Pet Peeves, Part 1

Everyone has pet peeves, and I'm no exception to the rule. Noisy eaters, the smackers and slurpers, I could smack you alongside your heads.
But I went to college and earned a degree in English, and I definitely get peevish about some mistakes I see repeatedly. Now, I know I make errors and I definitely have my writing quirks. I love me some ellipses ... for starters ... and I'm definitely dash crazy. I love to start sentences with now, well, and so on.
There are a few things that I see that really grate on me. One newer one (to me) is "advanced payment required." It's not "advanced," but rather it should be "advance payment." I don't know if people aren't learning proper English in school -- I have read theories about most kids now being prepped to ace tests and not grammar 101 -- but nonetheless, that irritates the hell out of me.
Apostrophes are another annoyance. So many people misuse them that I am on the verge of launching a campaign to have them eradicated from writing. I'd rather see no apostrophes used at all at this point. My husband, another English major, says they should stay, sort of as a marker of punctuation ineptitude. Or maybe it just gives us English majors something to look down upon, since we have often been the butt of jokes. You know the one: English major? Get ready to start asking people if they'd like fries with their order.
I'm not sure if I have enough fight in me for apostrophe perfection, though. Facebook may have weakened any last resolve on that one. While it's a great source of information, it also makes me wonder if we should take a GED exam every five years. And to be honest, I'm sure I'd flunk the algebra portion. (If that's even on the GED; frankly, I admit I don't know.) Now I probably have incurred the wrath of some math geeks. I suppose that's only fair.

Aging's a Bitch

I have had a lot of friends freak out about turning 30. That was never the case for me. Sure my skin was dewier at age 20 and I had a bit more energy and pep, but 30 never bugged me. Hell, I'm not that far from 40, and that part doesn't bug me. Much.
Except now I am starting to have a few little gasps of anxiety. Not so much about that number, but the ones beyond. One good thing about these days is you're no longer really old when you're 50, since we have celebrities like Demi Moore and Madonna looking pretty damn good for their ages (though Madonna's arms still scare me.) Even older women, like Meryl Streep or Martha Stewart, look pretty good. Period.
But two things do scare me.
One, I don't feel my age. I feel wiser and more confident than I did at 20, but I don't feel like I'm nearing 40. I would say I feel at least 10 years younger. A good thing. But sometimes I wonder if I'm maturing right. Does that make sense? I feel 25. But I probably should not be acting that way. Of course, at 25, I would sometimes be up all night drinking or partying, thanks to a night shift and impressive tolerance for beer. Now, I don't feel the need or the desire to imbibe so much, or barely at all, and that's not a bad habit to acquire.
Plus the rules of aging are changing. My father-in-law is somewhere around 80. I never quite remember because he doesn't seem like he's that old. He comes across as much younger. One, men age better than women, and two, he's got an active and lively mind. Same goes for my mother-in-law. She's several years younger than her husband, but she doesn't come across as "old" either.
But by comparison, my mother is very close to my mother-in-law's age, and she is coming across as old. Really old. Bad old.
She is what scares me the most about aging. She had a mild stroke nearly a decade ago, and she is getting into probably a mid-stage of dementia. She forgets, she gets confused, she can't focus, she's paranoid, she remembers things that never happened. And she's weak. She can only walk a few steps and then she's winded. (She still smokes, probably two to three packs a day, by my estimate.) She has arthritis, back troubles, sore spots, aches, pains, weakness, walks hunched over, and on and on. She definitely is the villain, or her condition is, in the horror story of aging.
As I read up on Alzheimer's and dementia, it makes me scared of what the future may hold. And it makes me want to avoid that. I hope to see the light and take better care of myself. Exercise more. Eat healthier. Keep an active and lively mind. Socialize. Nothing is a guarantee against dementia or Alzheimer's, but there are steps to take to try and fight it off. I can take losing elasticity in my neck and face, but to lose the firmness of my mind, that scares the hell out of me.

