The world needs to take a collective deep breath and get a grip!

The world needs to take a collective deep breath and get a grip! The only thing all this violence is bringing is more violence. Everyone needs to think about what type of world we want our kids and grandkids to grow up in. Do we want to live in constant fear and scrutiny or do we want to be able to walk down the street holding hands, with a smile on our face and love and kindness in our hearts. Why is it so hard to understand that we will never all look the same, physically, but we are all made up of the same things, physically? God created us, not to destroy each other, but to live on this earth together. I’d rather die of disease than at the hands of someone’s impulse to get attention because someone hurt their feelings. I know some won’t agree with that after watching a loved one die of a disease (yes, I’ve watched many family members and friends die of cancer, aids and other diseases). My wish is that for 1 hour every day, every person in the world could be equal. Nobody is poor, beautiful, talented, rich, fat, sick, deaf, handicapped, tall, a bully, shy, illiterate, blind, mentally ill or of any race. So that every day we could see that we really are all the same and different, but by being different it makes our world colorful, exciting, hopeful, busy, sometimes boring, sometimes tearfully funny and other times sad, quiet and full of love, hugs and tears. Our differences makes for wonderful music, art, poetry, stories, movies, and yes even video games and videos. Yes, I know that is pure fantasy, but I can wish. If we could learn to stop being so cruel, maybe the radicals wouldn’t have any reason to hate. It’s okay to have an opinion, but it’s not okay to be mean and nasty. I’ve always believed that there is one way to live and that’s by the golden rule, so simple, treat people that way you want to be treated. This was a quick odd blog, as words were filling my head and needed a place to escape. I hope I have not offended anyone and thanks for taking a few minutes to read my ramblings. Prayers for all those that have had to deal with tragedies lately, big or small. Prayers for the human race that we find a way through the murky waters we are currently wading through. And finally, prayers for the children that will have to be grown-ups in the world we are sculpting today to leave them in the future.

Music of my time

A little fun poem after the passing of David Bowie and Glenn Frey. Both of these men had a great impact on my middle and high school days. Thank goodness, their talent will live on forever, as even the greatest of legends never will.

New song lyrics for the New Year

Well the holidays are over and I now have to face the real world and find a job. I got laid off after almost 18 years with same company. It's happened before, but last time I was able to find another job within the company. This time my lay off happened right before Christmas, so there were very few jobs available. I took the holidays off and didn't worry about finding a new job. Now I have a few decisions to make. My skills are very specific, however, I haven't worked in that field for 2 years (since the first lay off), so my chances just got smaller. I don't know if I even want to continue in IT, unless it's as a developer, as I did for ten years.

I'm toying with photography, but the question is can I afford to start at the bottom of the ladder. I guess I'll just have to wait and see how things play out. I have a strategy in my mind. Let's hope it's a good one. In the meantime, I wrote a little something to keep my spirits high. I hope it helps you too, just in case you might need a lift today.

Happy New Year to all. May 2016 be filled with all the people and things you love!

Here's the original picture I took in Plano, Texas

Fiery sky

Howdy y'all. I know it's been a while. Life has me going in many directions right now. One of them is working on my photography. Over the past couple of weeks the sunsets here in Texas have just been spectacular. I have taken pictures almost every night. This particular one made me think of my Mom. I wrote a short little thought for her and thought I'd share.

Next time you're out about sunset time, take a look at the sky. You might feel the presence of a loved one, like I did on this night.

A lot of stress, a couple of friends and a simple message

I know I haven’t posted much in the way of poems or song lyrics, lately. I have written a few things, but my decision to post them has been harder to make each day. Over the past few months I have been under an enormous amount of stress for several reasons. The hardest part is, it’s going to get worse before it can finally get better. Every time I think I’m ready to dive into the dark, I get scared and hesitate. I know now that I must make the jump whether I’m ready or not. It must be done. I can say that I have high hopes that this one big move will make many things better on the other side.

