June 16: Health, Not Wealth, How 'Bout Happiness, "Web" Dip

It's been a good day.  I got off work early this afternoon for a doctor's appointment.  I was so happy to be able to leave my job that I literally could have been having a rectal probing without anesthesia, and I still would have had a great afternoon.

My doctor's appointment was great.  I have been an insulin-dependent diabetic for 33 years.  I have no diabetic complications.  My feet are fine.  My eyes are fine.  My blood pressure is great.  My cholesterol is normal.  I'm pretty healthy, for an overweight poet.  I celebrated this news by going for a run.  It was 80 degrees, and I stopped at a kids' lemonade stand to buy a drink and a cookie after I was done.

So, I've got health.  I don't have wealth.  Happiness?  Well, that depends on the day.  Tonight, I have happiness.  I just finished a great novel, and I'm enjoying writing this post.  Soon, I'll brush my teeth and go to bed with my wife.  We'll read our nightly devotions together.  Then, my happy day will be over.

Happiness really is a choice.  I woke up convinced that I was going to thoroughly enjoy myself today.  I did.  Now, if I can do that all the time, I wouldn't have to take a sleeping pill every night.  I'd wake up excited for the day's challenges.  Choices.

My question this Web dip Monday is:

Will I have happiness this week of my life?

And the answer from Charlotte:

...Charlotte had finished her web.  The word HUMBLE was woven neatly in the center.  Nobody noticed it in the darkness.  Everyone was tired and happy.

Message received.

Saint Marty has some positive choices to make.

I'm not sure, either

June 9: Another Day, Another "Web" Dip

Back to the grind this morning.  After watching the Tony Awards last night, getting to bed even later than usual, I had to drag myself out of bed when the alarm sounded.  The only thing that got me through the day was 52 ounces of Diet Mountain Dew and a sense of humor.

My sense of humor, unfortunately, has abandoned me tonight.  I have four more days of work left until Friday, and my daughter's dance recital is this weekend.  That means a lot of rehearsals and a lot of time spent in dark auditoriums.  No matter how you cut it, my life is not going to be my own for the next seven days.

Don't get me wrong.  I love watching my daughter do something she loves.  It's just a lot of driving and waiting.  And waiting.  And waiting.  I will make good use of my time.  I still have to finish writing my Father's Day poem.  There's not a lot of downtime at my new job, so, after I'm done blogging this evening, I will be poeming this evening.  Yes, I know "poeming" is not an actual verb, but it gets my point across.

I need to find some inspiration.

And so, dear disciples, my question this Web dip Monday is--

Will I find my muse tonight?

And, Wilbur (the pig, not the character from Mr. Ed) says--

...The rat crawled in and ate everything.  The he tore a word out of the paper, rolled it up, and started back to Wilbur's pen.

 Well, say what you want about Templeton the rat, but he does bring inspiration to Charlotte.  I believe his two contributions to the webs are "radiant" and "humble."  Templeton is a muse.

Saint Marty just hopes his muse doesn't come with bubonic plague and a tail.

Can you spare a poem?

March 21: Gratitude Seventeen

It is deeply satisfying to win a prize in front of a lot of people...

Tonight, I am grateful for a dance prize.

When Wilbur wins his prize at the end of Charlotte's Web, he passes out.  He is a humble little guy, and all the praise and adulation make him a bit lightheaded.  But there is nothing better than being recognized for hard work.


I am posting from Middleton, Wisconsin, just a little ways from Madison.  I just got back from my daughter's dance competition, and it was a very good night for her.

She did her tap dance solo, and she was awarded a gold trophy.  On top of that, she took ninth overall in her category.  Nobody from my daughter's dance studio has ever placed in the overall part of a  competition before.  At the awards today, two dancers competing from the studio (my daughter and her friend) each placed.

My daughter was a little stunned.  She stood on stage in the crowded auditorium and collected her medal.  It was pretty darn exciting.

Yes, Saint Marty is living vicariously through his daughter's success.

So proud of my little girl