Resolved

I don't really care for New Year's resolutions, but I admit there is some kind of appeal to trying to throw out some old bad habits with the ending of the year. With the distractions of the Christmas and New Year's holidays gone, and (one hopes) less cookies and goodies, so-called holiday deadlines (must find a gift, bake a cake, send cards, and so on ...) there's time to focus in the quiet of winter and start some smarter routines. With that, I resolve:

1. Exercise more. I used to like to exercise, though I confess I never have been buff or in perfect shape (to say the least) but have definitely gotten out of the habit. Some days the best I do is make a lot of trips down to the basement and back, to check laundry, hang up clothing, do a quick vacuum or bring towels or something up. It's better than nothing, but I want better than that.
2. Eat less. Or eat more healthy foods and less junk. I'd love to just get into the practice of smaller portions, especially in the mashed potatoes or sweets departments. (Or, less of virtually all foods, except for tomatoes and broccoli and the like.)
3. Lose weight. The natural result of points 1 and 2. To not utter a silent prayer that the pants will fit after washing them, or looking at a sweater I loved three years ago and wishing I could fit into without it feeling like sausage casings would be excellent. I know I can do it. Now to actually do it. ... that's the challenge.
4. Organize more. That's a broad umbrella. But basically I'd like to have less clutter on the kitchen and coffee table. Buy less impulse items and use up what I have. Or, to put it simply: I want the house to be in a state that I would not be embarrassed to have company see. The thought of someone making a pop-in visit on the fly inspires terror and feelings of, well, what do you call it when you don't even want a Jehovah's witness to see inside your home from the front porch?
5. Save more. Our finances aren't bad, but are they great? Uh, we pay the bills on time and try not to splurge, but I'd like to remind myself that saving for a rainy day isn't a bad thing. That goes back to point 4. Less impulse, more planning, and hopefully more saving. 
6. Keep more in touch. I haven't been the bestest of friends keeping in touch with people. More phone calls, more emails and a house that's presentable are all goals so I can socialize more and keep more abreast with what's going on with friends.

I Want to Title This 'That's So Gay,' But That Would be Wrong

Oh my God! Breaking news. Comedian/actor Russell Brand and pop singer Katy Perry are getting a divorce. (If you'd like to read the details, the Associated Press story is here.) Actually I really don't care that much. It's just a small factoid or something that aspires to be a Trivial Pursuit question.
I'm not so high and mighty or uber-intellectual that I'd never admit that I do enjoy going through the tabloids from time to time. When they married I admit I actually found myself thinking, "How long will that last?" Which is what I think when I hear of most celebrity marriages. But then I mentally smacked my hand and wondered why I was so cynical. Maybe it was the quick courtship and engagement. Maybe it's Hollywood.
It makes me wonder, though, why some people think gay marriage is so wrong. Probably our biggest examples of marriage come from Hollywood. Or at least they steer the dress trends and get people talking. Some of those marriages are about the worst kinds of examples you could set for love and commitment, though.
Sure you have the odd Paul Newman-Joanne Woodward pairing that really lasted until death did them part (RIP, Paul), but if you're going to bet safely, bet on divorce papers being served in the next year or two.
It could be just that people with busy schedules don't have the time to connect when they need to focus on their fitness, spray tans, promotional appearances, reading the odd script, touring, and so on.
It could be, too, that these more creative types — at least some of them are — just fall more deeply in love, take the plunge, and then, being mercurial, fall out of love just as fast. Whatever. To each his own, I generally say and think.
Yet it still makes me mad that so many remain anti-gay marriage. Britney Spears can marry for something like 50 hours (to that old high school boyfriend or whatever he was). Kim Kard-ass-ian can marry for 72 days, just to name two prominent examples. Pam Anderson married Kid Rock, what, four times? How long did that one last? And all are perfectly legal.
Yet two dudes in love or two ladies who want to tie the knot is considered wrong? (And yes, I know, gay couples split up, too, just like straight folks.) But what's cheaper to the institution of marriage? A marketing extravaganza and/or a drunken weekend in Vegas vs. two people who really want to commit, even though much of society still has issues with their sexual orientations? Never mind that some people around the world and in our own nation would rather stone gays than let them pair up.
But when someone wants to wed in spite of society's condemnation, that's commitment, and that deserves to have a ring put on it.