Believer

Dear Readers,

I did something today that I haven't done in quite a long time. I wrote a poem, start to finish. The end result wasn't the poem I started out to write. In my head it was a depressing thing, ending on a note of "Why not me?" On paper... it's this:

Believer

I believe in fairy tales
And gifts sent from above
In dragon tales and fairy wings
And real, unending love.

I believe that riches
Can't buy you happiness
And I believe in true respect-
Nothing more and nothing less.

I believe in candy rain
And chocolate snowflakes, too
In lemon flavored sunbeams
Sugar crystals from the moon.

I believe that peace and joy
Come first from deep inside
I believe in holding tight
to every scrap of it you find.

2-25-11

~ Your Lonley Dreamer

A Valentine's Wish List

Dear Readers,

Here we are: Valentine's Day. And since I'm single it's not really much fun to watch my friends on Face Book change their profile pics to lovey-dovey photos of themselves and their significant others. But it's got me thinking about things I'd like to have in a future partner. Without further ado, I present my Valentine's Day Wish List. (In no particular order.)

• Respect. I've met people who never think of others. Guys who loudly use swear words in public places filled with children. Who make other people's lives and jobs harder on purpose. I cannot spend time with these people. If he can't or doesn't respect people he may never see again, how much respect will he show to me? Not enough, in my opinion.
• Romance. One day at work I helped a guy find a gift for his girlfriend. As I was ringing up the purchase I asked him if it was her birthday, or another special occasion. He replied that she'd had a long day. He'd just dropped her off at work at another store in the mall, and decided to buy her a gift and head back to her work place to give it to her, just to brighten her day. With The Stupid I can remember coming home to 2 dozen roses, just because he said he loved me. And then there was prom night, when he borrowed his mom's van, blindfolded me, and drove us out to the middle of the desert. We had fried chicken and Mountain Dew completely alone under the stars. These gestures are important. Girls like to know they're being thought of, even when we're not around.
• Sense of Humor. I love to laugh, and to make others laugh. Not many people find me funny. I guess my humor's...unique. But every once in a while I say something that gets a genuine laugh. I need a guy that loves to laugh and makes me laugh. Laughter is healing. But not all humor is the "ha ha" kind. A good sense of irony and sarcasm is important, too.
• Listening. There have been many occasions in which I have been telling a story, or commenting on something that has been said, and the group I'm with just talks right over me. It makes me feel small, stupid, and unloved. My comments may not always be amazingly insightful, but they do deserve to be heard.
• Culture. I love music, books, art, theater. People that are lucky enough to spend time with me generally love one or more of the same. Those that can teach me something about those subjects without being belittling have a special quality that is a little hard to resist.
• Love. A life without passion isn't worth living. I need a man who loves me, loves his family, and loves his friends. Love is the only thing that keeps me alive, and it must be reciprocated. I love with my whole heart, always. I expect the same in return (and yet am surprised when I get it.)

Those might just be my top 6 qualities that I need in a mate. Reading over them, they seem to paint a portrait of a polished man who has it all together. But that's not the image I have. I like a guy a little rough around the edges. Messy hair, tattoos, and a bit of a free spirit. Physical appearance isn't so important, though. I don't really have a "type." Attraction is key, and can surprise you in its packaging sometimes.

So what do you think, Readers? Am I setting my sights too high? Do men like that actually exist? If they do, would they ever be interested in... me?

Wishing on a star
~Your Lonely Dreamer

Thanksgiving and Christmas

Dear Readers,

I hope you're ready for a photo intensive post today, Readers! I know that tomorrow is Valentine's Day, but let's go back in time a bit and catch you up on Thanksgiving and Christmas.

For Thanksgiving my wonderful "adoptive" family came all the way from Mesa, Az and farther to spend the holiday with us. We all went to Aunt and Uncle's for Thanksgiving dinner, along with about 30 other family members.

This is the beautiful Megan. She's been a better friend to me than I deserve. She's one of my two awesome roommates.

And this is the amazing Angela. She's my other roommate, and another friend that I absolutely could not live without. Incidentally, she's Megan's sister and it was their family that came to visit.

The beautiful lady is the matriarch of the Willis family and my "momsie."

These are Meg and Ang's darling nieces. Haylie's the blond and that's Mackenzie with the crazy face. They belong to the stud in the middle of this pic:

That's "dad", Jarom, and "dad's" brother. And me, smushed in the corner; trying unsuccessfully to stay out of the picture! I love the way Dad's arm is around Jarom, and Jarom's is around Uncle Rick! So precious!

And this handsome fellow is Jordan, youngest of the 4 brothers, stuck right between Meg and Ang in the family tree. It's always so good to spend time with such an amazing group of people! It was a great day filled with delicious food and superb company! Oh, and check out these adorable table decorations! I wish I could have been there to see the boys work so hard to get them set up just so.

Sadly, the family couldn't make it up for Christmas, and we couldn't make it down to Arizona (or Texas in my case, to see my biological family.) But we put up some cute decorations:

 And made our own Christmas card!

I'm sorry if you didn't get one and feel left out. I think I sent 2 of these. I'm terrible at this kind of stuff!

And I did a couple of Christmas themed manicures.

On Christmas Day we went back to Aunt and Uncle's for brunch and then came home for a Skype Christmas. We called the Willis family and all opened presents together. I only wish I could have done the same with my family in Texas.

And that's pretty much the story of the holidays around here. If I were a better blogger I would have blogged things as I went: decorating the tree, shopping for gifts, baking cookies (which I didn't even do. I came home to them one night after work.) I promise I'll try to be better at keeping you informed. For now, I'm signing off.

~Your Lonely Dreamer