lalalalala, memememe Do Re Me....

Don't worry, I won't sing, It’s meme time. And not to be called a slacker, I have decided to not only do one, but two meme’s today. So I guess this is a memememe. The first one is from Kat from Heart2Heart blog. It is pretty easy. I just asked for 5 words and I am supposed to expound on them a bit.

Here are the five words that Kat gave me:

1. Love.
Love is one of those things that’s very hard to explain because it means different things to different people. I think it is a necessity in life and falls right in there with oxygen, food and water. Hey that would make a great song; Love is like Oxygen, you get too much you get too high, not enough and your gonna die. Ok, been done already.

2. Happiness.
I think the secret to happiness is to be satisfied with what you have. If you are looking for equality in this world you aren’t going to find it. Someone will always have more than you or something that seems better than you. The grass will always look greener on the other side. The secret is to quit looking over the fence and to make the most of what is in your pasture.

3. Work.
I am a workaholic. I have been working since I was 15. My first job was mowing lawns. I used to get 5 dollars to mow someone’s lawn. It was a huge one acre lot. The elderly woman only wanted it cut once a month so the grass was usually about a foot tall when it came time to mow it. I don’t think she had much money. I would mow, rake, edge the driveway, pull a few weeds and sweep the driveway all for 5 dollars. It usually took me about two to three hours to do all that. Afterwards, she would insist that I sit and cool off while she went to get my money. She would then offer me a soda which I always accepted. It was always a Fresca. Why did they ever change that recipe? Anywhoo, while I drank it she would talk and talk about all kinds of things. I think she was just lonely and needed someone to talk to. I know she had family but I never saw any of them visit her.

4. History
I have a confession. History was always my worst subject. I never saw much use in studying the past when there is nothing you can do about it. Of course later in life I heard; if you forget history you are destined to repeat it. I forget who said that though. When I was in the Navy and visiting Italy, we were offered a free tour of Pompeii. However since I slept through history classes, I didn’t know what Pompeii was so I passed on the tour. Oh well nothing I can do about that now…It’s history.

5. Inspiration
I must be easily inspired. I like little reminders around me to keep me inspired. Here are the ones that are in my office right now.

A little plaque that I got from Edie that has Genesis 2:15 on it.

A willie Nelson poster that says; Whatever happened to Peace on Earth?

A calendar photo of the Grand Canyon

An American Flag

A thank you Plaque from the Fort Johnson Baptist Ladies Softball Team.

Photos of children with cancer from Camp Happy Days.

A Weight Watchers water cup that isn’t being used at the moment. I only mention it because as I was looking around the room I saw it and at the same time a commercial came on the radio for Weight Watchers. Spooky.

Ok on to the next meme. It comes from Lid over at Second Cup of Coffee blog. It’s called the Random Dozen post. You simply answer the 12 random questions. Here are the questions with my answers:

1. Which is worse: a long, boring meeting or standing in a return/exchange line after Christmas? My wife will vouch for me on this one. I hate doing exchanges. I will regift before I return.

2. Except for maybe Rosie O'Donnell or Ann Coulter, nobody likes confrontation, yet we all have to deal with it. When you feel cornered and defensive, do you "bite back" or become passive aggressive? Neither. I let them have their say and then I subtly get even. They won’t even know it is me.

3. Do you know anything about your genealogical background? (What country, culture, ties to prominent historical figures, or other stuff.) Yes I do. One of my ancestors came over on the Mayflower. That’s the good news. The bad news is he was an indentured servant. Oh the shame of it all.

4. What is the quickest way a person can endear him/herself to you? Just say thank you.

5. Cake, pie, cookies, or ice cream? (Note there is no "all of the above" option. You must choose one. Feel free to elaborate on flavor or memories tied to this dessert.) If you'd like, you can share a recipe, but you certainly don't have to. Homemade peach ice cream. That’s the best.

6. Females: Do you regularly change your handbag to coordinate with your outfit? No but I would if I did.

7. Are you task-oriented or relationship-oriented? I am not oriented. I am American. Wait that’s Oriental. Sorry, my bad.

8. IHOP, Bob Evans or Cracker Barrel? This is a toughie. What happened to Shoneys? I will say IHOP.

9. Have you ever left a movie in progress in a theater? Why? Almost. The first time I saw Gone With the Wind, when it got to the intermission, I stood up and started to leave. Then my friends asked where I was going and I had to admit that I thought the movie was over. They laughed at me but Frankly my Dear, I don’t…..

10. What is one area of life in which you would like to develop more discipline or organization? Blogging. I am all over the place with my blogs.

11. Was middle school fun or painful?
Ahem. When I went to school we had Grade School, Junior High and Senior High. So I will go with Middle school. It was very painful for me. I was overweight and I got picked on every day. The IT kids played tricks on me continuously. And because I was dying to have friend (and had none) I fell for their tricks all the time. My worst memory was the day I got attacked on my way home by a group of boys that were in my class. As I was riding my bike home, I passed a group of black students. One of them picked up a rock about the size of a baseball and threw it at me and hit me in the head, knocking me off my bicycle. My books and trumpet were scattered all over the road but because I wasn’t popular, no one stopped to help me. I struggled to gather my stuff with blood running down from my head. As the boys caught up with me, they laughed at me, called me names, spit on me, hit me, and kicked my stuff all around and then went on. After I got my things picked up, I took a longer way home just so I didn’t have to pass them again. Painful enough?

12. What is your favorite Fall beverage? It’s the same all through the year….Coffee.

And that’s the truth, Have a Great day,
Greg