Thanksgiving 2011

Yes, indeed.
I did get on up and headed to Inspiring Body of Christ Church for the Thanksgving Day service. My church is one of the few, in Dallas, opened on this day. A few thousand of my dearest and bestest friends were also in attendence. Pastor Rickie Rush did appear, with a neck brace on. He didn't stay long, yet Pastor gave a Word and let us see he is doing well.

The rest of the day was spent with a wonderful BFF, her hubby, and another friend of the BFF, I hadn't see in a while. Our bellies got full, while conversation spread. Then the BFF's hubby went into his office. That left us three girls to gab to our hearts' content. Sometimes just hanging out with the girls, is what you need to let you know you are doing well.
So for Thanksgiving 2011
Alot to be thankful for.
I am blessed.

Saturday Touch Past...

That's what today was as I decided to clear out my back bedroom where everything gets tossed. I should say 'start' to clear it out. I didn't get as far as I wanted because I touched the past--alot. I found letters from a guy I went to high school with. Turns out we exchanged handwritten letters during one of his years in college. I didn't/don't even remember! Cards signed by my sweet Daddy. I can't believe on 10/18 will be the tenth anniversary of his passing. Found pictures of Dad before diabetes really made its move. Healthy, robust and King Edward cigar in his mouth. There was also a letter I 'wrote' to my Dad wishing him Happy Father's Day. I looked at the envelope. It was dated a year after I was born. Ha! I'm sure Mom helped! I've mentioned I was such an Osmond Brothers fan back in the day---well, I found negatives, probably all my negatives, of that mystical, magical time. Such a surprise! The big question, do places still reprint off 110 negatives? The actual prints, I have lost some thru the years--so for an Osmond fan, this is quite the jackpot! More photos, newspaper clippings, notes I'd received from management at the company I worked at before my current one. I'd given the CEO a copy of my then newly self published book. He sent me a nice note back which include his wish for my writing career to thrive! Completely forgot that! Cards to celebrate my birthday, good wishes when I left a company. sympathy for my dad's passing and get wells after my pesky open heart surgery. All these things span my whole life. Then I found a sympathy card from the girl who was my BFF thru our girlhood growing up years. I remember I was surprised I heard nothing from her when Dad passed. She had family in our hometown and Dad's passing was mentioned about every hour on our local small town radio station mixed in with the soy bean report. The BFF lived in another state, yet I thought her family would tell her. My house was her home away from home, when we grew up. We were that close. One inhaled, while the other exhaled. When I got back to Dallas, after Dad's funeral, and still not a word from her, I wrote BFF to tell her of my Dad's passing. Her handwritten letter told me her family didn't tell her. And we hadn't been the closest thing in those recent times. She apologized several times in the letter saying there was no other place she would have been if she'd known. Also the former BFF said it had been awhile since we'd spoken and left me her phone number. Maybe we should try to talk again. I didn't remember that part of her 2001 letter. I sat, in the midst of my clutter in 2011 and wondered if I ever called her. I thought we were so estranged by 2001, why bother? Or I did call her and the conversation wasn't one for the scrapbooks?

When you touch the past like that. does it have room in your today?

Hmm.

April 20, 2003 was Easter Sunday

In essence this coming Easter Sunday is an anniversary of sorts. My steps into a church. Steps I wanted to take and not steps parents pushed me to. Or even being the biggest Osmond Brothers fan and take seat in a LDS ward to listen to the Osmonds share their testimonies.

Yea, I wasn't feelin' the whole God thing back then. Hey, I admit I'd make fun of folks and call them 'holy rollers'. Why would anybody give up sleepin' in late and then --EEKS--miss NFL football--for CHURCH? Naw. Wasn't part of my plan. Hangovers had to be recovered from, pizza to be bought, wondered how quick Friday could roll around again to see if the guy I slept with remembered my number.

Yea. God, church and me. Not BFF's. I had too much other stuff to do.

In 2003 life was topsy turvy. I still grieved the death my dad, Big Daddy Don in '01. I'd get an e-mail from the lawyer saying I had to pay this and pay that. Dad, unfortunately died without insurance--which I didn't didn't know until after he passed. I guess, I should have kept on him about such things, yet I thought my step mother had a handle on it. She didn't. My fault I didn't talk to her--so long story on all that. I eventually was minus 12 grand.

