The Golden Rule

Last weekend we went to Sasquatch. For all of you non-Pacific Northwesterners, it’s a giant, three-day music festival at a gorgeous outdoor amphitheatre called The Gorge in Eastern Washington. We went last year too. You’re guaranteed gorgeous weather, good music, fun camping. All in all, a fabulous time. Except for one thing. The ridiculously overpriced $9 beers. Yes, I said $9. And that’s for Coors Light! Now I know that when you go to a baseball game or something you’re paying the same price. But look at it this way: 1 day at the festival costs $60, and many people go for all three days. Gas to get there and back, well, probably $40 or so. Maybe more. Weirdly, I never seem to know what gas costs. The show begins at noon and pretty much runs til midnight. Even if you don’t get there when the gates open, you’re still going to be there for at least 6 hours. If you drink just one beer an hour, you’re looking at $54. And you’re probably gonna wanna eat so that’s another $20! Good lord, you’ve spent ONE MILLION dollars in a weekend.
At any rate, we only went for the one day. We had a few drinks before we left the campsite. We had another before we entered the show. But we still managed to drink a few beers inside. Lushes? No, just vacation. And it was hot—we needed to hydrate. Toward the end of the night, I turned to Tim and asked him if we had enough money left for another beer. “Nope’, he said sadly. Oh, boo. And then all of a sudden, the guy walking next to me hands me a $20 bill. “For beer,” he says. I honestly can’t believe it. I didn't have to flash him or anything. “What? Really? Why?” I stammered. He says, “You seem like a nice person.” And he walks away. I sort of yell thank you after him, still kind of not believing. Now I totally believe in karma, and I like to think Tim and I do nice things for others. But this was definitely not expected. We hopped over to the beer line though and truly enjoyed our last Coors Light.
Clearly, I’m going to continue putting this good beer karma out into the world. So from now on, everyone just be nice to everyone cause you never know. You just might be standing at a bar, sad because you have no money and you have no beer, and there I’ll be, handing you a $20 because you look like a nice person. No flashing required.

Tricky Situation Part 2

Here's another one.....

What if you know that a friend's BF/GF is cheating on them? Do you tell them? Or do you keep quiet because, again, it's not really your place?
This is a tricky situation that I actually have some experience with. I knew a good friend's BF was cheating on her when she was away on study abroad. She was a really, really good friend of mine, and there was no doubt in my mind that I should tell her. I would have wanted her to tell me. That was my reasoning anyway. Well, I did tell her. She was, of course, upset. She confronted him. He denied it, and they ended up staying together. While it didn't ruin our friendship, it was certainly strained after that, and honestly, not really ever the same. Even years later, I've run into the BF, and after a few beers, he will still bring it up and insist to me that it was innocent. Yeah right. I totally walked in on him and this girl. Where were you trying to put it? Her purse?!
Still, a really tricky situation. If a really close friend knew that Tim was cheating on me, I would definitely want her to tell me. If it was more of an aquaintance, I'm not sure I would believe it. And what about when it's the other way around? What if YOU are doing the cheating, and someone tells your partner? Well, of course that sucks cause if you're cheating, you're probably hoping your partner isn't going to find out. Ouch.
Oh, cheating, what a big fat f**king mess you make of everything.

Tricky Situation Part 1

What do you do when you’ve got a friend that’s in a terrible relationship? No, not physically abusive or anything. You can just look at them and know that they’re settling, know that they’re not happy, know that something is wrong. You know this, but what can you do? I mean, you don’t really KNOW that they’re unhappy. Maybe that’s just part of their thing, and actually they have a crazy hot sex life, and their bickering just fuels the fire. Maybe. We never know what goes on behind closed doors. But based on what they say about each other and the way they act toward each other in public, it seems pretty clear that they’re not made in heaven. Do you say something? Do you suggest that they might be making a mistake? Do you encourage them to examine their relationship a little closer? That’s what a good friend would do, right? Good friends look out for each other, try and protect each other, help each other.
Or do they?
Maybe you should keep your mouth shut because, truly, it’s not any of your business? Do you shut the f**k up because your friend is a grown-up, and she/he can make decisions for themselves? What would be the better friend thing to do?

And the bigger question...will this person still be your friend after you do or do not speak up?

Words, Words, Words

Why can I not learn how to think before I speak?! Words just tumble out of my mouth. A flood, a rush of syllables, blah blah blah. It's like I can't stop myself. And even when the words race out, one after another, I'm thinking to myself, what are you doing? Why are you saying this? Stop, stop....stop. But they're already out. Come back, I say. Come back.

Seems like this should be something I would have learned by now, right? I'm pretty good at learning the tough lessons. Taking something from my experiences and using that to better my life. I should be able to stop myself, say to myself, slow down. Are you sure you want to be saying this? I should be able to do this.

Come back, I say. Come back.

No lessons have been learned today.

Super Sunday

Big news. I am now a Sounders Superfan. Yes, it's true. After losing my beloved SuperSonics last year, I think I may have found a worthy replacement. I went to not only first Sounders game today, but also my first soccer game ever. I now see what the rest of the world has been talking about all this time. Cute boys, big beers, glittery confetti falling from the sky. Yes, this is football that I can definitely get behind. Now I just have to learn the rules.

Homecoming

So my life was totally course corrected this week.

I had made a decision. An impulsive, non-thinking, wild decision, and it was clearly not the right one. Ooh, that sucks. So stress and worry and tears and ickiness followed this decision. I tried to figure out why I had made such a terrible choice. I tried to wake myself up from that nightmare. I wished and I prayed that I could go back and change my mind. I regretted and fretted and lost some weight(!). But there was no going back.

Unless, maybe, there was. Put aside the regret and the fear and the disappointment and the self-doubt for a minute. Focus on making my life the way I would like it to be. And presto! Course correction! Okay so fate didn't REALLY adjust my life to path I was meant to be on. Nope, I did that myself. And it feels just like coming home.

E-Complex

I agonize over decisions for hours. I can weigh the pros and the cons until I can't remember which are which. I debate and question and play devil's advocate. I make up my mind, and then change it again.

I never look before I leap. I take flying dives into the deep end. I throw caution to the wind. I am free-spirited and impulsive. I will not think twice. I'm your huckleberry.

I am all of these of things.