Careful, or You Might ...

"Careful, or you might end up in my novel."
I saw that t-shirt design this morning, and it cracked me up. If I wore that, I wonder if people would take me seriously. Somehow, I doubt they would, and yet, they probably should ... :P

I don't know about you all, but I have sneezed at least fifty times in the last few hours, courtesy of that good, ol' cedar fever. Aah!

Juno, an Unlikely Hero. One of Many.

I saw a fantastic movie this weekend, titled "Juno." Very different from what I expected, it is a hilariously funny and touching story about a girl named Juno who gets pregnant at 16 and then proceeds to try to find adoptive parents for her on-the-way baby. And, while I was delighted the whole way through with this precocious/innocent/savvy/naive girl, I also really appreciate the underlying and tender message that comes from this storyline.

Take a moment, and picture this: a teenage girl, pregnant.

I imagine this brings up a lot of images conditioned from upbringing, society, personal experiences, etc. For many of you, it may bring up a negative reaction at first, or perhaps entirely. When I see a young girl who is pregnant, while at times there may be an initial shock, my next thought is one of love - how brave she is, and even braver if she is taking that extra step of giving up her baby for adoption. And, I think of the beautiful life that was created and is living inside her.

To me, the girl in this movie is like so many other girls I've known - not in the sense that they all became pregnant - but in the sense that they are learning how to live and how to be who they are (who they really are, not who others want them to be.) And, while some may not find her general choice of words or actions throughout the movie "appropriate," I can assure you how she talks and behaves is like so, so many girls today. It is a product of an independent spirit, and I applaud it.

Maybe if we're appalled, we're actually appalled at ourselves for not always saying what we think or doing what we feel, without regard for what others will think of us. I'm really proud of this next generation of girls, and I hope that we "older girls" (and boys) are able to learn something from them.

Back in the Day ... Songs

Back in the Day ... songs were not so different.
I was playing around with songs again on here, and it got me to thinking: This whole, "Oh, the song lyrics were so innocent back when I was younger" stuff people try to convince others of is not exactly so.
I remember the odd expression on my Dad's face when I'd go around the house, in seventh grade, belting out "Damn! I Wish I Was Your Lover!" over and over again. -- I'm surprised my parents didn't have me in Catholic school ... Oh, wait.
Then, of course, searching around I found a few other favorites from back in the day - "Naughty Girls Need Love, Too," "Bad Boys," and let's not even mention Madonna or hip hop. I'm not inclined to make a full social commentary today, but it's an interesting observation. And, hey! I turned out okay. :P

Deconstruct Your Reality

Sometimes things get stuck in my head, and I just can't move on until I get them out somehow. This can be particularly interesting when it's for someone specific and it's three in the morning, but, in this case, this one is more of a general statement and one I kept thinking as I was driving. The thought was so persistent that I fished out a gas receipt from my purse and scribbled it down at 70 miles per hour. For everyone it might mean a little something different so I'll just write it and let you interpret it for your own life. It's a simple statement, yet remarkably profound.

"Deconstruct your reality, and live, really."

Happy New Year's Everyone!

Happy New Year's everyone, and welcome to 2008! I think it's going to be a good year!

I hope you all had a wonderful and safe holiday season! It's time to begin anew ... : )