It's 2014!

Wow, we're a week into the new year already and I have yet to acknowledge it on my blog. Sorry, 2014! Don't take it personally. You're every bit as special as those other years I made a bigger deal about.

 But you're cold as all get-out! -- so today we are featuring another Hat of Distraction, to buy and wear. The sheer act of trying to balance this thing will get your mind off the cold.  

Other thoughts about the new year:

I've written two checks already with 2014 on the date line.

When my oldest daughter was in grade school, they were told they were the "class of 2015", meaning they would graduate high school in 2015, which seemed SO far away. And suddenly now -it's not!

The planet is now safely two years beyond the doomsday year of 2012 and the end of the Mayan calendar.

There are some comets or asteroids or something that are scheduled to pass by this year. I'm sure there must be something, anyway. If you care to look it up.

This is the only year we have left before another dreaded "election year".

This is a very poetic year. You can rhyme fourteen with "courting", "sporting", "thwarting", "purporting"...

It is the 100 year anniversary of the cheese log.

There are people --we haven't met yet---who will be born this year!

My prediction for 2014:  Startling changes in consumer packaging! This will be the year (at last) of the cereal tube.  

My wish for 2014: An end to the helium shortage.