Chivalry

I took the bag that contained her skates. I draped it over one shoulder and secured my own bag on the other shoulder.

The bus was full, and unfortunately, there were no empty seats to be found. I pointed out a bar that she could hold on to. The overhead bar was much too high for my 8 year old friend. I gave her a quick lesson on how to hold on and brace herself so she would be steady on the bus ride. I offered to stand behind her -- just in case.

She looked at me nervously, as I reassured her that she would be okay.

And then, a young boy, who couldn't have been more than 12 years old stood up from his seat. He looked at her, and said, here, you can sit down. He said he travels the bus often and is perfectly comfortable.

She looked at him shyly. I smiled and thanked him. And then i thought to myself, that has got to be one of the sweetest things I've ever seen.

Inspiration

In 3 months and 11 days, I will have a birthday. It's a number that bears no real significance. It's not a multiple of 5, which seems to be when people really celebrate. It will the wear the same as any birthday -- an indication of how far I've come. A story with a flexible ending and one heck of a windy and bumpy road. Like every birthday, it will tell the story of the years before it. It will showcase the everyday adventures that have got me to where I am now.

I've already decided what I'm doing in celebration of my birthday. I'm having a celebration.

And all I can tell you is I'm so excited about it. It's going to be big, fabulous, bright and colourful. It will sparkle like crystal earrings. It will be classy like a pearl necklace. It will be delicate like seedbeads. It will be fun and funky.

It's going to be one heck of an extravaganza. Details to come. Everytime I talk about it, I get so excited that I can't even sit still. I'll keep you posted.

~The Queen Bead

Revamp

Joan treated herself to a pretty new blog. I was jealous, very jealous. I wanted one too.

She pointed me in a direction. Miss Zoot has fabulous and some free blog templates. And she even posts instructions.

But Joan, quite foolishly, said : If there is anything you like, I could set that up for you.

Now, as a generally stubborn and competitive person, I would normally think. Oh, I will do this myself. But Joan, well, she knows I'm capable, and she knows I could do it if I wanted to and therefore she has never been a threat to me. If she had said, you'll never figure this out, I would have had to. Only to prove that I could.

Admittedly, I hmmed and hawed for a split second. It was more of an, are you sure? Rhetorical. Courtesy. Please don't make me do this myself, please don't make me do this myself.

But instead, she told me to suck it up and ask her to do it for me. So with bare minimal arm twisting. I graciously accepted her help. Yes my loyal friends and readers, you have Joan to thank for the installation of the pretty new look.

A round of applause please for fantastic friends and a cheers for the new template.

A year in review

Well, it's officially the start of the third day of the new year. Yesterday, i was wondering what 2007 has in store for me. And if wondering and wishing for things means they will or will not happen. I was about to wonder how much control I have over the future, but Becky (or my own personal Dr.Phil) told me yesterday that you tell and teach people how to treat you. So if I turn around and apply this wondering about how much control I have, I'm going to have to say that I probably have more control than I'd like to admit sometimes.

So this brings me to stop thinking about 2007, and just go with the flow.
So instead, I did a bit of 2006 year in review. Here is what I came up with:
-I learned to play tennis, curl, decorate cakes, and belly dance.
-I laughed a lot, pulled off my most famous April fool's day joke ever, and spent quality time with friends.
-I tried my hand at being a runner. And with the encouragement of friends, I made it the furthest I've ever made it in a running program, and now, I'm starting to enjoy it. And although I'm still not good at it, I now think that if I keep at it, one day, I will be.
-Some of my blog posts don't make sense to me either.
-I love to shop. (okay, i've always known that)
-I've got great friends and family who love me anyway
-Sometimes, it's okay to play the 'damsel in distress'

And my favourite lesson of all: Life really is only as exciting as you describe it.

Here's to an 'exciting' 2007!

Resolved

Happy New Year. Happy New You!

This is the time of year when many people resolve to change things... mostly, themselves.

So as someone who doesn't like to make resolutions of great importance, I wish you luck with the New Year. And if a new you is what you're after, good luck with that too.