Unfortunately, all this stress and decision making has drained me emotionally and physically. It has also depleted most of the self-confidence I had built up this year. Every time I wrote something, blog post, poem or even email, I questioned everything about it. Some days I won’t even respond on Twitter or Facebook, because I just know it won’t be funny or understood. I even convinced myself that those that supported me had abandoned me and my fellow writers were better off without me cluttering up the better articles. I have let myself sit here and talk myself into shutting down all my creative projects. I didn’t even want to talk to my friends about it, because I knew they would sugar coat my work to make me feel better. I was never able to actually stop writing, I just stop wanting to share. I didn’t shut anything down either, because I knew my vulnerability was driving my emotions. But I did seem to be stuck in a place that was making me feel invisible and useless. My saving grace is my kids. I could never let myself fall too far down, because they need me and I need them, every day.

Well, I finally reached out to someone, who I can honestly call a gift from God. I met her through the Home Free fan group and it was a meeting that had destiny written all over it. I gave her a quick overview of what I said above. Her response was brilliant and true. She asked me if I still enjoyed writing. It didn’t matter the response or who supported me or how many people read the blog. What mattered was did writing the blog or the poems or the song lyrics still give me peace and enjoyment. And the answer is, without hesitation or question, yes. I have so many things written down that I have no intention of sharing, it’s just for me. It helps clear all the craziness in my head, so I can focus and do what needs to be done. But, nonetheless, I have to write. And there was my answer. It’s like she hit me with a book, right between the eyes. Writing is my tool, my peace, my inner strength and my way of dealing with the world around me, good or bad. My friend is very wise. Funny thing is I have another friend who has told me the very same thing, only writing wasn’t the topic. But the answer and message was the same. So I have two gifts from God, called friends. One is a childhood friend and one is a new friend.

Life will never give us the perfect opportunity to do anything. There will always be something, no matter how small, in the way of where we want to be. Is what you want something you enjoy and something that will benefit you? Then say a little prayer, take a deep breath, close your eyes and grab onto your faith with all your might and jump. 

I may have to slow down on writing until my big personal endeavor is over, but I will not stop writing. I hope that even if you don’t ready everything I write, you at least read the paragraph above and keep it with you always. I know many have said the same thing in their own way, but I think I finally believe it, in my heart.

Thank you to my friends, my followers and any other stranger that stops by for taking time out of your day to read the insanity I call my thoughts. Maybe some day, when I grow up, I'll be able to do this nonsense for a living! 

A day to remember and we'll never forget any of you

Here's my teenie tiny contribution to Remembering the fallen on 9/11

I still get chills and tears well in my eyes when I hear people say where they were and how they felt as they heard the news of the first plane hitting and then the second plane. I get that funny feeling in the pit of my stomach and my chest when I see footage of the buildings fall. I was thousands of miles away and only watched on TV and yet if I felt helpless, lost and shattered, imagine how those felt who were standing right there. To say my heart goes out to them, just doesn’t seem like enough. I can only pray that God will touch each one of them and let them know he’s there.

I kept saying over and over, WHY? I'm not a political person, so I'm naive when it comes to foreign affairs. Or maybe I intentionally stay out of it, because I know my heart can’t take the horror. I just didn't understand why anyone could or would take completely innocent lives, in the name of religion, politics or because a so called leader said no lives matter, only my cause. I am befuddled at the idea that human lives don’t matter, for any reason. And yes, I’m fool-hearted, I know.

My heart goes out to the amazingly brave people on the plane that took action, knowing it was the last thing they would ever do. Who knows how many lives they saved with their own. That's a hero, that's having the heart and strength of a warrior. And to each and every person that dug out people, alive or dead, and had to see the devastation left behind. God bless them all. And God bless those left behind. I hope, for at least today, we can remember a day when we all stood together and helped each other survive, physically and emotionally. They hugged, cried, screamed, pulled with every ounce of strength and rejoiced when they found a survivor. Those terrorists didn't care who was on those planes, what they did for a living or where their families where from or what religion they were, the terrorists were going to kill them all. Let's not let them take our dignity too, they took enough.

So to the firemen, policemen, doctors, nurses, by standers, bus drivers, pilots, passengers, construction workers and every other person in New York that day I say I’m so sorry for your loss and the tragedy you had to endure. And Thank You to you and all the other people from around the country and the world that went to New York to help. I believe this is what any God would want man to do, help each other.

