By The Seaside

Sometimes sameness is a good thing.  Important to wake up next to the same hubby every morning. To find a stranger next to me would most likely elicit a deafening, blood-curdling geshrei.  So in this case, sameness wins.  Same for the dulcet tones of the eldest  and youngest sons calling me "da mama" on a regular basis. Should two young men I neglected to give birth to suddenly call me "da mama," I might need a quick refresher course on my own gynecological history. This is the sort of newness that would mess with the SJG and require an extended stay at whatever funny farm my insurance covers.  Sameness: Thumbs-up. But not everything can stay the same.  That would be a snooze-fest. Sometimes, the SJG must mix it up with a tinge of variety.  I'm proud to announce I've changed the ringtone on my iPhone.  Two years of Old Fashioned Ringtone  have brought me nothing but tsouris.  It would appear that every human within a 5,000 mile radius has the same freaking ringtone.  Anywhere I go, I hear an old phone going off.  How does this help me?  It doesn't.  I can only reach for my phone to see who's calling me, and find out the answer is no one, so many times before the disappointment seeps into my soul and refuses to leave.

So, the other day, when I heard the eldest's iPhone play a jaunty seaside tune, I started to dance and pout, simultaneously. "What's that? I want that. Gee, that's peppy." "It's my new ringtone. By the Seaside," the eldest said. "I want it." Thanks to the spiffy new upgrade, I was able to obtain By The Seaside free of charge.  Me likey. Only problem. Every time my iPhone rings, I don't recognize my happy new tune. I'm still waiting to hear the old fashion ring. When By the Seaside played on my phone last night, I looked at the youngest and said, "Oh, honey, did you decide to change your ringtone to By the Seaside, too?" "No."  "Oh, then why am I hearing it?"  "Your phone is ringing."  Today I'll be changing back to the old fashion ring. Sometimes sameness is a good thing.