I'm supposed to be working, but then I realized that I needed to feed my cyber puppy, so I was on facebook doing that and looking around. One of my friends mentioned that he has caved and has a blog. He has opinions. I think that my blog is for whining. I guess I must be a little embarassed about that because I haven't posted anything in forever. My thought at the moment is that whenever I comment about my status on Facebook, I seem to mostly be referring to work that I'm doing at work. I don't think that I have much interesting to say or interesting going on or I work too much. Or all of the above. How did I get here?

Just call me Esmerelda

One of my favorite sites is StoryPeople.com. I first learned about StoryPeople when Troy and I wandered into an art gallery in Charleston, SC, 8 years ago or so. Since that time, I have collected some of Brian Andreas' stories. Now, I get a story every day on my computer. I think I'm in somewhat of a whiney, poor me, exhausted mode - anxious for life change (in the direction that I want, of course), but no patience. In the meantime, I'm trying to keep it together and just inch forward, but it all seems chaos. I have always thought of myself as an organized person, but most days, I'm just trying to keep my head above water. Then I received this story that I thought described exactly how I feel on the inside.

Magic

She tapped her finger & nothing happened & she thought she had lost her magic, but it had only changed & it took her awhile to figure it out

Then this got me to thinking about the show, Bewitched. It feels like I'm sort of tripping through that "awhile" period, so that must make me Esmeralda.

Timely Message

I received this e-mail from a colleague with Southern Living at HOME. Besides that I just like sayings, words of wisdom, what have you, this was especially timely for me in more ways than one.

Are you afraid to try or are you afraid to fail?

A well-lived life is not for the timid. The world was never meant to be approached with extra caution and fear of making mistakes. Kids know that you have to jump in feet first and be willing to take some lumps on the head if you're going to have any fun. When did we stop trying new things? Why did we stop taking risks? In large part, we're afraid of messing up. We've settled into our comfort zones and don't want to look like a fool to ourselves or others. What's the price we pay for our pursuit of perfection? No growth, no sense of discovery, few real experiences. The sacrifice isn't worth it. Are there points in your life that you wish you could have back because you didn't pursue an idea or a new interest? Those chances are gone forever - but you'll have more in the future to take full advantage of. It's been said that most people don't learn much that's new past their 20s. That's an awful long time to stay stagnant. The only mistake you should be afraid to make is not trying.

Out of the Mouths of Babes

My daughter, Addison, has a favorite friend at pre-school. I'll call him "H" for privacy purposes. One evening as I pull into the garage after work, my daughter greets me at the door and says, "Momma, I had a good day at school! I didn't pee on H!" I said, "That's great! Have you peed on H before?" The teacher has never mentioned anything like this going on, so I'm not sure what to make of this information. It gave me a good laugh, though.