Friday, April 27, 2007

Life Lessons

I found myself reconnecting with a friend from the past last night. Thank goodness for avenues such as facebook, myspace, classmates.com, and the good ol' internet search engines! The internet is QUITE an amazing tool.

So as the friend and I were reminiscing about our past times together we began mentioning how our lives have taken shape since we had grown apart. It was then that my friend spoke of some of the life lessons she had recently learned.

I think we are both in a crucial time in our life for "life lessons." Isn't that what your 20s is about?!

So as I was responding back to her comment concerning life lessons, I quickly rattled off a short paragraph with the lessons that have flooded me over the past few years. Here is how I described my most recent life lessons:

As for the "life lessons"...you aren't kidding! I've learned so many things about life and myself over the past couple years. One of the greatest has been how I've learned how amazing best friends can be. I have to admit I made some of the best friendships while at ACU, and I'm so blessed to have so many of those friendships in my life still. But besides that, I've learned so much about the responsibilites of being an adult and how crappy being an adult can be at times. HA! I've gone through the lows and the highs. I've learned that my shit DOES stink, no matter how many times I might have thought otherwise in the past. I've learned everyone gets depressed from time to time, and that having someone you can talk to and trust is more valuable than gold during those times. Gosh, I've learned so much.

Wednesday, April 25, 2007

What a 3-year Old is Going to Do to Julie Since She Doesn't Blog Anymore...

Okay, first, I must give credit where credit is due...

I first saw this clip from a link on my buddy Julie's profile; HOWEVER, since SOMEONE refuses to blog anymore, I figured I'd have to make efforts of getting this out to the world via blogger... [glad I could help you out Julie...HA!]

I then got it emailed to me from an extented relative of mine today.

So all this to say: this clip is making it's rounds. None the less, I wanted to share it here because it cracks me up! HA!

Now, I must admit, I do not encourage teaching 3-year old children to say "dirty words", but if they do happen to pick them up, it can be funny as all get out...HA!

Plus, the kid is really cute, even at the end when it seems her eyes get a little...uhhh...off (maybe SHE is the monster...HA!)



P.S. does it drive anyone else nuts when you watch the clip and see that surprise is not spelled correctly?!?! HA!

Sunday, April 22, 2007

Idol Gives Back

Do you ever find yourself thinking how you’d REALLY like to give money to a special organization or a particular cause, but at the same time you’re thinking, “what money!?!”

Do you ever daydream about the times when “one day” you’ll have more money to “spare” and how when that day comes, you can foresee yourself giving to charitable causes?

Or, what about finding yourself thinking about the “rich and famous” and thinking, how you wish they would give some of their money to this cause, or that organization?

The realities of all of these thoughts COULD be coming sooner than you think…

Ever since the beginning of March when American Idol announced that they would be “giving back” I have been excited about the events that will take place this week on the shows (April 24th and 25th)! What an amazing opportunity this show could be presenting each and every one of us with! Here is a chance to do just what we might often find ourselves dreaming about—giving money to help (even when we don’t have it to give)!!

That’s EXACTLY what the Idol Gives Back challenge will do! It is a chance for those of us without money to “spare” to take some from the BIG corporations in our country and put it toward a GREAT cause! The Idol Gives Back event starts on Tuesday night’s show, which takes place on Fox at 8/7 PM central. That night following the show, for every vote cast for each of the remaining 6 contestants which will sing on the show, the American Idol main sponsors, Coca-Cola and AT&T will donate money toward the cause American Idol has chosen. Also, ever since the original announcement of the challenge back more than a month ago, many more corporations have jumped on the bandwagon and are making large donations their selves. This event is being said to be making pop-culture history!

