hunger games

Today marks the start of the 2012 Summer Olympics, so I guess that justifies a post. Here’s three interesting things about the Olympics…

Did you know that the opening ceremony originated through Nazism? There are no records of a torch ceremony before the 1936 Berlin Olympics. While the ancient Greeks utilized the ceremony before their games to honor their gods, we never adopted the practice in modern games until the original flame was said to be dedicated to Hitler himself just before running it to Berlin. This was the Nazi’s way of showing Germany the potential outcome of their reach and an attempt to shift international power in their favor. Though the modern flame has a somewhat offensive and dangerous history, I’m going to continue to relate the Opening Torch Ceremony to the grace and symbolism of the ancient world for which it originated.

For the first time EVER there are more women on the U.S.’s Olympic team than men. This is very odd to me and I can’t help but question the mechanics behind it. I do believe that women can be amazing athletes, but aren’t men built more athletically? Congratulations Title IX. Your supportive results are in.

Two Olympic swimmers, Ryan Lochte from the U.S. and Blair Evans from Australia are thought to be smitten for one another. This is cute, but makes me think of the “star-crossed lover” situation from the Hunger Games…which could ultimately be tragic since someone has to be the loser. At least it’s not life or death…but it could be in terms of a relationship.

Ok that’s all the Olympic talk I have for now. On to other news…

There has been an increase in traffic accidents…and they say it’s due to the warm winter that we had. This is odd because you would think that colder temperatures mean worse driving conditions. Turns out I’m just one of the stupid people that continue to drive when the weather is bad. The warm weather means there are more people on the road during the winter months than usual because there’s no threat of icy or hazardous road conditions…to sum this up: watch out for a surplus of idiots on the road.

Yahoo apparently did a study on the best spaghetti sauces and I was surprised that Prego and Ragu were both excluded from the top of the list. Instead they fell into the “fair” category. I thought spaghetti was good all these years by using the “fair” sauce?! What greatness has escaped my mouth for this long! Next time I’m going to try Giada De Laurentiis tomato basil sauce, which ranked as the top contender. And my expectations are very high.

Everyone seems to be up in arms about the comments made by the owner of Chick-fil-A pertaining to gay marriage. Honestly, I think the sauce they serve is good enough to make you wanna slap ya momma…which is potentially even more offensive/dangerous than expressing an opinion, so be careful.

Please keep Colorado in your prayers. Three hospitals have reduced and even erased the bills for the uninsured that were affected in the tragedy, and are now relying on donations and charity care to cover the costs. Prayer or money- every little bit counts.

In other news, watch out for the “Plain Jane Bandit”! She is still on the loose because officials are unable to distinguish her enough to make a catch. So far she has robbed SIX banks throughout Los Angeles. Nice.

Apparently there is a new technology being developed that will allow people to write (in cursive) with their eyes. It will assist people who were recently paralyzed or are unable to communicate. While this is a little creepy, it’s exciting to know that we are overcoming yet another obstacle in communication.

By the way, I have cooked the last two nights in a row. This means two things: number one- I will NOT be cooking tonight, and number two- I have new recipes to add to my small but growing collection! My favorite was eggplant stuffing, rivaled by the skinny(ish) chicken enchiladas. I’d be glad to share them with anyone interested in cooking!

It’s Friday and I’ve got plans so I’m outta here! Hope everyone has a safe and fantastically passionate weekend full of laughter, good times, sweet tea, sunshine, fireflies, excitement, and of course, fireworks!

Love always,

Addie

“They came to sit & dangle their feet off the edge of the world & after awhile they forgot everything but the good & true things they would do someday. ”- Brian Andreas

goin South

Ever notice how people often talk about how much more difficult things were in the past? On that same token, we also tend to talk about how good things used to be. “Walked seventeen miles up hill both ways to school every day…yep, those were the good ole days…” Seems a little contradictory, but I find myself doing the same thing. I think about dad making us put up hay every summer or having to call my friends on their home phones in hopes that they were even there! Today, I haven’t lifted a bale of hay all summer and I can pretty much contact anyone at any time with the press of a button on my cell phone that is always attached to me in some way. Maybe our natural instincts are telling us that we don’t like the new improvements in technology because they make things too easy for our bodies that were built and designed to overcome obstacles; all the while, society is telling us that it’s good for machines to take over our jobs while we evolve into a lazy, self-righteous generation.

Ok, so maybe I’m being a little harsh…I honestly love the convenience and ease provided to us and feel bless that we are able to obtain such helpful tools. But I do miss the feeling of actually working hard to accomplish something- one that I doubt many children feel now-a-days. Everyone should want better for their children. I think that’s part of the American dream- to provide for your family and continually improve on what your ancestors had pre-established. But I also think we need to draw a line somewhere. Just because there is an automatic water bowl for the dog and Round-up to kill the weeds doesn’t mean that we should always utilize them. Giving kids chores teaches them lessons to build upon later in life. Sometimes it’s ok to feed the dog yourself or chop a few weeds out of the yard. It’s doubtful that anyone will call the hotline on you for abuse…and if they do, maybe they should take a closer look at their own parenting skills.

