Typing! 

I took typing in seventh grade--kicking and screaming the whole way.  "Why will I EVER need to know how to type?"  A few short years later, I couldn't live without it.  Of course now I type every day, several hours a day.  So, yeah, that was probably the most useful class for me.

Wow, that's a big question with so many answers!

Well, first and foremost, I wish I had children.  Twins would be nice.  :)   

I wish I cared enough about my health to start eating better and exercising more. 

I wish the world was a gentler place, where people and animals were free to not worry about getting killed or harmed.

I wish I had a clean house.  Always.

I wish my dogs all got along.

I wish  my cats all got along.

I wish my friends all got along.

I wish I liked brussel sprouts.

I wish there was someone special in my life.

I wish toxic chemicals and pesticides would be outlawed.

I wish guns would be outlawed.

I wish plastic would just go away.

I wish Americans didn't worship the thin and young--and respected age, wisdom, and laugh lines.

I wish eight year old girls didn't dress like. . .well, I wish little girls actually looked like little girls.

I wish childhood didn't keep getting shorter and shorter. 

Well, I could be here all day writing down wishes.  But I guess I have to get back to work.

Oh, I wish I didn't have to work. ;o

Junk food!  High-fat, high-sugar crap.  And 215 pounds to show for it. ;)

I had a thin friend tell me there was no such thing as a food addiction.  When I asked him why there were so many overweight people, his answer was, "They're lazy."  I was appalled and angry at first.  But then I realized that his reaction was pretty common.  There does seem to be this notion that if you're overweight, you're lazy.  Ironically, I'll bet that I'm at least twice as active as he is. 

A couple weeks ago. 

My neighbors had a small neighborhood get-together at their house.  They didn't expect me to come--they know how I am--but they invited me anyway.  I'm a quiet, introverted person who hates socializing with strangers, but I was feeling down and really wanted to do something that night.

I took one of my dogs over to play with theirs.  This was an excuse.  "I'm just here for the dogs  to play.  Ignore me."  That way, I could drop in for a minute, say hi, be proud of myself for doing it, then get back to the dogs.

I ended up staying three hours and had a blast!  Very unlike me.  I knew all the neighbors there--at least their names, anyway.  And while somewhat uncomfortable at first, I talked to the ones who I did know better and started relaxing.  We all sat around the fireplace and dished about the neighbors who weren't there.  LOL.  I could have stayed longer, but people were starting to leave, so I left, too. 

Now, if I could just do something like that once a month or so.  Or more.  :)

I'm looking forward to a bigger house and a little more breathing room. 

Construction on a much-needed addition to my house began last week, and I don't know how I'm going to live through it for six months.  But I know the end result will be worth it. 

Living in a small house with six animals (who don't always get along) is pretty stressful.  So I'm looking forward to more room to move.  But not the bigger mortgage payments. ;)

Well, let's break it down.

The role of commercials and advertisements is to instill fear and/or guilt into us.  To make us fear being unpopular, unsexy, unloved, unclean, unsatisfied--unless we buy Brand X product. 

Our kids will hate us if we don't buy a particular toy or outfit.  We won't find a mate if we don't use a certain toothpaste, shampoo, soap, or beer.  Our neighbors will laugh at us if we don't drive a certain car.  

The role of news programs is to show us images of atrocities that we can do nothing about and to fill our sleep with nightmares.  To make us despair at all the horrible things done to others.  To make us feel helpless and depressed.

The role of HGTV.  Ha!  ;)  To make us want to change our decor every two months.  Okay, maybe not EVERYONE.   But it does with me.

Media could be used for so many good purposes, but it rarely is.  Sorry, I don't mean to sound so pessimistic.  :P

I don't read the newspaper, watch the news, or view news online--unless there's a big story like a hurricane or something. 

I mute the tv during commercials.  I use ad blockers when I go online.  I do all I can to rid my life of this crap.  But I'm still bombarded by it constantly. 

Don't even GET me started with advertising in schools. . .

Yeah, I'm getting a little off subject I think, so I'll stop now. ;)

The ocean.

I'd have to see the ocean one last time.  And like most people, the faces of my family and my animals. 

And there had damned well better be some dolphins out jumping around that day because I've never seen them in the wild.  I'd hate to go blind before seeing that.  :)

"Don't get so busy making a living that you forget to make a life."

When you work at home, like I do, it's SO easy to overwork.  Work is always there, calling out for you.  I find myself doing things that don't really need to be done.  I wonder why I don't have time for friends, family, pets--and cleaning the house. :P

So I try to set a limit of around six hours of work a day.  That's actually more than I need to do to keep things running smoothly. 

I look at the way things are going now, and yeah, my business is growing and I feel pretty successful in that area.  But what about the other areas of my life?  They need more attention.  So I like to keep that quote in mind when I get too busy trying to grow my business.  :)

I could, but I wouldn't want to.

My job allows me to be creative, be my own boss, work at my own pace, make as much--or as little--as I need, and stay at home.  I couldn't ask for a better job at this point in my life.

But could I do the exact same thing for another seventy or so years?  No. 

Besides, my job involves technology that changes rapidly.  I probably COULDN'T do things exactly the same fo the rest of my life. 

I don't recognize myself anymore. 

I recognize my dog.  And he's pretty.  ;)  That's why I use his photo and not mine.

I look at current photos of myself (what few there are) and see someone TOTALLY different than how I think of myself.  I see a middle-aged, fat, balding guy who I don't recognize.  And I'm not middle-aged.  The fat and balding. . .well.

But I feel like I looked ten years ago, if that makes sense.  But I look completely different.  Not just older, fatter, and balder.  Everything looks different.  Maybe it's just my perception.

I've never liked the way I looked--to put it mildly.  And I was hoping that as I got older I'd be more accepting of my appearance.  But it hasn't happened.  Yet. 

Hmmm. . .does that answer this question?  ;)  Yeah, I guess so.