Perfection = This Saturday

Ever have one of those unsuspecting days that turns into a great day. You can never actually pinpoint what exactly it is that makes it so great, it just is. After awaking from a lovely, peaceful sleep (instead of my usual violent awakening from the alarm clock), we lounged a little, watching trash TV - Toddlers & Tiaras, Property Ladder (my absolute Saturday fav) - then we met up with Duffy for a little play-date with Lyla. We grabbed a bite to eat with my dad and ran into the brother! Turned into a family affair within a matter of moments! Now we're getting ready to head to finally see the newest Harry Potter ( I know, 3 months late) and we're getting the matinee price. Score! See? It really is the little things in life...

Now that I'm feeling better, I'm looking all around me and realizing that my house is in disarray and something has to be done about it. Our office space has become a complete mess. Tax time is nearing and I can't quite remember if I've gotten all my W-2's. That might be a problem. Taxes, taxes... My husband still has a difficult time understanding how the government will actually give you money back if you paid too much in over the course of the year. He comes from a place where the government takes and takes with the promise of giving you back great "free" healthcare, a "generous" pension, etc. Sounds nice in theory, right? You might think the only place they get you is in taxes, but you would be wrong. It costs roughly $30 to get a drivers license in Tennessee (at least when I did, I know it might have changed, but we're still in the same ballpark), in Italy try over 1000 Euros or $1400. Or things like getting your pet a passport to travel internationally - $45 for a badly photocopied piece of paper that translates the dog's vaccination records (actually already done in the actual passport, but you have to have it). That's where they really get you. And what do you actually get in return? Sub-par, superstitious health care, facilities and technology, and living in poverty in your golden years, unless, of course, you are one of the few who paid into a separate pension fund. Whoo! I got on a roll, sorry. I know our country, as all do, has its fair share of problems and imperfections, but overall, we really don't have it that bad. Just think about it the next time you want to bash America. I, personally, wouldn't want to live anywhere else.