A Mishmash of Mishaps and Other Random Ponderings

This is probably going to end up more like multiple mini-blogs in one. 

First, I believe that a woman with a good track record in solid instincts should always go with her gut.  I had thought to myself that a friend of mine's guy was up to no good a few months ago, and I was right.  That is all I am going to say about it because it is not my story to tell, but next time my spidey senses fire up, I'ma be better prepared.  (Yes, yes, I know, I will chicken out and not say anything just like this time.  Unless...see below).

Second random line of thought.  I have mentioned in previous posts that I am reading a Donald Miller book called "A Million Miles in a Thousand Years".  It is really good.  Right now he is talking about writing our lives into a better story.  A better story for a character almost always involved going through hardship.  Here in the US, many of us spend our whole lives trying to avoid any sort of hardship.  Our relationships hit a rough patch so we abandon them.  We take a class that is going to be a lot of work and we drop it (been there done that).  However, I think Miller brings up a good point.  If we would face some of these things we see as hardships we could potentially come out much better people in the end.

I have seen plenty of people go through Hell and back.  And almost every one of them bounces back stronger and better. Do we still have scars from the pain? Yes. But we also have the lessons learned.  I agree with Miller when he says that our attempts at cushioning life are holding us back from living a better story.  Some people give up everything they have and practically live nomadic in other countries just to spread the Gospel, give medical aid to those in need, and tons of other reasons.  And these people truly feel meaningful and like they have a purpose.  I am definitely not saying that is the only way to feel like you have purpose, you can have that without selling all of your stuff.  But if someone asked you right now, why are you on this earth? What is your purpose? 

Would you have an answer?

In response to Miller and what I read, I am now much more excited to go on this DC trip.  This gives me the opportunity to break out of my little rut, my nervous little shell, and do something other than what I am so incredibly used to. My travel consists of cars as transportation, and mostly just one of two paths: south to Florida or states in between, and up to the Great Lakes Region.  That really sums almost all of it up.

And it was almost always with friends and family.  But I can learn a lot from this trip.  I think it can help me live a better story.  I will learn so much more than I ever knew about the history of America and where some of my distant relatives fought and what they fought for and the things they went through.  I feel like it will give me a better sense of where I came from.  Not that my family is from that area, but many of us have some sort of connection with it. 

Robert Frost writes in his poem that taking the path less traveled made all the difference. 

Now for my final mishmash which includes none other than the Asian Invasion himself...

I have had this gigantic Dell Laptop for close to a year.  You can't miss it, it has a 17.3 inch display.  I call it laptopzilla.  I have used it nearly every day of this school year and have had it with me in the lab every day I have been in here for the last month and a half since I have been using it at my internship as well.

So the conversation goes like this:

AI: You have a new laptop?
Me: No I have had this one.
AI: I have seen you with a different one.
Me: I haven't carried my Lenovo this whole school year.
AI: (frustrated) I have seen you with a different one.

I'ma just throw this out there.  If I am going to lie about something it is going to be a lot better than whether my laptop is new or not.  Just sayin.  And clearly I, the purchaser who spent over a grand on this thing (terabyte hard drive, lots of memory, awesome display, subwoofer, WORTH IT), would know best how long I have had it.  This whole find a random thing to say to a girl just so she is forced to answer is getting old and it is especially annoying when someone is acting like I don't know what I am talking about on a subject I clearly do. 

Oh, and facebook has informed me that Frattitude is now single.  Which I have no idea why his crap is popping up on my news feed when I unfriended him.  But whatever.  As per the comments, it seems as though she did the splitting.  I hope she stays gone, because if she hasn't figured it out already he seems anything but loyal.  And that never ends well.  Cheetahs never lose their spots they say.