Whew…got a little carried away with that intro! My reminiscent theme quickly turned into a rant about work ethic. Oops! Now back to my original intent for this blog-: “the good ole days!” I chose this topic due to the new bill that was just passed in the big MKY! (Which was also just named the friendliest town in America! Well played Murray….but I think we can all thank Ms. Mary from Mary’s Kitchen and Master Dihn for the majority of hospitality points in Racer country.) The city of Murray recently voted to become wet, meaning that liquor and beer can now be sold within the city limits. Upon first hearing the news, I was excited for the students to know that they no longer have to travel to get alcohol. This ultimately can reduce traffic and drunk driving incidents along with saving precious gas money and bringing more revenue into Murray by keeping sales local. But the more I thought about it, the more I realized that this is the end of an era for Murray State students.

The term “goin South” was synonymous with good times and had surely been used or heard by everyone one campus at one time or another. Now that liquor will be sold in Murray, there will be no need to “go South” except to relive and revisit the old stomping grounds. Macs could potentially go out of business, and I assume 6-4-1 (better known as 6-4-FUN) will probably become unknown to the new classes. Cosmo’s and Spiders will probably be used for late nights only and South of the Border Pub Crawls will probably become a thing of the past as well. I can only hope that the traditions of the “South” will endure through the generations of MSU students to ensure the prosperity of the “good times” in the present, and not just in “the good ole days.”

In honor of the “good times” had South of the Border, here’s my tribute to the great memories we made in the four years while “goin South”. Hopefully it’s an experience that everyone will try at least once…

Noteable moments down South:

1. Ben taking a sock to Cosmo’s in memory of Zack…who couldn’t make it past El Marachi…and buying it a beer. (Note: It is an accomplishment in itself for someone to make it past an El Mariachi Loco night and continue down South. Some people, like Zack in this case, just can’t hang.)
2. Chase pretending to be my boyfriend to keep the Hank Jr. look-alike from asking me to dance with him. Thank you a million times over!
3. Austin climbing on top of the truck while Leah drove everyone home…and eventually making it up to the windshield just to wave to everyone inside the cab.
4. Any Murray Rodeo night at Spiders…typically falling on Halloween.
5. The nasty bartender lady dirty dancing in front of Leah’s dad right before falling into the empty bottle bucket…on parents weekend.
6. The last cab ride home from down South as a Murray State student…Marsha was bound and determined to justify everything with the fact that “they were freshman senators together…”
7. Being the only people in Spiders when the Sikeston crew came to visit
8. Hitting the Mac’s drive thru before back roading and looking for deer…on any given day
9. Spilling Tequila Rose all over dad’s back seat after driving all the way to Paris to buy it
10. Leah and Jessica (big and grandbig) taking me South right after being initiated into ASA. Miller family traditions…

Freshman year at 6-4-1 with Alaina, Leah, and Kayla

The night that no one planned on going out…but we ended up at Cosmo’s…with a sock instead of Zack…ps- that’s not my hand…

Johnny Mac always played down South…and we were his groupies

The infamous trip to Spiders…we were the only people in the whole place but we had a blast!

While mine and Abby’s notorious Bad News Boots were typically saved for El Mariachi Loco nights, they eventually branched out to wild nights Down South as well.

This weekend is also another monumental moment when it comes to my Murray family…a member of the original wolf pack is getting married! Allie, better known as Mini/Little Wolf is joining with Chase to start their own wolf pack, but I know that no matter what, she will always remember her original pack. I am so excited for her and for the reunion that is about to take place! I’m pretty sure I’m going to relive my freshman year of college all over again. It’s been way too long and we all have a lot of catching up and major celebrating to do!

Skinny Wolf (Abby), Alpha Wolf (Leah), Mini/Little Wolf (Allie), and Tall Wolf (your truly)

It’s funny how people call different places home. I personally call Sikeston and now Aberdeen “home.” But I never really considered Murray to be “home.” I always saw it as a temporary endeavor. But the relationships that I built there are more of a home to me than most I’ve made anywhere else. It’s true that home is where and what you make it…I’m excited to go back home this weekend to Allie, Leah, and Abby!

Speaking of the Sikeston home…another tradition has been laid to rest. I was saddened to learn that the Observatory had been torn down to discourage further trespassing and vandalism on the farm. No more creepy ghost hunting, reading the spray painted names and creepy quotes, watching the sunset off the ledge, or photo shoots in the infamous tower. The landmark only known to true Sikestonians will always remain a memorable part of my upbringing.

Mamie, Kaci and I at the observatory after our sophomore year roadtrip.

Everyone please keep Kim Maclin’s family in your prayers. Her life was taken all too soon this past week in a car accident. She was an amazing woman of God and an amazing role model in the Sikeston community. She will be greatly missed but I know that she truly has made it Home.

