I feel compelled to say a few things about my last post (I Was Bullied). First — thank you to everyone for reading and commenting and offering your kind words. As of this afternoon, the post has been read over 1,300 times–which makes me happier than a little green polka-dotted goose. I’ve received many, many [...]
Archive for the ‘Thinky Thinks-a-Lot’ Category
8 May
I Was Bullied
In 35 years, I’ve studied endless hours to complete 18 years of formal education, struggled through a short-lived marriage and even harder through the after-effects of a young divorce. I’ve worked to overcome crippling anxieties, endured a life-changing accident, and sat at my dad’s bedside, singing and praying quietly as he breathed his last breath. [...]
23 Apr
10 Steps to Happiness
It took me about 34 years, but I finally realized the secret to my own happiness. Try it; it might work for you, too. Get the shitty, negative, drama-loving people out of your life. I don’t pay ANY attention to those who wish me — or anyone else — ill. People who have enough time [...]
3 Apr
Plenty of Hate to Go Around
Perhaps you have a problem with the whites, or the blacks, or the Indians, or the Asians. Perhaps it’s the Jews, or the Christians, or the Muslims, or the Buddhists, or the agnostics. Maybe it’s women. Whatever arbitrary and ignorant feelings of hate you harbor, let me assure you: there’s plenty of hate to go [...]
2 Apr
Protocol
One reason for my introversion misanthropy is that I’m really, truly, desperately, horrifyingly BAD at understanding and abiding by social expectations, proprieties, and protocols. I don’t want to hear about your weekend; I want to know about your hopes and fears, your core beliefs and most vivid memories. I don’t want to discuss home decorating [...]
17 Jan
Read This
Sorry for more death talk, but it’s important. So please, read this: What Doctors Know — and We Can Learn — About Dying For me, the most profound paragraph was this: Doctors also know that undergoing heroic measures is a lousy way to die. They’ve seen what it’s like for an elderly patient to end [...]
2 Jan
Things I Know
The last 5 years have been the best of my life. And not for any big, awesome reasons — plenty of terrible, horrible, no good, very bad things have happened. But I’ve grown and learned so much, and most days I feel positively zen-like in my ability to live in the moment, smile, and appreciate the [...]
16 Dec
Stereotypes
Driving home from work, the two cars in front of me led my mind into a spiral of questions and thoughts and ponderings. A heavy construction truck–probably a Ford Super Duty–with oversized tires and cow-guards was first. It was covered in mud, and loaded with all kinds of tools and equipment in the back. The driver [...]
7 Dec
Question
Don’t know if any of my readers have any knowledge of something called “Culturomics,” but I’m interested in it. I don’t want to lead responses with any of my own ideas, so I’ll just leave it at this…
6 Dec
Tis the Season of Social Interaction
The season’s here again, so I thought I better re-post this (I believe it was from last year). Just a friendly reminder… ******************* I’ve been struggling to defend my personality for oh, say, 30 years. Holidays always present an especially difficult predicament, as I genuinely want to be engaged with people and their conversations. I genuinely want to be [...]
29 Nov
Draft for Megan
At the request of my best friend, I’ve begun writing an essay about the perils of our culture’s reliance on technology. Here’s the intro. I’ll keep working on it and post it when it’s finished. Just wanted Megan to know I’m doing her proud. * * * * [...]
21 Nov
Holiday Blahs
This is usually a pretty really very exceptionally shitty time of year for me. I loathe forced together time (like Alicia says, “forced family fun!”), and I hate awkward small talk, and I hate huge-ass elephants that sit in every room–no one willing to raise any touchy subjects, no one willing to admit that Uncle [...]
3 Nov
Domination and Disrespect
Last week, Mom and I talked at length about relationships–what makes them work, and all the reasons they fail. Her philosophy doesn’t mesh well with mine, but we managed to have the entire conversation without raising our voices. Mom believes that wives should be submissive to their husbands–that husbands should make decisions about housing, finances, [...]
25 Oct
Back or Belly
As a 16-year-old, I was severely scolded by the parents of three children for whom I was babysitting. They had 2 toddlers and an infant. (I was a good baby-sitter, I promise.) When the parents got home, Mom went to check on baby in the crib. And she came out and let me have it for [...]
11 Oct
Trust = Competence + Committedness
When we trust people, we are optimistic not only that they are competent to do what we trust them to do, but also that they are committed to doing it. Without believing in committedness, we don’t have trust. We have reliance–like we rely on an alarm clock. Trusting someone’s committedness requires us to be vulnerable [...]
3 Oct
This. This.
Julie knows exactly how I feel most days. (P.S. I wouldn’t click the link at work, because it’s on a website with a questionable name–although very excellent content–and the post is entitled, “We’re Fucked Moments.” Just sayin.)
2 Oct
A Consumerist Manifesto
Here’s an excerpt from an essay I wrote in college. The full text is much longer, but I still like the basic premise. Maybe I’ll expand??? * * * * * I remember watching my dad come home from the farm at dinner-time: dirt under his fingernails, [...]
30 Sep
Writing in the Country
Growing up with 1,000+ acres, I learned to take certain things for granted: peace, privacy, room to move, quiet nights, stars in the sky, unleashed animals, unlocked doors, and unarmed neighbors. I hated it. Couldn’t wait to get out of that suffocating little town, see the world, experience real living, and leave my country roots behind — [...]
25 Sep
And Here’s the Part Where I Sound Like a Total Asshole
I’m a progressive liberal. I support spending money on social welfare programs, improvements to education, infrastructure development, and all kinds of other programs. I believe that I pay a fair amount of taxes, even though I pay more in taxes each year than many people will earn. That’s okay; I have enough. I am comfortable. [...]
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