The cause the money-raised will be going toward is a great one in my opinion. It aligns with much of the GREAT work the One Campaign and Bono are doing in Africa to fight poverty and aids. A portion of the money raised through this Idol challenge will go towards poverty relief in Africa, and yet, still another part of the money raised will stay here in our country and aid poverty-stricken areas here; more particularly, areas along the gulf coast where Hurricane Katrina hit. You can watch a video clip of children who were visited by Ryan Seacrest and Simon Cowell in Africa who will be aiding from the donations made during this two day event. The video also gives a detailed over-view of the Idol Gives Back event. There is also another video on the MySpace page that has been started by the people at MySpace and it is a place for myspacers to get involved with the cause and add “Idol Gives Back” as one of their friends on MySpace.

On Wednesday night, the results show of American Idol will be lengthened to a two hour show and it will feature not only the results from the voting from night before, but it will also feature many guest appearances by celebrities such as: Rascal Flatts, Gwen Stefani, Bono, Kelly Clarkson, Josh Groban, Il Divo, Quincy Jones, Pink, Borat, Annie Lennox, Michael Buble, Teri Hatcher, Keira Knightley, Hugh Grant, Helena Bonham Carter, Forest Whitaker, Mr. Bean - Rowan Atkinson, Daniel Radcliffe from “Harry Potter, and many more! I love to see individuals from the pop-culture spotlight putting forth efforts to “give” and show their support for good causes!

So, whether you are a regular watcher of American Idol or not, I think you will be able to find some good television watching these two nights. Tuesday night you’ll see the Top 6 Finalists performing. Luckily, we were able to spare you from having to sit dreadfully through a Sanjaya performance, because he got booted off last week’s show (thank goodness)! The remaining six contestants will be performing inspirational songs, which will be the theme for this week. A theme to inspire each and every one of us to give back in our lives for what we’ve been blessed with, and even though we might not see many financial blessings in our life, we are most likely blessed in many other ways. I think inspirational songs will be a great night of music, because I feel musical sounds and lyrics are great methods for inspiration! Then on Wednesday night we can all tune in to see how our efforts of voting paid off and enjoy the entertainment provided by many more of Americans idolized celebrities!

I encourage each of you reading this to take part in this extraordinary effort! It won’t cost you a dime to make a phone call (or two, or three, or more…depending on how many times you’re willing to call in and vote, remembering that each vote is equal to dollars)! If you can’t be home to watch the show, record it, and then get the numbers for the contestants off the taped show and call in once you get home. The phone lines will be open for at LEAST 2-hours following the conclusion of the show. I’ve done that before, and actually, calling in and voting more than an hour after the show ended is the BEST time I’ve found because the lines aren’t as busy then!

Let’s all give toward this great cause and make history! Take advantage of a chance to support your fellow mankind, even if you don’t necessarily care for the show American Idol.

Wednesday, April 18, 2007

Would You Rather...

…be Chief Wendell Flinchum…

or…

…President Charles W. Steger?

This week’s question is not one looking for your answer. Honestly, I’d rather be neither. I can’t imagine what it would be like to be in either of their shoes right now, much less over the past 48 hours.

As I laid in bed today dealing with illnesses both of a physical nature (due to viral symptoms), as well as a mental status (due to the tragic events which have hit our nation), I found myself tuned into the live coverage of the Virginia Tech convocation.

It was a nice service; however, only a few moments left me teary-eyed. The first of those moments, and the one that I can still envision, was when President Charles W. Steger was invited to the podium. As the community within that arena rose to their feet and gave him a warm standing ovation, I knew others shared my mindset…

I don’t know that the way university president or chief of police handled the events that took place Monday morning was the “best” manner. I don’t know that had they done something differently, had more lives been spared. I don’t know. But I do know that nothing going on now will bring back the 32 lives that were taken at the hand of the now-passed gunman.

I know that firing a university president and a chief of police will not give those 32 individuals another breath of life. I know that taking the guns out of the hands of every individual walking the soils of our wonderful nation will not bring them back as well.

