Words to Live By

My mom was what you would call a real "live wire". She had a tremendous amount of nervous energy. She was a really bright woman, but wasn't the type to sit down and ponder the meaning of life. Some people just have to keep moving. I don't know if it's out of fear or not. There are just those that are on automatic pilot their entire lives. We've all seen them...the workaholics and such. We need them. They keep the place moving and shaking. Then there are the others, like myself. We sit and ponder everything. Sometimes it's comforting, other times it drives us insane. Yet we can't help it, we must question. It's this mixture of curiousity and fear that keeps us on this quest for knowledge. Anyhow, that having been said...there was this one moment with my mom that I never forgot. It was about a year before she died. We were sitting in her apartment (after a losing night at the casino) and she looked at me very seriously and said, "there's something important that I have to tell you." She sounded uncharacteristically calm and serious, so I gave her my full attention. I was preparing for her to tell me something deeply profound, so I was ready to be receptive. Well, her words to live by were these..."Always buy toilet paper on sale because it's very expensive." I kid you not, this is a true story. It turns out that this was excellent and true advice. To this day I look to see what's on sale and cut out the appropriate coupons. Words to live by. Of course I still ponder the mysteries of life and death. However, the only answer I come up with when I ask why is ..because. That's it, just because. So lately the only thing I know for sure is....yeah, you guessed it. Take my mom's advice..buy the stuff on sale. You'll be glad you did!!