I'm Working

Yes, I know, I've gone and gotten lazy again. But, for good reason! (For you anyway.) I'm working on a bit of a mystery project (although those of you on Facebook probably know what it is). Until I've got the momentum going on that I'll be posting random prompts on Tuesdays  Feel free to write out responses to them and post (or link me to) them in the comments or on Facebook. Here it goes.

Prompt:
You wake up in the middle of a snow storm. You're not sure how you got there but it's apparent that you're going to need to find some shelter soon or you'll die. All you've got with you is a book of matches, a thin flannel blanket, and a shovel. But it seems you have company, because a good old Saint Bernard is with you. That, and for some reason you have a cello. What do you do now?

Irish Pub Dancing

Spring Break!

Enjoy it Monkeys. 

Love On A Post-it

I sign all my post-its with The Lonely Hearts Gang

So, would you like to know what a day at the mall with Princess Faith, Eiolbell, and Vintage Teen is like?

Over the weekend I joined in a mini-revolution organized widely Princess Faith (see her follow up here) and Eiolbell along with the fifteen-or-so people they invited as well (among the masses, Vintage Teen) inspired by Operation Beautiful, a mission to post anonymous Post-its with inspiring or loving messages on them in public places and in doing so changing the way you see yourself. Guys, I can't even tell you how much fun this is.

It started out with all of us piling into a fifteen seat-van we stole from church, all of us discussing tactics of posting our notes without being notice, shouting Superchic[k] and Veggie Tales songs at the top of our lungs. Then we dispersed with our groups to cover the mall in love. In my corner was Eiolbell, Vintage Teen's younger sister, and the ever-radiant Rachel The-Bomb-Dot-Com Scheafer. First stop for us was Forever XXI, where we absolutely bombed the place. There wasn't a mirror or dressing room in that place left un-covered, you couldn't turn a corner without seeing a Post-It. Next stop was at Claire's  which we covered with relative ease. After that was Khols, which is where we ran into trouble. We were all in general agreement that we should stop by the make-up section, so we swarmed it. I got to work quickly, posting where ever I could. However, after a few I noticed that everyone had scattered. As I lifted my head from a mid-thought Post-it, I noticed a rather disgruntled employee tear down one of the Post-its nearby by. It was then that she looked from the Post-it to me, holding pad and pen in hand, and glared.

    "Can I help you?"

    Nervous hand gestures and laughter. "Don't mind me, just going about my business, sampling your fine wares. Tell me, do you think peach suits me?"

I made a quick and daring get away, discovering my comrades hiding in the girl's junior's section. Upon my arrival, Eiolbell let out an agitated sigh. "Can you believe that woman? What a marsupial." (Don't ask me about the marsupial part. 0_0)

Well, that concluded our little extradition. We made our way to Cinnabon to meet up with the other groups and share our overwhelming success. (Minus Khols, upon which we all agreed that the woman there needed Jesus.) Our adult chaperon (as most of us were under-aged and it was a church sponsored event) commented on how she went back to Forever XXI and saw girls crowding around the notes we left, smiling. That made my week. Another thing I'll always remember is when someone asked me what my favorite note left was.

     "You're overall appearance pleases me. Persist in your efforts."

     One friends doubles over in laughter, calling me Sheldon. Another smirks and cocks her head. "So what's that mean in human speak?"

    "I like your shoes."

Overall the experience was incredible. I know I say that about a lot of things, but it felt so exhilarating to spread love and maybe make someone smile, no matter the Khols Make- Up Sections of the world. (Now I know that Khols is run by Satan, so there's that.) And, weirdly enough, it felt even better to do it anonymously. Now I'm keeping a pad and a pen in my pocket at all times, ready to write love on a Post-it.

So here's your dare, Monkeys. Do what we did. Go about you're week Posting encouraging Post-its where ever you can. Make someone's day. And when you do, picture your Post-its and send them to me and Caitlin over at Operationbeautiful.com.

And until then....