Amidst of time of confusion and tragedy we are all experiencing feelings. Angry is a typical response; wanting to point the finger. I haven’t heard it yet, but I expect people will start to point the finger at Mr. Cho Seung-Hui’s parents. Why? Who knows. All sorts of “good reasons” could surface. But how is blaming going to help a suffering community?

Maybe President Steger or Chief Flinchum made mistakes. They are as human as you and me. Mistakes take lives DAILY. Mistakes are meant to be learning opportunities, and I foresee a lot of learning coming from this dark situation.

I do not want to be seen as defending anyone’s actions. Maybe they should be fired. That’s not my judgment to make. But I can’t help but think that they are as human as I and the reassurance of their job status is probably the farthest thing from their minds right now.

People died. Let’s grieve that as a community, rather than slowly killing others through our words and blame.

My love and thoughts go out to the Virginia Tech. community! May love and continual blessings be bestowed upon you all.

Support.

Sunday, April 15, 2007

Best Friends

For a single woman in her twenties, a best friend is more valuable than gold! It’s true.

Sure, best friends are important to anyone, but if you’re single, that best friend represents a big part of meeting one’s social needs. Granted, it doesn’t take a “best” friend for a person to be able to socialize; however, to fully be able to satisfy these needs, we need to be able to share all in which we are willing to share. We need to be able to socialize to an extent of feeling we can entrust what we are sharing with the person whom we are sharing it with. This level of socializing requires a unique bond between two people—a relationship built around closeness—a relationship found between best friends.

Best friends are treasured individuals! So what happens when these friendships dwindle for one reason or another?

It’s interesting to me to note how best friends can fall apart in a matter of months or a matter of hours. I can sit here right now and think of two individuals from my past that have held the title of “best friend” from me, but times have changed and we’ve changed along the way. One I have no more contact with and the other our contact is just less frequent; however, we have had a recent exchange, and through it we both seemed to come to the realization that we miss our friendship from the past. Here is a segment from our recent correspondence:

friend: are we still best friends?
me: i don't know
me: does the terminology really matter though?
friend: no, its just hearing it admitting it
friend: i guess
me: sometimes we all just need a dose of a friend...someone we can trust to talk to....
friend: yeah, i miss it
me: whether you call them a best friend or not...who cares

Sometimes it just hurts realizing friendships aren’t what they used to be. Sure, maybe you still talk, but it can still be so different.

Maybe it was a trust issue and things changed from there on out. Maybe it was a moment of truth, where someone’s true self shined through and it wasn’t what you expected. Maybe it was just a gradual decline in communication and things grew apart…

Whatever the case, the feeling of losing a best friend can hurt. I know that hurt all too well. I can sit here and think of one of my best friends that knows that hurt very similarly to my experience. Still, another close friend of mine just sent me a note this week which included “It’s tough to lose a best friend, but, oddly, this whole thing has strengthened certain friendships, including ours. I am so grateful for a friend like you!” I couldn’t agree with that more! It sure is hard, but at the same time, it can strengthen other relationships. I guess maybe when one door closes another does open up.

So who’s to blame? Could the falling apart have been avoided? Possibly, but at the same time, what’s the likelihood that there is only one half of the friendships to be blamed?

I can reflect back on my own situations with individuals who were once referred to as “best friends” by me (but no longer are), and I can see how I could have acted differently. I can acknowledge that I am partly to blame for our friendships decline.

With my two friends that I know who have gone through similar loses of best friends, I know enough about their accounts to feel as if we all could note where their behaviors had a negative effect on their friendships as well.

I believe in mistakes. We’ve all made them before, and sometimes they will affect relationships we are in. But more importantly, I believe in forgiveness and the possibility of looking past our mistakes with a willingness to learn from them and go forth with a stance of bettering ourselves.

I believe if friends are willing to endure the hard times, friendships can be re-gathered through the toughest of times with forgiveness and willingness by both parties to learn and accept changes when necessary.

