Friendship: The Perfect Blendship

It was just another normal night of backstabbings, murder, hangings, lies, deception, and trickery. If anyone would have stepped in at any random moment that night, they would have all thought that we hated each other. They would have heard the arguments putting people on the defensive and accusations that had not been proven to be true. They would have seen the finger-pointing and the looks of disgust on everyone’s face as they accused each other of some horrible wrong-doing. What was this horrible sight and sound that it manifested itself one late Sunday night? Oh, it was just a rousing game of Mafia being played by me and my group of friends. After all wise man once said “It is one of the blessings of old friends that you can afford to be stupid with them.” How true that is!

I feel sorry for the people who cannot be themselves around their friends for fear of people not accepting them as who they are. I have no patience for people who pretend to be someone else just so someone would like them. I have tried that route before and have to come to realization it doesn’t work out. Just the strain of being a “fake” person is enough to make one go crazy. Over the past few years, I have slowly come out of my turtle shell to find that the outside, although sometimes harsh, is a pleasant place to be. To guard yourself because you might be hurt or someone might not like you was a ridiculous notion I once had. No great reward comes without great risk. Yes, it is a risk to put yourself out there without protection of your shell but the shell gets heavy and cumbersome. So shed it, you’ll feel uncomfortable at first but the taste of freedom can be unquenchable and soon you’ll forget all about your shell. For over the years, the more I put my true self out there, the more I was rewarded by strengthening relationships with old friends and making new ones. I just want to say I love my friends!! They are all awesome!

I was talking with my mom a few days ago about a get-together my friend had at her house. She asked me “How many are in the group now?” As I named and counted each one in my head, I realized how blessed I am to have so many friends. My prayer to God for the longest time was for the Lord to send me one good friend. Today, I can tell you God has blessed me with so much more than just one good friend. I have so many wonderful friends. We have some things in common i.e. we are all Christians, we all attend the same church, we are all under 30 (at this moment), we live in the same city, and we all are sarcastic in some way, shape, or form. Then I began to realize that we all have different roles. We have the ringleader, the quiet one, the know-it-all, the debater, the loud one, the observant one, the funny one, the sweet one, the overly-sarcastic one, the creative one, and last but not least the honest one. Some of us went to public school, some of us were homeschooled, and some of us went to Christian school. Some of us have high-income jobs, some of us are students, and some of us have low-income jobs. Some of us are married, some are in relationship, and some of us are not. Yet somehow, some way, we all just kind of got together. Granted friendships don’t maintain themselves, you have to work at them. Aristotle said, “Wishing to be friends is quick work, but friendship is a slow ripening fruit.” John Leonard said “It takes a long time to grow an old friend.” It has taken a long time, a few years in fact for all of us to grow together. God has blessed all of us so much and I am so thankful that God has answered my prayer. Each of one of my friends including my brothers has encouraged me by their example, their ability to make me laugh, and even by just asking me how my day has been.

Being single in a relationship world is hard, being single without friends in a relationship world would be unthinkable. One of the main reasons why I can be so happy and relaxed being single is because I have a great group of friends who can lift my spirits. These are the people that I can talk to at night about my burdens and my desires. I rely so greatly on my friends that I can only hope that I give them back more than I take. I am reminded of what Henry David Thoreau said “The most I can do for my friend is simply be his friend.” There have been some rough times in the life of our friendship and I am sure there will be more but I know in my heart that these people that God has placed in my life are some of the greatest people on earth to be a friend with. I don’t have to be friends with George Clooney or Johnny Depp or Michael Bublè to be popular. I don’t have to be rich or exquisitely beautiful or a world traveler to prove a point. All I have to be is myself. Just me…Christa and no one else. So come over one time and join me and my friends as we play another tantalizing nail-biting round of Mafia, you’ll be glad you did.

“You can always tell a real friend when you’ve made a fool of yourself,

he doesn’t feel you’ve done a permanent job.”

Laurence Peter

Letter To the Faithful

Thank you for your faithfulness in reading my blog. I greatly appreciate every one of you, although most of you are quiet in your opinions; however, I do enjoy writing and I hope that you enjoy reading. I have finally decided on a more firm direction on where I would like to take this blog. If the previous post about the Perfect Man Builder 2012 did not give a hint to what direction I am heading, then this post will. I have decided to embrace instead of hide my singleness. Yes, I am a single girl in a sometimes very lonely world but (with that being said) I have decided to be happy and enjoy my freedom while I can. So, this blog will be more about enjoying life as a single person than enjoying the simple things in life. Of course, with me being me, I see plenty of posts about Gene Kelly, Abbott and Costello, 1950’s fashions and hairstyles (just to name a few) in the future. I will keep the blog name Singing in the Rain as I believe that it typifies what my new outlook on life is. It’s raining but hey I’m singing anyways. So come along with me for the ride, there are plenty of exciting things happening this year and I can’t wait to share them with you.

