Thursday, November 20, 2008

Alright, alright. I'll tell you where the name of my blog comes from.

(hint: not Don Quixote.)

So, I've been commuting to work for, oh, getting towards a decade now. Hence: I've gotten to know the scenery pretty well. And on the drive to my office there are three windmills. (Actually, twelve now--when the sky is clear. Yay for green power!) Well, a couple of years into my commuting, I realized that I'd unconsciously developed a superstition about the windmills.

all turning = good day

all not turning = bad day

some turning, some not = a mixed day. probably one that included a lot of body fluids. (I had a baby.)

Pretty soon, watching for the windmills was an established part of my commute.

When it came to blogging, I realized that there was no way I could write a blog that was all good or all bad or that skipped over the body fluids. Not only am I incapable of *not* oversharing (my bff can confirm this), I actually think there's something to be *said* for oversharing.

Life is a mixed bag. Lots of it is good. (They don't put windmills in places where the wind doesn't usually blow!) Some of it is bad. And, inevitably, there are body fluids.

I don't know about the world at large, but I know that in the Mormon culture that I live in, there's a propensity to pretend that *everything* is good. We never admit that we're sad. We never admit that all this baby poop is driving us NUTS. And we never stop smiling.

But if life is sacred (and I really think that it is), it's not just sacred for the good parts. It's sacred for *every* part.

So that's where the blog name came from.

Acknowledging *all* of life, i.e.:

the good,

the bad,

and the body fluids

= Windmill Watching.

13 comments:

karen said...

I love it. I've recently come across your blog, and it's near perfect. Thanks for making my day! Just for the record, it never ends. You get through the kiddies, and then you do it all over again (but with more freedom to take a break) with the grandkids. But I guess that's the whole point, isn't it? That it never ends? On most days that's a good thing.

SWILUA said...

yeah, I hear those grandkids are fab! kinda want to trade in some of mine for one of them...

;-)

Anonymous said...

"The Good The Bad and the Body Fluids" needs to be a title for something.

mwaaah
bff

Trisha said...

I've wondered why on earth you would name your blog that, thanks for clarifying it up! I love hearing about the good, bad and fluids, life is not all good and I'm glad you are willing to share it all w/ us!

Anonymous said...

Kerry, I love your blog. You always did have a way with words and making sense out of life! Good to see the pictures of you and your family and darling kids.

Yes, life is one eternal round of the good, bad and body fluids!

Anonymous said...

The last anonymous comment was not from your birth mother, but from your Hinckley Hall mother!

SWILUA said...

Ah! that makes sense! I knew it didn't *sound* like my mom--even though she's always commenting "anonymously." but I knew it had to be someone who knew me... and someone mormon (non-mormons don't usually reference "eternal rounds." ;-)

I'm glad you still check here sometimes! You ever coming to SLC again? If so, we'll need to hang out.

The Professor said...

Definitely agree with the philosophy behind the name...though all this talk of bodily fluids is giving me flashbacks of General Ripper from "Dr. Strangelove".

Josh (Steve's old college buddy)

b. said...

My friend sent me a link to your blog...she likes it, so do I.

Are these windmills in the mouth of SF canyon, by chance?

If so, they are very close to me....I love them too.

SWILUA said...

some of them are!

thanks for stopping by!

whirligigdaisy said...

Well, I've always loved the title of your blog, but didn't know where it came from. Now that I know, I love it even more. Well put. Well put.

Sean said...

ah superstitions... There are a ton of windmills in by the entrance to Spanish Fork canyon. It has also intrigued me to see some turning and some not. If the wind from canyon is strong enough to turn a few, wouldn't it also turn all the others? When it comes to life, I find that the "pretending" to be happy always helps. Its hard, but as the cliche saying goes: fake it till you make it!
Sean Kang

Sean said...

ah superstitions... There are a ton of windmills in by the entrance to Spanish Fork canyon. It has also intrigued me to see some turning and some not. If the wind from canyon is strong enough to turn a few, wouldn't it also turn all the others? When it comes to life, I find that the "pretending" to be happy always helps. Its hard, but as the cliche saying goes: fake it till you make it!
Sean Kang