Black in Black

Next time, I'll read the entire list before I commit to an online challenge. This 30 Day Non-Facebook Prose-Instead-of-Pictures Challenge is getting difficult. Today's challenge:

21.A picture of something you wish you could forget

Everything that has happened to me makes me who I am. Yes, even the bad stuff. Sure, there are things I'm not proud of doing or saying. But that's still part of me and lessons learned.

To me, this challenge is more about regret and shame. In my opinion, regret is the desire to do something that wasn't, while shame is about something that was. A good friend of mine says that shame is anger turned inwards. Being angry at oneself for something that one did or said. I may not be proud of some things, but without them, I would be a different person.

And since I believe that everything that has happened to me or that I've done or that I've said makes me me, my picture of something I wish I could forget would be a big black hole of nothing.

No, that's not being conceited or pretentious, just accepting of who I am.

[Title taken from this.]

Question of the Day

Who has the least grip on reality, Muammar Gaddafi or Charlie Sheen?

The I's Have It

As Sally Field said, "You like me, you really like me!"  Well, at least Tim likes me.  He nominated me for the Stylish Blog Award.  Me?  Stylish?  Aw shucks.  I'm speechless.  Which for me is a rarity.

So, without further ado, here are seven things you might not know about me.

• I always wanted to have a farm and raise goats, honeybees, and quail.
• I used to stand in line with my grandmother for her monthly supply of cheese and peanut butter from the government.
• In high school, I attained sharpshooter level in riflery.
• I prefer a bow to a gun.
• I learned how to drive in a green 1972 GMC Gremlin when I was 11.
• I read my first words when I was two but I am a very slow reader, to the point where it embarrasses me.
• I am utterly terrified of snakes, so much so that I can't even look at pictures of them without being scared.

Wow, never in all my blogging days has the word "I" appeared so many times in one blog!  That's another thing about me that you may not know.  Writing that relies too heavily on "I" makes me uncomfortable. 

Now, here are seven Stylish Blogs that you should check out:

VIRGINIA THROUGH MY LENS

Honey, I'm Home

Constantly Evolving

Hope in a Basket

KING OF NEW YORK HACKS

Ramblingon

Mom And Me, Kassey

It's easy really.  Seven things that people might not know about you and seven other nominations for the Stylish Blog Award.

I think I'll go back to writing without "I's" now.

Street Dreams (Are Made of This)

Do you have a recurring dream?  My dreams aren't usually the exact same dream so much as a theme.  They typically are about houses and graveyards.  But in a good way. 

All types of houses - palatial, modern, gothic, cramped, secluded, etc.  Exploring the layout of the houses.  Upon awakening from a house dream, I'd be able to draw a blue print of the house in my dream and vividly describe every detail, piece of furniture and speck of dust. 

The graveyards in my dreams aren't the spooky, cobweb-covered nightmarish kind.  They're the kind with old markers, that I'm usually eagerly discovering on crisp fall days with lots of golden leaves in the trees and on the ground.  The kind of cemetery where I feel peaceful and am wanting to uncover bits of my family history.

But the past few months my dreams have been about a large city.  It's a city that seems familiar but isn't a city I've been to in waking life.  It's bustling with lots of cars and buses and taxis and pedestrians.  In my dreams, I've visited different areas of the same city. 

Last night it was a beautiful museum next to a small river.  I was so overtaken by the beauty of the scenery of the shops and parks just across the river that I didn't make it inside the museum, instead framing pictures in my camera's viewfinder looking through weeping willow branches.

Yes, yes.  I know what each dream "means".  Houses usually relate to oneself and personality.  Graveyards typically relate to unresolved grief.  Cities generally relate to community and one's social environments.

But do you think that this could be a case of a cigar being a cigar?  As a child, I wanted to be an architect and to this day still love drawing floor plans for my dream home (no pun intended).  I'm a genealogist who adores working in graveyards.  And I love to travel, often to large cities to experience new cultures.

Either that, or I'm a person with an ever-changing personality, who is grieving over someone or something, but who has a large circle of friends and opportunities.  I'll stick with the cigar theory.

I Before E

The youth director at our parish is an outgoing, really-quite-handsome, teddy-bear-of-a guy.  My teens, who've been on mission trips with him that included swimming sessions as relaxation, claim he has angel wings.  That's just wrong.  He needs to go in for a good wax job to take care of those.  But I digress.

His main attribute is his personality, not his angel wings.  Like my middle daughter, he can talk to a doorknob and charm it off the door.  One of his off-hand comments about Mr. Gaelic didn't surprise me.  He thinks, accurately enough, that Mr. Gaelic is very quiet and reserved.  A typical introvert in the Myers-Briggs scale. 

The youth director received the shock of his life to learn that my Myers-Briggs always comes back listing me as an introvert.  With a great big I.

His mouth fell open. 

"I work at it."

He acknowledged my success at appearing to be an extrovert and asked, "Isn't it tiring?"

"Very." 

Song Game

So I ripped this off a Facebook friend. Anyway... Using only song names from ONE ARTIST, cleverly answer these questions. Pass it on to 10 people and include me!

Pick Your Artist: David Bowie

Are you male or female: Queen Bitch

Describe yourself: Rebel Rebel

How do you feel about yourself: It Ain’t Easy

Describe where you currently live: Suffragette City

If you could go anywhere, where would you go to: African Night Flight

Your best friend is: All the Young Dudes

Your favorite color is: Red Sails

You know that: Dancing in the Street

What's the weather like: She Shook Me Cold

If your life was a TV show, what would it be called?: Brilliant Adventure

What is life to you: Modern Love

What is the best advice you have to give: Hang Onto Yourself

If you could change your name, what would it be: Blue Jean

Your favorite food is: Drive-In Saturday

Harder than it sounds, no?

Mommie Dearest?

Your result for Are You a Jackie or a Marilyn? Or Someone Else? Mad Men-era Female Icon Quiz...

You Are a Joan!

You are a Joan -- "I need to succeed"

Joans are energetic, optimistic, self-assured, and goal oriented.

How to Get Along with Me

• * Leave me alone when I am doing my work.


• * Give me honest, but not unduly critical or judgmental, feedback.


• * Help me keep my environment harmonious and peaceful.


• * Don't burden me with negative emotions.


• * Tell me you like being around me.


• * Tell me when you're proud of me or my accomplishments.

What I Like About Being a Joan

• * being optimistic, friendly, and upbeat


• * providing well for my family


• * being able to recover quickly from setbacks and to charge ahead to the next challenge


• * staying informed, knowing what's going on


• * being competent and able to get things to work efficiently


• * being able to motivate people

What's Hard About Being a Joan

• * having to put up with inefficiency and incompetence


• * the fear on not being -- or of not being seen as -- successful


• * comparing myself to people who do things better


• * struggling to hang on to my success


• * putting on facades in order to impress people


• * always being "on." It's exhausting.

Joans as Children Often

• * work hard to receive appreciation for their accomplishments


• * are well liked by other children and by adults


• * are among the most capable and responsible children in their class or school


• * are active in school government and clubs or are quietly busy working on their own projects

Joans as Parents

• * are consistent, dependable, and loyal


• * struggle between wanting to spend time with their children and wanting to get more work done


• * expect their children to be responsible and organized

Take Are You a Jackie or a Marilyn? Or Someone Else? Mad Men-era Female Icon Quiz at HelloQuizzy