So let the stormy clouds chase everyone from the place. Come on with the rain, I’ve a smile on my face. Always remember to sing in the rain,

Christa

P.S. Please excuse the temporary “construction” happening on my blog. I am trying to find a new template for it but unfortunately Blog Spot won’t let me change my template due to an error. They are in the process of working on it but I am unsure when it will change. When it does, you’ll know.

The Perfect Man Builder 2012 Part One

It was a beautiful day at the State Fair. My friend and I had traveled around looking at all the sights and decided to go inside for a quick break to discuss our next plan of action. We stopped at a building and saw a sign that caught our eyes. It advertised of a new machine called the Perfect Man Builder 2012. Immediately, we both ran into the building and scanned the building for this mysterious machine. We didn’t have to look far. The booth was simple but there were hundreds of women (I assume they were single) around it staring googly-eyed, past the man touting his sales pitch, to a box that had been “glitterfied” and painted a dark blue. He said (if I remember correctly) “You’ve heard it said that the perfect man does not exist. I’m here to tell you that I’ve come to the realization that the phrase that once was true can now be proven false with the Perfect Man Builder 2012. You can choose anything from the color of their hair tips to the size of their feet. Just push a button and violà the perfect man for you. Ladies it’s a dream come true.” All of us enthusiastically applauded. He asked “Would anyone like to help me demonstrate this….” I didn’t hear the last word or words because the crowd surged forward with hands raised and voices screaming. He looked into the crowd, pointed directly at me, and said “You! You can help me.” Shocked, I found myself soon afterwards on the platform getting a tour of all the fancy tools, lights, and sounds. He stood and laughed with me as I made my crazy choices based on celebrities I had seen. He cracked up at the request that my perfect man have a bass voice like Josh Turner yet sing like Gerald Ford. I entered in my selection and pushed the Start button. That’s when I heard…

“Christa…time to wake up!”my mom called from the hallway interrupting my beautiful dream. I was right there. I had made my selections and the curtain was about to open and reveal my perfect man but my mom had to wake me up. Ugh! It always happens. I never get to see the good parts of my dreams. *Sigh* He was right there, the man that I had so longed to see, my Mr. Right. I begrudgingly rolled out of bed with sadness and then I started thinking. Wait a minute! If the Perfect Man Builder 2012 was real what would my perfect man look like? So I did a little research which I must admit was quite fun looking at handsome guys and deciding what my tastes were. I have always known that I will never find a man that meets all of my tastes but hey it’s nice to dream isn’t it?

For the first part of this series I wanted to concentrate on the face. What would my perfect man’s face look like? I’m so glad you asked. I’ll start with the hair. This one was very hard to decide as I have always been a sucker for spiked hair. It doesn’t matter what style if he has spiked hair, he’s got one point. Granted I’m not talking about 80’s Mohawk spiked but normal spiked hair. I settled on David Beckham (who is good looking anyways) after a strenuous search. I absolutely love the center spike. In this picture, it’s a tiny bit off-center giving a hap-hazard look. Heart be still!

Next would be his eyes. Blue eyes are the best I think, but green comes in at a close second. I chose Bradley Cooper’s eyes. Aren’t they beautiful?? So dreamy…………………………….

Oh sorry, I was lost in a sea of blue for a second. Next would be the nose I guess although I’m not particular about those as long as they don’t look like a lying Pinocchio nose, if you get my drift. That being said I settled on one that I liked more than the others.

Next is facial hair. I am against MUSTACHES!!! I think they look incredibly old-fashioned and most guys could not pull one off. I am a fan however of soul patches and chinstraps. It took a little bit to decide this one as I couldn’t find one that I totally loved until I saw Apollo Anton Ohno’s soul patch. No more looking for me!!

On a side note, he’s got beautiful brown eyes. Besides the eyes I think the most important things about a guy’s face is his smile. What kind of blog about the perfect man would be complete without George Clooney? So the award for the Perfect Man smile goes to him. Hold on to your heart girls, it’s about to fly away….

Finally, the man’s got to have a nice looking jaw! We don’t want to have Baby Face Nelson on our hands. So the final picture is of Clay Matthews! Yes ladies, he’s got the jaw defined and all. If I weren’t for his Locks of Love hair I’d think I’d have a crush on him. Don't lose it....

