BLOGAVERSARY!!!!!!

Can you believe it … Aug. 2, 2014  … 11 years ago …. we posted our “test post” which frankly didn’t have much on it but it was a start. It was the push that propelled everything else that followed. It was the “first post” and yeah we could have stopped there but we didn’t we just kept pushing through. On August 3^rd we did an introduction post about what the blog was going to be and more importantly what it wasn’t going to be and then we did some introductions to each of us … myself .. and my partner in crime Golden.

 This blog started out as a way to take two people being crushed by the world and help them remember that they have it in them to be creative. Golden did this for me and I know that but having her along the way gave me … I don’t know a sense that if I didn’t see it through I’d be letting her down as much as letting myself down. So I’m grateful she came on this ride with me. Truth is she’s better at this than I ever wanted to be. The way she uses words like a paint brush to tell a story fills me with an envy that I can’t fully express.

 That August was a good month for us with 27 posts but then again it was new, exciting and we went to Dragon Con which always helps with content. Here I sit … again looking our 10 year anniversary of Dragon Con (it really feels like we’ve been going longer but my calculations say 10 years so 10 it is – math is hard yall) and I can’t wait for that 4 day break with my bestie. I need it and more important she needs it. We might just veg the entire time playing video games but we’ll at least be doing it in the same room.

 A lot has changed for Golden and I over these 11 years. She’s changed jobs for one. Sometimes I think it’s for the better but other times I’m not so sure. I’ve gotten a few promotions at work and am now leading a team of people which is very daunting and I’m not sure I like it at all. She’s been through a few fur babies, which were really tough to watch her go through cause as you know dear reader I’m too far away to just go over and make sure she’s ok.  We have both lost family members along the way, and we have both also gained family members, which has been more fun than the losing. We’ve gone on a few more trips, most recently to Atlanta to see the StayKids which I admit was far more fun than I anticipated.  Sickness we have both dealt with our fair shar of sickness over the years mine mostly watching others be sick and Golden being my Medical Marvel. Neither of us really use Twitter (I refuse to call it anything else) as much as we used too but have migrated to other platforms. Social Media has always been a cesspool and now it’s somehow worse.

 I admit finding content to post here without a lot of feedback wasn’t always easy so I started little challenges for myself. The thankfulness challenge in 2014 was particular a highlight for me as it was a post a day for the month of November and I succeeded. Is every post worth a read … not really but there are 30 posts in the month of November and for that I am proud. I tried it again in 2019 and it was equally successful. Maybe I bring it back this year?

When we started this blog we said we’d not “teach you anything” but like the former journalist that I wanted to be I added but we might … which helped open the door for my Blog with a Purpose posts that focused on a few charities that Golden and I have supported over the years. I hope those were interesting cause I really enjoyed writing them.

Oh and the greatest challenge of all is that this blog got me writing again. Here of late I’ve been doing my Writing prompt challenge, which has been interesting. However, over the years I used this to share some of my original  fiction which was both fun and scary at the same time.

Several reoccurring themes have popped up too including music, books, tv, the aforementioned drama with fur babies, etc., which has also helped in keeping this thing going. Oh and I’ve wasted a post or two a year on my silly TV movie calendars for Halloween and Christmas and while that is slowing down I don’t see it stopping soon. Tho Microsoft doing away with publisher I might have to come up with another plan for those in the very near future. My gripes at Microsoft have also  made a few appearances too over the years. Year end posts or new year blogs helped kick off the year or end it and made for some good content as well. Random Thoughts/Grind my Gears were also fun ways to get topics bouncing around in my head out of my head and onto the screen so I could move on.

So the point is if you have been with us this long than you, if you are new here enjoy going through the archives to the right, and if you are a casual reader it’s been fun seeing you around too. This blog isn’t dead yet and while I know sometimes it looks and feels that way that’s just what we do. We don’t post for the sake of posting we post when there is something worth saying and in my opinion that is more fun. It’s about quality not quantity but know there will be typos.

So thanks again Golden for the push and let’s keep it going a few more years at least!

Marcy

Thankfulness Challenge – Thankful for GOLDEN

Whew ….. 30 days …. 30 posts on this blog. I admit there at the beginning I just didn’t think I was going to make it. It was hard coming up with something meaningful to say every.single.day. However it was also kind of fun. I’d say let’s continue but yeah I’m not gonna do that. You all knew I wasn’t going to do that, it is nice to know that I can tho.

