Saturday, July 29, 2006
Time
Unfortunately as a result of this discovery I've decided I must ALSO watch what I eat. Ugh. I was hoping that just working out would allow me to indulge in chocolate, cookies, ice-cream, etc. but alas that's just not the case.
This diet and exercise thing will hopefully start showing some real results in the up coming months. I'm not trying to fit into my high school clothes by any means (heck I don't even own anything from that time period - and good thing, we sure had a strange idea of what stylish clothing was all about!), but if I could just have a little extra room within my current wardrobe that would be just swell, um, actually the opposite of swell, but you get the idea.
Kids, don't do this at home, school, work, anywhere! 1980s early 1990s fashions need to stay in the past. The time has come and gone, just let it go. I know some designers are trying to bring some things back, like leggings and such, but don't do it. Just say NO!
Thursday, July 27, 2006
I Love Palmdale
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I've also joined the High Desert Toastmasters International, Club 3647, Area 4, Division A, District 33. Such an official name. I feel like I'm an undercover agent or something?! Tonight I attended my second meeting. Right now the group is small 7-8 people (including me). Usually more folks attend but the summer is a busy time for many people.
I'm excited about meeting more new people and working on my public speaking skills. I'm surprised by how comfortable I feel speaking and yet how nervous I get when doing it. It's very bizarre, but a lot of fun. The materials I was provided by Toastmasters say that the more I speak the better I'll get at it. I'm sure that's true, that's typically how it works. It'll be exciting to learn and grow.
Hopefully someday I'll be able to speak as eloquently as the hubby. I love when he talks or "practices" what he'll say in court. He's got his act together. His thoughts and ideas just flow in such an organized manner. I can organize any physical space, files, etc. but my words and thoughts... not yet. Hopefully soon. Is it soon yet? I'm ready!
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Palmdale City Library. Today I applied for my library card and got it. I feel like a real city of Palmdale resident. I even checked out 7 books! The library is located next to where the Toastmasters meetings are held, very convenient.
When I was just a lass me mum would take my brother and I to the library at least once a week, sometimes several times a week. Libraries have always held a special place in my heart. So many fabulous memories were created at the library. Mom would let my brother and I each select several books and she of course would check out a bunch herself. How she carried them all home, goodness, she must have had the strength of Wonder Woman!
When we returned from the library Mom would read the books to us and when we were older we would read to her. The family room had Dad's favorite reclining chair and a little 1970s brown floral loveseat. Mom would sit in the middle with us on either side of her, this helped to keep Zak and I from fighting (well, mostly).
I can't wait to go back to the library next week and to Toastmasters. Of course next week it's official for me as I'll present my first prepared speech. Yikes, wish me luck!
Monday, July 24, 2006
Brawny Man Delivers!
Tuesday, July 18, 2006
My Hero
Brawny Man is my new hero. He’s manly, yet tender; strong, yet gentle. Sigh…. what a fella. I’ve been hooked on the
Friday, July 14, 2006
I.D.
Thursday, July 13, 2006
Crazy Puppet Girl
Some of the real joys of adulthood, aside from responsibility, paying bills, and working for a living, include figuring out what crap from childhood needs to be purged so that the true essence in each of us can come forth.
When I was a little girl powerful people (parents, teachers, older kids) would impart wisdom and sometimes sundry comments without realizing that perhaps I was tucking that particular remark away and would make an important decision that would influence me for years and years.
One afternoon when I was in 2nd grade the teacher had each student make a paper bag puppet. We were provided with small brown paper bags, glue, bits of paper and scrap material, buttons and other odds-n-ends. I made a girl puppet with long brown hair that I braided out of some silky strand material, big blue eyes of velvet with long black lashes, satin pink lips, and a lovely pink dress with a white collar and white matching buttons down the middle. There was some pink tulle so I made a cute little hat with a veil of the tulle. I was having so much fun being creative that I didn’t realize the teacher was going to have a contest to determine the best boy and best girl puppet. All of the students voted on their favorite. Mine won for the girls. I was shocked and amazed. When it finally hit me that I won something I was ecstatic. I hadn’t ever won anything before. When school was out I ran home to tell mom my very exciting news. Her reply, “Nobody likes a bragger.”
If there was a black hole that I could have thrown myself into I would have. I was devastated and felt so stupid. Why didn’t I know that if I was good at something that nobody would like me? Oh my God, I was going to end up a lonely old lady with nothing but cats to keep my company. No one would ever be my friend or want hang out with me. Kids at school would beat me up. Life as a seven year old ended and I knew from that moment on I had to be just o.k., average. Heaven forbid I ever do something that I could “win” at again. Goodness is that punishable by death? I sure didn’t want to find out. What if I accidentally did something well? Would that be o.k.? I wouldn’t tell anyone, not ever! I promise.
I found religion in the back yard under the pear tree that afternoon. I spoke to God, inside my head of course, lest someone heard me and figured I was “off” like Mrs. Miller down the street. Bad enough no one would like me cause I made a puppet, so I sure wasn’t about to become crazy puppet girl. I asked God, begged, pleaded, promised and made many deals to please, please just let me average, simple, ordinary, easy to overlook. I figured that was the only way I’d be able to survive. I had many friends and I liked them. I wouldn’t dare risk losing them all cause I could make a pretty puppet. Much better to just be a puppet. God must have heard my silent pleas for I lived a very ordinary adolescence.
I was a good student, but not too good. When it came to art class I tried so hard to just do what everyone else was doing. If the other girls were drawing ponies, I drew a pony, but just an average pony. Who needs unicorns or a beautiful flying Pegasus? Castles in the background, big fluffy clouds, and magical trees with happy dancing mice in them would only win me a life of isolation. Nope, I saw how miserable Mrs. Miller was and she didn’t even have any cats! I refused to end up like that, friendless, petless, with only green grass to keep me company. No thanks.
Years later in high school art class I forgot my deal with God. I also had forgotten about God too. Monday morning we’d be given a task and we had till Friday to complete it. That particular week’s project was the: Telephone. How boring is that? Mind you, this was long before cell phones existed or even the internet. I had to draw a phone and yet make it interesting as per the teacher’s instructions. All week I asked my friends what they had drawn, “Nothing. How do you make a phone interesting? What a dumb assignment. I’m not even sure I’m going to do it.” Dang, it’s Thursday night and I haven’t sketched a thing yet. Finally in a mad dash I drew a phone in the center of the page with a curly cord cascading down into the right hand corner. The rest of the page I dissected into little cartoon like scenarios. In each scene was a different person having a conversation. Each scene had a bubble: “Guess who I saw kissing!”
“I’m on the phone!”
“No! He didn’t. Really? With her?”
“What did you draw for this week’s art assignment?”
And other such silly things. As was custom every Friday morning in class we had to turn in our assignment on the main table so the rest of the class could see. For some reason everyone was commenting on mine. They LOVED it; they even thought it was cool. The “cool” people even thought it was cool. For a moment I felt excited and proud. Then my mind raced back to 7 years ago when I was 7 and… the dreadful puppet moment. I quickly closed the note pad and handed it to the teacher and went to work on my in-class project in the corner, alone.
Fortunately this was high school and once your clique, or as in my class lack of a clique, is established you can not ever transgress the lines of popularity. My moment of glory was soon forgotten and everyone started working on their in-class projects and completely forgot the drawing and me. Whew, that was a close one.
However, now as an adult I want to move past mediocrity. I have finally come to understand that when someone says something they may not realize the impression it is making on another. More importantly I now realize that I don’t have to let some silly comment from over 20 years ago continue to hold me back. I’m no longer crazy puppet girl. I’m just a girl.