**Website Update**
Hey guys, if you're interested I recently published a short story on my website for you're viewing pleasure. Also make your way to my Facebook Page for regular updates on short stories, possible future videos and other news.

Stats Of The Week:

Song: God Is Bigger Then The Boogie Man by Veggie Tales

Book: Operation Beautiful by Caitlin Boyle

Word: Resplendent

Quote: "Imperfection is beauty, madness is genius and it's better to be absolutely ridiculous than absolutely boring."

~Marilyn Monroe

Just A Few Suggestions...

About life, in general. And maybe about writing.

-Words are empty

-Giving respect where respect is due is not a sign of weakness, it's a sign of wisdom

-Share faith freely, but do not look down on others for theirs

-Beware the words you say and the actions you take, they are liable to kill anyone (including yourself)

-Covet insanity, its only those who dare to think outside the box that escape it

-You best not sass your mother

-Peppermint tea can cure nearly everything

-Happiness is to sorrow as wakefulness is to sleep

-When downtown with friends, be ever vigilant of bikers

-Judgement is not humanities' job

-True forgiveness comes when you decide to let go

-Mondays are the worst

-Do not waste your life straying from the path

-Grammar is highly overrated

-So is culture

Stats Of The Week

Song: I'm For You by Tobymac

Book: Daughter of Smoke and Bone by Laini Taylor

Word:  Splendorous
Quote:  "In three words I can sum up everything I've learned in life; It goes on."
~Robert Frost

20 Things I Learned From Calvin And Hobbes

http://www.petapixel.com/2013/02/21/calvin-and-hobbes-photoshopped-into-photographs-of-real-locations/

*Post inspired by Micheal S. Den's Calvin and Hobbes Photoshop Collection (Link below picture)

-You don't need to be living to be a great character
-Even a six-year-old can crack a political joke or two
-Always watch your back, you never know when a tiger will be there
-Parents are communists
-Always drop a bait pillow to the floor when needing to pee in the middle of the night, think two steps ahead of the monsters
-Mosquitoes don't have teeth
-Seriously, beware of tigers
-Seriously, beware of monsters
-Two characters can be speaking English and yet still be speaking two completely different languages
-Main characters can be great story tellers
-When fishing, forget the fishing rod and just go for the nearest big rock or small boy
-Best guard the cookies when aliens land in your back yard
-Monsters will shrivel up at the sight of light, Fathers will not
-Imaginary friends are surprisingly witty and sarcastic
-Verse Six: Tigers are nimble and light on their toes, my respect for tigers continually grows...
-Apparently, time does not stop when your watch does
-Parents really are the best sometimes
-Tigers do not appreciate puns like humans do
-Imagination will take you just about anywhere
-Never underestimate the power of a good friendship, whomever it is you share it with

Stats Of The Week

Song:  White Page by Tanya Godsey

Book: The Authoritative Calvin and Hobbes By Bill Watterson

Word: Chimera

Quote: "Animals sometimes make a lot more sense then people do."

~Bill Watterson, The Authoritative Calvin and Hobbes

Sorry To Interrupt Your Regular Scheduled Programming....

Know those moments where you feel you could die happily? Yeah......

It's High Time I Got My Butt Kicked

Yes, I realize that this post is coming a bit late. But, in my defense, you're not my Mother. Thusly, I present to you this week's post. 

Weird title, ain't it? Yep, took me all of three seconds to come up with it. You know why? This week has been a week of learning for me. I literally thought of five different life lessons I'd learned from this week to write about before I thought of this post. That's how busy I've been. Yep, busy busy busy. Seems like all I do now is work. And I could go into detail about why I am so very busy, therefore boring you, the  Monkey, to death and effectively wasting more of my time. I'm not going to, however, because there's a more important lesson to be learned here that requires the immediate attention of all us young people. (And maybe a few old people too. Hey, I don't claim to know you. I ain't your Ma.) Well, actually, it's more of a tip then a lesson. Ah, no. It's more a lesson-ception if you know what I mean. What do they call it when you're thinking about thinking about something? Meta... meta-cognition! Yeah, it's something like that. 

