The prompt for today is "Do you enjoy being alone? Would you rather be around other people?"
I love being alone. I love the solitude and the ability to do just what I want to do and not think about who else is there and what their needs are. I have always loved being alone and have even been somewhat of a loner at times. I am sure if I had not had children I would live up on a mountain somewhere and eke my existence out by the land.
I like being around other people sometimes, especially those of the super short variety. The ones that are between their 1st and 5th year of life. Those are some of my favorite people. I love their energy and innocence and their lack of concrete reasoning skills. I love that you can stand behind a three year old and be hidden from view. I love that you can put your hand over your face and be gone. I love things like when a friend's five year old wanted me to hide behind the couch with him, because obviously if he fits there, so do I. haha. I love that they love singing silly songs and dancing to silly songs and giggling and falling down. I love that you can break a graham cracker into four pieces and magically give them "more". haha. Toddlers and pre-schoolers are the best. I love their screaming temper tantrums (especially if they are not my very own toddlers) and I love their little voices when they are being earnest and I love to hear them laughing.
As far as being around other people...the non super short ones...yeah, it's ok some of the time. And other times it just makes me hate people. I'm not really a people friendly person, although my friends would often disagree with that. I am amazed at the stupidity of people and disgusted by how mean and awful they can be to one another. (not that I've never been stupid or mean)
I super enjoy being with my friends. But I like people in very small doses and in small groups or one on one. I am not comfortable around big parties or gatherings. I am not one to want to go spend time with a huge group of people even in someone else's home and even if I know most of the people at the gathering. I will go to things, but I'm usually very self conscious and even shy. I will usually focus on one or two people. Sometimes I get so self-conscious that I will sit there with an empty glass when I really want to refill it, but I am too nervous to actually get up and walk across the room. I'm not sure why that is. I know I lack confidence so I'm sure it's related to that. I will find a spot to sit and sometimes I will sit in that same spot the whole time I am at the gathering. That's just how I roll.
So, the short answer if that I truly enjoy being alone. I am dying to try out this empty nest thing I've heard so much about. And yet, I can really enjoy being around other people, too. There's no easy answer to this question and I'm starting to fall asleep. This is kind of a rambling blog, I guess! So goodnight and I'll see what I can come up with for tomorrow.
Showing posts with label friends. Show all posts
Showing posts with label friends. Show all posts
Thursday, November 24, 2011
Thursday, January 13, 2011
Friendship
I tried to find the source of some pictures with quotes that my longtime friend, Cheryl, sent me in an email and found two more quotes that I really liked.
Friends are God’s ways of apologizing for our families.
~ Anonymous
I so agree with this one. We all know we can't choose our family. It is what it is, and sometimes the friends in our life are much closer to us than those we call family. Oftentimes we would prefer our friends to be our family. And many times I've witnessed where friends became the family that a person didn't have in their blood relatives.
It takes a long time to grow an old friend.
~ John Leonard
So true. My friend, Cheryl, has been in my life for all of my adult life. We became friends when I was still in my teens, and she was a young married mother about to give birth to twins. I'm not sure she really believed she was going to have twins. They didn't have ultra sounds in those days. But she did give birth to identical twin girls. I loved babies and was so excited to have a friend that had twins. I still remember going over to her house to help with them, and give them their baths in the sink. I often babysat them and their older sister while she and her husband went out for the evening.
It was kind of funny because I was dating the man who was to later become my first husband. He would call me up for a date and I would tell him I had already agreed to babysit the twins and Tina. He would offer to go with me and help me out, so our "dates" were going over to Cheryl's and babysitting! I don't know a lot of men who would have thought that was fun, but Michael loved it as much as I did. It sure did make taking care of them much easier.
Cheryl and I have been friends for over 41 years. We have seen each other through many things and while we may not agree on everything, we have both worked to maintain the friendship over time. We have had periods where we didn't see each other for long stretches. Things just got busy for us, or we lost touch by moving or circumstances changing. By chance we would run into each other again and start right back where we left off. Since then we have both been determined to make sure we don't lose touch again, and we make time for each other almost every week when we get together for breakfast. There's just nothing better than a good friend who has been through life with you.
