sunny skies

I hear it's nice this time of year in Florida. Good thing too. The forecast is for sunny days with highs in the low to mid 80s. That's what I'm talking about! I'm hoping for relaxation, but am not sure that's possible. I’m a planner. (and, I’ve been told on more than one occasion that the best things in Life aren’t planned. I know this to be true, but it is still difficult to let it be what it is.) Nothing for this trip has been planned yet and it’s starting to bother me. I haven’t even packed yet! I typically start packing two weeks in advance of a trip and I still have laundry to do tonight. More than that is the fact that I’ll spend a lot of time with my dad’s wife. It will be interesting to see how things play out with her. I don’t dislike her, but I have a hard time developing anything resembling a decent relationship. The more I think about it the more I think it is my issue(s) that are getting in the way. Maybe realizing this will give me the desire to be more genuine with her.

Airtran is having a sale (today and tomorrow only!) to fly out of Dayton to Orlando or Tampa for $54 one way. SUPER CHEAP! I'm just sayin'. And, what I'm really saying is you know you want to go with me. just admit it and hop on the plane!

This ought to be an adventure. I’m sure there will be stories to share when I return.

my people

Yesterday I sent an email to someone who I’m not sure gets it. “It” being the kingdom or your people, your sangha, your church, your community…whatever you want to call it. Here’s what I said:
“At the core of who I am, I am a believer. My life flows from that. God tells us that if we are his disciples we will love one another. Loving other people involves getting to know them. It involves digging into their lives, getting messy, being there for both the good and the bad. It means being silent when the only thing the other person wants is someone to hear them. It means sharing the silly moments and the terrifying moments as well. In loving others we essentially love God.”

Then I spent the evening with some of the most wonderful people. These people live the Life that I described in my email. They’re pretty fan-damn-tastic.

Coming out of the fog...

I’ve been sick for the past several days. Oh, how I hate being sick. I was just telling Christine how I still had her cough medicine in my bathroom from several months ago. Last night my thoughts and my coughing kept me tossing and turning. I even tried to prop myself up with several pillows so I wouldn’t cough as much. The coughing continued.

I remembered back to when I was younger and would try to muffle my cough so my mom wouldn’t bring me any cough syrup. I especially hated cherry flavored cough syrup. *hated* and Hate is a strong word. Eventually, I started gagging when my mom would try to give it to me, so it ended up being useless.

A few minutes passed and more coughing ensued. I’m talking the you-see-stars-because-you-are-coughing-so-hard, the can’t-catch-your-breath kind of coughing. So, I made my way to the bathroom and am fully awake from the coughing despite the fact that it is 1:30am. I opened the medicine cabinet and look at the bottle of Kroger’s version of Nyquil. “Okay, it’s green”, I tell myself, “It can’t be cherry flavored.” Then I notice the little medicine cup attached and it tells me that I need to drink two tablespoons of this crap. And, if you’ve ever hated anything as much as I hate this, you’ll know that two tablespoons is a lot. “I can do this” leads to “I don’t want to get sick after I drink this” to saying out loud, “Dana, you are a freaking adult…this is not that bad. It’s kind of like doing a shot.” Which, somehow, made this more do-able. It was disgusting, but tolerable. Then, some sleeping happened and when I drug myself out of bed I was so out of it. I was walking into work and was aware that I was walking, almost as if I wasn’t walking. It has taken me the entire day to feel somewhat normal again.

What I've Said Out Loud...

Ellery's newest release (and also first ever Live release) is out and about tomorrow. I hope you make room for it in your life. Grab a glass of something and sit down to take it all in. I'm pretty sure my future is making room for "Pieces" to be played on repeat.

Here's a taste of some lyrics:

"The less there is
of me to show
The more I wish
you didn’t know" ~Be Like This

and...
"We feel it under every breath
To say it scares us all to death
But that don’t make it matter less
That don’t make it matter less" ~The Simple Things

and...
"You fight to stay awake,
your dreams will likely drive you mad
But only cause you’re living like
one shot was all you had..." ~You'll Get Through It

"And with my walls defined
More surely I could shake away my pain
More confidently draw the lines" ~Inside my Head

And, really you should just listen to "It's Alright". Seriously.

Sparkity-spark

I’m curious to know if anyone has had the experience of one person in a relationship thinking there is some chemistry/spark and the other person thinking there really isn’t any. I’ve never really had that in my vast experience (yes, you should go ahead and laugh-that was a joke), so I’m curious to know what other people think. Maybe it’s just a timing thing. And, there’s a difference (to me, at least) between attraction and chemistry. I think that attraction can lead to chemistry, if allowed. What I’m saying is, I can be attracted to someone’s personality, to their characteristics, but at the same time not want to jump their bones. Know what I’m sayin’? Which, I wonder, if this isn’t the best way to determine or find a mate.

Obviously no answer is required unless you feel like sharing your insight. This is more me thinking out loud (or via words on a computer). I’m not actually saying anything out loud just so you know.