haiku

this is how it started, simple words
4 all of u, trying to find my way
in the internet world, seeing if any
would respond, this way of writing
seemed easier 4 me, so i continued
on, learning and growing

i have come so far, made so many
friends, with these simple words
it seems everyone knew me, 2 my
surprise, some understood the meaning

at times i was cryptic, just to see who
would get it, as 4 me i was trying to
find the balance, 2 learn who these
strange ppl were, as the faces were
hidden, so the words were my balance

each day, i came to c who was among
the few, in hopes the words showed
who i am, what i was looking 4 when
i first began, i am not sure, i guess
everything has a beginning, and my
words were my beginning, i will say
this i was def searching for something
as we don't seek if we don't need

i had forgotten this way of writing, of
forming my words, but it seems many
did not, as this way of writing is poetry
to some, as turtle said "haiku" her memory
of my words so vivid, using her memory
i formed this blog, with the words
i so often used

it is 2 b assumed, as i wrote my words
u all wondered about me as well, as i
was just a pseudo "cpgem8" just as
cryptic as my words, many must have
wondered, is she real? that thought
never occurred to me, as i was me
real and true

time has a way of defining things, it
brings closure to guessing, there is no
more guessing, we are all real, we have
faces, and are words are what brings us
together, never stop the words 4 we
need them, it is our touch

happy blue

smiles and happiness always
♥♥♥

cpgem8

The Laughter!

by Shirley

There is nothing like a child's laughter, it will certainly brighten anyone's day!

~ Your Call ~

Chosen by Tina~in_ut

I hear this song on the radio all the time and I love it. It reminds me of my husband, my children, and even some of my friends. I think about how when I was born, I was destined to marry the man I married, have and raise the children I have, and meet and become friends with certain people along the way. I wanted to share this song with you.


And then I found the video! What a disappointment. It is nothing like I "picture" this song in my head. The singer seems to be obsessed with the girl and even stalkerish!!! This just won't do!!! So close your eyes and listen...don't watch! :D

An Unlikely Pair....

An unlikely pair, as so it seems
but on second look, its the same
as we all need, the companionship,
the love, to be paired as friends,
love is the same, it completes us
no matter where its found

An unlikely pair, perhaps not!

~ When Did It Become Okay To Scream Obscenities in Public? ~

by Tina~in_ut

Over the holiday weekend, I went to WalMart to get a passport picture taken. I don't know what I was thinking!!! I usually go there late at night to avoid the crowds and here I was in the middle of the day with everyone and their brother! As I was nearing the entrance, there was a big truck with a man driving and a woman in the passenger seat facing the door and another car perpendicular to him with a man in it. I normally wouldn't have noticed them......I don't notice anything.....but one of them honked. I looked up to see the Truck man taking off his seat belt. Car man was kinda leaning out his window looking at the other man. Truck man started yelling and when I actually started paying attention, I realized he was cussing at the top of his lungs. I'm no prude (no laughing!), but there was no reason for it! There were children all around and I live in a very conservative area, so you know there were people around that were offended. Truck man went so far as to open his door and started to get out, all the while cussing like a madman! I thought at first that it was a racial thing. Truck man was white and Car man was either Mexican or Asian (I couldn't get a good look at him, okay?!!). Then I noticed Truck wife. She was Polynesian. Whatever the problem was, I just couldn't believe it was bad enough to warrant what I and many others were hearing.

Two days later, I went to the grocery store after work. I park at the end of the parking lot so my beautiful new car won't get a scratch on it! Sitting under a tree at the end of the next row was a strange man. Well, he wasn't actually strange. I just thought it was strange that he was way out there sitting in a parking lot on such a hot day. I went in and did my shopping and when I came out, I heard some man screaming at the top of his lungs. It was like deja vu! I looked over by the street and there was my strange guy yelling into his phone and cussing just like Truck man. This guy seemed to be furious and was really scary. He hung up his phone and I got the heck outta there.

What I'd like to know is, when did it become okay to scream obscenities in public? I like the occasional cuss word on the blog or with my co-workers or even in the car with a friend in Denver~ What these people were doing was rude and offensive. It's sad really~

"Me"

by Bonacci

I keep getting stuck. Not in the metaphorical sense, but in the physical, “If-I-move-I-am-going-to-die” sense. It is a shooting pain through my back and down my leg. I have become stuck at the most inopportune times, the most recent being whilst putting dog food in the fridge, directly in the path of the Cold Blast. Great, I thought. I’m going to die of hypothermia, standing here in front of the open refrigerator. The coroner will list the cause of death as idiocy.

This is not supposed to happen to me. I am healthy and active. Injuries are a side effect of the lifestyle I have chosen and I happily accept the price of that lifestyle. I don’t know what I could have done to my back, though. I haven’t lifted anything heavier than Ernie the Chihuahua and Elmo the Poodle in the past week. I am in truth, not dying because dying isn’t supposed to hurt. Plus, when my ass and leg is not on fire, I find it mildly entertaining.

