Friends & Family

I haven’t posted in a while so through some not too subtle encouragement from my roomy, and wife here it is…

Bonus Blog #2

Curse of the Writer’s Block

Blog 1

When was the last time you made a friend? A real friend? I’m not talking about having a brief conversation with a stranger, or the person that you talk to on the other end of a 900 number…you pervert. No, I’m talking about putting yourself out there and making a lasting friendship. The last real friend that I made was a guy named Courtney, but we don’t hang out because he lives in Birmingham now and there in lies the problem. My network of friends is dwindling.
Last night I had a conversation with my wife and our roommate, we were talking about how we don’t have a lot of friends anymore. Everyone has either moved away or drifted away. This brings me to my point. We all need new friends. This, however, can be a difficult thing, especially if you haven’t made any for a while. So we are all discussing and LJ decides that she will start up her long planned Stitch n’ Bitch club, while Mike decides he needs to get out there and engage people more.

Fast Forward

Four days later I am typing up this post and LJ has the beginnings of a club and a possibility for some new friends and Mike has gotten a girl’s number. Man, I’m pathetic. I used to be the leader of new movements in any of my friend groups. I mean really! “Bizarro”, remember that Courtney? Or Paintball? Or even the original poker night, damn it! Now I have been shown up not once but twice in a matter of days. Ok, deep breath.
I have to find myself a friend and fast. Maybe I can solicit myself to a club on campus, or just tie some meat around my waist and walk around town hoping to gather some strays. Ugh. I may be thinking about this too hard.
One thing though, and this goes out to all those young couples out there. It is damn hard to be married and make single friends. One: your spouse has to be cool with you choosing to spend time with someone other than them. And Two: Your single friend has to be cool with you having a spouse. When you get married its as though people assume you have switched sides on some invisible game field. You can’t always relate to people who are single because they have different outlooks on things.
Back to topic. I need to make an effort to meet someone new. If not for me then just for my pride. Damn…

Blog 2

I talked to my sister the other day. She was all excited about going on a trip to London as a part of a study abroad program. From what I know she would go for just shy of five weeks to a university in London where she would have class two days out of every week and get 3 hrs credit by the end. In that time she would also be able to take trips to other European countries if she was so inclined. The class that she would take would be art appreciation, which as far as I know would not do a whole lot for her major and may or may not transfer to another school. The trip costs in total around $5,000. My family’s reaction was negative and for many good reasons.I talked to her about it and tried to, I guess, share a different perspective on the trip. In the end I think she felt like everyone was against her. I think I upset her a lot as well. I didn’t mean to but it is one of those things.EX: Your friend thinks it would be a good idea to buy a used car. When he/she sees this car they see it through rose tinted glasses, but you being somewhat removed see the car as a bit overpriced and in the end not really what your friend will want or need. So, yeah they’ll spend the money and have a great time with the car for awhile until they realize a year down the road that maybe they should have put that money into something better. You want your friend to be happy, so some small part of you wants them to get it. Hell, why not? Throw caution to the wind. But then you remember how it was when you bought the shit-heap your driving and want to spare your friend your mistake.Anyway, I hope my sister isn’t too pissed at me. I want her to be happy. I just think that maybe instead of doing this she could invest that time and money into finding a bitchen pad and apply to some great college. Right now she feels pressured from my family to go to Georgia State. She may want to go else ware, maybe out of state. I think she should. It’s not impossible and besides college is the perfect time to move out and see what the real world is really like.My choices through college have been fraught with mistakes, heartbreak, and failure. However, I can look back with 20-20 vision. I think that through painful example or road weary advice I can give some small help. In the end it’s her own choice. She is an adult and has to make these kinds of decisions for herself. Sometimes though we need to curb our enthusiasm for something enough to allow our heads to see clearly. The most significant obstacle that can stand in anyone’s way of his or her goals is that of inaction. So, get your butt movin’ girl, no one can do it for ya. I’ll be here if you need me.