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So I'm sitting in front of a slot machine in Las Vegas, amused at being in this spot. There's nothing like losing money to inspire reflections on your life choices. A casino has to be the antithesis of my lifestyle and values but here I am because my daughter wants me to try something new.
The machines have different game themes like "Antique Auction", "Wheel of Fortune", or "Ghost Mania" with graphics and sound effects to hold your interest. I've chosen one called "Wilderness". The little panes on it have tents, campfires, canoes, and critters. To win, you need three Grizzlies in a row, all growling. hmmm. The game designer clearly does not understand camping.
Beth is amused by my choice. Are canoes really all that great, Mom?
That's how we got on to the topic of life-style changes and contrasts. It wasn't all that long ago my peers and I wore prissy suits and painful high heels with silky stockings to work. Taking risk meant wearing the wrong outfit. Excitement was limited to shopping trips.
Learning how to paddle one's own canoe, literally and figuratively, is liberating. Goodbye, stereotypes and walls; hello, outdoor adventure.
No, Beth, canoes aren't all that great in and of themselves. The canoe is just the vehicle. Sliding down a quiet river soundlessly, letting nature stroke each nerve ending is. Being mesmerized by a Blue Heron is. Stretching yourself to new limits is.
Now no one gets so much as a lifted eyebrow for wearing jeans to work any more. Dressing up means clean sneakers and an ironed blouse with the jeans. Just as I thought I had it all under control, all these changes, it got complicated again.
I have a date for the Houston Audubon Society Gala at the Houstonian. Pretty neat for someone who thought they just sold lovely watercolors of birds.
But that means getting really dressy. Shopping takes time away from the water and packing for this weekend's campout with the club.
Guess I better sprinkle a little glitter on my sneakers.
See you Saturday on the lake.
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