I have not told my husband about this. He just thinks I’ve absolutely lost my mind because of all the cover stories I’ve made up when I become stuck. He has caught me checking the carpet and pondering a refrigerator, empty of anything except the can of Alpo that was caught in my death grip. There have been a lot of complicated mathematical problems I’ve been solving in the midst of some routine movement that has paralyzed me. My eccentric personality is finally an asset, as he wonders if I am just trying to get a reaction out of him with my recent stop-animation movement.

The reality is that my body is simply a machine. Machines require maintenance and care. At some point, you either have to replace original parts or lose functionality. As an engineer I know that once you start swapping out parts, the integrity of any machine will be compromised. I am determined to preserve the integrity of this machine I call, ”Me”.

I am not a high-performance sports car. I am a demolition derby car that always seems to be running, maybe just barely, at the end of the day. I was built well and my design is sound. I have scars and dents that are badges of honor I wear proudly. I may not operate at peak efficiency all the time and I may back-fire, but I will always be there, giving all I’ve got. You can hammer out the dents that impede performance and weld me back together when I need it. Leave the foundation alone though, because that is what makes me, "Me". That's all I was ever meant to be.

Our Money Pit

by Caryn

We've been here about 2 months and are finally getting things in place to do the badly needed repair and maintenance work on our “new” 84 year old house. Next month someone is coming to install piers and replace old beams under the house so I won't be sitting sideways while I type on the computer and we won’t have to crawl uphill to get off the sofa anymore.

Much of the electrical wiring needs to be upgraded and we need to consolidate three breaker boxes (two are piggy-backed off of the main one) and get the house properly grounded. It's a wonder my mother-in-law never had a fire in here! In her bedroom she had 3 very old extension cords daisy-chained from one side of the room to the other so she could have a lamp next to her bed. The dishwasher had an old lamp cord wired to it with a hole cut on top of the counter so it could be plugged into the wall outlet. We didn't see that until we moved the microwave that her boys bought her back in the day when microwaves were first sold for personal use. There is no main cutoff for the electricity - yikes! Shortly after we arrived, there was a thunderstorm and I watched the lights on the ceiling fan glow with each lightning strike ... and the ceiling fan was turned off! And there's a breaker that bounces when we use our microwave and won't completely trip, which is disturbing.

The doors don’t close properly and windows have terrible wood rot. There are cracks all over the house that are an open invitation to creepy crawly things from outside, and Oklahoma has a LOT of creepy crawly things!

We had to wait to start this work because we didn't want to put a lot money into the house before we got a clear deed, although we did get the kitchen outlets replaced and the dishwasher wired properly. Soon, the real work can begin. Correcting the foundation problems, bringing the electrical system up to code, replacing the heating and window a/c units with a geothermal system, putting in ductwork for that, insulating, installing thermal doors and windows, repairing the driveway that looks like a jackhammer has been taken to it … these are all on the “to do” list before winter hits.

We have to let the professionals take care of these things before we can start on the do-it-yourself cosmetic projects. The fun stuff will probably have to wait until next spring. We don’t know the condition of the drywall because the entire house has wood paneling, with the exception of the kitchen and two bathrooms. So we may be replacing drywall as well. There are lovely hardwood floors under the very old gold carpeting in the front of the house that I’m looking forward to refinishing.

My mother-in-law was widowed when my husband was just an infant and she bought this house with insurance proceeds. She eventually put herself through beauty school and built a beauty shop onto the house so she could be home with her three young sons while still being able to support herself. In one of the bedrooms you can still see the pipes where the shampoo bowls once stood. The front porch is enclosed and was once the space where clients sat under the old chair dryers.

There are lot of inconveniences we’re living with and will continue living with for awhile. It will cost a bit to get things in order, but this is our home. It’s the first place my husband and I have owned since we got married 11 years ago. It’s the place where my husband grew up…so many memories in these walls. From the first time my husband brought me here, I felt there was something special about this house. Now it’s a place our children and grandchildren can come to make more memories. Back in California we rented one of those fairly new “McMansion” type homes for the last 4 years and in spite of all the upgrades and bells and whistles it had, I never felt as happy as I do in this moment. This place reminds me of my grandparents’ home in New Jersey. Theirs was a 3-story place with my grandfather’s general store in front. When we visited, I would wake up in the middle of the night and go down to the store to sneak a gumball (probably why I have bad teeth). I still have one of the ice cream scoops he used back in the day when he made 10-cent cones for the neighborhood kids. The place has since been sold and turned into a seafood restaurant. I drive by when we’re in Cape May and I’m immediately transformed into the little girl in pigtails and sandals, with all the smells of the shop and of Nanny’s home cooking so deep in my senses, it’s as if I’m there again.

I sit in my office chair, straining to keep it from turning into the downhill slope in the floor and I breathe a sigh of contentment. For me, it’s not about how shiny or new or pretty it is. It’s about where the love is, and our love is here. My husband has a great job that he can see himself at for the next 20 years. We are closer to our children and our grandson. With luck, more grandchildren will be enjoying these walls as the years pass.

And we are finally home.