Welcome to New Orleans!

Last Thursday began the best trip I've had all year, so far. Perhaps it is because I went with a group of close friends? Maybe it has something to do with the fact that I saw Janet Jackson perform live? It might even have something to do with the FINENESS that is Idris Elba and Michael Ealy? I think that the awesomeness of this trip was due to all of the above and then some. The next few post here on Methodical Madness will chronicle the great experiences I had while I was in New Orleans for this year's Essence Music Festival. It's safe to say that I will be in attendance at the festival in 2012, if not 2011 (hey, a girl's gotta live within her means, lol).

My friends and I decided that a road trip would be more financially responsible, so I and one other  drove the first leg of the trip, about six hours, to pick up the other two friends. They drove the last six hours of the trip to New Orleans. The drive was fairly uneventful, with the exception of two things. One, there was what looked to be a one car accident. It seems a car spun off the road and almost hit a tree; from what we could see, there was no damage. That said, the police, paramedics, and firemen were all on the scene. However, they didn't seem to pressed, especially not the paramedics. They were just chillin' on the side of the road. Maybe I overreact but I would think getting the person, who was pulled from the car, to the nearest hospital would be of foremost concern. But what do I know, lol. Two, as my friend was driving along and we were nearing New Orleans, she realized we were going over a bridge. This wouldn't be a big deal but she's somewhat uneasy about bridges. She asks her cousin if this is the major bridge, the one that is supposed to be the longest in the US. Cousin looks at her and tells her that this wasn't the one. Shortly after that fib, girlfriend realizes that this was indeed the bridge and she makes a move like she's about to pull over. I'm in the backseat like o_O, saying "Uh uh! You gotta GO! We can't stop here!" Then she wanted to look at the scenery and see the water that we were traveling over. Now, the sight was awesome, seemed like the water went off into the horizon forever, but for a person who is squeamish about bridges, that did not seem to be the best idea.

Anyway, after the bridge situation, we finally made it to our hotel and it was all about hitting the ground running. We were meeting up with another group who had already been in New Orleans for a full day prior to our arrival. The necessary phone calls were made and we were to meet the rest of the group at The House of Blues. After everyone got their shower time and changed clothes, we saw that it was a little after 10, so plans had to change. We decided to connect on Bourbon Street and out the door we flew.

Bourbon Street. What an experience. The sights! The sounds! The smells...

The first night of walking the street wasn't too bad. Just a bunch of folks having a good time and dancing in the street to the music blaring loudly from the various bars and clubs that line the street. It wasn't extremely crowded, but there were enough people to keep things interesting. People watching as we made our way to a restaurant for something to eat, we saw...eh...um..."Women of the Night"? Would that be the proper term for woman standing in the doorways of various clubs, wearing see-through fabrics and barely there underwear? Suggestively dancing while outright selling "it" on the street? *shrugs* To each his or her own, but I found it disturbing when I spied with my little eye, what looked to be a child walking around in the midst of this. One of my friends pointed him out and he didn't look to be a "little person", so I was blown away by that. I thought I was doing something when we walked Beale Street in Memphis! Nope, uh uh, Beale has nothing on Bourbon.

We made it to a little place called The Sugar Shack and grabbed some dinner there. I had my first crawfish Po'boy and it was DELICIOUS! With a side of fries and a Hurricane, I was feeling quite right by the time we left that place. We continued our exploration and danced to the music, collected beads that were being thrown from terraces above the street. I wasn't the best at catching the beads (my coordination wasn't the best at that time in the morning) but I made off with several necklaces *smile*

After checking the time, we thought it would be a good idea to head back to our respective hotels and get some rest because the festival was set to begin the next day, starting with seminars in the morning. Had to snap a quick photo before the night ended, of course.

Next post: Day One of my Essence Music Festival experience!

"Welcome to New Orleans" photo by thibautmarquis

Blogging While Brown Conference: Things I learned...