My work situation was horrendous. I experienced the sensation of a boss trying to find something to get me fired. Why? Gotta ask her. My boss wound up being my boss due to a reorganization. This happened right after I was promoted, that job--a dream job--lasted 4 months, before the re-org. I wasn't able to stay. I won't bore with everything. From working together literally 6 working days, my new boss wrote me up because she 'saw things'. When I asked what, she couldn't answer--then to my birthday week in April, and another week before Easter 2003, she wrote me up not once--but twice. The last accusing me of gambling on company time. When I asked her HOW I did that, she had no actual proof. I proved her wrong on what she did have.

That was Thursday, the day before Good Friday 2003. Earlier in April something just popped into my head, "Go to church." I'm like "Huh?" and poo poo'd that off. CHURCH?
After the chat with my boss, I went straight to a co-worker who earlier told me about a church pretty much in my own back yard. She'd printed off directions because she knew I would be back. She said God told her. OK. Yea. OK.

I didn't drive past that night. Scared I think. So I waited for the next day. Good Friday. I couldn't even drive in the lot,. I just parked in front of the church. I remember saying, "I'm going to THAT?" Chills thru my body. I really wanted to go IN.

Eager for Sunday. I'd purchased a bible. Acted like I knew what I was.
Then on Easter, which is Resurrection Sunday, I got up on the day Jesus died.
And journeyed to my first, I really want to be here church service-
Chills
They have yet to stop...
I am blessed.

Makin' Friends

Remember how easy it was to make friends in grade school? A chocolate chip cookie and BFF's for life--or until at least recess. As I've gotten older and continue to ignore everything AARP 'invites' me to, makin' friends seems harder.

What do you think?

Maybe it's all the stuff we've experienced to get us to this point. In the deepest part of the valley to the highest tip of the mountaintop--if we're gonna be friends let's just FF and get on with it. For me, to discover your favorite food, movie, color etc, can be fun--yet not as much fun as when I was 15.

Does my impatience show?

Friends are important to me. They truly are. Wish I could just recycle or clone the ones I've had for years so I wouldn't have to worry about makin' new ones. Since I'm an only child I can be picky. More so now, I'm older. I am loyal. Yet you tick me off once---well, we'll have to review your application.

OK. That's wrong of me, isn't it? Yea it is. I really need to embrace makin' brand new friends. There are those I know who will be roses in my garden. I know that. I really do.

I just really want the friendship thing to just get on it---hence my impatience.

Times were easier when it was all about a chocolate chip cookie.

TeenyBopper Tears

The other day, I'd mentioned David Cassidy and Davy Jones were to appear in concert about 15 miles from my house. I really beat myself up I didn't spend the 82 bucks and change to go see them. After all, Davy Jones is still cute, even if he's over 60.

I pictured women, like myself, who wondered what color to cover their gray hair, but then were transported back to those great bubblegum pop days, where tomorrow's history test was the biggest trauma, plus you had to actually talk to your BFF--since texting and cell phones hadn't been invented heck. Heck, I remembered carrying a dime around for the pay phone. Anyway, I was pretty mad at myself for not going.

Then I read the concert's review. And I'm not so mad at myself anymore.

Oh well. I still have a sweet Bubble Yum kinda memory.

THE MONKEES - DAYDREAM BELIEVER
Uploaded by huntylch. - Watch more music videos, in HD!

Pressed Memory

Beginning to like this natural coiffure of mine. Always hated Mom to come thru my hair after a shampoo. Then to use a hot comb on it. The sizzle my hair made, when the hot comb fried the pressing grease, on it. Granted it was some of our best mother-daughter bonding time--like when I asked Mom what "screw" meant, which I pronounced like 'sku'--she stopped in mid comb of my hair, and asked where I'd heard it.

Hey, I was honest. I told Mom this schoolmate said another schoolmate wanted to do this to my best friend. My BFF played it off like we knew what the word meant, even tho it sound like something gross. Since Mom said I could always talk to her, so talk to her I did.

However which way Mom explained to me, I didn't get grossed out--just like, "Oh, OK." And then Mom asked if any boys had said that that word to me or touched me. ICK...NO! And if they ever did--I was to tell her immediately! I didn't get why, but OK...

I was 12 years old. And on the walk to junior high school that morning, I told my BFF everything my mom said! EEEEEEE-yeeeeeeeeeew.

Ahh, memories from having natural hair-the first time. Before chemicals to straighten it, or the wigs and weaves to change my hair within minutes, became part of my vocabulary.

What would Mom and I talk about during this natural go round, if He hadn't called her Home so some?

Now, if you will excuse me, I have to go oogle my fluffy and oh so soft hair!

Stay tuned

Oh. Yes, I drank my 74 ounces of water.