Dating is rad.

Had some time to kill before a blind date and was utterly exhausted.  Thought a nice nap in the park would be perfect.  Laid out my yoga mat, curled up and was ready to pass out.

I would have been asleep in moments, but kept getting a whiff of dog poop.  Mmph, it's a park after all, no big deal.  

But it wouldn't go away.  I sort of half sat up and scanned the area around me...shifting back and forth on my mat and sort of turning side to side.  I looked under my mat, around my mat -- it seemed to be clear.  Since I was laying on my side, my feet were sort of stacked and I couldn't see my bottom foot.  But now I could see the smear of dog shit on my yoga mat. 

Yup.  ALL OVER my foot.  Not just my shoe, people.  All my shuffling around had spread the poop onto my skin and IN my shoe.  Completely disgusting.  All the leaves in the park and the box of handy wipes didn't seem to do the trick.  I was convinced I still smelled like poop.

What's a girl to do?!  Basically, it was the perfect excuse for a pair of new shoes.  And if this boy was cool, would also be a great story for tonight.

The new shoes:  Totally cute.

The date:  A no show.

Read it again and again

I can't remember the last time I quoted a bible verse.  Probably in high school when I was still sussing the whole thing out.


But last night I watched (via video feed from FL) a memorial service for a 5-year-old little girl from my church at home.

I can't erase it from my mind.

I connected to it because it was home.  
Because her favorite song was ABC by the Jackson 5
and she loved to dance.  
Because there were familiar faces
and spaces
and a community holding up a family who shouldn't have the strength to stand.


The pastor who gave the sermon is someone my age.  Someone I remember being an awkward high school student with.  And he's actually the uncle of this little girl.  He said the following words with strength and without a tear and it made me want to call everyone I love and tell them so.  Because we never say it enough.


"Blessed are those who mourn. [Matthew 5:4] -- Seems like that is exactly NOT how it is.  But read it again and again and again if you have to.  Those who mourn do so because they feel loss and loss is not felt by those who are not first blessed."

The Moment

There's a moment as you approach your car, after a long night of it being alone, and you see something on the windshield.

A moment where you think..."Is that a note?  Who could have left me a note?"

That moment is short.  VERY short.

And usually followed by, "Duh.  It's a parking ticket."

But that brief, brief moment is so sweet.

Love note?  Friend note?  Secret Admirer note?

People don't leave those enough. You should start today.

Leave more windshield notes.

Could be

A friend showed me this video and I can't seem to get it out of my head.  We had a pretty long conversation about it afterward and it makes me want to know everyone's opinion about this poignant, short film.

This isn't an in-your-face sunshine moment.  In fact, it might make you sad.  But watch it.  Perhaps with a friend so you can discuss.  Try to see the good...

Squeezing in every minute

For whatever reason, there's always pressure to take complete, full advantage of days off.  Perhaps it's just MY pressure, but I always want to use every moment of a day without work.

And today was a success.  Road trip, cannonball contests, WANG, 40oz Bud Ice, Polaroid cameras, roasted corn, playing fetch and an improv show in the Hwood.

Done and done.

Swingtown

I dare you to resist swinging your legs back and forth when your feet are dangling from a high seat.

It's nearly impossible to sit still when tempted by chair elevation.  Especially when you're gossiping with an old friend.

Smiling Faces & Flailing Arms

I was huffing and puffing through swim practice tonight trying to focus on ANYTHING other than my arms.  They seemed to be made of lead this evening.

During each breath, looking at the sideline of the pool, I remembered a trick I've used before to make it through a set.  I imagine people in my life running back and forth on the deck screaming and waving me forward -- just like high school swim meets.  My father, my coach, my brother, my friends.  It's fun to go through the list of people in my life and imagine their smiling faces and their flailing arms.  I even throw in perfect strangers, new crushes and unlikely characters.

Now, you can call me a total cheese-ball,  but I feel like this strategy could work for many difficult situations in life.  Imagining people you care about on the sideline, cheering you on...supporting you.

Right?
Cheese-ball indeed.