After the uncomfortable excitement of late Thursday evening and Friday morning, I was so happy to arrive in DC for the conference. Living in my small town, I get pretty psyched when I visit a big city. Now, don't have visions of me running around, throwing hats in the air a la Mary Tyler Moore via Synclaire James. I can walk the walk and look as though I belong *chuckle*. I took an amusement park ride, or shuttle, from the airport to the hotel. I swear, the driver was insane with the speed and whipping in and out of traffic, but I arrived at my destination safely. The Henley Park Hotel was very nice and check in was quick and smooth. Once I got to my room, I made the mistake of falling onto my bed. I did not want to get up! I was coming down from the adrenaline rush that kept me motivated for the majority of the day, but I jumped in the shower, got dressed and walked down the street to the center where the conference was being held. After registering, picking up my badge, bag, and schedule, I skipped the game night *sad face* and went back to chill at the hotel. I figured that while playing a few games and getting to know other attendees would be fun, but getting up in the morning for the various sessions would be rough if I didn't rest.

This turned out to be a great move on my part because I was wide awake and ready to go the next day.There were so much information given throughout the day. Here are some of the major points I took from the conference:

Stacey Ferguson's presentation focused on the requirement bloggers face regarding disclosure when giving reviews on various products. According to Ferguson, one can make a short disclosure state within the blog post and leave it at that. For example, if I receive a product in the mail, all I need to do is say so. Nothing long and drawn out; just say that I given Product A from Advertiser A.While I think, if taken at face value, it's a good idea, once you add the fact that everyone (like, major companies) aren't required to do the same thing, it becomes completely unfair. Gina McCauley made sure to point attendees to an FTC white paper that shows what the commission has "discussed" and how this can affect all bloggers.

Scott Hanselman gave a wonderfully informative, and funny, presentation and I was left with some cool things to consider regarding my blog. If you're serious about blogging, you need to use analytic tools so you can keep track of the traffic that visits your blog. Google Analytics is a good one to use and it's free. Mr. Hanselman also suggested the use of a "301 redirect". You might ask, "What is a 301 redirect?" Well, apparently there is a little trick one can use to redirect traffic to a different website. This comes in handy when bloggers , who have established themselves on one hosting website, want to redirect their readers to new websites. For example, I plan on using a 301 redirect to direct you to my website once it's up and running; pretty neat, huh?

While it was said that you shouldn't approach blogging as a way to get rich, I believe it was Nichelle Stevens who said that you may not become rich, monetarily, but your life can be rich, more fulfilling.Being able to set your own hours and being able to do something that you enjoy, to me, is a blessing. Now, since the ability to walk away from your 8 to 5 day job will not just simply happen, there are a few things that the panelists for the "The Business of Blogging" session suggested for success. It is important to plan; be strategic and know what you are blogging for and why. Serious bloggers should research and pay attention to what others are doing; I took this to mean, see what others are doing and put your own spin on it to make it your own.Make sure that you know your audience and make sure that your content reaches them. And, of course, keeping up the trends in technology is important for keeping one's blog up to date and relevant.

What I've listed are just a few of the suggestions that will will use to develop a better blog; these are the points that have stuck with me since the conference. I have some serious decisions to make regarding the direction I want to take Methodical Madness.

*photo by Adria Richards*

Planes, Trains, and Automobiles: Making my way to Blogging While Brown

My adventure began last Thursday afternoon, on what I thought would be a great day. See, I bought a round-trip Amtrak train ticket from Chicago to DC to attend the Blogging While Brown conference. Now, if you know my location, you may ask "Why would you drive all the way to Chicago to hop on a train?" Well, my rinky-dink town wanted to charge a price that was almost up there with the price of flying to the conference. So I decided to go with the cheaper of the two modes of transportation. Now, my plan was work until about 3pm that day and hit the highway soon after. You know what they say about the plans of mice and men, right? Well, it applies to women as well. People wanted to hit me with crazy problems at work, which I had to solve before leaving for the weekend...did I mention that I was handling the tasks of a co-worker who was on vacation that day as well? No? Well, I was and that led to my leaving the office fifteen minutes off schedule! Doesn't sound like a big deal, but since I needed to stop by the house and grab my bags, I ended up getting on the highway about thirty-five minutes late.

