Photo a Day - July - Take 5

GOAL 22 - A PHOTO A DAY DURING MY 50TH YEAR

1. I love the words 

2. I wanna make a flower arrangement like this

3. Giant gnome at the garden center

4. Dr Danner is such a great vet - Barkley is healing beautifully

Completed

Goal 16 - Go to Comicon in Costume

Comicon 2019.

     I was supposed to go to Comicon as the Mad Hatter, and I had spent hours, and I mean hours, working on my costume. Unfortunately, after having a major surgery, I had to wear a brace around my torso, which meant my Mad Hatter costume no longer fit right. 

     So here I am as the 13th Doctor, and Amanda is Frya. (And if you know who Frya is, then your'e a bigger nerd then I am. I had to look her up). 

     However, the moment we arrived at Come-on, others were wanting to have their photos taken with Amanda and she immediately had a fan club. I really need to get my nerd on so I can keep up. :)

     It was a FANTASTIC experience, and I recommend anyone that has thought about going to just go. I loved all the costumes, the great atmosphere, and the events you could participate in.

     When me and Amanda were walking from the parking lot to the conference center, people were staring at us like we were idiots. Even while driving on the freeway, people gave us some strange looks. But the moment we walked through the doors for the conference center we were with our peeps. In fact, I felt rather under dressed compared to many that were there. 

     It was a little reminder, that in life there are times that we don't fit in. Take me, for instance. I'm a self proclaimed weirdo, and I love it. I know that I am not everybody's cup of tea, and that's okay. But we all have a place where we belong. We just have to be willing to embrace who we are, and find like minded peeps.

Keep the dream alive

Hey, Ellen, I think you forgot to send my tickets

Oh Ellen, why?

Why, after spending season 16 trying to get tickets to the show, did I never get to go?

When I checked last, you were out of tickets. The season is booked. 

After a gallon of bubble gum ice cream, I pulled myself together. It was then that I realized, "Ellen can do ANYTHING." If you wanted to put two extra chairs in the audience, whose gonna argue with Ellen? Maybe the fire department because of the whole, "you can only have so many people in a building at one time" thing, but I have no doubt you could make them see things your way.

When applying for tickets, instead of only asking for a photo, I think you should have a section  called, "Why I deserve to be on the Ellen show."

Here's 10 reasons you should have me on your show.

1. I have a Ridiculist to complete. I can't let down the two or three people that check my blog.

2. I wanna see my BFF, Amanda, dance off with Twitch. The girl's got moves.

3. I wouldn't ask for an autograph or selfie together. Although, if you insisted, a selfie together would be brilliant. Just think, you could make it your profile pic;)

4. My cat died and I think tickets to the Ellen Show would be therapeutic and healing  ;)

5. I think Portia would want this for me ;)

6. I'm fat and being on your show would make me fat AND happy.

7. I became an American Citizen in March .

8. I'm turning 50 this year, and who knows how long I have left.

9. You'd really like me if you met me. You'd actually wish you had met me sooner.

10. We have so much in common - We both like Gorilla's. We both wear shoes. We're both women. And we're both normal.

Life lesson from Mr. Harket

Take On Me.

Many years ago when I was just a teen, I was with some friends in the local record shop when several huge guys walked in, dressed in black tops, pants and leather dusters. They looked like they had just fallen out of the Matrix. The men proceeded to tell everyone to leave the store at once because Morten Harket (lead singer of AHA) wanted to make a purchase there.

Being teenagers, we were all reluctant at first, but we soon grasped how serious they were as they grabbed us one by one and physically removed us from the store. 

That's where I saw him. Morten Harket, in the flesh. His beautiful wavy hair moved in the wind like a Pantene commercial, but his face didn't have the beautiful smile I was used to, he just sneered at us before entering the now empty store. He was dressed the same as his bodyguards, and as they went inside, it was only then I noticed that all the black dusters had the band name in huge white letters on the back. Clearly anonymity wasn't a priority.

Two body guards stayed outside, making it clear that they had no problem putting an end to any attempt we made to go back inside, even though not one of us had made a move.

I'm not sure how long we were there, but when Morten came back outside, I asked if I could have his autograph. We weren't screaming or yelling, behaving like wild fans. We were just a bunch of scared kids, with our backs against the wall, hoping that our idol would at least acknowledge us. 

He stepped over to me and pulled out a pen. He waited for me to find something for him to sign, and all I could find in my pockets was my City of Nottingham bus ticket. I asked him to sign the back, which he did. I could have melted, but didn't, seeing as he still looked at me as though I was the most disgusting thing he'd laid eyes on.

I looked at my ticket, expecting to see his autograph, only to see that he had written F#@K OFF. No name, just an expletive. 

I thought I was going to cry as I looked back at him, hoping this was some weird joke. He was smiling now, but not a friendly one, and then he spoke. "Next time ask for a signature stupid, not an F-ing autograph." And as he turned his back on me he spat the words, "If you had a brain, you'd know an autograph is just a sample of writing. So you got what you asked for."

I felt humiliated, not only in front of my peers, but by someone I idolized. I tried to hold back the tears, but I had no desire to hang out with my friends any longer. I just wanted to go home. 

My friends tried to convince me to stay, telling me what a jerk Morten Harket was and how they wanted to make a pact to never buy another AHA record. LOL As if our contribution would make an impact on him.

As I went to leave, my friends encouraged me to rip up the "sample of writing." Instead, I put it inside my wallet. And it stayed there right into my adult life, as a reminder of what I never wanted to become.

For all I know, Morten Harket may have been having a bad day. That's the excuse we give people when they are jerks, right? But to me, there is no excuse to make another human feel small. 

We live in a world of inspirational quotes on Pinterest, staged photos on Instagram with the #no filter,  and celebrities reminding us to be kind. And as much as we splash slogans across our shirts and promote the words, are we honestly backing up those beliefs with our behavior and the way we treat others?

I've finally accepted that I am above and beneath NO ONE. 

I've learned that kindness, sincerity, integrity and love, are the only qualities I truly want to possess, and my favorite qualities in others.

Turning 50

Accepting 50

I doubt I'm the first woman to dread the big 50. If I'm being honest, I admit that I practically fell apart over turning 40. Yet, here I am, on the cusp of my own midlife adventure.

50 Ways to Enjoy Turning Fifty has been a fun tool in teaching me to not only accept this stage of life, but to embrace all the wonderful changes that happen at this time of life. 

It's easy to notice the grey hairs, and crows feet, the creaks and groans first thing in the morning as you get out of bed, and miss the spring you once had in your step as a youth. But what of the other changes, the upside of turning 50?

1. I care less about what people think of me

2. I speak my mind

3. I'm happy with my own company and learned to embrace who I am

4. I've stopped comparing myself to other women, and begun loving the beauty that is uniquely mine

5. I've accepted that I'm not everybody's cup of tea, and I'm okay with that.

6. I'm proud to be a a British born, English/Jamaican/American Woman.

7. I believe in God. Not because of anyone or anything other than my own personal experiences and conversations with Him. And through my own personal prayers.

8. I no longer feel the need to apologize for who I am, but I'm not too self absorbed to think I shouldn't own and be responsible for the things I do.

7. And best of all, I feel no need to prove any of these things to anyone else, other than by living a good life, being a good friend, and loving my family.

I wish these things for EVERYONE, because we all deserve to love ourselves, accept ourselves, find peace and contribute to the world around us.