You don’t fully appreciate what you have till it’s gone.

You don’t fully appreciate what you have till it’s gone. I think this is the perfect subject to blog about on Veteran’s Day.  Living in the USA in 2010 we have so many much that we take for granted.  The reality is we won’t fully appreciate all the freedoms we have until they are lost. Generations before us fought for the right to vote, but how many of us actually voted in this past election?  (Just in case you are wondering I voted.)

I could blog about how we don’t appreciate our military forces or how we don’t fully appreciate our loved ones till they pass on, ect, I thought I’d keep this post light and talk about those little things that we all take for granted, such as the little light on the stove that goes on when the over is at the set temperature. Don’t get me wrong I looked at several places that didn’t even have a stove let alone an over so I do appreciate having a full size.  I also love the fast that my stove is modern enough that I don’t have to light with a match.  When I first moved in and saw a lighter on top of my stove I feared I was going to have to light the burners and oven manually like at my grandparents.  I was overly delighted when I turned them on and they self lit.  On the other hand I do miss having the digital clock on top of the stove and microwave.  It’s weird being in my kitchen and not knowing the time. I’m so used to it flashing in front of me.  I also miss having an over that beeps at me when it’s preheated.  Even when I was growing up we had a little light go on that indicated when it was preheated. It’s hard to imagine someone created a stove with no preheat indicator.  Good thing I bought a over thermometer if not I would never know when it was preheated and if it was calibrated correctly.

Another thing that I had I my previous house was a probe. It’s the best little invention ever. You put it in your meat and plug it into a digital read out and you can see what the internal temperature of your meat with out having to open the over and test your meat with a thermometer.   After making meatloaf last time and not knowing if was done yet I finally invested in a probe and it made for a less stressful and actually pleasant experience last night as I made dinner.  It’s so nice when you don’t have to babysit your food and all you have to wait for the beep to go off to tell you it’s done.

As winter has arrived I am still missing my double pane windows. It’s freezing in my apartment.  I can feel the cold seeping in the windows.  Even when I had the duel pane windows during some winters I hung heavy drapes to keep the cold out.  Now I hide under my down comforter to keep warm at night.  I guess having such a cold apartment motivates me to work from home less and go into the office more. I used to love working from home, but now it’s worth it for me to trek down to the office just so I can save a few bucks on the electricity bill.  My office is also freezing, but at least I have a little floor heater I can turn on and warm up the room.

I know I took all of these modern convinces for granted while living in the house and I really miss them, but I wouldn’t give up my apartment just to regain them.  The same goes with those loved ones that have passed on.  I spent the last year of my grandmother’s life assisting in her care.  Now that I see my boss interviewing all of his family and recording their life stories. I think to myself that would have been a good idea to do while my grandmother was still around.  On the other hand we spent a very good year together. I spent time with her at least once as week as I accompanied her to her bowling league and to her doctor’s appointments.  There are those family members who wished they had spent more time with her and those that wished they didn’t bitch and complain as much when they were together. For me I live with no real regrets. I admit I wasn’t always the best grandchild and I could of done things differently especially when I was younger, but for the most part I have no regrets. Don’t get me wrong I miss her. She was suppose to move in with me, but she never left the hospital.  I think she’d agree that she lived a rich full life.  She was extremely active until those last 3 days. She pasted away at the ripe old age of 90 and was bowling in a senior league just the week prior to her passing.  For some her passing seemed very sudden, but for those of us who were close we knew that she had been in a lot of pain for years.  She did her best not to burden her family with her ailments, but they were there. It was her time to go, to be freed of that physical pain she had suffered with for so long.  We all miss her at the same time I am happy for her as she is once again reunited with my grandfather and they are both in a better place.

Along with this song I hope I have inspired you to live your life in a way so you won't have to loose what is most precious to you to fully appreciate it.