Not thinking of the fact that it's warm outside and not considering the time, I get on the highway thinking that I can easily do 80 MPH and make it to Union Station in time to board. That was quite foolish of me, I know. About an hour into my drive, and I'm doing pretty well on time, I hit a rough spot. Road construction, which is the enemy of everyone who happens to be running late. Traffic was backed up and I'm in the car, on the verge of breaking out in hives, because the clock is telling me that I'm simply not gonna make it to the train station. I keep pushing onward though, because I'm hoping that there was a delay of some sort (the irony of that wish will come back to bite me later).

After the constipation that was highway traffic, I finally made it to Chicago, for all the good it did. I'm looking for my exit, the one that will take me to the station, and lo and behold, that exit is closed. So I drive around to the next exit and have to make my way back to the right street. Mind you, the navigation tool on my phone keeps rerouting and it began to get confusing. I'm stressed and I have this annoying mechanical voice telling my to make a right when I can't, unless I want turn into oncoming traffic on a one way street (and being a stunt woman is not on my bucket list, I take a pass on that). So eventually, I find the train station and see that there is a self park area across the street. Looking at the on the dashboard, I saw that I was twenty minutes late. After doing a Google search for the train station's phone number, I called and found out that I definitely missed my train. Disgusted with the situation, angry at myself for not leaving on time, I got back on the highway and drove home angry and crying...yes, I cried. I figured I lost the money I spent on my train ticket and the money I spent on registering for the conference. That was a nice chunk of change to waste, so I figure I am allowed to shed some angry tears. I just drove three hours in an attempt to save money and ended up losing out on everything I spent AND I have to drive another three hours to get home!

Of course, as I drove back home, it hits me that there are other options. I simply needed to get home and start searching for solutions; and solutions I did find. I found a decent rate on a one way flight to DC, so I called Amtrak and told the rep what happened, asked if there was a way for me to use the return part of my ticket. Unfortunately no, that was not an option. However, the rep said that she could process a full refund of my money and that brightened my spirit tenfold. So I went to Priceline, after comparing airfares with other websites, and bought a plane ticket for the next day. After getting about four hours of sleep, I get up, shower, throw on some clothes and hop in the car to hit the highway again. This time I take Mom with me so I don't have to pay for parking; I figure she can drop me off, take the car for the weekend, and pick me up when I return. Sounds great right?

Guess what?

I. missed. the. flight.


Got mixed up and turned around with the directions and got to the airport a few minutes after the plane took off.

I know, I know...*whomp, whomp, whommmmp*...

Luckily, there was another flight to DC, albeit three hours later. So I got my ticket transferred and hopped on the plane and was on my way to the Blogging While Brown conference! Happy ending, right?

To be continued...

Dewy's 24-Hour Read-A-Thon: Final Update (yeah I know...)

I know that the read-a-thon ended Sunday, but I was so sleepy! Every time I considered posting this update, my bed looked so much more welcoming. I spent Sunday napping, off and on, and Monday I had to get back to work and school, so today I am posting my feelings on the second book I read, Cornered. First, here's the book description:

With Nowhere To Run. . .
Corey Webb is living the American dream—successful business, beautiful wife, gifted daughter—but the dream he worked so hard to achieve is about to become a nightmare. When a chance encounter brings him face to face with the dark past he'd long since left behind, Corey knows the threat to his life and family could be deadly.
. . .It's Do Or Die
Unpredictable, intelligent, and terrifyingly ruthless, Corey's stalker will settle for nothing less than complete submission. He'll stop at nothing, and sacrifice anyone, to get what he wants. There's no point in running, no chance of hiding, and no hope for Corey and his family to escape unscathed. . .