This challenge started cause I re-read a post from 2014 in which I did 30 days of Thankfulness Challenge in which every day I posted about something that I was thankful for or that made me happy. Before I started this new challenge I wrote down each topic from that challenge to make sure I didn’t repeat anything. There were a few days there where I almost did to see if anyone was paying attention but in my mind that wouldn’t have been me completing the challenge and well I couldn’t have that now could I? That’s not to say some didn’t overlap. Like for instance in 2014 I talked about Christmas Music, and this year I gave my top 10 Christmas Music List, so similar but different. Although upon looking back at the 2014 post I noticed a lot of the same songs made my top 10 list. Which frankly didn’t surprise me. I mean a good song you listen to nod your head and move on a GREAT song well that makes the top 10 list, it stays with you forever, it is marked in ink on your soul. I also posted my Christmas TV calendar in both years but I’ve been doing that calendar for over 10 years now so that’s also not a surprise. However, for the most part each post is unique and true to itself. I’m kind of proud of that.

The major change from 2014 and 2019 is that Golden provided 7 posts in 2014 and none this year. What up with that huh?! It's Golden after all who made this blog a thing. Well she started the idea … when the universe was trying to kill me. Back in 2014 I did a very nice post about how thankful I am that Golden is in my life. You can read that here. I met Golden back in 1997. That’s crazy to me. That 22 years ago the Auburn Housing Board randomly selected us to be suitemates (there’s a good reason God didn’t make us roommates that you can read here) and the rest as they say is history. Being so far away from one another 5-6 hours, depending on who is driving, it would have been really simple for us to lose touch, drop out of one another’s lives and move on, or become internet friends that like and comment but don't really interact. However some things are worth holding on to, some things are worth fighting for, and this friendship is most definitely one of them, her cheese balls are another. Guys she makes the bestest cheese balls ever. She put tomatoes in it, but not everyone is perfect. I love Golden like the sister I never had. Sometimes we fight like sisters, but we also always have each other’s backs like sisters. The best part of the friendship side instead of the sister side is that we can also tell one another when they are out of line and it’s ok.

It is because of Golden that I’ve gone to Las Vegas and looked for Tupac. It’s because of her that I’ve gone to Dragon Con now 6 years and counting. It’s because of Golden that I have a higher appreciation for art and the relaxing nature that is pumpkin carving. There are a ton of movies I might not have seen without her suggestion or her putting it into her DVD player. I learned through her that Kill Bill is an excellent movie to fall asleep to. If it weren’t for her I wouldn’t have known Roxy and Lulu and the blessing that is Mighty. I wouldn't have a second family up North that I know I can call at any moment should I need them. She jumped in the car when I wanted to go see Bryan White in a backyard BBQ. She took me to my first casino in MS and showed me the secrets to Skee Ball. She's the reason I can't pass a corn field without yelling CORN at the top of my lungs. Even when I'm alone in the car. She and I spent several awesome days walking out asses off in the Magic Kingdom, Universal (Harry Potter), ok that one was for Golden’s niece who was going to be in the parade with her school band. That still counts. She showed me how wonderful going to the Zoo could be, especially when surrounded by friends and family. When I wanted to go to New Orleans the year after Katrina she jumped in the car and off we went. She is always up for an adventure and I love her for that.

So today, and everyday I’m thankful for Golden ….. I am thankful for her friendship, her support, her laughter, and her ability to always put whatever I’m going through into perspective. Thank you for 22 years of awesome memories here’s to many many more!

Marcy
@beaslma

Golden
@theonlygolden 

New Year….Fresh Start …..kind of

So I started this post about 12 times and it never sounded right to me and so I deleted it. I do that a lot. I write up this long post that’s supposed to be filled with humor, insight, and a message of some kind then I reread it and go … yeah that’s dumb so I delete it.

I was telling a friend the other day, no one is reading this thing so why is it so hard to write on it? What is holding me back? It’s not like I care if anyone is reading, frankly I’d like to think that you all had better things to do, (please don’t go!) but it would be nice to know someone was interested in my thoughts even if they are a jumbled crazy mess sometimes.

Now I realize that without posting these crazy random thoughts people have the option of rejecting or embracing my thoughts so that’s where I come in. I need to post these thoughts and see where the chips fall. You’d think not having an audience it would be easier to throw random things up on this thing and see what happens. However it’s not that easy.  This blog, writing in general used to be something that made me smile, made me reflective, and yes in some instances cry like a small child. I often wonder what happened.

