Fooled Ya!

I am sure most folks who know me thought I was going to pick a different "topic" today. Fooled ya!

I was thinking of a number of possibilities, mostly adjectives. I finally settled on Frantic.

I have been watching students who have put their school work on the back burner on a stove in another county for the last several months. Now that there are only 7 weeks of school left, these same students are now frantic in their efforts to boost their grades. I just shake my head. I prefer not to wait until the last minute to do things (except some of the papers I wrote for my second degree - hated those busywork papers *grr*).

Now this frenzy of frenetic foolishness is getting these students where exactly? I truly do not understand the choices the students make being acceptable to parents. There is no excuse for being unaware of your own child's schooling. Around here, many parents work shift work at the coal mines. This means the parent is gone for 14 hours a day, including driving time. These shifts are from 7 - 7, both night shift and day shift. Most of these folks work 14 days out of the month, and not in a row. That leaves at least 14 more days in the month that the parent can catch up on the parenting part of the child's life.

Believe me, I understand the frantic rushing around of meeting work demands, home demands, and life in general demands. But there is a time to say "No" to the optional things. I recently chose to stand down from my office in my sorority because I know it was taking too much from my time with my children, as well as finding the time to perform the duties that aren't seen during the meetings. I love my sisters in the sorority, but they want me to be at my best, so they were very understanding when I chose not to run for the office again.

That's only one example of slowing yourself down in your frantic life. If you sat down and even just thought about all the little things like that you do outside of the absolute demands of work and home life, you would be amazed at how much time you could find to be with your family. I have even told my mother that I need a weekend at home to do my housework, so going to town was out of the question for me. She understands. If the person asking something from you cannot understand when you say no, that is too bad. You sometimes have to put yourself first, so you can put your family first.

Frantic activity is most often the result of not making wise choices - believe me, I know. I recall a number of last minute posting for my class, because I chose not to write the paper early in the week. If I hadn't fooled around, or put it off, I could have had quality time with my children instead of getting to know my keyboard. The students seem to thrive on this frantic time, and I just shudder. I wonder what their future holds.

Euphemism

I love the word euphemism. I vividly recall hearing George Carlin use the word in a routine regarding fussy eaters. It still makes me snicker.

I have euphemisms for many things, as do most people. Although, frequently I avoid euphemisms and go straight for the most sailor-like word to describe a thing or situation. Yes, I have been known to drop the f-bomb in very creative ways (just ask my mother). However, I also like some of the euphemisms I have discovered. My mother likes to say that people are from "here" or from "not here" - yes, seems obvious I know, but you may have had to have been there. I also call trucks that are obviously compensating for some shortcoming by another name.

My daughter calls shots "torture" when she has to get them. I call them "revenge." It's a point of view thing I'm sure. I call tattoos a "relaxation technique" while others may call them "painful." To each his own.

A favorite euphemism I have is for those very nice people who drive in a way that tends to make me a bit annoyed (another euphemism for having road rage), but this is not appropriate to share where young eyes may view.

I would love to read some of your favorite euphemisms, so please share them in the comments! Have a fantabulous day!!

Differences

I think today the topic will be Differences.

I love the fact there are differences in the world. It reminds me of a line from the much-maligned "Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves." The line is spoken by Morgan Freeman to a little girl who had asked him if God painted him. He said, "God loves rich and wondrous variety." Does that not just speak to you?

I love looking around and seeing different houses, different yards, different people. I love the different flowers blooming, the different games the children play in the summer, the different attitudes during the year. I enjoy the variety in my life. I enjoy my different life.

I have had the best conversations with people who are very different from me, and have learned so much. I have seen the simplest things bring the most diverse people together. Differences make for new ideas, new points of view. Walter Lippman's quote comes to mind here: "Where all think alike, no one thinks very much."

The further thought occurs that I have noticed some who take offense when I make a valid point/argument to something that has been stated by the person. This seems to make clear that the other person wants me to only think the way that person thinks. I don't like that idea. I have my opinions (right or wrong) and so does that person. I may not agree with that person 100%, but the person should be allowed their own opinion. Shouldn't I be allowed to have my own opinions?

I know that seems a bit hypocritical of me when I argue with students about education being important, but students haven't had enough life experience to understand the consequences of choosing to discontinue education. I find it strange that many of today's youth see education as an unnecessary evil, while a mere 2 decades ago, education was highly valued. Truly a confusing change in beliefs.

Anyway, today we should celebrate our differences! Notice someone very different from yourself, and acknowledge that those differences make that person special. Notice the variety in your own life, and appreciate it!

Create

Today's topic is Create. I believe that creating something is an excellent release, almost to the point of a necessity for many. I have also watched students struggle with creating a single simple sentence for a paper.

Why does this happen? For many of the students I work with, it has been a lack of confidence in ability. For other students it is a lack of ability. If I write what the student says, the inability to create seems to disappear. For me, facing a blank page can cause near panic attacks. I enjoy watching students suddenly have a burst of creativity, even if it is regarding a dry topic for an essay.

I have also been known to throw 5,000 words into a document in a few hours. Unusual, but it has happened. I also enjoy drawing, but that definitely takes me a great length of time. I didn't even know I could draw until I joined my mother for a class a few years ago! I even enjoy playing my flute and my saxophones (when they weren't broken). Although I am usually reading someone else's music, I am still creating music when I play my instruments.

I have seen my mother enjoy working with clay, or knitting, or painting, and she used to enjoy cross-stitch (those darn holes seem to get smaller and smaller, don't they?).

My daughter loves to write and draw, and so does my son. Girl has been drawing a lot, and has written some great starts to stories. Little Man has been drawing comic strips like crazy. I hope that they both stick with it.

I have a friend who writes quite a bit, and this seems to be a necessity. She says she has to get the ideas out or they poke and poke at her until she stops and writes.

I hope my readers have enjoyed creating things. W - thanks for my picture! Keep drawing, or coloring! I love what you give me! Even if you don't think you are creative, just try to create something, anything! It really doesn't have to be for public consumption. Just let yourself relax and create.

A to Z Blogging

I have heard about this A to Z blogging, which you can read more about here. It is an interesting concept. Basically you agree to post every day during the month of April, except Sundays, for a total of 26 days. Each day has a letter assigned to it, alphabetically (not too obvious there, was I?).

This year the people who accept the challenge would start on April 1 with a topic that starts with A, and then continue on during the month, except for Sundays. Additionally, the challenger will go to the blog immediately following the challenger's own blog. The site suggests setting a goal of visiting 5 or more blogs a day. Not only will a blogger have topics for 26 days of blogging, but gets to view other blogs (for ideas and learning about some awesome fantastic and magnificent people), and gain some additional traffic to their own blog.

It sounds like fun, and having a start on an idea for every day I write would be a novel experience. I am obviously too late this year, since it is Day 2 of the Challenge, but it has given me some ideas for the month, as well as something to look forward to next year.

That being said, I think today's topic was Blogging.