I really enjoy Massey's books; he always writes something full of tension, that keeps you turning pages until you finish the book. This had much of that, but there were definitely scenes that had me upset at the characters. I guess being mad at fictional characters means that the book pulled me in (smile). The parents in this book, Corey and Simone, often made me want to throw the book across the room. Their daughter, Jada, seems to be the brightest one in the bunch and often has some of the most tension-filled scenes involving an especially creepy character. There is a nice twist in the story, but I won't go into much detail because I don't believe in spoiling stories for others. That said, I would recommend reading this book, if only for a quick read (I finished reading this one in about 7 hours).

If I were to compare the two books I read for this event, I would say that the second book is a winner. It got straight to the action and did not slow down the pace with a bunch of unnecessary characters, of which the first book is guilty.Thanks to all who cheered me on! I truly enjoyed participating in the read-a-thon and plan to participate in the next one in October. October is perfect for staying in and reading books, so I'm looking forward to that. Happy reading everyone!

Blogging from A to Z: "I" for Investing...I'm finally doing it...

That's right; after years of proclaiming I was unable to invest and begin to build wealth for my future, I have decided to buckle down and invest. It was a difficult decision, but after thinking about all the money I've been known to waste on things that amount to nothing, I knew it was time. It also didn't hurt that, about a month ago, a study reported that the median wealth for single black women was about five dollars. Five dollars? Now, whether that is true or not is irrelevant, in my opinion. Yes, I know that results can be skewed and that sample populations may not be the most representative, especially if the people performing the research slack on their responsibilities. That said, I can still find a kernel of helpful information in this study. While my wealth is much higher than the median, I can most definitely do better.

So I'm starting off small; I opened a Sharebuilder account since they're offering a $50 bonus when you open an account. Also, since I'm an Inbox Dollars member, I will receive $15 dollars in my Inbox account. Pretty nice deal from what I can tell. I still have a lot of research ahead of me; stocks, bonds, mutual funds, and all that other financial-speak kind of goes over my head, but if I put in the work, I know it will become clear for me. Scared money don't make money (I remember hearing that somewhere). I have to take some risks, smart risks, but risks nonetheless. I'm young, single, and have no extreme responsibilities to anyone but myself, so there is no excuse for not investing in my future.

Dewy's 24-Hour Read-A-Thon: Update #3

*yawning*

Well folks, I sit here on my bed proud, daylight glowing through the curtains. I finished my second book for the read-a-thon with a little time to spare. I read Cornered by Brandon Massey; it was 376 pages and it gripped me from beginning to end. I'll discuss more about this later today, in a final read-a-thon update. I'm exhausted...


Good night...or good morning...whatever one would say when going to sleep after the sun is already up...zzzzzzzzzzzzz...

Dewy's 24-Hour Read-A-Thon: Update #2

Hey everyone! I just wanted to check in briefly and let you all know that this book The Company We Keep actually picked up the pace! It became much more interesting once the focus shifted to where it should have in the first place ("Terri" and "Harrison"). I ate a light dinner while reading and sipped on some wine. That said, the book improved before I had the wine, so don't think that the alcohol made things seem better (smile). I have less than 40 pages to go and then I will start on another book. Perhaps I will be able to finish it before the read-a-thon ends, perhaps not, but either way, this has been a fun challenge. I'll check in again later! Happy reading!

Dewy's 24-Hour Read-A-Thon: Update #1

Sheesh! I almost changed my mind about participating but I would have felt bad, so I'm pushing forward! This morning was hectic, in currently in the middle of organizing and packing, so I didn't get started on this book The Company We Keep until late in the day. That said I've made it through 103 pages and I must say, I'm not terribly impressed with the story thus far. If you read the book description, one would expect that the interaction between "Terri" and "Harrison" would be at the forefront of the story, but this isn't the case. With only 177 pages left, the author is introducing all these peripheral characters as side story plots. The main characters haven't even really reunited! And at some point, "Harrison" is supposed have some deep, dark secret that will cause problems; I need this book to get to the meat of the story real soon because I'm loosing interest. This is surprising me because I love the author's other books, especially her God Don't...series. I feel like this book may have been written with a bunch of leftover ideas, but I'll try to keep an open mind and finish the book before I decide that it wasn't worth my money.

