Five Years Of Blogging

I received the notice from right here on WordPress that it is the fifth anniversary of this blog.

Five years is a long time.

And to be honest, in 2016, I just don’t feel like this blog is doing its job any more. It has been less entertaining. Less educational.

I just don’t see it working its purpose any longer. The feedback has dropped to basically zero.

Over the past couple of years, I’ve written less and less. But that shares no blame with anything. Other than I just haven’t done it.

With over 200,000 views in this short amount of time and knocking on the door of 1,000 total posts, I cannot say for sure what the future of this blog will be. I have left it up to you, the readers, to comment in the comment section below. But …. there’s nothing. With the exception of a butthurt photographer that I “used their photo” and they feel violated enough to threaten me.

And yet I have not made the final decision to take this blog out into the grass and shoot it in between the eyes. So it will still be here for now.

Five years is quite some time. And to think that I had only first decided to use the blog as a form of therapy for me, like a journal. Not really intended for the masses of public consumption. But that quickly changed. And that earned me probably everything that I have with this blog today.

I know this has a negative feeling to it. And you’re probably right. But do not get me wrong, I am still just as thankful for everyone as I was when I just got started.

I don’t know what the next five years will bring. But I’m willing and able to find out. As long as you are willing and able to find out along side me.

Thank you ALL for these five years!!!

 

Diamonds Are Not A Girl’s Best Friend

It appears as if the days of the stereotype sung by Carol Channing in the Broadway production of “Gentlemen Prefer Blondes”, might be over with.

With the advent of several birthdays, anniversaries, and the soon approaching Christmas holiday, I find myself in a rather odd position. The stereotype in what women want as gifts doesn’t seem to be the case anymore at all. The things in which we (as men) grew up to learn about what women wanted has been thrown out the window entirely.

It used to be a safe bet for a man to buy a woman either chocolate, flowers, or jewelry, or all of them. But I am finding out that within the group of female colleagues and friends that its not really what they want any more.

Sure, I don’t see a woman turning down these things. I don’t see how a woman would want to turn away from FREE chocolate. But it really isn’t what they WANT from anyone. It appears that the female population (at least within my circles) want things that are less tangible and more meaningful. They seem to want to hang on to the bond of friendship more often than not. That they want that to grow and develop, rather than a bouquet of flowers or a box of chocolates.

I will say that some of my female friends are already married. So perhaps if it is chocolate and flowers and jewelry that they want, they could probably seek it from their husbands. But, not all of my female friends are married or in a relationship. And they still would rather pass on the objects and maintain the emotional bonds.

I have a friend’s birthday that is coming up and I have absolutely no clue at all what she would like or would want. Perhaps the first step would be to ask. Yet with previous conversations I have had, she’s not exactly the “material girl” either.

That is not to say that ALL women have abandoned the stereotype and aim for less tangible things in which they desire. There are still those who want these things. I am just saying that through my social life, those women that I speak to regularly are NOT those kinds of women.

I personally have no problem giving my female friends chocolates or roses. I am not opposed to ordering a small and simple vase of flowers for their special day. Whether they are married or not. My intentions are always true… “This is for your special day. Be happy!”.

I recall one time that I sent a half dozen roses that were white, to a female friend of mine who was married. It was for her wedding anniversary. She was thrilled. But when she got home, the gift in which her own husband had purchased for her, she found less endearing than the white roses. Oops!!

They do laugh about it now.

Clearly, it was not the objective to outshine her own spouse. That’s just what happened. I’m also not opposed to “downgrading” a gift, just in case that may happen again.

One thing that I always run into over and over and over again is “Don’t spend your money!”. Well, I am creative. I can create greeting cards, write poetry, give simple gifts in lieu of roses, chocolate, and jewelry and it would be tons cheaper if not at any cost at all. But what exactly is it that women want any more??

Perhaps it all depends on who the woman is. And that would make sense to me. If I was friends with a woman, and I knew she loved Chinese food. I’d probably buy her a gift certificate for the nearest Chinese restaurant. I think that it’s really, all a matter of paying attention.

If she’s been raving about a particular film that is about to come out, then I’d get her free movie passes.

Each woman is individually unique. That goes for anyone in this world. And I love all of my friends, male or female, in my own unique way.

It is just- what in the world do women want??

 

Grieving After Many Years

Today. The 16th of July 2011. Today would have been the 50th wedding anniversary of my parents.

Fifty years is a very long time. A marriage that lasts that long seems almost impossible in the 21st Century, with the divorce rate as it is today. It seems as if married couples cannot even make it to their fifth wedding anniversary, much less 50 years of marriage.

But today is especially difficult for me because my parents were only married 26 years & 10 days before my mother died of cancer. She left behind a husband and four children. And now it is very hard to fathom the possibility of what it would have been like if my parents to have been married for so long.

I have in my bedroom the wedding cake topper that was on their wedding cake so many years ago. And I am sure that my father still has the wedding photo album somewhere in his home.

This day has already become emotional for me. And it is approaching 3:00 AM. So I do not know what the rest of the day will be like. Probably full of tears and memories. My mind is totally full of wonder. Trying to imagine what it would be like for my parents to have been able to celebrate a milestone anniversary. I wonder how much different my own life would be today, if they had been able to celebrate. But it something that I will never know.

July is a roller coaster month for my family. At least it is for me. I would not really want to speak for the rest of my siblings nor my father. We are the same blood, the same family, yet so very different in how we have managed our own lives during these certain days.

My father just celebrated his birthday a few days ago. Then the rememberance of their wedding anniversary, and then a few days later after that towards the end of the month, would be the anniversary of my mother’s passing. It has always been extremely difficult for me. I will blog again when that anniversary comes and deal with the topic of the loss of my mother.

Today, I miss her. And I love her. And I am ever so happy, grateful, and appreciative to my mother for giving birth to me.

Each person deals with grief differently. I do my best with it. Dealing with death has never been, nor will it ever be something easy.

So as I retire for bed (at last), I will think of my mother and tell her that I love her still.