Wednesday, September 30, 2009
Tuesday, September 22, 2009
Thank You My Friends
Years ago I read this saying: “What is the question for which my life is the answer.” I believe it’s translated from Hebrew and has its founding in Hassidism, but I could be wrong. I wasn’t able to confirm that and only did a quick search. What’s important is that this question has stayed with me over time and I refer back to it every time I find myself at a crossroads.
Monday, September 21, 2009
Three Things In Life
1. Time
2. Words
3. Opportunity
Three things in life that can destroy a person:
1. Anger
2. Pride
3. Inability to forgive
Three things in life that you should never lose:
1. Hope
2. Peace
3. Honesty
Three things in life that are most valuable:
1. Love
2. Family & Friends
3. Kindness
Three things in life that are never certain:
1. Fortune
2. Success
3. Dreams
Three things that make a person:
1. Commitment
2. Honesty
3. Hard work
Monday, September 14, 2009
My First Twine-Up
I've been into Twitter big time for about six months now. So much so I have heard complaints that maybe I spend too much time there. I defend myself by offering that others watch hours of mindless TV and at least I'm interacting with people, but it seems the jury is still out on whether or not I could be more productive with my time. Regardless, I've learned a lot about interpersonal communication and netiquette or the lack there of. And on Twitter I really have met a very interesting and ecclectic cross section of people around the country and even the world. Meeting new people and making new friends are areas in my life that I had cordoned off for some reason and decidedly missed. I vowed for 2009 to change that and here, finally, is proof.
I attended my first Twitter event. It was a wine tasting hosted by Matt Horbund @mmwine at a fabulous restaurant called Himmarshee on Las Olas in Fort Lauderdale. Pictured are my husband Alan, me aka @reddywriting on Twitter and my friends Freda and Carol. I c0nnected with a dozen people I speak with regularly and had a really fun time. I look forward to the next one and count myself very fortunate to have made new friends live and in the flesh despite the fact that we began virtually.
Friday, September 11, 2009
The Thrill of Accomplishment
Wednesday, September 9, 2009
My Hero
Tuesday, September 8, 2009
The Alligator in the Shadow
Last night or rather this morning, I dreamt that a woman was eaten by an alligator. I watched the whole thing and was powerless to help. While the dream woke me and scared me, it wasn’t like other nightmares I have had. I think it was supposed to be prophetic.
Here’s what happened. I was at an event. A women’s event. There was a presentation; a woman speaker. She was the equivalent of a female Navy SEAL but since there are none, she was called something else. Her presentation was enjoyable; funny and inspiring. There was jewelry; lots of sparkly dangly earrings on display. The bathroom was behind a makeshift office/studio. There was only one. There was a group of women who were involved in the event. A clique. They were nice enough. I was making new acquaintances. Alan and Corey were there, but since it was my gig, Alan took the lead on Corey so I didn’t have to worry, which of course I did anyway, but less than if I were the only one in charge. After the event, I went to the bathroom, but the line was too long, so I decided not to wait. Alan was getting impatient, constantly asking me to leave. I don’t know why I couldn’t leave. I kept feeling tugged in two directions.
Then I found myself outside at night, in the dark, on a fairly well lit street. The women were jogging, in a group. I was with them. They weren’t running fast. All were fit and wearing cute athletic clothing. The street was a dead end and one of the women lived in the last house on the block. It was a nice corner lot with lots of land. The dead end was blocked off by a guard rail. It seemed safe enough. The weird thing was the grass was dead or at least uncared for. There wasn’t a lot of landscaping either, but the house itself was nice; simple but nice. Inside the door I could see the floor was linoleum and littered with kid toys. It was very white. Not a lot of furniture, but not lacking either. I figured she must have been a stay at home mom. In fact, most of them were.
In front of the house there was a sidewalk, the street, more grass and than a canal. Across the canal were more homes; another neighborhood. Because I wasn’t part of this group, I wasn’t my normal chatty self. I was more introspective and observant. I was studying them, sort of. After the run, we gathered in the street in front of this woman’s house and said our goodbyes. I was apprehensive. I didn’t like the look of the canal or the dark, desolate feel to the end of this street, It just felt ominous.
Before I could say or do anything, one of the nice perky women who was still talking and saying her good byes, jogged over to the canal and looked in before she lept across it. At one spot she saw the dark shadow of an alligator and stopped herself from jumping in. She said something like, “Oh, there’s an alligator, I almost jumped in the wrong spot.” Then she just moved over 10 feet ran and jumped across. She missed the other side, of course, as she had countless times, landed in the water with a big splash and started to climb her way out over the bank. The alligator she saw didn’t move, but a larger one she didn’t see did. It swam underwater directly toward her. She was talking about it, saying, “Oh it’s an alligator” and then became panicked when it struck. There was a big splash and a scream, then lots of screams. The alligator pulled her underwater in a death roll and when she came up for air she screamed again. She must have screamed 6 or 8 times. I kept looking for blood, but I was too far away. All I saw was the dark shadow and splashing. I was transfixed. Glued to the spot. I couldn’t believe what I was seeing. No one seemed to do anything. Yes, all along, I knew what had happened was going to happen, but I was helpless to stop it and yet it seemed like this was an everyday hazardous occurrence to those around me.
When the screaming stopped, I was a confused, shaking mess. Everyone around me seemed to start moving again. Husbands were called, children located and yet no one called the authorities. No one ran from the alligators. It was as if they just accepted that this happened and moved on.
Afterwards I found a cell phone and called Alan. I could barely talk, I was so shaken. Somehow I managed to get to the mall where Alan and Corey were. I was relieved to see them. I desperately wanted to cry, feel or do something, but I couldn’t. I was numb. Then I realized it was a dream. I forced myself awake and just lay there trying to figure it out.