It’s that time after lunch again. The gruesome cleanups and put aways done. Tomorrow is Black Friday, the day after Thanksgiving in the USA. It must be Thanksgiving today then. I wish all my American friends and relatives a Happy Thanksgiving. It’s strange that we celebrate their Black Friday. Why don’t we just do the same with our Thanksgiving? We can just pick a date in the middle somewhere.

I don’t usually participate in the mad shopping frenzy of Black Friday. But we’ve just roasted a ham in my cheap roasting pan of many moons. It is hard to clean and does not have a rack to drain the fat off. Lately I’m  wondering why I am so thrifty and maybe cheap. I can overcome my Chinese genes if I give it a go. So here’s to practicing.  I’ve ordered a Lagostina Roaster at 70% off. Pretty good deal, heh? I wonder how they could afford to do that. Who cares. I am still getting my being thrifty fix.

I’m getting my afternoon sleepy eyes. Best to put the kettle on for a cuppa. Maybe I better hang up the wash first. Breaking up jobs/chores is a good thing. I get to stretch, get a little exercise and refresh my brain. It makes the day/life easier. I’m rediscovering the joys of not multitasking. I’m enjoying putting the dishes away, one at a time. What is the rush and how busy are we really? Does a full life mean that literally – full of stuff and to do’s?

I have to confess that I DO envy the beautiful people and their beautiful full lives. Who wouldn’t, looking on? But if I was to have all that, would I like it? I like some emptiness in my space and my time. I like room to move around in. I like X large T shirts. There’s room to breathe in them. I don’t have many friends. I can handle only a few. I can’t deal with crowds. In essence, I have the perfect life for me. It is not that my life is small. It is I have small wants.

It is not material things that I coveted. I never had birthday parties and presents. We didn’t celebrate Christmas in the early years. It was not in our Chinese tradition. I wonder if the way I grew up made the difference. I never felt the lack. Later in adulthood in conversation with my sister, I learned she did. She talked of our growing up in poverty. I was shocked. I had to ask my mother if we were poor. Of course!was her reply. We only had dried anchovies to serve with the rice. Your father would bring home a piece of meat and I had to make it last.

I still live like that – making things last. I’ve never felt poor. I’ve never gone hungry. In some ways we were rich. We had a roof over our heads and we got educated. Education was the thing my mother stressed and valued most. She did not have an opportunity to go beyond grade 3 in China. In my opinion my mother is very educated. I am sure she got her PhD in Life.