The world will never be perfect and may never see full peace, but at least it’s comforting to know that when a tragedy of this magnitude hits, we can all come together and survive. May God bless us all!

A year of enjoying Home Free and Home Fries

July 2014 five highly talented young men (with a featured guest, so six really) released a video to the world that would go viral. I’m sure it was a turning point in their career. However, this simplistic, yet stunning video also changed my life. Home Free’s cover of Ring of Fire, featuring Avi Kaplan, seems to be a pivotal moment in the lives of so many people, many of whom I have either met or become friends with over the past year. I don’t know the exact date I watched the video, due to when I saw it I went on a Home Free hunt and didn’t stop for several days! I know it was within a week or two of my birthday, because I bought the Home Free Crazy Life CD and Tim Foust’s The Best That I Could Do CD for my birthday. What I think is so fantastic is how many fries have recently written or posted about their one year “Fryniversary”, with no intentions of slowing down. I guess I’ll join them.

I know most of you have heard the story of how Home Free and more specifically Tim’s song I’ve Seen inspired me to start writing again. So today I will tell all the other things that have come from Home Free’s music.

The most rewarding thing is that I now have friends all over the world ranging in age from 17 to those in their 60’s. I have met a few of them and they will always have me as a friend, whenever they need me. The first fry I virtually met was an awesome girl of 17 that lives in Brazil. I felt so ridiculous going gaga over Home Free at my age and then I found out her age and she made me feel like a kid again. As the days went on and we all goofed around about Home Free, I realized these a guys just inspire youth, smiles, giddiness and pure adrenaline. I have been encouraged and inspired by so many wonderful people and I hope to meet them all one day. I’ve cried with them, laughed until my side hurt, felt embarrassed and completely vulnerable, not to mention felt a little drunk after seeing them live. Yes, Home Free is a strong source and the Home Fries cling to that source and each other with all our hearts and souls.

The first time I actually met fries was when I had plans to see Home Free in Dallas. Well, a couple weeks before that concert an extremely kind fry offered me a VIP ticket to the concert in Oklahoma City, which was a few days before the Dallas concert. Well, how could possibly say no? I made my arrangements and the next thing I knew, I had made plans to drive to Oklahoma City with two ladies I had never met before. I joked about how my mom had done this years before, by going to California to meet fans of a soap opera, that she had never met, and we teased her that one of them could be an ax murderer! Well, these ladies assured me they had no axes! Two concerts and a great trip to Oklahoma later, we’ve all become good friends. I know I would do anything for any of them. And we have planned to see four Home Free concerts together in October! I met so many other fries at these two concerts and hope to see them again and meet other fries, I haven’t met yet!

As for my writing, since hearing I’ve Seen, I have written twenty nine song lyrics, twenty poems, one children's story and started the second story in the adventures, created two blogs and have had the honor of playing a small role in helping an incredible lady and dedicated fry create some extraordinary tribute videos for each of the members of Home Free. Plus, I’ve volunteered for other small writing “assignments” at work and for our Girl Scout troop. My hope is to, someday, get paid to write!  

Let’s not forget the guys that started me down this unbelievable trek, Home Free. Their music has so much to offer and I find it hard, at times, to find the right words. Their voices alone are remarkable and together they are this perfectly put together 3D puzzle. Their sound is rich, vibrant and full of life and energy. You want to hear the song over and over again. Their arranging talents have blossomed over the past year and the fries continue to be amazed with each new song. I’m so excited for the new album, I could just bust! If they don’t hurry and release it, the fries are going to hunt them down (visions of Young Frankenstein where the villagers are breaking down the door with Inspector Kemp’s wooden arm). Hurry, Home Free, hurry!

Happy “Fryniversary” to all my fellow fries that found Home Free around this time last year!

How long have you been a Home Fry?

I've Seen by Home Free (written by Tim Foust) https://youtu.be/u_v_5Jr8bx0?list=PLfWdh4XTtIqnVcLdXTjXzvv_ahtWOC2S7