I hope everyone else is having a great day of reading!

Dewy's 24-Hour Read-A-Thon...Read 1 book, in 24 hours?

I think this is something I can accomplish and since I have a ton of books, stacked up and waiting for me to give them attention, I decided to participate in this challenge. I will blog my progress throughout the day, to keep me on schedule and also to take a break from reading. The book I've chosen is "The Company We Keep" by Mary Monroe and it is 280 pages long. I should be able to finish it in the allotted time. Here's a brief description of the book from Amazon.com:

New York Times bestselling author Mary Monroe-s extraordinary novel celebrates life, love, and the power of sisterhood-proving that friends, like fine wine, only get better with age...

Gorgeous, successful executive Teri Stewart spends her days working for L.A.'s hottest record company--and her nights all alone. Her best friend Nicole is determined to find Teri a man, but she hasn-t had much luck...because Teri wants more than Mr. Maybe. She's holding out for Mr. Right and won't settle for anything less. Just when Teri is ready to give up, a man from her past returns to reignite their romance. With his sultry smile and easy-going charm, radio DJ Harrison Starr is one-of-a kind-and Teri can-t deny she's fallen hard for him again.

With her life finally falling into place, Teri thinks her dreams might come true after all. But Harrison may have a secret that could change everything.

To find out more about Dewy's Read-A-Thon, click here! Wish me luck!

Blogging from A to Z...F for Fusion...

I was sitting here thinking of a topic I could use for this post; several words came to mind. I narrowed it down to "forgotten" and "fusion". While I find both interesting, I decided on "fusion" because this is a topic is much lighter than what I would have said had I used "forgotten". Anyway, I was on Twitter and someone was talking about something called afro fusion. I was intrigued and broke into the conversation (because that's what you do on Twitter, lol). Apparently there is this process, afro fusion, that will feed my 'Fro envy. Mu hair is currently loc'd up but I've been considering chopping them off in at least a year; they're getting so long, almost to the point of annoying me. When I do the big chop, I'll have a small afro but I want something major. This is where the fusion process would come in, taking me from here:

To here, in a minimal amount of time:

I'm really going to have to schedule some time to go to Atlanta and visit The Damn Salon (I love the name)!

Blogging from A to Z...E for Empathy

This is a brief post, since I'm now a day behind! Yesterday was a bit hectic but I hope to stay on track now (smile). Anyway, this topic is one that I think of often; especially when I read about children committing, or attempting, suicide. Empathy us nothing and the benefits from it can be far-reaching. According to Dictionary.com, empathy is the "identification and understanding of another's situation, feelings, and motives." The current mindset of many people is that "different" is bad, it is something to be made fun of and, or, despise. Some of the same people, with this mindset, are raising children who go to school and see the differences of others and begin to bully and belittle the "different" kids. Now we have 8 year olds jumping from buildings and  11 year olds hanging themselves because the constant bullying is too much for them to deal with! I know that being picked on is something that happens in life, heck, I've experienced it, but every child handles stress differently. Expecting all kids to "grin and bear it" or "suck it up and deal" is unfair. While it is important to teaching kids that there are healthy ways to deal with the stresses they face, it is also important to teach kids that "different" isn't bad...it's just different. We have to teach kids how to look at the things that make us all different and simply understand those differences. Kids are dealing with so many things, so many adversities; we have to reduce these stresses as much as possible. Teaching empathy can enrich and save the lives of our children.

Blogging from A to Z: Today's letter....C for "who are you to be so Confident?"

