You Can’t Always Get What You Want – Luckily
You read lots of stories about people’s dreams being fulfilled, but I always want to know about the things we think will make us happy, but really won’t.
Sure, Barbra Streisand probably loves the money she makes, but she obviously isn’t having much fun with it, living in seclusion and hiding from her fans. And you can bet Princess Di rued the day she became royalty, though who wouldn’t wish for that? But, bringing it back to me (which is really what I always do, no?), I’ve been thinking about the things I wanted, growing up; the things I thought would make me happy.
My most basic wishes were pretty pedestrian, growing up in a family of 8 (and sometimes 9, depending who temporarily needed a place to live). I wanted to have a big, roomy, luxurious bathroom, which you’d totally understand if you knew the tiny one we had in our house, angled ceiling and all (anyone who thinks living in an old house is “charming” ought to try taking a shower where one end the ceiling is 6 feet and the other end is 2 feet). When we bought our house, it was with the clear plan to add a really big bathroom – which we did. 10 x 14 to be exact. Ahhh. No complaints here.
Wish number two was to always have something to drink – other than milk. As the milkman’s daughter, we always had milk. And water. And maybe Tang, but just for breakfast. I dreamt not of sugarplums but of Hi-C (soda wasn’t even considered; it would never happen). All I needed for this to happen was a job – and I’ve been up to my chin in Crystal Lite and, yes, even soda ever since.
Wish three was to have someone to do my housework. For a while I could afford one, every two weeks. And I will again, some day. But for now, I simply live by the mantra that a clean house is the sign of a wasted life and let it go at that.
So, two out of three. Not bad. But my dreams and hopes changed as I got older. My own house – with a very cool spiral staircase. A red sports car. And Denzel Washington.When we did a complete renovation of our 1885 house (yeah; went for the old one), the wish for a spiral staircase disappeared as soon as I went up and down one a few times. Not fun.
In 2006 I had the chance to buy a very sporty, very red car. But it just didn’t turn me on, so I bought a gray Honda Civic instead. Some dreams just aren’t meant to come true.
But I am still waiting for Denzel.
Tags: dreams fulfilled, home renovation, luxurious bathroom, midlife crisis, sports car, unfulfilled dreams, women over 40