I love you, Cheryl and hope we have many more years to come!
Here are the pictures that Cheryl sent in the email. I couldn't find any information to post about their source, but since they are going around the internet, through the emails, I think it will be alright to post them here. If anyone knows the source, I would gladly acknowledge the person who put the quotes and pictures together!
Enjoy!
Friends are God’s ways of apologizing for our families.
~ Anonymous
I so agree with this one. We all know we can't choose our family. It is what it is, and sometimes the friends in our life are much closer to us than those we call family. Oftentimes we would prefer our friends to be our family. And many times I've witnessed where friends became the family that a person didn't have in their blood relatives.
It takes a long time to grow an old friend.
~ John Leonard
So true. My friend, Cheryl, has been in my life for all of my adult life. We became friends when I was still in my teens, and she was a young married mother about to give birth to twins. I'm not sure she really believed she was going to have twins. They didn't have ultra sounds in those days. But she did give birth to identical twin girls. I loved babies and was so excited to have a friend that had twins. I still remember going over to her house to help with them, and give them their baths in the sink. I often babysat them and their older sister while she and her husband went out for the evening.
It was kind of funny because I was dating the man who was to later become my first husband. He would call me up for a date and I would tell him I had already agreed to babysit the twins and Tina. He would offer to go with me and help me out, so our "dates" were going over to Cheryl's and babysitting! I don't know a lot of men who would have thought that was fun, but Michael loved it as much as I did. It sure did make taking care of them much easier.
Cheryl and I have been friends for over 41 years. We have seen each other through many things and while we may not agree on everything, we have both worked to maintain the friendship over time. We have had periods where we didn't see each other for long stretches. Things just got busy for us, or we lost touch by moving or circumstances changing. By chance we would run into each other again and start right back where we left off. Since then we have both been determined to make sure we don't lose touch again, and we make time for each other almost every week when we get together for breakfast. There's just nothing better than a good friend who has been through life with you.
I love you, Cheryl and hope we have many more years to come!
Here are the pictures that Cheryl sent in the email. I couldn't find any information to post about their source, but since they are going around the internet, through the emails, I think it will be alright to post them here. If anyone knows the source, I would gladly acknowledge the person who put the quotes and pictures together!
Enjoy!
Monday, January 10, 2011
Getting out more.
The road to a friend's house is never long.
Danish Proverb
My friend, Becky, gave me a wooden plaque with that message on it a few years back. I have it hanging on the wall. It took me a long time to realize that it should also include me. In other words....why did I always expect that everyone should come to my house?
This is something I have really had to work on this past two years. When I joined the "101 in 1001 Mission", it was one of my goals to stop being such a hermit. I made it a goal to go to my friends's houses more often, instead of always expecting them to come to my house. I also made it a goal to get out more and do things and go places. It is so easy for me to be a hermit and shut myself away from the world. I love my home and being in it and I have to work to leave it on the days when I don't work.
I have made good progress on this goal. Becky and I have made many trips in the last year and have had some really nice times going new places and seeing new things. I have also gone to visit more people and not copped out on going to functions. It's not been easy, but it has been fun. I am not a person who really likes crowds and big parties or gatherings. I have been making myself go to some of these things and have actually had fun.
I am going to continue to try and get out more and spend more time with some of the people I hardly ever see because of my swing-shift schedule. I can actually go places in the mornings and still go to work in the afternoon. haha. It's a work in progress, but I am making progress. Which reminds me...I really need to go check out my goals and see how I'm doing. The challenge ends this September and I think I have a LOT of reading to do.
Sunday, January 09, 2011
Friends...the definition and some quotes.
You have a good life if you have even just one good friend. I'm not sure if that is a quote or just a thought. I read a lot and maybe I read it somewhere, but friends sure do make traveling through this life easier. Here is the definition I found online. I think I could come up with more definitions if I gave it a minute, but I slept in today and I'm trying to finish rearranging my farms so I can spend less time farming and more time being productive. Tomorrow I begin my whirling dervish period, so today was my last lazy day! Wish me luck on my projects!
friend (frnd)
n.
