Share Your Experiences…with the World

A Southern Girl’s Reality

I know that most of these will have readers thinking a little about their behavior. These are based on my experiences growing up in the Heart of Dixie.
Lindsay Mulder

1. Fat kids are only cute if they belong to someone else.
2. Just because people don’t say that your children aren’t hideous doesn’t mean that they aren’t. Stop finding modeling agencies for your ugly kids.
3. A politician’s wife supports him. She knows she’ll live in infamy for being married to an alpha male.
4. You are only special to your family and friends.
5. A hundred years after your death, nobody will care that you existed.
6. Regardless of what they say, people don’t like hearing stories about your dog.
7. If you are a woman and you join a predominantly male company, don’t whine when they won’t include you in their conversations.
8. Women that file lawsuits because a man looked at them too long need to be fired for being too sensitive. Our husbands may work there. You make them uncomfortable.
9. If you go out in a short skirt, halter- top and high heels, you WILL be looked at. Stop whining.
10. If you don’t want to run the risk of being groped, think twice before heading out to a bar in the middle of the night and getting plastered (more…)

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Sorry, but your child will not walk

God allows miracles to happen when its least expected. March 23, 1991 my mother’s first child myself Jocelyn Marie Blake was born. When I was born they had discovered that I had run out growing room in my mother’s womb so my legs were not able to develop properly. My mother was happy despite my complication. However, because of this complication other problems had raised. The doctor told her that there was something wrong with the bones in my legs. My legs were severely bowed and my bones were too soft and I wouldn’t be able to walk. With a broken heart my mother took this piece of information and returned home. She refused to believe what the doctors had said and went on her own search. (more…)

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We All Fall Down

If only I knew then, what I know now life would be a lot different. Life might have been easier, decisions might not have been so hard. But thats the beauty of life. The unknown day that lies ahead of us. The simple fact is that, if we did know then what we know now, we would all be a bunch of smart ass’s. Life’s lessons, that only life can teach us, would never be learned. Thats why I am thankful that life didn’t give me the easy route. It chewed me up and spit me out. And for that, I will be forever grateful.

February 26 2003 9:00am

I was running late like a typical 17 year old. Life waited on me, I didn’t wait on life. It was that ignorant notion that got me into where I was going in the first place. “Not a care in the world” seemed to be my life motto at that typical time. I was nervous, I mean who wouldn’t be? Life would never throw me a bunch of cards I didn’t know how to play. Never. I was wrong. (more…)

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There’s a Pearl In My Wine Glass

Faux pas number one: trying to make my case with the boss. Past experience should have been jumping up and down on my shoulder and screaming into my ear, “Shut up, you big dummy!” But the light bulb didn’t turn on and my normally introverted self kept talking (and talking, and talking).

Faux pas number two: giving the boss’s wife the cold shoulder (who, I should mention, was the cause of my trying to make my case with the boss in the first place). Of course, when the boss’s wife turns out to have multiple personalities that would send Sybil voluntarily fleeing into the proverbial corn bin, simply ignoring her seemed the safest course of action.

Faux pas number three: not falling to my knees and begging for mercy when asked by said boss about criminal actions number one and two. Instead, I turned an interesting shade of purple while trying to suppress the mad hysterical laughter forcing its way up my throat and out of my big fat mouth.

Three strikes and you’re out. Or fired. Or let go. In other words, there goes my steady income which provided the finer things in life such as rent and food, not to mention regular manicures and eyebrow waxing.

So this is the point where most sane people would panic. Right? Well obviously I’m not sane. As I cleared my desk and gathered up my office essentials (green tea bags, flu swabs, contact lens cleaner), my thoughts were already racing ahead to my sunny future. I was on vacation! I would finally have the time to get my freelance business off the ground! My phone would be ringing off the hook with offers of employment! I could spend my days cleaning and cooking and doing laundry and being the perfect wife! See? Insanity. Instead of speeding directly to the unemployment office and securing my rightful benefits that would ensure continuing salon appointments, I instead headed directly to my local wine and spirits establishment, stocking up on my favorite Pinot Grigio. A girl’s got to celebrate, er, drown her sorrow in style, right?

Which brings us to day four of my, uh, hiatus. The Pinot Grigio bottles are empty. My house is still a mess. Clients haven’t been knocking down my door to procure my freelance services, nor have the full time employment offers been pouring in. Okay, I haven’t even been asked in for an interview. And my nails need a fill and my brows are looking a little bushy. Some vacation. I know what you’re thinking. This is the point where most insane people would panic. Well obviously I’m not your run-of-the-mill insane person.. In fact, maybe I could be a case study for a new strain of psychosis. I could get paid for being a lab specimen! Scientists will marvel over my ability to avoid the obvious - I’m unemployed, broke, and have no immediate prospects.

