lazy sunday

I have done absolutely nothing today other than read and surf the web and relax. What a luxury! I feel no compulsion to rush around and get things accomplished. In fact, I walk past things to do with nary an ounce of guilt. Six months worth of catalogs and junk mail piled high to the ceiling and crying out to be sorted and (mostly) trashed? Pish posh. Grocery list now approaching 30+ items? Ha! Boxes screaming to be unpacked from when I moved into this house in March 2006? Forget it. I couldn't be bothered. Let's talk about "lazy", shall we?

Remember the Lazy Susan? When I was a child - in the 60's and early 70's, one of these was on every family's kitchen table. Ours held the napkin holder, salt and pepper shakers, some toothpicks in a little jar, a couple of pens and pencils, dust and miscellaneous odds and ends. Wikipedia indicates that the term "Lazy Susan" made its earliest appearance in 1917 in an advertisement in Vanity Fair magazine.

"Up a Lazy River" is one of the most recorded songs ever. It was written by Hoagy Carmichael and Sidney Arodin and first published in 1930. The lyrics really make you relax. Check out Dean Martin singing with The Mills Brothers (on the right).

"La-Z-Boy" has been so successful that the brand name has become synonymous with the word "recliner". Of course they now have huge stores with all kinds of furniture. But in my childhood, everybody's Dad could be found sitting in his recliner watching football on Sunday afternoon. Or sleeping while the game played on the television.

My Mother was very careful to explain why a kid in my school had a "lazy eye" (Amblyopia). She wanted to be sure that I didn't join in if other kids teased him. They know a lot more about this condition these days. Lazy eye is when one eye has reduced vision which can't be corrected with eyeglasses. It is actually an easy condition to miss and if untreated can lead to permanent vision loss in that eye. Treatment ranges from specific exercises to surgery.

When I was seven years old, my brother left home for college. My Dad and I took him to catch the train from Boston down to Virginia. I was completely devastated. When he did not write home often enough to please me, I designed a "Lazy Man's Writing Kit". I wrote out letters with "circle your response" sentences. (Dear Dad, Mom, Caroline, Lenore, Cathy, Grandmother, Granddaddy - circle one.) I also addressed quite a few envelopes, mostly to myself, and actually affixed stamps to the envelopes. Then I boxed it all up and sent it off to my brother. I never got a single letter back. What a pal.

If you get a ticket in California, you can sometimes reduce the fine or completely rid yourself of the ticket by attending traffic school. (It's too bad they don't have this option in Pennsylvania where I recently got snared in a Memorial Day dragnet. $158.00.) Some people go to traffic school to reduce the cost of their car insurance. Too lazy to actually attend? No problem. You can go to http://www.toolazyfortrafficschool.com/.

Well, I'm too lazy to think of any more. But I bet you did while you were reading this. Don't be too lazy to leave a comment.