I’m on a good path

We returned from our 4th of July Camping Trip without incident.

I’m having such a great summer and such a great life. The girls and I have spent a lot of quality time together and I feel so lucky to be on the path that I am traveling right now.

My one online class I was taking for summer term was not going so well. I was having a hard time connecting the material to the teacher’s lecture and her assignments (which were incredibly stupid.)  Melissa Lion helped me with an assignment that I received a 67% on. It wasn’t my fault–or Melissa’s. The assignment was dumb–stupid dumb. Really dumb. I have only received one grade lower than an A since returning to Higher Education and that was a B. Melissa and I got a D and since we are both way too fabulous for a D–I dropped the class like a bad husband–and I have experience in that. This dropping, however, I did sooner rather than later–which is always a good thing because it means I’m learning to let bad things go instead of hanging onto them for too long.

Yesterday when I told HG that I had to drop the class–she said she supported my decision. “The last thing I want is for you to be stressed out,” she told me. I filled her in on the things I thought that I could do to be more productive–like work on my book proposal, work on my new Camping Blog/Guide, and start wrapping my brain around a new voice for a new project in the works. “You’re productive just taking care of this family,” she said. Hearing her say that, I jumped on her lap and kissed and hugged her. It feels so good to be validated for the work that I do at home, writing and taking care of our family–”thank you for letting me be a wife and a mom,” I told her. She amazes me every day and takes such good care of us–she is a blessing and a jewel in my life.

The path on which I am traveling is growing every day–there are some good things up ahead for me both personally and professionally and I am anxiously being patient to get to them. Along the way I am going to enjoy everything I see from my path–all very beautiful happy things–that are growing in my life and take a lot of quiet moments to be with them.

And I will wait to see what else I discover on my journey.

It’s hard to stay focused when I’m so co-dependent

The ladies at Back Fence PDX were nice enough to ask me to write a post for them. I did. It’s here.

The Portland Mercury comes out tomorrow. Pick up a copy, I may have something in there.

Today my friend Jeff and his most beautiful baby in the whole entire world took me out for lunch. I had Indian food, (like Indian-Indian, not Native American-Indian.) I never had it before, I had no idea what I was eating, but it was very, very good.

I’m doing mad amounts of homework and writing my final research paper on “The Lack of Marriage Equality and its Effect on Children in Oregon” (it’s a long-ass name, I know,) but I can’t stay focused because I am obsessed with my Twitter and my Facebook.

I could possibly be co-dependent on Twitter and Facebook–or maybe Twitter and Facebook are enabling me to not concentrate on my homework. I’ll have to work that out in therapy–after my school term is over.

Oh look at that–someone wants to be my Facebook friend!

Six Word Memoir

A while back, Grumpy Granny tagged me to write a Six Word Memoir. I wasn’t blowing her off–just busy dealing with children and going to museums and movies and seeing former presidents and feeling like crap from a cold.

Well, guess what my first assignment is for my Creative Non-Fiction class?

A Six Word Memoir. And because I’m an over-achiever, I’ve written several. Tell me what you think:

“Evolving, Awakening, Discovering—My Amazing Life.”

“Discovering my Self was ultimate freedom.”

“Never again will someone mistreat me.”

“My partner completes who I am.”

“I wait patiently—for sunny days.”

“My teenage daughter makes me crazy.”

It’s super fun. You should try. (That’s not a memoir, just a suggestion.)

Spring Break? Over.

I go back to school today.  Three classes this term people, I’m living life on the edge.  One of those classes, Creative Non-Fiction, is FOUR credits.  Four.  Look out, I’m taking college by storm.

Also today at my Institute for Higher Learning . . .

President Clinton.

He’s campaigning for his wife AT MY COLLEGE.

I’ll be there.  My mom’s bringing the girls.  I’ll be taking a picture (if I’m allowed,) and also asking a question about marriage equality (if I’m allowed,) and shaking his hand, (if I’m allowed.)  If any of those things go badly, hopefully I don’t get wrestled to the ground by the secret service.  Keep me in your thoughts.  Also, I will not be wearing a blue dress.  Just sayin’.

I’m still sick, but I have some Contraband Sudafed that I commandeered from Washington awhile back.  It’s not Dayquil, but it will have to do.

Also, I got my grades from last term.  Four Point Fucking Oh.

Thank you and Ciao.

(Please go to the post below and answers John’s question.  His education depends on it . . .) 

The Culture of Bloggers

And Google Alerts.

Once in awhile I will write about something here that I suddenly get comments from people who have never commented before, and often they have nothing nice to say. Some of you may recall the post I did awhile back on “T.I.P.S.” that generated over 30 comments from one obviously deranged individual, leading to over 80 comments all together that took up entirely too much bandwidth on the server that hosts this site.

The other day I did a post on “Green Living” where I received another strange “flaming” comment from someone who, I’m quite certain does not read this blog regularly and according to my Stat listings, only viewed that one post and the comments, several times. I also received a nice comment from Anna who has a very nice site on Green Living. Anna and I e-mailed back and forth a couple of times, (I typically prefer to answer comments this way, you may have noticed.) In one of those e-mails I asked Anna if she was a regular reader of the RSG blog or if she stumbled upon my post. She told me that she has a Google Alert on Green Living and likes to comments on other’s blog posts regarding this issue.

Fascinating.

As much as I know about the Internet (praise be to Al Gore,) there is always something new to learn. Of course, I’ve seen that Google Alert thing when I google search something, but I’ve never tried it nor did I realize the evil that it can cause, (read: Kerry from the last post, Deranged Woman from the T.I.P.S. post, not Anna the nice Google Alert lady.)

All of this information tied very nicely into the essay that I am writing for my Institute of Higher Learning class on The Culture of Blogging. Google Alerts, and contributing or flaming someone through them is another element of our culture.

The learning just never stops here in the Blogosphere does it?

In addition, the comments on that last post on Green Living also contributed to this essay. Those comments illustrated the incredible networking and information that is shared through blogging. There was intelligent dialogue, people were sharing their own tips, sharing links, sharing ideas, contributing to this little post that I made about what’s going on in my house and how I was a little bit pouting about having to take the bus for an adventure, (which btw, we had a great time and I managed to survive, even enjoy the bus ride!)

Also illustrated was a level of Blogetiquette, (or lack of.) Blogetiquette is not something that we bloggers “discuss” or call each other on as often as we should. When I posted back to the flaming commenter, I instructed him to “wipe his feet before entering my home,” which I then directly took and inserted into my essay.

Amazing, isn’t it how all of this tied together? The essay is not completed, and the rough draft is due tomorrow morning, so I will be sitting here at my computer until 2:00 o’clock working on it. (I have not been procrastinating, I’m just a perfectionist.)
I would love to hear what you, my blogging friends, have to say about our culture and perhaps some of the points that I have made in this post about contributions, commenting, blogetiquette, using google alerts (for good or evil,) and other cultural elements of our “blogging world.”

My professor says that I can use your comments in my essay, of course I’ll have to cite them with MLA, (she’s finding me the format.)  You may even be mentioned in my essay, I’ve already used Limpy, LeLo, and Syd!

I will await your comments!