But while sane people might dwell on the obvious, creative lunatics such as myself concentrate on seeing the wine glass as half full - with the promise of new freelance opportunities, the promise of working for a kinder, gentler boss (minus the schizophrenic better half), and the promise that everything happens for a reason. Was I really that unhappy in my job? Probably more so than I was ready to admit. Was it really a good idea to tell my boss that maybe it was “time I moved on”? Obviously not. He took me at my word and sent me merrily on my way. Am I suffering from panic attacks at the thought that I may not have funds for the next clearance sale. Never!

My wine glass is never empty, nor is the promise of what tomorrow may bring. The world is my oyster and if there’s one thing this southern girl enjoys, it’s a nice fat steamed oyster on the half shell. Pass the hot sauce, please.

Karen Fulford

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Presdential Diversity: A Historical Moment

Never before have a woman, African American, Mexican American, Mormon, and the oldest man that has ever campaigned for presidency at seventy one years old who was a war time hero run for presidency of the United States of America. Years ago, this would not have been possible, but now, the opportunity for this change has opened its doors. This is a time in history that I am fortunate to experience at a young age.

This situation has proven to be a monumental moment in history. We could have never imagined how this could have taken place. For over two centuries, blacks have undergone the hardships of slavery. For over two centuries, women were not able to vote or speak out on many issues. Mexican American were discriminated against because of their heritage. Those of different religions were criticized as their religious views were not the same as others. As the years staggered on, those who were being discriminated against decided to take action. They decided that enough was enough and participated in the Civil Rights movement, women’s protest marches, and boycotts. They stood up and peacefully demanded their rights.

Many leaders spoke out about freedom for people of every race, color, gender, religion, age, and nationality. Martin Luther King’s wish was that no one will be judged by the color of their skin, but by the content of their character in his I Have a Dream speech. There would be no regression, but progression for peace and harmony.

I am fortunate to see many diverse things happening. I have never seen so much excitement and participation on the political campaign trail for presidency. The excitement of Barack Obama can only be compared to the Robert Kennedy campaign era for his presidency.

I am more in tune to politics now as this historical making moment is occuring. I yearn for the opportunity to vote for the next president of the United States, but unfortunately, my birthday month falls one month short after the election. My hope is that a president will be elected fairly, one who will lead this country to the standards that it was founded upon and become the greatest power on earth.

This presidential election is what many people who fought for equality would have wanted to wittness. It took years for this moment in history to occur and I am proud to be a witness and experience this historical making moment in my lifetime.

Rachel Jones

Winning entry for March! Thanks, Rachel for submitting your wonderfully insightful entry for From My Experience. 

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The Night My Life Changed

It was january 12,1994. I was then 13 years old. My mom was at work . My older sister and I were cleaning up the house, getting ready for bed, it was shortly after 10:00pm. And our mother would soon be home from work. She would usually get in by 11:00pm. She was on the second shift. She worked as a nurse at a nursing home from 3 to 11pm.

We received a phone call from her job around 10:15pm from one of the nurses she worked with asking us, what kind of medicine did our mom take? At the time we knew she had high blood pressure but we were not sure of the type of medicine she was taking. We were to young to know. I then told the nurse to call my grandmother and I gave her the number, I stated to the nurse she would know more about that then we would.

(more…)

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Tell Before It Is Too Late

How often do we take the people around us for granted, especially those closest to us? Often I would say. Because they seem to be always around, we don’t think much about appreciating them and letting them know we love them.

Ever since childhood, my grandmother Susie had been there for me. she always gave selflessly and made sure we got the best things even though she wasn’t all that affluent. After I married, I moved to another state and busied myself with work and my immediate family. Susie couldn’t visit because of ill health, while I kept using my job as an excuse not to visit her. Just a year back, my aunt told me Susie had passed on quietly in her sleep. At first I didn’t believe it. But then it hit me. I wept bitterly the whole night. I realized that never once had I told her how much I loved her. All it would have taken me was a few minutes of my time to give her a call but I had not done so. Now I know how important it is to tell those you love how you feel.

The simple lesson - don’t wait till it is too late to tell someone you love him/her. What may seem so insignificant may haunt you for the rest of your life.

Breeze

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