The Choice of a New Generation

Michelle Obama, who've I written about before as my new "friend in my head," is about to receive the best 45th birthday present ever! She celebrated her real birthday two days ago, but can anyone argue that watching the husband you helped elect get sworn in as President of the United States isn't the most wonderful birthday gift?!

I am soooo excited about tomorrow and will spend as much of it in front of the TV witnessing history along with everyone else. I actually have friends who are in DC and will be part of the actual throng of well-wishers, but I'm ok with my front-row seat at home!

The voters of the United States of America did a very grown up thing last November by voting for change. Not the kind of change that looks and talks like what we already have right now, or at least for 12 or so more hours, but real change. You know it's a good thing when your friends in other countries are congratulating you and your nation for the choice we've made!

The thing about change, however, is that it always has to hurt a little bit. Or at least make us uncomfortable. I hope, when the post-inaugural euphoria dies down, that we don't give up immediately on Mr. Obama and the plans that he and his team have for us. I'm just so grateful that it's him at the helm, and hope everyone else will just get behind him for the long haul. Who knows what miracles will occur in the next four years?

New Pepsi . . .

Obama . . .

Old-school Pepsi

And now, slightly on- and off-topic: When I bought a twelve-pack of Pepsi in December because it was on sale, I noticed that the logo on the box and cans was new, in a retro-ish kind of way. Two seconds later I thought that it looked alot like the Obama campaign's logo. (Clever? Pepsi's capitalization of Obama's popularity? But if you think back (waaaaaay back), the Obama logo actually looks like the old Pepsi logo. The one you saw when you were about 4 years old on the one-liter bottles, the kind you never see anymore.)

Today, I remembered the slogan from the old Pepsi ads and commercials from the 80s. As Pepsi was then, so Obama is now: The Choice of a New Generation.

Enjoy tomorrow, y'all!

Images from Google Images

Old Enough

For some reason, I feel like I should be starting each post with the words "Dear Diary"! I kept a journal, on and off, for many years, starting in elementary school through graduate school. It amazes me that scores of people now have their own online "diaries" out there, and many of them available for anyone to read. Whatever happened to the notion of the diary with the lock and key?! Incidentally, I am actually old enough to have had a diary (from Hallmark) with a brass lock and key, which made me feel so important when I was 9 years old!

Speaking of being "old" . . . turning 35 has been such a shock to my entire system-- physically, emotionally, etc. Turning 30 was really kind of a nothing, simply a continuation of my free-wheeling 20s. But I really hit the wall with #35! Beyond the physical markers that I've passed this year on the gameboard of Life, I find even more surprising the little cultural markers along the way too. For example, just yesterday I realized after reading a snippet in the paper about the new 'Superman' movie that I am actually old enough to remember both the 1st 'Superman' movie from the 70s as well as the remake. Then I realized that I am old enough to have lived through 2 releases of totally different 'Batman' movies (Batman 1989 and Batman 2005) as an adult!

Now that I am 35, I have also found myself looking back at my childhood quite frequently with a flood of nostalgia. Part of this is because I am a Mom, and truly do relive aspects of my childhood each and every day with my girls. Part of it is also because looking backwards can be so much fun, and sometimes quite revealing. I have even found myself searching online for obscure 70s phrases and themes that I remember from when I was young. 'Battle of the Planets', anyone?! That's the thing about getting 'old' too--when you look backwards, everything is a little bit hazier the further back you go, so I find myself trying to 'sharpen' my memories a bit by delving into them. I'm not entirely sure why this is important to me, but it probably has something to do with turning 35!