So what happened? Well, after work tonight I intended to finally extract my car from the garage (it’s been in there since Friday as I walk to work and refused to leave during the blizzard). I wanted to get some stuff done- gym, tan, laundry, no wait… (stupid jersey shore)… more like library, groceries, concert to see a friend in town from Austin (sorry man… read on…).


When in my utter stupidity I tried to circumvent the whole “shoveling” thing to the packed down snow mass at the bottom of the short little sloped driveway, I became the immoveable object. Uh-oh. To be fair, I did try to shovel this mess for at least 10 minutes before attempting the back-out. However, the snow was so hard, packed down, and heavy, that I thought my pathetic tiny little car would coast right over it. Right? 


Wrong.


Picture me, digging for a half hour with frost bite growing. Picture my car in the tiny road sticking halfway into it, stuck. Picture me calling my insurance company road side assistance and hearing their reply “um, 6 to 8 hours should do it…” Picture me screaming expletives while in the relative cover of my car when stuck yet again.


I called man-go-round a few times to try to warn him so that when he walked up he wouldn’t see me and judge me for my laziness. I needn’t have done this. As he walked up the sidewalk (after work, overtime, two bus trips) he approached me lightheartedly, gave me a hug, and immediately assured me we’d be out of there in no time. I cried like a whiny little girl, then promptly grabbed the other shovel while we got to work.


It took a really long time, maybe an hour. It’s cold out there. It was not fun, though we attempted to lighten the mood a bit and have some of our “nightly check-in” while shoveling. In the end, both his attitude and muscles really saved the day for me. 


So kiddies- it’s lesson time! Who knows what the true meaning of Christmas (or whatever holidays you celebrate that you spend with family and friends) is?


That’s right. It’s love. Doing things for people we love. Kind acts to strangers. Looking past idiotic decisions made on low blood sugar and after a frigid walk home (I’m still trying to throw excuses in here…). I am so lucky to have the boyfriend, family, and good friends that I do. I hope that it doesn’t take me another Eff-up to remember this next time.


So everybody hug, eat marshmallows, and listen to some stupid holiday cheer. Because I might not be so mushy tomorrow.


For tonight, however, I’m full of love, gratitude, and holiday spirit.
Meri