Going Home

So, my friend Cole says that I need to do some blogging and he's right. I've been in and out of town during the past two weeks, so my spare time has been spent mostly packing and unpacking my bags, doing laundry and resting up from the long road trips.

My parents live in North Carolina in a small town called Scotland Neck. Yeah, I'm sure you've heard of it. It's between nowhere and nowhere. Every year, my family gets together-- parents, sisters, brothers, aunts, uncles, cousins, and kids--at my grandmother's house in Dawson (even smaller town... more like a road) to celebrate Christmas. I'm not there every year, but I make it when I can. Although my grandmother passed last year, the family tradition continues.

When I turned 18, I couldn't get out of that town quick enough. A native of Brooklyn, NY (my aunt likes to remind me from time to time that NC is not really home for me), I lived in Scotland Neck for 12 years. I detested it because most of my family was still in NY. There wasn't enough to do and it was too damn quiet. I longed for the sirens of fire trucks, ambulances, and police cars, for the sounds of the subway passing over the tracks, for the horn honking of irate and frustrated drivers stuck in city traffic. That was the soundtrack of my life for the first six and a half years. Then came life in a small town where everyone (and I do mean EVERYONE) knows your name and your business.

It's only now since I've been away from there for 16 years that I can appreciate that life. I'm not ready to pack my bags today and move back although I won't rule it out for retirement. But, going back reminds me of a few things that I don't have living in the city again (Atlanta). Things like open roads, fresh air, quiet time, clear night skies with twinkling stars. Going back also reminds me of a time before I knew what the world was really like, when I still believed in Santa Claus and the Tooth Fairy, when I learned about God. More than anything, going back reminds me about falling in love and innocence.

Yeah, small towns are good for something. And Scotland Neck is home.

Love to home.

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Bag Lady

Bag lady you gone hurt your back
Dragging all them bags like that
I guess nobody ever told you
All you must hold on to
Is you, is you, is you

Erykah Badu

My co-worker calls me the bag lady. And it's funny because he's so right. I always carry at least two bags--my purse and a workbag. Today, I had four bags--my purse, a workbag, my lunch bag, and another bag to carry a large box of software. Do I really need all this stuff I lug to and from work everyday? Probably not. I'm not into making new years' resolutions, but I'll make this one (with my new year beginning tomorrow... who am I kidding? more like next week). I'm going to stop carrying around so much damn baggage. And if carrying less bags physically will somehow translate into carrying less bags emotionally, then I'm all for it.

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Rainy Day in Georgia

Another rainy day in Georgia. And this morning I felt like it was raining in my life. I was kinda down. Mostly because I felt pulled in too many opposing directions, which is my fault for over-committing myself. What's that saying, "The road to hell is paved with good intentions." Believe me, I've been on that road and not only can you feel the heat emanating as you near hell's fire, but you can also hear the screams of others who have gone before you. What I know for sure--people will take as much as you're willing to give. I need to start saving as much of myself as I need for myself... to feel happy... to feel fulfilled... to not feel used up.

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Here's to a Break

Last night I had my last class for the semester. BTW, I'm a graduate student at a university here in town. I only took one course this semester because with my 40 hour+ work week, it's about all I could handle. Anyway, I wanted to jump up and click my heels in mid-air after class last night (something I could never do but looks quite fun when I see my co-worker do it whenever the mood strikes him).

Now I can exhale. My plans while I'm on winter break are to focus on cleaning up my living space and doing some other important activities (like going to church, blogging and working on my novel). I'm also planning to go up to North Carolina and spend some time with my family the week before Christmas.

It feels good to get a break from the reading and the assignments.

Oh well, this is my last entry for the month. I'm thinking about all of the things I wanted to write about, but never found the time like Bad Hair Days and 13 yr. old daughters and the crazy men in my life. Just wait. Next month promises to be better. I'll have a little more time to play.

Raise your glasses everyone. Brooklyn's back on the playground.

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Put Your Lighters Up

Respect to Brooklyn. Love to Scotland Neck. Peace to Atlanta.

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More Than One Way

There's more than your way. More than my way. More than anyone's way. More than one way to do anything. Maybe there's only one right way. But the right way depends on what's right for you.

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Bound to Happen

About a month and a half ago, my brother got married adding to my constantly growing number of in-laws. I now have two brothers-in-law and three sisters-in-law (if you count my brother-in-law's first wife). I know that I'm supposed to feel like I gained a sister, but I feel more like I lost a brother. That's because, although he didn't call a whole lot before he got married (due to the long hours that he works), he NEVER calls now. What a drag.

You'd think after growing up in the same house with someone for 15 years (I'm three years older than him, so I left when he was 15), they would call at least sometimes, right? Wrong. My sister got married last year and I actually felt like I was gaining a brother then. Must be something about when the sons get married, they actually join their wives' families. That seems backwards.

