Recession got you down? GAME NIGHT

Okay okay...I'll admit that none of us are one bit enthusiastic about the RECESSION. Matter of fact, I find myself whining and sniveling quite a bit about the lack of fundage that seems to be going around. Truth is I am "a glass is half empty kind of girl," and I've been called a worrier on more than 1756427 occasions...last week. However, I'm trying to look for some positivity in the funk that is 2009. Who knew I'd find that positivity in Game Nights?

Yep, good ol' Game Night. Get some friends or family or both together, cook a chili, eat some chips, and laugh your butt off at some of the ridiculous answers you'll get for Scattergories. There are amazing things that happen on Game Night: #1 people turn off the TV...I know this is an unbelievable concept, but it happens unless you're using it for music channels; #2 folks talk to each other face to face...not just in IM, Text, or whatever else we do these days; #3 good times alleviate worries for a minute...seriously they do. When you're laughing at folks who simultaneously start singing with Bon Jovi "You Give Love a Bad Name" in the middle of a hand of Phase 10, that nasty worried furrow in your brow goes away (and since you can't afford Botox that's a good thing).

After being a part of a few Game Nights and enjoying more than a few games of Phase 10 at my parents' house, I've started to realize the blessing that has occurred in the middle of all the worry and doubt that is the Recession. We have an opportunity to rebuild, strengthen, and grow our relationships. Money being tight has opened up something bigger than the dollar. It has given us a gift that hopefully we take an opportunity to pounce on because just like all Recessions this one will end and times will be good again. We will spend our $$ like we don't need it tomorrow, and we'll all pronounce that good times have returned, which won't be a lie. However, good times exist here and now. They are a different kind of good, and frankly, they may just be a better kind of good when it comes to strengthen our bonds.