Bits of wisdom I discovered during 2009

My Year in Review — 40 Things I Learned (or Re-learned):

1. Lunch costs a lot more than it did a few years ago.

2. People start looking at you differently when they find out you own more than two cats.

3. Writing with your left hand is hard.

4. Doing ANYTHING with your left hand is hard.

5. Diet Dr Pepper does NOT taste better than actual Dr Pepper.

6. Deleting any and all e-mails from friends relating to politics is a good idea.

7. Keeping your AAA membership current is also a good idea.

8. For a person who has no daughters, walking into FOREVER 21 is like mainlining estrogen, and IT'S NOT PLEASANT.

9. People who say "If you're cold you can always put another sweater on," don't know what they're talking about.

10. Japanese cars are a lot more reliable than German ones.

11. My grandma was right — Avon makes a dandy product.

12. However, no one tells me I look like I'm 35, because I don't.

13. I don't miss going to Little League anything.

14. I will regret until the day I die that I never saw Led Zeppelin in concert.

15. I don't really love Handel's "Messiah" (even though I know I should).

16. No matter how old you are, there's always room for a new friend.

17. The business of adolescence is to separate from parents.

18. Adult children get to have their own lives, just like you did.

19. Resilience is the supreme virtue.

20. Hard times are necessary, because they force you to make changes you probably need to make.

21. A good physical therapist is worth his/her weight in barbells.

22. However, physical therapy doesn't work unless you do your exercises at home.

23. Appearances do, in fact, matter more than they should.