My Island of Happiness

Sometimes people really bug me. I mean really, really bug me.

You see, I expect a certain amount of decency, respect, and courtesy from everyone. In return, I display the same when I encounter other people. If I'm having a bad day, I make a conscious effort not to snap at people, or treat them with anything but a smile,  no matter how much I'm stewing inside. Why? I believe that no matter what is irking me, it's really not their problem and I'm not going to force them into dealing with it by treating them poorly. Needless to say, when I see people engaging in rude, short, or temperamental behavior, I become irritated quickly.

Also, I'm sure you've heard the phrase, "there are no stupid questions." I am here to tell you that, yes, there are stupid questions. In fact, there are very stupid questions. Those bug me too. Such questions include, but are not limited to, questions which have been repeated several times, not for lack of understanding, but for lack of listening to the answer when it was originally offered. It not only suggests the disregard for courtesy as I previously mentioned, but it is really just not smart to blatantly display the fact that there was no courtesy by asking the question.

People who argue incessantly about things that have no right, wrong, or mutually agreed upon answer drive me crazy. Things like religion, politics, music choice, or really anything involving opinion will probably never be subjects with a general consensus of opinion by the human race, so please, for sanity's sake, stop arguing about it. Come to a compromise and drop it so that I don't have to hear about it. This means everyone will have to give a little, but in the end, agree to disagree or find the least objectionable option for all parties and let the rest of us have some peace and quiet.

I've been doing some thinking, and I've decided I'm going to run away. Far, far away. Specifically, I will be running away to a lovely tropical island that has not been placed on a map...all by myself. There will be no bridge to my island, and I will spend my days in peace, alllll by myself. Happy. So happy.

I will have no visitors. I'll come visit you. I can't have people knowing where to find me, after all. That defeats the purpose of my island, which primarily serves as an escape from the mindless babbling of the human race.

I will come off of my island only to refill supplies and possibly to work just long enough to save some money in order to purchase said supplies. Otherwise, I will be on my island indefinitely. And boy, will I be happy.

It's perfect.

Decaf? What does that mean?!

Ah, the beach. A beautiful breeze, the hot sun, perfectly warm water... And about enough sunscreen to choke a horse. My family isn't exactly known for the ability to tan, so instead we load up on our SPF 70 sunscreen (50 if we feel like living on the edge), and off we go. After sprinting across a busy highway to get to the beach (5 kids in tow, of course, makes it a little more challenging because that also means all the sand toys we're carrying), we set up the two umbrellas. Yes, two. We can't have our freshly sunscreened skin out in the sun!

After a while of building sand castles (which are routinely knocked down by the only boy in the family...ahem...), I have the pleasure of giving approximately 400,000 underdogs, by my count. Of course, once my arms can barely lift a feather and my head has gotten a few swift kicks, it's only natural we should splash around in the water.

When finally everyone was winding down an the kids (really more like the adults) were ready for a nap, we trekked back to the cabin, cleaned off, and started dinner. The "big kids," otherwise known as the 20-30 something year olds, settle down with a good book, take a short nap in the sun (who is the traitor who brought the decaf coffee?? How do they expect us to be alive without regular coffee?? Obviously they are not really part of this family), and chat about boys, weddings, and babies-- our favorite topics, duh!

By the end of the day, though, we were all glad to be together again, even if we have to disown someone for the terrible, even disgraceful, choice in coffee.