So to all the ladies out there, what would your perfect man’s face look like if you had access to the Perfect Man Builder 2012? Yes your husband does count if you are married. Post in the comments or on Facebook. I don’t want to miss looking at a handsome man’s face. So I thought to end this blog I would give you a song instead of a quote. This was taken from the Dick Van Dyke show sung by Sally Rogers aka…Rose Marie called Santa Send A Fella. In this song, she puts in a request to Santa on the perfect man!

January 10, 2022

Most of you, who are familiar with country music, know the artist Brad Paisley. His most famous songs consist of Whiskey Lullaby, Waiting on a Woman, and Online. Although I no longer listen to country music on a consistent basis there was one song of his that engrained itself in my head. It was called “Letter to Me”. 

In that song, he sings about writing a letter to himself when he was seventeen offering hope that everything would turn out fine. When I had first heard the song, it reached way down in my soul to the area of regret and pointed out the things I would wish to change. I have always thought that if I could just change my past, everything today would be better. I would have all that I longed for and everything that is wrong with me today would magically go away. I would tell myself to listen to my mom and take better care of my appearance. I would tell myself to not take out my frustrations in eating. I would tell myself to not go to Florida for college but go to Crown. I would tell myself to not worry about what someone else thinks of me just be myself. I also would tell myself to invest more time in music and to seek advice from whoever you can.

Yet my past has made me into who I am today. Where would I be without the memories of college life in Florida with the 90% humidity and the friends that I made? I would miss out on some great times and friendships. Where would I be if I had not struggled and worked through building my confidence? I probably would believe that everything would need to be handed to me on a silver platter. Where would I be if I invested so much time into music that I forgot about everything else in pursuit of a dream? I would have just that music and nothing else. Although that doesn’t sound bad, I realize I would have to give up many memories in exchange for it. My past is scattered with things I regret (I guess everyone’s is) but I have come to embrace it. In my mind, I know I can never write and send a letter to me in the past but I can write and send one to me in the future. So here is my letter to me in the year 2022, when I am 34 years old.

Dear Christa 2022,

Today is Monday, January 10, 2012. The President is Barack Obama and it is election year. It’s time for all the political ads to come out and annoy the fire out of you and everyone else. Hope you enjoy them! At this point in time, you still work at CCCS/Apprisen and are still trying to find another job. Hopefully, we will find one soon that will help us gain more experience in the working world. I hope this letter finds you well and that you are still alive.

My greatest hope is that you are no longer alone in the world but are married and have (or on the way to having) children. Remember all those tear filled nights crying out to God on where your Mr. Right was? I do and I hope he is wonderful and treats you like a queen. Anything less and he doesn’t deserve you at all. I wonder if he is as handsome as he is in my dreams. I hope he is interested in music because we both know your passion is music. I hope that you met your goal of losing 100 pounds. I know you will look so much better if you did. Losing weight does wonders for confidence.

It’s only 102 days to the SNC concert that you, Miranda, Kristen, and Amanda are going to. I can’t wait for it. Are they still around? You should buy their newest CD if they are. They are wonderful! Did you move out on your own or did you find Mr. Right before then? I’ve always said I wanted to live on my own before Mr. Right came. I regret making that statement some times but look at all that I have accomplished being single.

Do you still play piano at church? Remember the times you would watch Melissa and Deb play while you in the congregation wishing you were up there. Remember the time you played I Surrender All in the wrong key. Haha!! Just got to laugh at yourself. You were so ready to give up playing in church at that point. I am so glad that you stuck with it. Knowing you, your house is decorated in the 1950’s style with lots of color. I hope you got that black and white room you always wanted.

Are you still friends with the whole gang? Oh what times we had playing Mafia and Loaded Questions. Say hi to Melissa for me! She’s a wonderful friend and has helped me through a lot. Oh and remind Kristen about that time you went to Noodles and Company and she made you eat macaroni and cheese with chopsticks. You’ve never had to work so hard for your food. Say hi to them from me in the past. I hope you’ve kept up with that new hairstyle I just got. It looks so nice on you! I feel the need to end this letter on a good note so I wanted to end with your new favorite quote this month. It’s from Shakespeare Twelfth Night “If music be the food of love, then play on.”