I don’t want this to be another post where I tell you that more posts are coming, so I’m not going to go there. What I am going to try to do is strive to post even when I think they are silly or stupid or jumbled and dumb and force myself to write something even if it’s only once a month. Cause I’ve gotten lazy in so many aspects of my life, cleaning seems to be non-existent, there’s a Christmas present I’ve been meaning to mail since mid Dec still sitting unwrapped on my floor, and sadly I’ve checked my work e-mail more times on this holiday than I’d like to admit.

So … here’s my obligatory New Year’s Resolution post, but instead of calling it that I’m going to call it things I’d like to change about 2016.

1.     I’d like to see more movies not just say wow that looks good I should go see that then never go see it. That was on my list last year and it was an EPIC fail but this year I’m going to really try to make this more of a priority

2.     I’d like to spend more time actually TALKING to Golden not texting. Our different work schedules haven’t allowed for a 2 or 3 hour gab fest lately and I hope that changes. I miss our talks, she makes me laugh harder than any human on earth.

3.     I’d like to visit Golden more than once a year, it’s just not enough. I want more farting around time with her, more fun in our lives. I think we both need it, oh and her cheeseball. I really really really want a cheeseball. Sure I could make my own and have on a few occasions but hers are better. If nothing else i'm going to the Damn Zoo this year!!!! Mark it in your calendar! Nothing is going to stand in my way this year! NOTHING!!!!  

4.     I’d like to lose some weight, which would require me to be less of a slug. At the end of a long work day I’m just spent and don’t want to move, and on the weekends I think this is my only down time so I want to just lay here and do nothing cause Monday will be here soon !

5.     I’d like to exercise more, even if it’s just walking around the block to clear my head. Again my issue becomes that by the time I get home it’s 7, then I eat dinner and it’s late and so I don’t do it. Maybe I can come up with a plan for this. I already get up at the crack of dawn maybe 30 minutes at the start of my day would be good, then again 30 more minutes in my bed would be nice too.

6.     I’d like work to not be all consuming of my energy. Last year was INSANE work wise. I won’t bore you but know I took a total of 4 days off all year and most of that was spent at DragonCon. I know my boss wants me to take more time and he’s going to try and make it so that I don’t feel I’m carrying the weight of my dept on my shoulders, we’ll see how that works out for me. The last 2 weeks haven’t been any indication of a change but hey it’s a new year and I got a Christmas Bonus for those efforts so …. Yippie!

7.     I want to spend my money on things that make me smile more. Fun goofy things that I don’t really need but I want and not feel guilty about it. I work hard and deserve to play hard too … right?!

8.     I want to go to more concerts/shows/life events this year. I am tired of reading about everyone else having these epic memories. That also requires me to get out of my comfort zone a bit as the world has become a really scary place.

9.     I also hope for more music from some of my new favorite artist, Maddie and Tae, Haley and Michaels, The Springs, etc., I’m ready for the world to find out about them cause they are that good. Maddie and Tae got 2015 but there’s room on my radio for all of them. Come on Country Music make it happen.

10.  Speaking of Haley and Michaels I want to finish my story that I started a while back, if only cause I think Shannon and Ryan deserve to get out of that Airport :D That’s a big goal of mine for the next month or so. Ha!

So there you have it.

None of these are really promises or things that will change the world but things I felt you needed to know. We’ll talk more soon I’m sure, in the meantime have a fantastic 2016 filled with good times and few Butt Slams ... that's right I'm trying to bring that back.

-marcy (@beaslma)

Giving Back and Learning from the Past

So Golden is kicking Lent’s butt and doing all kinds of awesome for other people. I’m crazy proud of her. She’s always been a super awesome person that does very thoughtful amazing things for other people. Like when we went to DragonCon she not only did her “Geek Drops” which were themed back of geeky fun for random people to find she also made a personalized bag for the people in our crew. Each bag had something that would make the DragonCon experience more fun. She loved watching us go through our bags and be all excited about this or that and truly had as much fun watching us as we did going through the bags. That’s the kind of person she is. She’d literally give you the shirt off her back, unless it’s her Goonies Never Die shirt cause well that’s just you being selfish trying to take her stuff at that point.
 

