Rip Doesn't Live There Anymore

Today I finally saw the Tony Award winning musical Avenue Q, and I don't know who was having more fun - the audience or the performers.   As good a time as I had at the show, the thing I liked the best about Avenue Q is that I don't live there anymore.  

I vaguely remember those days.  Long, long ago in a galaxy far, far away I too was a recent college graduate with a degree in Sociology, trying to find my way in life.  I wouldn't go back there for all the money in the world.

First of all, it really doesn't suck to be me anymore.  I'm a  very lucky and happy lady who fully recognizes and appreciates all my blessings.  It's actually pretty great to be me.

I no longer wonder if that seemingly nice guy I kind of like likes me back.  Mr. Rip, who is a very nice guy, loves me just as much as I love him.  There's nothing better, because unrequited love really is a bore.

It's been years since a gay friend realized he or she was gay, or came out of the closet or confessed his homosexuality to me.  My gay friends know they're gay, and so do I. In my circle of friends it's so okay to be gay that we don't even have to talk about it.

As for those Bad Idea Bears, they never write, they never call, and they never visit anymore.  I sure don't miss those little scamps even though I have to admit that they were deceptively cute and cuddly.  Believe it or not life can be even more fulfilling, exciting and fun when you make good choices.

I moved out of my last rental property in1988. I made a few stops along the way but found my place in the world when Mr. Rip and I bought our condo in the suburbs, using our mini-van to haul our stuff there.

The moral of Avenue Q was that maybe you're not so special and not all lives have purpose, but it's okay and besides all the bad stuff going on won't last forever.  That's actually a pretty good philosophy in getting on with your life after college but there's more to it than that.   

All kinds of crazy adventures happen in life: some good, some bad, some planned, and some a total surprise.   You learn a few things along the way, like you need to keep an open mind because you never know what you are going to find in some totally unexpected places.  As a bonus, you find out that you are never going to be too old to explore new possibilities.  

Sometimes you will want to fire the writers who wrote the script for the soap opera that your life's become, and other times you will want to drop to your knees to thank them as things have turned out so much better than anything you could have planned or imagined.  In the end it all turns out the way it's supposed to, if you let it, and it can pretty great to be you, too.