Carded

At the Movies:

Me: I'd like one ticket for SATC2, please.

Ticket Guy: Ok, that's $9.00 but, first, can I see your ID?

Me: You seriously think I'm under 17?

Ticket Guy: Yes

Me: Ok, (handing id) but I think you'll be surprised...

Ticket Guy: (looks at id, hands back with ticket, shrugs)

On high school graduations

Anybody remember that Baz Luhrmann song, Everybody's Free To Wear Sunscreen? I suppose that it's not really a song, so much as wisdom dispensed over a beat and played incessantly the summer before my senior year of high school.

While I don't dispute the wisdom that Mr. Luhrmann and as someone who has attended her fair share of high school graduations (as a youth worker, its in the job description), I've been thinking about my own little bit of advice Baz Luhrmann style:

To the Valedictorians, when writing your speeches:
-Funny is remembered and appreciated more than the serious (boring). If you can communicate some actual truth in the midst of humor, a+ for you. In 5 or 6 or 10 years when you deliver a Maid of Honor or Best Man toast, you would do well to remember this then too.
-We all know that you don't have enough life experience to share "wisdom" with your classmates. You don't have to remind us at the beginning of your speech.
-Thank your parents. Thank your friends and family, but don't belabor the point. We don't get the inside jokes, hilarious though they may be to you, and if you're one of ten valedictorians, we may not have the patience for it either.

For the graduates:
-Yes, life as you know it is changing. While it may be a little sad, don't let high school be your last big adventure. What a shame it would be to peak at 18... you've barely started living.
-You may have heard that life is what you make of it and it's true. You're at the point now called, "adulthood." Up until now, people have largely been making choices for you. Failure was always somewhat cushioned by youth. You're responsible for yourself now.
-Find good friends. Be comfortable with the fact that the good friends may not be the coolest. You're probably not as cool as you think you are either so it balances out.
-Take risks, but recognize that there is a difference in taking risks and risky behavior. Drinking excessively and passing out at that college party is not "taking a risk," it's mostly stupid.
-Love is hard work. It takes time and effort.

I think that's all;
And now... Mr. Luhrmann

Inconvenience

This will be my last blog about the weather. Promise.

Yesterday, needing some supplies for my portion of the house church dinner, I headed over to the grocery store across the street from the church. Closed. Sunday's hail had damaged the roof and they were working on repairing it, according the big signs stretched across the doors.

Disappointed, I headed over to the Wal-mart a few miles down the road. Pulling into the suspiciously empty parking lot, but noticing people walking in and out of the store, I went ahead and parked, but was told they were also closed for repairs from Sunday's hail.

For try three I headed even farther away to a much more expensive, limited and very crowded store to buy the things I needed. What was to be a 10 minute errand ended up taking nearly two hours.

I'm sure that a more socially minded person would be quick to remind me (and the thought crossed my mind) that, "just think what the people after Katrina had to go through," or "you think this is hard?! People in Africa have to grow their own corn to make into food. That's hard!" And I'm aware of that, I really am.

But gosh darn it-- I like my convenience.

Music and Life

I love music. I love discovering new songs and artists, but there's something to be said about old standards.

I have a few songs that have stuck with me over the years, songs that I can listen to again and again, then put away to wear out another time. Songs that, for whatever reason, always seem like the "right song" with the "right words". Sometimes, they provide the ability to work with minimal distraction, to think through things, to define a moment, or sometimes, speak truth.

These last few weeks, I'm glad for these standards.

Weather.

Dear Oklahoma Weather gods,

For nearly 6 years, I've lived here and I've scoffed at what I felt were your attempts at "Winter storms" and "tornadic activity." I've mocked your weathermen, secretly rolling my eyes at Gary England's theatrics, or popping in a movie and avoiding the whole business. I've been known to say with a nonchalant attitude, "well, we had storms in Illinois/Nebraska, no big deal.

After the weather these last few months, I do so solemnly swear to take you seriously weather gods. Your untimely snow storms (CHRISTMAS?!? MY BIRTHDAY?!) got my attention this winter. I realized that I might have hurt your feelings by mocking you in the past. But this last week, from crazy tornadoes and today's hail storms that damaged my car (IN ITS COVERED PARKING SPOT), I fear that I may have seriously pissed you off. You're no longer playing fair.

Please stop being so angry. I'm sorry that I hurt your feelings. Now, be nice.

Sincerely,

Hannah

"Paparazzi"

Quotable

"God watches over the idiots"

Quote for the start of the 2010 Tornado Season.

It's Come To This

Apparently, the outlet my brain is using to process?

Poetry.

Really bad poetry.

I mean, it's not "There once was a man from Nantucket," but I'm pretty sure these poems of mine will not see the light of day... or this blog.

Overload

Oh Man, life continues to be so good and so, so very full.

And by full, I mean a-million-things-on-my-to-do-list-so-of-course-I'm-blogging-about-it-instead-of-doing-it.

With VBS looming (and the ever present, "oh my goodness we do NOT have enough family group leaders! There will be children running AMUCK!" panic that attends it), a trip to the mountains for the wedding of a best friend (!), and a middle school trip to Nebraska shortly following, life is full of the short term busy and the long term busy.

Add to that some personal deadlines that I've set for myself this month and my head feels like it just might explode.

So, if you see me running around, headless, the pieces I'm sure are very nearby.