1. A person whom one knows, likes, and trusts.
2. A person whom one knows; an acquaintance.
3. A person with whom one is allied in a struggle or cause; a comrade.
4. One who supports, sympathizes with, or patronizes a group, cause, or movement: friends of the clean air movement.
Friends are those rare people who ask how you are and then wait for the answer.
Author Unknown
A friend is someone who knows all about you, and loves you just the same.
Proverb
The road to a friend's house is never long.
Danish Proverb
Walking with a friend in the dark is better than walking alone in the light.
Helen Keller
Don't walk in front of me, I may not follow;
Don't walk behind me, I may not lead;
Walk beside me, and just be my friend.
Albert Camus
A friend is a gift you give yourself.
Robert Louis Stevenson
It is the friends you can call up at 4 a.m. that matter.
Marlene Dietrich
I don't need a friend who changes when I change and who nods when I nod; my shadow does that much better.
Plutarch
A true friend is one who thinks you are a good egg even if you are half-cracked.
Author Unknown
friend (frnd)
n.
1. A person whom one knows, likes, and trusts.
2. A person whom one knows; an acquaintance.
3. A person with whom one is allied in a struggle or cause; a comrade.
4. One who supports, sympathizes with, or patronizes a group, cause, or movement: friends of the clean air movement.
Friends are those rare people who ask how you are and then wait for the answer.
Author Unknown
A friend is someone who knows all about you, and loves you just the same.
Proverb
The road to a friend's house is never long.
Danish Proverb
Walking with a friend in the dark is better than walking alone in the light.
Helen Keller
Don't walk in front of me, I may not follow;
Don't walk behind me, I may not lead;
Walk beside me, and just be my friend.
Albert Camus
A friend is a gift you give yourself.
Robert Louis Stevenson
It is the friends you can call up at 4 a.m. that matter.
Marlene Dietrich
I don't need a friend who changes when I change and who nods when I nod; my shadow does that much better.
Plutarch
A true friend is one who thinks you are a good egg even if you are half-cracked.
Author Unknown
Saturday, January 08, 2011
Friends
Friends is the theme this month and I've been thinking how nice it is to have friends and how sometimes it's kind of like the tide. The friendships ebb and flow over time. I have had friends that were actually great friends even though we saw each other very seldom. Sometimes our schedules were just opposite, or sometimes there were other extenuating factors that made it difficult to actually get together, but when we did finally find the time to reach out to one another it was like no time at all had passed since we last saw each other. Sometimes you spend so much time with one friend and don't have any time for another.Sometimes you have a couple of friends with whom you get together and spend time many times over the course of a year as a group. Friendships come in all sizes, shapes and colors and hundreds of configurations. There is just no one way to define friendship.
I've come to learn that friendship survives these kind of things if you and the other person truly have an understanding and a strong bond of some kind. I've also learned that some people cannot handle friendship that is not exclusive and 24/7. I, myself, prefer the friendships that are tested over time and remain strong with or without actually spending tons of time together. 24/7 friendships tend to wear me out and I've found that many of the people who want that type of friendship have issues if another friend needs your time or things happen in your life that cause you to be unavailable to them. I've also found that those who want a 24/7 style of friendship are often not true friends. I'm not sure why that is, but it has proven true to me more times than once.
I didn't really have a direction with this blog. I just was thinking about the subject at hand because the blogs I've written so far this month have very little to do with friends per se. They have been picture blogs about things that I saw one day on a trip out with a friend, just not anything about friendship in general. I think I will try to find some good stuff about friendships and some philosophical sayings and post a few blogs about what makes friendships special. Maybe I can even tie it into some of my best friendships and give some kudos to the folks I call friends, whether we have met in real life or only on the internet and what makes them special to me. I will try to start tomorrow, but maybe not until Monday. Tomorrow is supposed to be my LAST lazy day of the lazy streak I've been having. So I just might need to take full advantage of it and be VERY LAZY because Monday I am going to turn into a whirling dervish! That's just how I roll!