Getting to the point, the topic of the week is, learning how to learn a really hard lesson!

Or, if you prefer, learning how to take a good swift kick in the pants. 

As I mentioned before, this week has brought me a many lesson, too many really. It's painstakingly taught me patience, the value of up front work, the fact that teachers are not to busy to email your parents should they think you are in trouble in your class (when really the morons don't know how to collect a freaking homework assignment). And through and through I've moaned, and I've whined, and I've half heartedly prayed that the Lord give me patience when really all I wanted was to break some sophomore's jaw. And it feels like this week will never end. But these little lessons God has planted for me, whether bluntly or subtly, are lessons I intend to take seriously. Don't get me wrong, right now I hate them and think that they're total malarkey, but let me check back with you in the morning with that. 

And there in lies my first point. It's okay to get mad at first. 

Whoever said that being angry is wrong is stupid. Anger is an emotion. Emotions are not wrong and emotions are not right. They are inevitable and a fundamental part of the human experience. Like death, anger is widely misconceived and more importantly neutral. It's what we do with anger or what we get from anger that ultimately decides what is good or bad. (Or, in my case, what is Godly and what is Ungodly, which I'll get too in a later post.) In this particular situation, my anger sends up some red flags for me. Is this really a lesson, or is this just the Universe being a meanie? It's later when I think on this thought and decide what is right that calms me down. See? Productive anger! Who knew, right?

Don't worry, everything's according to plan. 

It is so easy to blame every little thing in your life on the forces that may be conspiring against you. Fate, God, The Universe, Bad Luck, you name it. These are distractions, ploys, devices created to steer you away from any experience that could craft you into a better you. Believe it or not, everyone indeed has problems. Problems that hinder their lives and suck away their happiness. There is not a person on God's green earth who will not have something they are struggling with. However, much like humans, no two struggles are alike. Problems are tailored specifically to everyone's lives so that they might be able to become the best person they can be starting from birth and ending with death. So while you are different, you are by no means more or less then the person standing next to you. Every situation you encounter slowly shapes who you are and you are the decider of whether you use that to your advantage or not. This is where anger can go wrong. You can use anger to say this is terrible, why would this happen to me, this is totally unfair and spend time meditating over such thoughts rather then looking for the silver-lining, the way this benefits you. I can say today that I would not trade a single struggle I've had in my life because my struggles, as much as my happiness, are who I am. I do not like the struggles I've faced, and if at all possible would not like to relive them. But that does not mean that I am not grateful for them. So, when something goes wrong, relax. You're life isn't broken, it's just getting an update. 

Find the lesson, and make sure it sticks! 

When we were young, we were taught through punishment and disciplined what is right and what is wrong. In any story, the hero needs to go through a great many struggles in order to make it to the ending. We are taught that anything in life of worth is worth working for. In order to continue surviving in life, we need to strike a balance between happiness and pain and own this. But in order to move forward in life, we need to know what the motivation is and how to achieve it. Believe it or not, that is the tricky part my friends. And, unfortunately, I do not have the answer. How you find your lesson to be learned is entirely dependent on the situation. Sometimes there are many lessons to be learned, sometimes there's only one. And the point of an experience, whether it be good or bad, may never be something so easily defined. More often or not you won't even notice it happening. However, every human being is innately able to see the point to whatever trial passes in their life, just so long as they may have their souls tuned in the right place and channel their anger or despair like wise. 

Wow, that was a pretty heavy post. Well, that was basically my week. 

What's your thoughts? Ever seen a trial of your life work to your benefit?

Stats Of The Week

Song: Spontaneous Me by Lindsey Stirling

Book: Ruby Holler By Sharon Creech

Word: Meta-Cognition

Quote: "The difference between genius and stupidity is; genius has it's limits."

~Albert Einstein