Ok, let's get serious

Ok, so I don't want my online presence to feel or sound like I'm some raving lunatic. I blame my ranting and hostile initial posts on the fact that Mercury has been in retrograde and everyone is a bit off when that happens. So, here's something I've been contemplating a bit lately. Is it or is it not necessary to self-analyze yourself in order to become enlightened? There are several people in my life who have conflicting opinions on this subject. My husband is on the side who thinks that we don't need to analyze ourselves in order to be self-aware and enlightened. And he doesn't indulge in the self-analysis. He is very in touch with the oneness of the Universe and has a very enlightened sense of being. One of my best friends believes that there's a bit of a need but that we shouldn't be so absorbed that we become obsessed in the analysis and therefore never progress past the point of analysis to actual enlightenment. She is very down-to-earth and things that come out of her mouth stop me in my tracks with their truthfulness and insight. My other friend is addicted to self-analysis and self-help in every form there is. He finds all the answers and has even realized that all the different experts have the exact same answers, simply wrapped in different packaging to appeal to different people. So, what is the truth? I guess I am sort of a fence-sitter on the subject. I was a debater and love to look at all sides of an idea or argument so self-analysis appeals to me on that level. However, there are certain things that I know in my heart and believe that I didn't have to go through any such analysis to know and believe. So, is the need for self-analysis as a tool to progress our souls to enlightenment a prerequisite or does the answer change for each individual? Is it like the self-help answers to the meaning of life that are Universal Truths just wrapped in different packaging? I know this, the answers are out there for us all to find and once we do it may not matter how we got there or what path led us to enlightenment, simply that we got there.

oh, is it too HARD?

What the fuck is up with people thinking that just because something might require some hard work on their part means that they just shouldn't do it? It is the most bizarre behaviour I have come across in years and I seem to be surrounded with these freaks! I want to scream at the top of my lungs: Are you or are you not an application developer who is being paid well to support an application and then want to complain about how much work all the projects are making you do and how you can't keep up with it all? Oh, and are you or are you not a project manager being paid probably more than I am for my system engineering job and then can't even put out minutes for your meetings that I'm required to attend and take up all of my time? Is this a professional company I work at or has everyone but me been taken over by the pod people? Case in point, I just sat in on an initial planning meeting for a project that half of the technical team CLEARLY doesn't want to do (poor babies!). Every high-level requirement that we were there to hammer out the tasks required to complete was met with a bombardment of rationalizing why we shouldn't do it because it was hard. HELLO FREAKS!!! Executive management has mandated that this shit be done in the next 3-6 weeks so quit your fucking bitching and get to work already!!!

The Other Boleyn Girl

This was my latest pick for the neighborhood book club - consisting of very conservative ladies from the neighborhood with very strick rules about the kinds of books we choose to read. These rules include (in no particular order) no swearing, no sex, no violence. Needless to say I am hard-pressed typically to find a book that I like, that presents options for discussion AND that fit into the nice little rule box. This time I had to pick a book that I had not read yet after finding that a couple of recommendations from others didn't pan out due to violence and sex. So, I pulled my latest "hey, I want to read that!" impulse buy out of the stack of books waiting to be cracked open and started in. When time was up on making a choice, I was about 90 pages in, it not only grabbed my attention but it had not an ounce of forbidden topics. WOOHOO! So, I announced it to the ladies with the disclaimer that I had not finished it. I went home after bookclub and the next day continued reading so I could complete it before the end of the month. To my horror - well, enjoyment really - the sex started! And it never ended the rest of the book. I spent the next 5 weeks until we met to discuss worried that everyone in the neighborhood would think I had broken the rules (who, me?!?) and done it on purpose, which of course I hadn't. Other than the fact that all the sex that Henry VIII was having during the Ann Boleyn era took on the role of another character in the book, it was a very interesting and entertaining look at the infamous time in English history. We had a very rousing discussion and even the ladies in the neighborhood had lots to talk about... without touching on the sex! One of the points that several folks had disagreement on was the author's portrayal of the King in the book. He was a very powerful historical figure who was described in this book as a very stumbling King who was easily manipulated by his court. There was also some intrigue as to the relationship of Anne Boleyn to certain members of her family that left much to discuss. For someone who's only knowledge of Anne Boleyn and King Henry VIII was that they were married and he cut off her head, it was a very enlightening read. Enjoyable reading with a little bit o'history mixed in! I recommend it... We are watching the movie tomorrow and we'll see if the movie is better than the book. What am I saying? The movie is NEVER as good as the book!

Birth of a blog

And so it begins... as with all journeys there must be a beginning so there can be a middle and an ending and thus so it is and will be with my little blogspot. I have always wished I could have a crystal ball or a fairy godmother to tell me my future that wasn't from the "hindsight" perspective. Maybe being able to post my journey and random thoughts as I travel it to the cyber-space universe will show a pattern to life? Or maybe it will just give me more crazy ideas for book plots that may or may not ever be written in my lifetime? Or maybe others will gain an insight on the window of my crazy soul by being allowed to witness my inner dialogue? For whatever reason you find yourself, here... enjoy. I will rant and I will rave and I will tell you all the things that I find to amuse myself as we travel together. And, let this be a warning that I will not hold back on the language I feel appropriate to the circumstances of life. Sometimes it will merely be PG-13 and others it may just not be suitable for all audiences.... because you're going to get me and woah, careful what you wish for folks! You may occassionally find tidbits of "family" life thrown in for a bit of seasoning but if you came here for cutsie family photos and yet another "look at how cute my kids and how great a life we have" blog then you've come to the wrong place. Welcome and hold on tight!