Chilly Willy the Penguin...

Yesterday I left beautiful sunny Seattle on lovely American Airlines flight #268 to head back home to New York. When it touched down at JFK Airport it was dark and freezing out. Today, the cold weather has continued – I swear it feels sub zero but the local news says its 22 degrees out. I like to further torture myself and add in the wind chill factor, which in my estimation brings the temperature today down to about 10 degrees. Like I said, baby its cold outside. This evening I have to venture out into this frozen tundra to go to school. Honestly, tonight I’d rather be home, who wants to be out in this bitter weather? Good lord, I sound so old when I talk like that. Aren’t Grandparents always chilled to the bone? You go to their house and it’s heated up like a sauna. My Aunt Rose calls a chilly day in Florida 75 degrees. So here I sit, contemplating not going to school because I might freeze my ass off getting there. That's really pathetic, it's not that cold. So, I am going to change my attitude, bundle up and tell myself that all that icy air swirling around me is refreshing.
When I got home last night after my flight a little pile of mail was waiting for me. Cooking magazines, a Newsweek and several cards and letters. One letter I received was from my place of employ that stated since I would be turning 50 in 2010, I had the option of contributing more money to my 401K without causing any trouble. Another letter stated that I could get special rates on my car insurance for turning 50. I don’t even have a car! I didn’t realize that 5o was going to present such opportunity. Maybe there is an upside...Who am I kidding, right now it still just feels depressing. I am trying my best to remain in denial over the holidays about all this and there it is staring at me in black and white – “50 years old in 2010”. It’s a cruel world. So, I took Dan to dinner and tried not to think about it. New Year’s Eve is two days away. I promise after that big sparkly ball drops in Times Square, I’ll start in on my list “to–do” list in earnest. I have got two days left to think about exactly what that is going to mean…