2018, You're Up!

Yes, my phone was in the toilet. In a public toilet, actually. In a public toilet that was ready to be flushed.

You know how you always think to yourself, "How does someone's phone end up in a toilet? Gross." Well, let me tell you, my friends, it happens. Oh, it happens. In this case, it happened after two drinks at the Alamo Draft House and my phone (with my monogrammed case) ended up in my back pocket instead of in my purse. From the back pocket, it slid right out and into the bowl like a sneaky cellular ninja.

I can't tell you the panic that goes through your mind when you encounter this scene. It generally goes something like this, "What is that? Oh no. OH NO!!! That's my phone! In the toilet! What do I do? I have to get it out! But, wait, do I put my hand in there? I guess I have to put my hand in there. Ugh. Gross. Well, I'm a mom. I've done grosser things. I'll just make sure I wash my hands REALLY well. Isn't urine sterile? That was on 'Friends', right? Okay, here goes. I hope this works. There's no way this works. Do I have rice at home? What's the point. This poor thing is totally fried. RIP, old friend. Where's the towel?"

Estimated time of mental process: 3 seconds.

At a time of year when we talk about "out with the old; in with the new" and making resolutions to make improvements in the new year, this seemed like a fitting end to 2017.

To be fair, I didn't have a terrible 2017. I had many bright spots: new friends, girls' trips, laughing so hard I cried, actually reading for pleasure, fun new challenges, sweet memories of snuggly kiddos, family engagements/weddings/births. I have much to be thankful for.

2017 also had its challenges: missing a husband who started traveling extensively for work, managing four kids single-handedly for long stretches of time, illness sweeping through our house (and neighborhood), and, the worst: the deaths of too many people close to my heart.

That last part has made for a particularly tough end of 2017. I cried harder watching "A Christmas Carol" and "It's a Wonderful Life" than I have in years. I'm talking about ugly crying, sobbing in my pajamas holding wrapping paper and scissors like a sad, deleted scene from "Edward Scissorhands."

I'm not generally one for believing that everything resets on New Year's Day. For my money, you can pick any day and decide that THAT's the day that you change. I should have perhaps taken a page from my own book and hit the reset button sometime earlier, but I felt a need to mourn this year.

So, as I stared at my phone drying in a bowl of rice (which, no, I did not cook), it felt like the natural end to the year. It happened to coincide with the new year, so I'm ready to make a new start. 2018, I'm ready for the new adventures, the new stories, the new friends. I'm ready to embrace the ability to let go of the old hinderances, the old insecurities, and the old patterns. 2017, I'm holding on to your lessons, to the good things, to the sweet memories, especially those of the last time I will nurse a baby to sleep or the sheer joy of four kids on Christmas morning.

2018, you're up! And I'm ready with a waterproof phone. Happy New Year to one and all!