Love,

Christa 2012

Auld Lang Syne

Please accept my apologies for the extended time between posts as I have been frantically busy with Christmas shopping, Christmas parties, Christmas cookies, etc. I am also at a loss and have been considering what direction to take this blog. I, at first, thought I would talk about the simple things in life, but that became too general of a topic. Then, I thought I could talk about my favorite things, but I actually don’t have a lot of favorites. My favorites can depend on what mood I am in, what the circumstances are, and other miscellaneous things we won’t talk about now so that wouldn’t work out either. As of this point in time, I’m still a little confused as to where to take this blog. No worries though as I do have some ideas for the future. What are they? I guess you’ll just have to keep reading to find out.

Today, I wanted to combine a Christmas and New Years into one post because what I have to say about each is basically the same. If you know me at all, you’ll know that I am a Christmas lover. I can listen to Christmas music any time in the year and I absolutely love Christmas colors. In fact, I hope I can plan my wedding around Christmas time because I love it so much. I never used to be this enthusiastic about Christmas until I moved away from home to attend The Crown College of the Bible. I realized that Christmas was a time to spend with my family. The excitement of those last few days of the winter semester realizing that after the stress of finals, I could go home and relax. (Big sigh) I didn’t have much money for gifts but I tried my best to get my family what they wanted. After I graduated and came back home to live, I started making friends at church and started building relationships. Fast forward to today and I’ll be the first to tell you that I am one of the most blessed people on earth when it comes to friends. I thank God every day for the network of people I have to rely on and the freedom I feel with them to be me. I can act a little crazy at times and even say some stupid things but I know that they’ll love me anyways (At least I hope so…) Christmas reminds me of the love and friendships I have and I hope that through the years all of us will become even closer.

This year has been a very exciting year for me. I had the opportunity to meet one of my heroes, inspirations, mentor, or whatever you would like to call him. He was the one who inspired my style of piano playing and inspired me to sing. His name is Brian Free and he is one of the most humble men I have ever met. God has used him and his music greatly in my life and I was able to tell him that in May of this year. I have also become closer with a girl I know that God has placed in my life for a time such as this. She encourages me with every step and helps me when I am a little down in the dumps. Thanks Kristen!!

This year I have also seen a part of my “dream” fulfilled in that I have been playing piano in church regularly and am amazed at the growth I have seen in myself these past few months. I still can’t believe that I get to serve God by playing the piano and I can’t wait to see what doors He will open next year.

What else have I done this year? I have rekindled an old friendship with a good friend from years ago. The more we talk, the more we realize that we are both in the same boat on many things. I am so excited that she will be traveling down to see me in April and we will be going to (you guessed it) a Straight No Chaser concert! Speaking of them, one of my fond memories from this year is actually getting to meet and talk to them. I still can’t believe that I went and watched them perform. Wow!! What a thrill! Also for the concert in April, I was able to purchase front row seat tickets for 4. Yea it’s going to be a good time. Can’t wait to go!

I know this blog is long and I will try my best at condensing my posts in the future but I wanted to give you a glimpse into what God has done in my life this year. I am very excited for 2012 as it will be a year of change and I hope by this time next year I will have more exciting things to tell you about.

Until then I leave you with the lyrics from one of my favorite Christmas/New Year’s songs Auld Lang Syne:

 “Should old acquaintance be forget and never be brought to mind?

Should old acquaintance be forgot and the days of auld lang syne.

For auld lang syne my dear,

For auld lang syne,

We’ll take a cup of kindness yet for the auld lang syne.”

The Day of My Birth

November 30^th is a special day in my life because you see it was the day that I entered to the world. Yes many moons ago, I was born in a Syracuse hospital. I don’t remember much about that day in fact, I don’t remember anything about it. My parents can tell a story or two of the wonderful day their only daughter was born and how they narrowly avoided having me in the back of their car. I was a born late in November right before the cut-off date for school. In New York, the cut-off date was December 1^st. I made it just in time (as usual). My mom had a doctor’s appointment that day and the doctor told her if I wasn’t born within the next couple of days they would induce. Well, when I heard that I decided I would surprise my parents with a gift that night. My parents went home from the doctor’s appointment not knowing that they would soon see him again. A couple of hours later, I decided I wanted to be born and my parents rushed to the hospital where I was born at 7:06pm. My mom will tell you that she was too far gone for them to help with the pain so she had to have me naturally. What a joy that must have been for her!

Next came the question on what would they name me…My mom and dad had agreed to name me Colleen awhile back, but my mom changed her mind (hey, it’s a woman’s prerogative) and wanted to name me Christa. My dad was dead set on Colleen so my mom dropped the subject. When I was born, the nurse asked my mom what my name was. My mom (the saintly soul she is) told her Christa. Surprise!! Oh what I would have given to be there…wait, I was there, um…Oh, what I would have given to remember the look my dad gave my mom. There that’s better. So to commemorate my special day, here are some fun facts about the day November 30^th!