It’s the appreciation for such a treasured friendship that can bring about our greatest efforts!

Thursday, April 12, 2007

If You Disappeared...

I started watching Grey's Anatomy tonight at 8:47 PM (meaning I only watched the last 13 minutes of it, and about 5 of those were a commercial break). And in that time I was inspired to write this blog...

If you were to disappear for a week, who would notice?

I mean think about it. No phone. No internet connection. You just didn't contact anyone.

Do you have people that would come looking for you? Would anyone even notice you were gone?

Sure if you're married your spouse would probably notice, but would anyone outside that relationship notice? What about for single people. Would your family know you were "gone?" Do you keep in contact with some of your family on at least a weekly basis? Maybe a best friend?

I can honestly say a few of the people I consider to be best friends wouldn't know I was gone; however, I can say some of my other best friends would notice.

I think those that would notice you were gone over a week's amount of time are obviously important people in your life.

Sure, a boss would probably look for you if you were supposed to be at work, but that's not the kind of "coming to look for you" that I'm referring too. That bosses reasoning for wanting to know where you are is different from why a loved one might come looking.

So do you have people who literally "look after you?" People who are "checking up on you?" People who would know if you had "disappeared?"

I do. And I'm so thankful for that!

Wednesday, April 11, 2007

Would You Rather...

Today happens to be my best friend's birthday! In honor of her birthday, I have planned a surprise weekend trip for her in a couple weekends. This subject matter is what has inspired my "Would You Rather..." post today...

Would You Rather...

...know what your friends have planned for you if they are telling you they have a surprise in store for you?

Or...

...be surprised and find out when it all happens?

Some of us can't handle not knowing! It would either drive us nuts because of the suspense, or worry us to death because of anxiety of the unknown! HA! Still others, LOVE the aspect of the unknown--the adventure of daydreaming about all the possibilities!

Here is a second thought...

Do you think you COULD keep a BIG weekend trip that you're excited about secret from your best friend? What if you talk to that best friend on a daily basis? You've planned the SURPRISE weekend more than three weeks in advance and you have to keep it all secret from your friend. Sure, she knows that there is a fun and exciting weekend planned, but she is clueless on what's going on that weekend. Could you keep your excitement and details to yourself to the point of not giving away the surprise for THREE weeks, when you talk everyone of those days?!?!

It's been hard for me, ain't gonna lie...HA! But I'm making it and only about a week and a half to go!

Wednesday, April 04, 2007

Would You Rather...

The other night I was talking with a best friend about some stuff and I kinda ran into a "would you rather" question. I love these, especially when getting the opinions of people I have much respect for, like best friends.

So here was what we were talking about: death. We had lingered onto the specifics of death by terminal illness. Untreatable cancer was the example we were using, so it will work here too.

So, the situation--you have terminal cancer. Would you rather...

...find out you have the terminal cancer?

Or...

...not find out about it since there is nothing they can do for it and you're going to die either way?


Then we took the situation further and were discussing:

Would you rather (assuming you knew you have the terminal cancer)...

...tell people you have the disease and are dying?

Or...

...prefer not to tell people as long as you can (meaning as long as you can go without people finding out about it)?


I can honestly say on this last "would you rather" my friend and I differed. I hadn't even considered the not telling people part, but that's probably because I find myself to be a big talker and one that shares just about everything about myself, especially with people that are close to me.

For me, the dilemma has always been, "If I were to find myself in this situation, HOW would I tell the people I'm closest too?" Face-to-face. A phone call. Could I email some people? And how do you just "throw" that into conversation? "Hey, I needed to call you and I have some bad news." One of those sorta things. Hmmm...

Anyways, that's my "Would you rather's..." for today.

Sunday, April 01, 2007

Before We Know It...

...my generation will be dealing with aging parents. Right now it might be our grandparents, but time flies as we go through adulthood, so it's only a matter of time.

So remember this.