While I’m not actively participating in Lent on in 40 Acts I did spend my day helping out at the church for what we call Safe Haven. Basically several churches in our area take a Saturday and host a group of homeless ladies who can’t stay at the facility they sleep in during the day. For most of the week these ladies have jobs or other activities during the day but during the weekend many of them had no where to go and would end up just “hanging out” downtown. During this downtime some of them would get into trouble or encounter other problems. These ladies literally travel with everything they own so safety was definitely a problem for them as they wandered around downtown. So several churches in the area were contacted so that if each church took a Saturday once every 3 or 4 months then these ladies would have somewhere safe to go. Today was our day.

Many of these ladies just want a safe place to sleep, others want someone to talk to, and the rest are happy just to not be outside, especially when it’s cold or on the other side of that table crazy hot as summers in the South can sometimes be. They arrive around 7:30, and then have breakfast, a devotional, then we play bingo (where they win prizes (jewelry mostly)), visit the boutique (a room where they visit and pick clothing of their choice donated or bought by the congregation), then we have quiet time until lunch. This is usually my favorite time cause we get to sit around and really talk to the ladies and learn about them, their situation, and it always amazes me that they are really the happiest, smartest, and aware ladies you’ll ever meet.

After lunch they have a bible study led by one of the leaders of our church, sometimes our pastor, other times a Sunday school teacher. Then usually they join our choir director for some music, which seems to be their favorite part (except for the Bingo), then they watch a movie or two for the afternoon. Often times they will read instead of watching the movie, especially if it’s a movie they aren’t interested in.

They usually leave around 4:30 or 5 depending on when the bus comes and picks them up. These ladies give everyone a hug, and thank us for our time. It’s fascinating to me how upbeat and happy they are and how positive they are about life. Yes there are a couple that definitely don’t fit that description but the majority of them definitely do. It also fascinates me to realize that a lot of them are not much older than me, which also kind of freaks me out.

I’m glad the churches in our area do this and I’m even more grateful that I was asked to participate. It really makes you think that yeah it sucks that you don’t get to go to lunch some days, but at least you get a good dinner that night. It really puts your little problems in perspective but none of these ladies want your pitty they really want you to learn from their experiences. Lord knows I have been a good student.

Marcy

Thankfulness Challenge - Day 1

As stated yesterday Golden and I are going to attempt a post a day during Thanksgiving, as we lead up to Thanksgiving. The goal… 27 days where we take a moment to focus on what we are thankful for. . . . here’s day 1.

Today I’m thankful for Golden. Well that’s not true I’m thankful for her every day, but it seemed weird to start this “exercise” off without mentioning her. This blog wouldn’t be a blog without Golden. It’s her brain child. She is the one who thought it up, she’s the one who pushed us to do it and she’s also the one who periodically forgets it exists, but I can’t say much cause sometimes I do too. I have been super impressed by how she has written her posts. She holds nothing back and is very good at bringing a point home, she says she’s not a writer, I call BS on that cause what I’ve read she definitely is.

I’m so glad that the fates led on us a similar path so that we’d cross, we’d meet, and we’d become friends. Golden is honestly the nicest, hardest working, sarcastic, funny, smartest, and generous person I know. She loves doing things for other people. When we went to DragonCon she got each person in our crew a bag of fun things with specific items picked out for them. The amount of effort and care she put into it was very thoughtful and not at all cheap. Need I also remind you of her random acts of kindness during DragonCon with her Geek Drops?!

Golden and I met in college, we were “bathroom buddies” formerly known as Suitemates. Thank goodness for the powers that be in the Auburn Housing Department for being smart enough to put us together but also smart enough to not make us roommates. Ha! I’ll never forget those late nights watching movies/tv in her dorm room (then her apartment, and lastly her trailer); going to movies; eating Chinese food; walking around books a million or Hastings praying she wouldn’t sit in the floor; and cherish each and every memory since. I have seen and done things I wouldn't have done without her, such as going to Vegas. Our trips are trips I cherish and miss we simply have to get back to doing those more. There's nothing like a "road trip" with your best friend laughing and joking and fighting and just having a blast!

If you follow this blog you know the last say 10 or so years health wise hasn’t been easy on Golden, it’s made me appreciate her more. I’m in awe of everything she deals with and the fact that she keeps moving forward despite everything about it telling her to just give up. She could have taken the easy road, gone on disability, use her illness as an excuse but she doesn’t she is LITERALLY the strongest person I know. I am blessed to call her my friend.

So on Day 1 I’m thankful for Golden, for being a great person, and even better friend and most importantly being my friend.

 Luv ya lady!

--Marcy