I've come to learn that friendship survives these kind of things if you and the other person truly have an understanding and a strong bond of some kind. I've also learned that some people cannot handle friendship that is not exclusive and 24/7. I, myself, prefer the friendships that are tested over time and remain strong with or without actually spending tons of time together. 24/7 friendships tend to wear me out and I've found that many of the people who want that type of friendship have issues if another friend needs your time or things happen in your life that cause you to be unavailable to them. I've also found that those who want a 24/7 style of friendship are often not true friends. I'm not sure why that is, but it has proven true to me more times than once.
I didn't really have a direction with this blog. I just was thinking about the subject at hand because the blogs I've written so far this month have very little to do with friends per se. They have been picture blogs about things that I saw one day on a trip out with a friend, just not anything about friendship in general. I think I will try to find some good stuff about friendships and some philosophical sayings and post a few blogs about what makes friendships special. Maybe I can even tie it into some of my best friendships and give some kudos to the folks I call friends, whether we have met in real life or only on the internet and what makes them special to me. I will try to start tomorrow, but maybe not until Monday. Tomorrow is supposed to be my LAST lazy day of the lazy streak I've been having. So I just might need to take full advantage of it and be VERY LAZY because Monday I am going to turn into a whirling dervish! That's just how I roll!
Saturday, January 01, 2011
January, 2011. Wow.
I've decided to do the January NaBloPoMo monthly blogging. The theme for this month is "Friends". I have decided I will start with photos of my trip out last Wednesday with my friend, Becky, and my grandson, Logan. We had a really nice time. It was a beautiful sunny day with snow on the ground.
First, we visited a little wildlife preserve. It was Winterfest at Morse Wildlife Preserve. I had never heard of the Morse Wildlife Preserve in Graham, but it is a nice little place. They took us on a comfortably paced, guided walk through their property. We identified plants and birds and just enjoyed the lovely day. Logan was able to make himself an owl mask in the little barn before we went on our walk. They have a nice little look-out tower, easy to climb the stairs and with a beautiful view of the surrounding land. Here are some of the pictures. Tomorrow I will post the pictures from our Northwest Trek excursion.
Ready to glue.
Watching the helper take the lid off his glue.
The finished product.
Gorgeous day with a gorgeous view.
Posing for Grandma.
Snowy bushes.
This tree lost its battle with nature.
From the tower showing the neighboring property..
One of the ponds formed during the wet season in the wetlands.
Logan looking around from the tower.
The barn where they had the crafts and informative materials. They had hides from several animals, a owl that was preserved through taxidermy and many pamphlets and pictures, plus hot cocoa!
First, we visited a little wildlife preserve. It was Winterfest at Morse Wildlife Preserve. I had never heard of the Morse Wildlife Preserve in Graham, but it is a nice little place. They took us on a comfortably paced, guided walk through their property. We identified plants and birds and just enjoyed the lovely day. Logan was able to make himself an owl mask in the little barn before we went on our walk. They have a nice little look-out tower, easy to climb the stairs and with a beautiful view of the surrounding land. Here are some of the pictures. Tomorrow I will post the pictures from our Northwest Trek excursion.
Ready to glue.
Watching the helper take the lid off his glue.
The finished product.
Gorgeous day with a gorgeous view.
Posing for Grandma.
Snowy bushes.
This tree lost its battle with nature.
From the tower showing the neighboring property..
One of the ponds formed during the wet season in the wetlands.
Logan looking around from the tower.
The barn where they had the crafts and informative materials. They had hides from several animals, a owl that was preserved through taxidermy and many pamphlets and pictures, plus hot cocoa!
Sunday, April 11, 2010
On being a great-grandma...
I took a couple of days off so I could attend a baby shower today. It was for my granddaughter, Rachel, who is having her second little girl. This will be my third great-grandchild! So exciting!