I was on Twitter earlier today and someone in my timeline said something that got me thinking about confidence. This person sent on a "tweet" that said "Part of the problem is [you] think [you're] cute but [you're] just basic"; now, this was not directed at me, but it made me think of the many times I've heard that in my lifetime. I find it interesting when people make that statement; why shouldn't people think that they are cute? Why shouldn't people walk with their heads held high? Why shouldn't people feel good about themselves and their appearances? Some young girls, and some grown women, have this issue real bad; they see another female and whisper amongst their cliques and the refrain that tends to float around is "Look at her! She thinks she's cute!" Well, so what if she does? Why shouldn't she? Is it that women are supposed to walk around feeling lowly and unattractive? That is insane! If I don't think highly of myself, or see the beauty that is in me, how can I expect anyone else to? I often think that those who use the phrase "You think you're cute" are simply projecting their insecurities on others. For some it may be a mild, or not so mild, form of jealousy. But no matter the reason, I refuse to feel bad about myself or allow anyone to bring my confidence down to their level. Pardon my language, but fuck THINKING I'm cute, I KNOW I'm cute. And there's nothing anyone can do but deal with it.

Blogging from A to Z: Today's letter...A for Avoidance

For my first blog in the Blogging from A to Z challenge, I decided to do a post on avoidance. We avoid things daily, whether it's for our physical safety or for our emotional safety. The former makes sense, if you believe in survival; the latter is the more interesting one to me. I can be outgoing in certain situations, but there is one thing that I avoid like a plague and that's relationships. I think I may have a disorder or something because I cannot get myself to open up and express myself, for fear of rejection. It is a terrible habit, one that I would like to rid myself of. I know that I have missed many opportunities; I may have let a soul mate slip out of my reach and that really scares me. I think that I immerse myself in school because of my avoidance issues. With school, I have control over the outcome, for the most apart. If I want an 'A' then I put in the work to get it. Yes, I stay in school because the career I want requires certain degrees and certification, but I wonder if I get a slight bit of relief that I don't have time to put myself out there, you know, in the dating scene. I hear it's real rough out there and I'm often glad that I don't have the horror stories that others have. But, I also know I'm missing out; how do I expect to get married and start a family with a man I love, and who loves me back, if I don't get out there and meet him? I have to make a change and because avoidance is getting me nowhere.

I have to thank fellow blogger, arlee of the blog tossing it out, for starting this Blogging from A to Z challenge. I think it's going to be fun! If you want information on the challenge, click the logo, featuring Uncle Sam, to your right.

Ashamed...yep, I sure am...

Sheesh...

I cannot believe it has been so long since I last posted on my blog. So neglectful...I'm truly saddened by this. I missed sharing my views on the things going on in the world and my life in general. This graduate school stuff is time consuming! I just got through midterms and I'm praying for the best; can't get anything lower than a 'B'. That said, no excuses because I find time to Twitter (you already know this if you follow me there, lol). The thing is, Twitter is so quick and easy to do; I can post a random thought and go on about my business. Blogging takes some time and you have to put serious thought to the topics one decides to post. In any event, I'm getting organized and I am coming out of this hiatus because I really want to take my blogging seriously. So, starting today, I will post more often!

Thanks for bearing with me, folks!

It's dangerous out there...ABW's are on the rise...

ABW's? Your question may be "What is an ABW?" ABW = Angry Black Women. Recently, there have been debates on the temperament of black women. To let the media tell it, we are some of the angriest women on the plant. And fools believe the lie! People are walking around thinking that all black women are loud and angry and extremely sensitive about everything. Tiger Woods cheats on his wife. Well, black women are in a tizzy because none of the women in his stable were black. What?! Get out of here with that! Ninety-percent of black women could not care less about Tiger or his hussies. Reggie Bush is on the cover of Essence's "Black Love" issue. And what? The man is fine (to me, at least). Yeah, it sucks that he enjoys the company of a Kardashian, but heck, I'm not in the running for his affections, so do I care? Nope. I can look at the cover, enjoy the eye candy, and keep it moving.

That said, let me take a moment to bring up a thought that came to mind a little while ago (what prompted me to post anything about this topic). Let's say I was angry about any of this. Why would that be so wrong? Why is my anger such a bad thing? Many women voice their anger about everything from A to Z, but if a black woman does it then it's some kind of strike against her. You know, three white women got angry and glued a man's penis to his stomach, Tiger's wife came at him with a golf club and there are countless other stories of non-black women snapping in anger, but I've heard no media coverage or real discussion of the rise of angry white women. So why is anger in a black woman demonized as if it's a sin? Every being on earth has this emotion, so what's the big deal about it?