Also, don’t forget to just pray.

If you’re ever at a loss of words for a prayer, just say “thank you.” Or write a letter and start a prayer journal. I started one this last semester and have found that it’s a great outlet for resolution, strength, and actual conversations with the Big Man. It’s also a cool way to date your prayers and watch to see when and how God answers them in one way or another.

Have an amazing week and say one nice thing to someone every day. It could mean a lot more than you think.

Love always,

Addie

“Listen to the Mustn’ts, child, listen to the Don’ts. Listen to the Souldn’ts, the Impossibles, the Won’ts. Listen to the Never Haves. Then listen close to me- Anything can happen, child. ANYTHING can be.” – Silverstein

deciding to be exciting

Hey again! Remember me? The girl who was supposed to be in Greenville, Mississippi at her new big girl job working as a marketing director for a successful chain of hotels? Yeah, well I’m not exactly there…

After working and living in Greenville for one short week and not being able to pinpoint the exact reason behind my doubts about being there, I got another job offer clear across to the other side of the state. This was obviously a good dilemma, but nonetheless a dilemma. I didn’t want to give up on something before really ever giving it a chance, but I just couldn’t shake the yearning to get away. In the end, I followed my heart right back to Aberdeen to work for Birdsong and haven’t regretted the decision for one second. Greenville was a short but well-lived experience that I wouldn’t trade- it’s another one of those things that you have to “get out of your system” because your mind and reality don’t exactly match up. But dressing up every day is not for me. And don’t get me wrong, I’m a very friendly and hospitable person (most of the time), but working in the hospitality industry takes a whole load of patience that I can honestly say I don’t have. I guess that’s another one of those selfish characteristics that I still need to work on…Regardless, I am back home (sorry, mom) in Aberdeen and reclaiming my title as Miss Peanut! And I couldn’t be happier.

I learn more and more every single day that God has a plan, we just have to be patient. His timing is never wrong and there is a reason behind every valley. I am not and have never been a decisive person, but God continues to work on that with me. It never fails that once something good is offered to me, something else of equal or greater significance will suddenly become accessible- and of course, you can’t have ‘em both! Looking back, many of my major decisions in life have never been made of excruciating choices, but rather of multiple blissful opportunities. Most people would look at this as a blessing, (and trust me I am very thankful!) but being the hard headed mule that I am, I get frustrated because I “refuse to pick favorites…in anything.” And I am convinced that this is God’s way of forcing me to become decisive. I think it all boils down to drawing lines between your comfort zones, what you need and what you want, and who you choose to put first in your life. I like to think that God is teaching me not only to be decisive, but also the value of trust. He has never lost faith in me along this road, so who am I to not trust in His plans for me? I have also decided that if I could describe myself in one word it would be “excitable.” Basically if something doesn’t excite me, I consider it a waste of my time. Aberdeen was more exciting to me that Greenville so I had to take a chance, and guess what- it IS exciting. I see things through hungry eyes and if something doesn’t give me the slightest tug, like a bug to a light zapper, I dismiss it. Seems very black and white- like I don’t give things a chance, but I don’t think that’s necessarily true either. I’ll give anything a try, maybe even a second try, but I’m here for a short time and I plan to spend it begin excited about always searching for Joy. (Refer to a previous blog for my explanation of Joy…) God made excitment and me excitable so I think it all goes hand in hand…

You know what’s hard to imagine…a Geo being a really awesome, brand new car. I wonder if they were cool when they were new on the market or if they’ve always been…lackluster, for lack of better word.

Ever have those moments where it’s hard to really vocalize your thoughts? Better yet, ever notice how I tend to beat around the bush and drag out my thoughts in these blogs instead of being able to state a point and move on? And somehow, elderly people tend to always be so well-spoken and know exactly what to say for advice or inspiration. I think it’s because they’ve lived their life to a point where they are finally settled in their ways, their life, and everything within them is peaceful in knowing that. Whereas someone like me, who is still so unsettled, would have a hard time expressing what I think because I am not still in my life or thoughts. At this point, it’s both scary AND calming to think that one day I will be fully settled. Past the point of settling into a career, chasing around kids, and saving for retirement. I hope to keep moving as long as I can, but one of these days I’ll be still- and then maybe I’ll be able to speak eloquently and straight to the point.

I attached a video link below for your entertainment…this is compliments of my friend, Tara, whom I became close with working in the T-room at school because she gave me the straighten-yo-white-girl-self-out kind of advice that only a true black woman can give. Pretty sure the best advice that she gave me was “get over it.” Of course there is more behind those three words, but I guess you just had to be there…. This video is also the root to two of my favorite phrases, “doin tha most!” and “ratchet”-both of which Marsha think so fondly of…(haha)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9oBlnb5orJo

Hope you all have an amazing day! Eat some peanut butter, thank God for rain, and bring sunshine everywhere you go.

Love always,

Addie

“His strength perfected in my weakness”