Famous Births:

®    Mark Twain was born in 1835

®    Winston Churchill was born in 1874

®    Dick Clark was born in 1929

®    Colin Mochrie was born in 1957

®    Ben Stiller was born in 1965

Historical Events:

®    On November 30^th, 1782, Britain signed an agreement recognizing U.S. Independence.

®    On November 30^th, 1938, Germany banned Jews from being lawyers.

®    On November 30^th, 1940, Lucille Ball weds Desi Arnez.

®    On November 30^th, 1982, Michael Jackson’s new album Thriller is released.

®    On November 30^th, 1993, the NFL announced a new team-The Jacksonville Jaguars.

Famous Deaths:

®    Oscar Wilde died in 1900

®    Zeppo Marx died in 1979

®    Evil Knievel died in 2007

Holidays:

®    November 30^th is “Stay at Home because You are Well” Day

®    November 30^th is National Mousse Day

There you have it! As you can see November 30^th is a special day and I am glad that I was born on it. After all there can’t be that many people who can claim that they were born on the day Winston Churchill was. So to wrap up this blog (I know that was corny) I will end with a quote “Birthday’s are nature’s way of telling us to eat more cake.”

Counting My Blessings

When you’re worried and you can’t sleep just count your blessings instead of sheep and you’ll fall asleep counting your blessings.

When my bankroll is getting low, I think of when I had none at all and I fall asleep counting my blessings.

Anyone remember what song those lyrics are from? Bing Crosby sings them so effortlessly in the movie White Christmas, co-starring Danny Kaye. It’s a good Christmas movie in case anyone is wondering. I have had that song in my head all day long and because of that I began to think about my blessings. I started to name them one by one and I realized how much God has blessed me and how fast it is to fall asleep counting your blessings. So I thought I would write about Thanksgiving to you, my readers.

I at first thought I would name my material possessions one by one but that thought was quickly dismissed as the list but be short and boring. I then got the idea that I would tell you how much having food to eat and clothes to wear is a blessing that so many of us overlook and (although they are very essential items) there are things that are more important than food and clothing. After all throughout my 23 years of living, I have come to realize that friends and family don’t care what you dress like (as long as you bathe) or what you eat (as long as you brush your teeth sometimes) but care about what YOU are. You as a person and as an individual. Most people equate being an individual by being like everyone else. I have never understood that mentality but that’s another blog post. I have struggled many times with confidence and self-esteem especially since I am not as thin as other women. I have compared myself with other women many times and wonder if men find me attractive if I looked like the other women. My family says I’m pretty but they’re supposed to say that aren’t they? Since I am single, the doubts and the self-esteem issues seem to build up at a faster pace. I used to think if I had a boyfriend, I would be as confident as her (points to other woman). I have to come realize that it is a childish effort and a boyfriend can’t really give you confidence. You need confidence in yourself and that’s how I came to the idea for this blog.

One of the things I am thankful for is…(Drum roll please)…that I am me! I am thankful that I am Christa and I am thankful I am a woman. I am thankful that I can wake up every day and see curly blonde hair, blue eyes, and a “more to love” body. I am thankful that I am a Christian and can use my talents as a way to serve the Lord. I am thankful that I have a passion for music and can clunk around on the piano to make somewhat of a good sound. I am thankful that I have a weirder than normal sense of humor and have learned that sarcasm is one of my most trusted weapons (It’s a joke I’m being sarcastic. HAHA!! I crack myself up!) I am thankful that I am a very competitive girl who loves sports especially football (Packers all the way). I am thankful that I have found so many good Christian friends who I can be myself around because I have been known to create many awkward silence moments (you know the ones where you hear the crickets). I am thankful that I love Christmas so much that I start listening to Christmas music in July and have already decorated my cubicle with Christmas stuff one week ago. I even have a tree! I am thankful that I have this blog to talk about what I am thankful for. I am thankful that when I go to sleep at night I can fall asleep without finishing my blessings list. This year I am thankful, most of all, for being me!

So my fellow readers-to end this blog I bring you a quote and a video. The quote is from an Anonymous Person who I think has the right idea about Thanksgiving “It isn’t what you have in your pockets that make you thankful, but what you have in your heart.” The song is from Josh Groban called “There’s so Much to Be Thankful For”

Till next week, Happy Thanksgiving to all and to all a good night!

(I know, I know the last sentence was from a Charles Dickens book. What did I tell you I have a weird sense of humor. Bye!)