Could someone please shine some light on this for me? Am I missing something?

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!!

I truly feel like 2010 will be an amazing year!

That said, I wish you and yours a awesome and blessed new year!

Much love,
beautifulcurare =^D

Dedicated to the end of a decade...

Yesterday on Twitter, I suggested that "Bag Lady" by Erykah Badu is a song of this decade. It is actually a song of a lifetime. While the song speaks mainly to the ladies, I think that the message of the song relates to everyone, men and women alike. We are at the end of a decade. We're coming up on 2010 folks and it makes sense to leave the baggage that you've been carrying behind. It hinders you; fears, bad relationships, vices that are controlling your life, you, we, have to leave it behind. Go into this new decade free of burdens. Like the song says: Let it go, let it go, let it go, let it go...

Today is my Blogoversary!!!

And I didn't even realize it! LOL! I thank all the people who have visited and commented on this blog. Sharing your thoughts and opinions on different topics I've posted. It is greatly appreciated! I hope you, and others, continue to visit and post comments. I love to interact with you!

There are many things that I want to do regarding my blog presence...I'm learning and growing, soon I will carve out a niche for myself. But of course, this blog is my first and I will always cherish it. Happy Blogoversary to me = )

It is easier to love a stranger than it is to love someone you know...

I'm a Twitter fiend. I'm on the website most days because the people I interact with bring up great topics and since I am somewhat of a "people watcher" (not in a creepy sense, lol), Twitter is the place for me. I like to listen to the views of others, especially those that challenge me to really think about my own views. That said, last week one of my "tweeps", @twendsetter54, asked a good question. That question was: "How can you really love somebody you don't know?" I had to think about this for a moment, because my first thought was "As a Christian, I am supposed to love everyone, which of course includes strangers." But I do not think that is the complete truth, there has to be more to it than that.

It is easier to love a stranger because they are just that, a stranger. You do not know their flaws, their little idiosyncrasies, the things that really make, or break, all relationships. Ignorance of who a person really is blinds you and makes it easy to profess your love of said person. This is not necessarily a bad thing (this started to sound negative), but it is a superficial love. The real work happens when you've seen the smudges, the stains and love a person in spite of the blemishes. It can be difficult because many of us want perfection immediately and that is unrealistic.

So now I ask you, how can you love someone you don't know?

How awkward...

It's been a minute since I have posted something new on my blog and it kind of sucks that my 100th post has to be devoted to this, but hey...what do you do? Went to the gas station to put a little gas in my car. After doing so, the machine asked if I wanted a receipt...well, of course I want a receipt because I received a rebate offer on $50 worth of gas and I have to send in receipt copies. So anyway, I wait and wait, and nothing happens. The machine is out of paper and this requires me to go into the gas station. No big deal, right? Well, it kind of is. See my father decided to start working at this particular gas station. This is a man whom I rarely see; last time I saw him was a little over a year ago and he lives right around the corner. While I have truly forgiven him for the crappy things he has said to me in the past, during my parent's divorce mind you, I still feel a bit awkward around him. This is the same guy who has yet to visit his other two children, my brother and sister, in several years. I feel for them, especially my brother because he really hasn't had much interaction with my dad. So when I see my dad, I feel awkward because I think to myself, "Why won't you come to the house and see the your youngest children?" I'm not angry, just perplexed at the way he is able to stay away from them, but live right around the corner. I just wish this feeling would go away because I love him, his my dad, but I guess there is so much water under the bridge. I can forgive but it so hard to forget things and I suppose I'm afraid to trust him not to hurt my feelings again. I never question where my trust issues come from...it started there. Anyway, I just needed to get that off my chest. We all have our issues and I suppose once I get past that hurdle, other areas in my life will be clearer...