Technically speaking, I am not really related to Rachel, her sister, Robyn, and their mom, Lisa. Lisa was my stepdaughter when I was married to her dad, who is also my son Jeren's dad. She is Jeren's oldest sibling and therefore, Jeren's nieces, Rachel and Robyn, are pretty close in age to Jeren. Rachel is two years older and Robyn is three months younger than he is.
Lisa and I have always considered each other to be family and that's good enough for me. I took Nikki and Daelin along with me to the shower and they were so happy to see their Uncle David's baby! We had a good time and I got some pictures of my great-granddaughters and one of Daelin laughing at me.
Sahara in the swing.
Taylor, future driver!~
Lisa helping Taylor open her gift.
Lisa and Sahara.
Daelin laughing at Grandma.
It was a fun day. After the shower I took David and Nikki to the mall and Daelin and I went to Cheryl's for dinner and a visit. We didn't mean to go for dinner, but Cheryl was cooking when I phoned her. Dinner was delicious. (Cheryl is an excellent cook!) (and I'm not saying that just because she reads my blog, either!) ha ha.
It was a really nice visit, in which we both enjoyed spending time with the baby and just visiting. Normally, we like to go to breakfast on Saturday mornings and visit, but things have been busy for both of us lately. For you Canadian friends I can just say, "reno's". We all know what reno's do to our lives! Cheryl's reno's are way more extensive than mine, but still, it's a disruption either way!
Such a nice relaxing day. I really need to come out of my shell, more. I had so much fun today!
Technically speaking, I am not really related to Rachel, her sister, Robyn, and their mom, Lisa. Lisa was my stepdaughter when I was married to her dad, who is also my son Jeren's dad. She is Jeren's oldest sibling and therefore, Jeren's nieces, Rachel and Robyn, are pretty close in age to Jeren. Rachel is two years older and Robyn is three months younger than he is.
Lisa and I have always considered each other to be family and that's good enough for me. I took Nikki and Daelin along with me to the shower and they were so happy to see their Uncle David's baby! We had a good time and I got some pictures of my great-granddaughters and one of Daelin laughing at me.
Sahara in the swing.
Taylor, future driver!~
Lisa helping Taylor open her gift.
Lisa and Sahara.
Daelin laughing at Grandma.
It was a fun day. After the shower I took David and Nikki to the mall and Daelin and I went to Cheryl's for dinner and a visit. We didn't mean to go for dinner, but Cheryl was cooking when I phoned her. Dinner was delicious. (Cheryl is an excellent cook!) (and I'm not saying that just because she reads my blog, either!) ha ha.
It was a really nice visit, in which we both enjoyed spending time with the baby and just visiting. Normally, we like to go to breakfast on Saturday mornings and visit, but things have been busy for both of us lately. For you Canadian friends I can just say, "reno's". We all know what reno's do to our lives! Cheryl's reno's are way more extensive than mine, but still, it's a disruption either way!
Such a nice relaxing day. I really need to come out of my shell, more. I had so much fun today!
Saturday, November 07, 2009
Fortune cookies.
I keep accidentally posting my blogs right after I put the title up. Stooopid computer.
I just can't seem to get used to the keyboard on this new laptop.
So, anyway...
I thought it was pretty cool when my friend, Chris, and I went to dinner at PF Chang's and got these two fortunes in our fortune cookies.
It's pretty good stuff when the fortune cookie gods give you stuff like this. Hundreds of fortune cookies to choose from and we got these! Yep. Good stuff!
That's all I have for today. Happy blogging!
I just can't seem to get used to the keyboard on this new laptop.
So, anyway...
I thought it was pretty cool when my friend, Chris, and I went to dinner at PF Chang's and got these two fortunes in our fortune cookies.
It's pretty good stuff when the fortune cookie gods give you stuff like this. Hundreds of fortune cookies to choose from and we got these! Yep. Good stuff!
That's all I have for today. Happy blogging!
Wednesday, November 26, 2008
Wordless Wednesday, Smiling Faces
This turkey is a montage of all the faces that I took pictures of at our Tuesday Thanksgiving. There were friends, family and a scarecrow in attendance. The individual pictures are below. I forgot to include myself. If you click on it to enlarge it you can see the individual pictures.
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