Thursday, January 31, 2008

the mission - create a story

i had an idea to create a scene or story that had to include a list of words in it. there are 10 words that must be used. they do not have to be used in any particular order. you can use alternate meanings of the words, or their normal usage. the story can be a run-on sentence, or a paragraph(s). you can use as many of the key words in a sentence that you want. after writing your story, you should tag 3 others to do the same.

i tag:
sara, ed, adam

the words:
1. pot 2. pan 3. spoon 4. fork 5. knife 6. glass 7. fire 8. water 9. light 10. sink

the story:
i saw him going the other direction - skipping, playing a pan flute. it sounded like water making its way down a stream. i closed my eyes to let it sink in. when i opened my eyes again the sun had moved behind the branches of an old oak tree. the light that shone through was dappled and wonderful looking. i stared at the sun through that tree for i don't know how long. finally i started up again, making my way down the dusty dirt path. when i came to the fork in the road i went left. as i rounded a corner i saw the lake, with water as smooth as glass, stretching off into the distance. i picked up my pace, needing to make a fire before the sun went down. when i get back, a fire is already going. she had made it. and now she was looking through my bag. i say, "if you're looking for pot, you won't find any." she looks up with a devilish smirk, "HA HA!" followed by "who doesn't bring a knife camping?" i show her where the knife is. after dinner we sit by the fire, moving closer to it as the night gets colder. i yawn and say it's time to go to bed. "do you want to be the big spoon or the little spoon?" i tell her i want to be the big spoon.

Monday, January 28, 2008

overwhelmed

i would have to assume that we all are overwhelmed by life and events sometimes. it could be something positive or good, like a marriage or a baby or a vacation. or it could be something negative, like a failure or a mistake or a sadness. it could be an everyday life event that isn't one or the other. or it could be none of these. maybe it's hard to pin down.
i feel overwhelmed. i feel like i'm looking up out of a hole, wondering how i can get out.
or maybe like taking a walk. a long walk. its like i wanted to go on this walking journey, so i started walking. so i've been walking and walking and walking. for days and weeks and months and years. and i've gone a long way. a long way. but i'm done with my walk now, and i'd like to get back home. how the hell do i get home? i don't know how to get home. and it's overwhelming me. it drains me. it's eating at me; killing me slowly. my mind, my heart, my spirit, my body, my will. my drive and desire. the only part of my body that works are my tear ducts. the only part of my mind that works is the self-hate.
what i just said may look or sound bad; but it's not too bad. i figure there are 100 parts that make up the person that i am. this is only 1 part. but this is the part that spilled out of me today.
connected to this - but apart from it - is the idea of someone to listen to me and my problems who has no connection to me. the idea of giving every detail to a person to examine and study and come to a conclusion about (and maybe give an answer or direction), unlike the vague blurry generalities i present here. i know that these people exist, and that they're called therapists. i know this.
it's about time for lunch, so i'm gonna stop here.

Monday, January 21, 2008

weekend events

i went down to bakersfield this last saturday to hang out with my friend woody because his wife was out of town and he had nothing else to do. so we just hung out, watched tv, and then went to see charlie wilson's war. the movie was rated r for nutidy, language, and war violence...but if you can handle that ok, i think you would enjoy this movie. i haven't read up to see how accurate the movie was to actual historical events, but it seemed like it could have been close. i enjoyed it. i thought the actors did a good job (tom hanks, julia roberts, and philip seymour hoffman), and the story moved well. i'm glad i saw this movie over practically everything else showing. i would have watched sweeney todd and juno, too. so i'll need to see those some other time.
and one other thing. after the movie we went out for a drink (i don't remember the name of the place), and while we were sitting at the bar some people were leaving and we overhear a comment. what is the comment? it's one guy saying to his friend, "hey, that guy looks like serj from system of a down." i heard it, but didn't put two and two together. but woody turns to me and asks if i heard what he said, and says that people say stuff like that quite often. so that was pretty funny.

