In a past blog, I shared with everyone that one birthday, I received multiple copies of various editions of author Richard Carlson,'s Don't Sweat The Small Stuff books. (Hopefully, I've become a little more "chill" over the years!) As proof of that, check out the above photo taken a couple of years ago at a friend's Florida beach house. Unwinding with a great book in a quiet spot has always been one of my favorite hobbies.
When 2021 rolled around, a couple of my resolutions included doing more reading and less worrying. Reading more is definitely the easier of the two. Reducing the amount of anxiety I have over things I have no control over is a lot tougher! (Especially in the crazy world we're living in now!) For this reason, I often have to remind myself what the Bible says in 1 Peter 5:7:
"Give all your worries and cares to God, for he cares about you." (NLR)
I thought about the word "care" and how we use it so loosely these days. For example, take this conversation I had recently with my husband James, who'd made the comment that he could care less about something.
"Don't you mean you couldn't care less about it?" I asked him.
James chuckled at my question. "No, I mean, I could possibly care less. But there's a limit to just how much more less caring I could actually do. You see, it's all about degrees."
"That's sort of confusing but let me see if I've got it," I said. "So, when you've reached your limit of not being able to care anymore, then you're at the point where you couldn't care less?"
"Bingo!" James exclaimed. "Now, where would you like to go for lunch?"
"I don't care," I told him. "Wherever you'd like to eat is fine by me."
"How about Mexican food?" he asked, knowing how I love Tex-Mex.
"No, I'm not feeling like Mexican food today. It sounds too heavy," I replied.
"What about that new Chinese place?" he offered.
"Nope, not Chinese, either. Too much sodium," I replied. "I'll bloat up like a whale."
"We can hit one of the places nearby," James suggested, quickly rattling off the names of a couple of local fast food establishments.
"You know I'm not a fan of fast food. There's just too much fried stuff. It's a new year and we both said we were going to start eating healthier," I told him.
He crossed his arms, sighed, and patiently reminded me that I'd just told him that I didn't really care where we ate lunch. "Okay, obviously, you do care about where we eat. So, I'll ask you again. Where would you like to go?"
"Actually, after all of this, I'm thinking Mexican food does sound pretty good. I'll just order a salad," I told him.
Pleased that I'd finally made a decision, James grinned as we made our way to the car. There was a frigid breeze that drove the wind chill down into the thirties. "It's perfect weather for Mexican food!" I said. (In truth, I feel like any weather is perfect for eating Mexican food!)
James nodded in agreement while he backed the car out of the driveway. "I almost hate to ask you this but which would you prefer, Anamia's or Mi Dia's?"
"Like I said, I really don't care," I insisted. "It's totally up to you, babe. Either one is fine."
"Great!" James said, happily heading in the direction of Anamia's (his favorite Tex-Mex spot), where I knew he'd order the #5 from their lunch menu. I could tell he was really looking forward to digging into that cheese enchilada, beef taco along with the rice and beans.
As we pulled into the parking lot, I couldn't resist the urge to torture him just a bit longer. "Ugh!" I groaned. "I really had my heart set on Mi Dia's!"
To his credit, my husband said nothing, but shot me a look that said, "Seriously?!"
I was still laughing as I climbed out of the car and headed toward the entrance. Ever the gentleman, James, not far behind me, reached for the door.
"You're a mess, you know that, right?" he teased.
"You knew that when you married me!" I answered.
The young hostess smiled up at us as she gathered a couple of menus. "Would you two prefer to eat inside or outside on the patio?"
Concerned about the cold, I asked, "Is the patio heated?"
The girl assured us that it was and waited while we made a decision.
In the short time we debated whether to dine inside or out, people had started to gather behind us at the door. I turned to James and said, "I don't care so you decide. All this decision-making is wearing me out."
I caught a glimpse of triumph in my husband's eyes as he took my hand and declared, "Since she doesn't care, we'll eat on the patio."
Sidebar: This story wouldn't be complete if I didn't add that we froze our bippys off out there on the patio. At one point, James asked me if I wanted to move inside.
Determined to stick to my guns about "not caring" whether we ate inside or out, I scooted my chair directly underneath the heater. "I'm fine," I lied. "Of course, if that's what you care to do, then we can go move."
We finished eating and dashed back to the car. "Wow, it was pretty nippy on the patio," I admitted.
James shook his head at me. "Why didn't we just move inside?" he asked.
"Because one of my resolutions for this year is to not get so hung up on things—you know, stress less, worry less, be less uptight," I replied.
My answer earned me a smug smile. "I think that's terrific, Monica," James said. "So, just to be clear, in an effort not to break one of your New Year's resolutions, you sat through the entire lunch shivering cold?"
"Yep!" I said. "Hey, don't be too impressed, we're only a couple of days into 2021. I'm not sure how long I can keep this thing going!"
Best of luck to everyone in keeping YOUR New Year's resolutions!!!!
Closet ClotheSure Week 49
Monday -
This blue White House Black Market fitted dress is perfect for pairing with a black or navy jacket on cooler days.
I adore the stretchy fabric and the well-constructed design of this dress.
A keeper for sure!
Tuesday -
I picked this simple, stretchy Vera Wang dress up at Kohls several years ago and have gotten plenty of use out of it.
Although it still looks pretty good, I'm not feeling like a "ten" in it anymore so I guess it's time to kiss it goodbye!
Wednesday -
Here we go with this New York & Company super slim red and black stretch dress.
I'm not gonna lie, this number requires some serious "incredible fat suckers", but, since I'm a slave to fashion, I suppose I'll hang onto it a little while longer!
Thursday -
So, this is one of those outfits that I really dreaded wearing to the office. Unfortunately, I threw in some rules in 2020 in my Closet ClotheSure Challenge that included wearing everything in my closets! (I figured if something was hanging in my closets, I should have to wear it at least one more time as a punishment for keeping so much stuff!)
I bought this dress from New York & Company right before I started The Challenge and have never actually worn it before this photo was taken by my husband James.
The color is great - and, I should mention I have the matching shoes and purse, but the dang thing is WAY too tight!
My dear, skinny friend Kathy will soon be on the receiving end of this outfit! Sorry, KG, you're not getting the shoes!!!!!!
From The Great Outdoors -
My son Nick and our granddog Dallas coming back from a January swim in Grapevine Lake (Dallas swam, not Nick, LOL)) at sunset.
Love to all & may God bless you this day and always!
Monica