Anyway, that's neither here nor there. I miss my brother. I'm happy that he's started his own family, but I'm sad that he no longer seems apart of our family.

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Workplace Politics

You can't avoid them. No matter where you work or what you do. You will inevitably have to deal with them. So, don't forget to put on your "whole armour" everyday before you leave the house.

Most days I listen to the radio or a cd in my car on the way to work. Some days when I'm not so self-concious about who may be watching me from nearby cars on the road, I sing along. It's at least a 35-minute commute. By the time I arrive at work, I'm bouncing along and as happy as a lark (my mother used to say that a lot when I was younger). No matter how happy or motivated I am to avoid the b.s., I usually run into someone very early in the day who's hell bent on feeding me a truck load of crap.

Like today for instance... My co-worker and I were told week before last by our old supervisor that we had to move out of our spacious office into another one on the second floor which is half the size. We were told that we didn't have a choice. Then last week, our new supervisor per her supervisor told us not to move . Well, lo and behold, this morning, we were given boxes for our impending move. What the...?

So, I asked the question, "Do we still need these?"

A deadpan look, "For your move?

"Yes." My response.

"Yes." Another deadpan look.

"We were told not to move." My response.

"By whom?" Continued deadpan look.

"Ummm, by our supervisor, per her supervisor."

"Well, take the boxes and I'll make a phone call and let you know."

All I can say is "whole armour." If you're not familiar with what that means and if you don't mind reading the Bible, check it out here - Ephesians 6:10-20.

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The Interruption of Love

For all of you who followed Stella to Jamaica to get your groove back with a younger man (or at least fantasized about it), here's how the story ends. Ten years later, Stella tells Oprah that the love of her life, the fantasy whom she met in Jamaica is actually gay. Go figure. Only in the twenty-first century do our love stories turn into full blown nightmares.

So Stella a.k.a. Terri McMillan and Winston a.k.a. Jonathan Plummer, her now ex-husband paid Oprah a visit on Wednesday and talked candidly about his coming out and the demise of their six year marriage. Two things were clear as I watched them interact with one another on the show. The first being that she was mad as hell with him when she found out (evidenced by the angry profane phone messages that were played back for the entire viewing audience). The second, based on her body language, she is still in love with him.

The next day at work, my colleagues and I stood around the "water cooler" and discussed the idea of not being able to turn love on and off based on the object of our affection's betrayal (I guess when it comes to matters of the heart, sexual orientation is not the bigger issue). Most of us agreed that it's hard to just stop loving someone even when you want to hate them for hurting you. So, the lesson here... be discriminating about who you actually ALLOW yourself to fall in love with because it's easier to fall in love than to fall out. Some would argue that you can't help who you fall in love with and people don't always show you who they are until you're already in love. Maybe. Maybe not, but be careful anyway. We've all heard the song, "It's a thin line between love and hate." That may be true; however, most of us almost always refuse to take that leap over the line to hate. And who can blame us?

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Every Girl Needs a Mac

Need I say more? I shouldn't have to, but just in case. Tune in to any television show or watch any movie these days and you'll notice the Apple logo on the back of the main character's computer. Of course, Macs ARE the sexiest looking computers on the market right now. Well, I'm here to tell you that they not only look good, but they work even better. I've had my iBook for the past 3 years and it works like it's brand new! I've never had to call Tech Support and I've never had a virus (knock on wood).

Last year, I bought an iMac for my home office and I love that machine. Of course, I still have a Dell in the house for my daughter, but I'm planning to promote her to a Mac as soon as possible.

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Another Attempt at Change

After reading my post from yesterday, I realized that starting out with something I hate may not have been the best thing to do. So, today I'm going to begin on a more positive note. Although I'd enjoy venting about my encounter with the dentist's office today, I'll save that for later. On to that positive note...

I love being a part of such a big family. I can always count on someone to keep me from sleeping too much or too long on Sunday afternoons by calling just when I'm about to fall into a deep and restful sleep. I can always count on someone to call and give me the latest family gossip even though I'm eight hours away (by car) from some and at least sixteen hours away (by car) from most. I can always count on someone having a birthday, a wedding, an anniversary, a divorce, a baby, a fit or some other event that I have to participate in either in person or by phone. You know, it keeps my calendar full of activity.

Yes, I absolutely love being part of a big, beautiful, intrusive, but always loving, caring and giving family. I wouldn't trade it for the world. Hopefully, they wouldn't trade me either.

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Procrastination

I hate being a procrastinator. I put off everything for later. Like setting up this blog, for instance. I've been trying to do this since... you know it's been so long that I don't even remember. Anyway, I was chatting with a friend yesterday and mentioned that I was planning to set up a blog during my Christmas break when he sent me the address to his blog. I was motivated to stop talking about doing it and actually do it. So, here's my attempt at change.

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