Friday, January 11, 2008

self image

i took a picture of myself last night, but i didn't like it so i deleted it. if someone else was there to look at it, they probably would have said that it was fine. i would like to see myself through other peoples eyes...maybe...just for a day. what do people see when they see me? what do people think about me, or feel about me, when they see me? i know that there is more to a person than their looks; and when you look at a person you see more of them than just their looks. the more you know a person (family, friend, spouse/other), the more "extras" you see or project on to the image your eyes are taking in. language seems so...inadequate (or maybe just my ability to understand and/or express it). i wish i could express better what i see when i look at people (maybe only sometimes i wish this). maybe that's why i didn't like the picture i took last night. because sometimes i see everything about me (all of the "extras", good or bad) and sometimes that overwhelms the picture, pours out of it, ruins it. can anyone understand what i'm saying, whether they agree or not, or is this just confusing? maybe someone else can better say, or elaborate on, or further explain what i tried to start here.

Monday, January 07, 2008

Why i hesitate

Now, i'm not talking about this to offer excuses...this is just how i feel. They may not be appropriate or logical reasons...but they are my reasons.
I'm turning in an application for an apartment today, and i'm nervous. I may have less-than-perfect credit and i may be poorly qualified, but i don't like that someone is going to tell me that. I let these fears and feelings affect me too much. I may get the apartment. My credit score may be better than i think. But this man who i do not know, who i may never even see again, gets to look into my life and make a decision about me...and i don't like that feeling at all. Control. I like to be in control, and in this situation i am not in control.
I was going to move on to other situations/circumstances/parts of my life, but i've changed my mind and am going to stop here.

Wednesday, January 02, 2008

what does a new year mean

in the fairy tale land part of my brain that i keep hidden way in the back, a new year equals a fresh start and the chance to enforce resolutions (resolutions which of course you'll keep). but i've given up on that. not that i don't want these things, just that i know me...and me never accomplishes these things. sad - maybe. pathetic - maybe. true - definately.
so what do i wish to achieve this year? i'll list many things here, and maybe one or more of them will be accomplished/acquired/experienced/and whatever else.
1. a career. what i mean by this is a job/career that can allow me to live comfortably (either by myself or with someone else); a job that i for the most part enjoy; the possibility to advance/improve/change.
2. a relationship. i thought of saying "love" here, but you can have love without having a relationship. you can also have a relationship without having love, but i don't want to get into that right now. but a relationship that would last me for the rest of my life. a woman that would love me the way i am (i would be willing to change some) and that i could love just as she is. i'm going to leave this point short, so moving on.
3. a healthy body. i used to go to the gym and play sports/be active all the time. used to. and my body reflected that. not that i could ever be the same person i used to be, i could be better than i am now. riding a stationary bike, using a rowing machine, lifting weights, eating better (much better), cutting back on the sodas, streaching (either yoga or just streaching). these are all things that can contribute to improved health, and weight loss. sounds great, i just need to do it.
4. get outdoors/travel more. i don't need to go anywhere exotic or thousands of miles away. but sequioa would be good. yellowstone would be good. northern california (beach, mountains, forests), southern california (beach), oregon or washington and so on and so on. included in this could be visiting/vacationing with friends (colorado, las vegas, etc.).
5. feed friendships. i have developed some good friendships (either by myself or with the help of others) and i want to strengthen them as well as make more. i've let some friendships die from lack of involvement. i've killed some by only taking and not giving. some i gave up on for the wrong reasons. but some i still have, and i want those to get better and better. so i want to give more to friends, learn more about them, be there for them when they need me, be there for them when they don't need me, be there for them when i need them.
6. get out of debt. or at least improve/minimize it.
7. find god. it's not that i don't know him, it's just that i don't know where he is in my life. i got careless and now i've lost him. he either fell out of my pocket or got left on a chair or was lent to a friend (which friend, i don't know). and it's not that finding him would solve all of my problems. there is a good chance that it won't solve any of them. but i'd still like to find him.
8. learn about my background. i know a little. but not much. i'd like to know alot more. generations and generations worth. back to who came here when from where. and back and back and back. i don't know how far back i will be able to go, but i have to try before i know.
9...
i can't think of anything else right now, but i guess that's a start.