eating.
I just could not imagine the horror that would have happened if we had told the kids we were stopping at The Ronald McDonald, as the Captain calls it, pulled right up into the parking lot and gotten everyone out of their seats and inside, only to have to break the news that there were NO CHICKEN NUGGETS. We may as well have told them that SANTA IS DEAD. I have no idea how we would have gotten them back in the car. The Captain would have been absolutely hysterical while Gal Smiley would have gone catatonic and limp.
So, we were very, very lucky.
Whenever you hear of someone winning the lottery, they always say, “Oh my goodness, I never win anything.” Which only makes sense, because if you were someone who always won something, I imagine you’d be playing the lottery as your main profession, and we’d see your name in the news a little more often. But aside from that, I’ve been thinking lately about how people usually remember the times they’ve been unlucky, and forget about the little lucky times. So I’ll try to record a few of them here, to help me through the long, dark days when they find traces of peanuts in the Cadbury Easter Eggs and must recall them from all Ontario locations, before I’ve had a chance to buy seven or eight giant bags at the post-Easter sale — I can’t even type that without a tear falling from my eye.
For the record then: McDonalds incident, lucky.
Rest of weekend: we appear to have survived.
TurtleHead 
I just could not imagine the horror that would have happened if we had told the kids we were stopping at The Ronald McDonald, as the Captain calls it, pulled right up into the parking lot and gotten everyone out of their seats and inside, only to have to break the news that there were NO CHICKEN NUGGETS. We may have well as told them that SANTA IS DEAD. I have no idea how we would have gotten them back in the car. The Captain would have been absolutely hysterical while Gal Smiley would have gone catatonic and limp.
This, my friend, was a damn hilarious paragraph.
I haven’t told you this in a while, but you’re a damn good writer :).
Thanks so much! I’ve been trying to use my blog to work on my writing a little bit this year, since I can dash off short pieces in between diaper changes and games of Hungry Hungry Hippos. I think it’s going well so far.
(Apparently the yellow hippo is the best eater. Just a tip for ya.)
+1. I LOL when I read the “SANTA IS DEAD” bit. Pretty damned funny.
Oh, I am so with you on the “remember when you are lucky” thing. I feel like over the years I’ve developed a bit of a grumpy streak, and to counter this I’ve recently starting doing what you described. Whenever I get a little stroke of luck (not that I believe in “luck”, but anyway…), I try to make a note of it, and enjoy the feeling. Like getting all the green lights on the way to daycare, or finding a simple fix for a computer problem that seemed impossible. It’s surprising how just a shift in attitude can make you feel happier.
That’s exactly it. Focusing on all the little things that go right can really turn your day around.