Stop by, stay awhile, have a pint or two...
Bursting at the seams
Filled with love and excitement
Too hard to contain.
Most can’t comprehend
The magnitude of Blissdom’s
Unfathomable joy.
Ready to be embraced
By my internet soul sisters
Let’s get our BLISS on!!
Be sure to head over to Lou‘s to read what everyone else is haikuing about this week.
Photo courtesy of the uber amazing Rachel. I could seriously squeeze the HECK out of everyone in that photo!!!
I often get asked why I write? Mostly by my boys, but I have been asked by others as well. With BlissDom around the corner (insert loud squee here) my writing heart strings are pulled tight. I can’t wait to surround myself with those who also hunger for words. Those, that if denied a chance to share the words tumbling around in their head would probably spontaneously combust. Google it – it happens.
For me, writing is a gateway to peace. A way for me to organize the creative life that lives within me. Nothing brings me more happiness than a new journal. Ok, maybe that first sip of coffee every morning is first but a new journal is a close second! The clean crisp pages beg to be filled, they long for words and verses and stories. It longs to be worn around the edges, the corners bent, the ribbon frayed. I carry journals with me everywhere and will often choose the physical act of writing over typing.
Writing gives me a place to escape, to verbalize my pain, bare my soul and create lives and stories for the imaginary people running around in my head. Writing allows me to breathe.
I would love to hear why you write, what scares you about writing and what is one thing you want to tackle with your writing. Always remember the words of Holly Gerth: “Be courageous and try to write in a way that scares you a little.”
You will be amazed at what comes from stepping out of your comfort zone!
In less than a week
I’ll be surrounded by squees
And over due hugs
I’m back in Nashville
Reunited with good friends
Anyone want gauc?
Can’t wait for Blissdom
A time to learn and reflect
Sprinkled with glitter.
Be sure to head over to Lou’s to read what everyone else is haikuing about this week.
It’s that time of year again. The time when bloggers get giddy with delight, blow up Twitter with squees of excitement and converge in Nashville for four days of ultimate bliss. yes, that’s right…. it’s time for BLISSDOM!!
This year, instead of flying, I will be road tripping in a sassy Chevy Traverse courtesy of GM. Thanks GM!! Va-Room! Nothing like heading to Nash Vegas in style. Don’t worry, this lassie won’t be traveling in luxury alone. This Traverse is going to be full of fabulous writers, photographers, wives, mothers and bringers of awesome. Bet you didn’t know the Traverse could handle that much fabulousness did you?
Want to meet the players? Of course you do!
It’s moi! A funky and sassy girl with a lot of spunk. I am a lover of words, creator of stories and have a crazy passion for photography. I live in the land of boys and cherish any time I can spend with my own species. I must have coffee and music on my road trips or I get crabby. I am directionally challenged but can parallel park on a dime. I sing off key and dance like nobodies business – bring on the Cupid Shuffle! Oh, and I snort when I laugh but only when I laugh really hard. Believe me, it’s endearing.
Sarah is the Princess of Everything – in her own mind, anyway. She’s also a cookie baking extraordinaire (don’t believe it? Ask anyone whose tried one of her famous – YES, FAMOUS – cookies!). She’s a bit clumsy and she’s a tremendous goofball, but she’ll make a great co-pilot on the Road To Bliss. Why? Because she’s got a fantastic sense of direction, she ALWAYS knows where the nearest coffee places are, and she’s brewing up a fantastic road trip playlist. Just, uh… don’t ask her to parallel park.
Michelle may have bribed her way into this road trip by promising to bake and bring something blissful. Or maybe she’s just that fun. She must really want to head to Blissdom since she’s avoids road trips whenever possible. Driving in a Chevy Traverse though? That may be the deciding factor. She’ll be a great co-pilot for the simple reason that she promises not to ask “are we there yet” a single time. Oh, and she has the bladder of a camel, which means fewer stops along the way!
Now the true question on everyone’s mind is – will we be able to fit all our stuff in the Traverse too? We will keep you posted! Feel free to stalk Kat, Sarah and Michelle on Twitter! Meanwhile, we’ll be getting our glitter ready for the conference (and road trip) of the year!
photo courtesy of Lotus Carroll
An Irish girl walks into a bar…. Nothing strange about that is there? Unless of course she is walking into the bar, completely nervous and doe eyed at the contemplation that tonight is the night she will karaoke. On stage. In front of hundreds of people. Some of which are her friends. (ironically I am not sure that last sentence made me feel any better about the situation) The fact that I was about to do it with one of my most amazing friends did make it a lot easier. Some what. Did I mention there were real singers there too? Yeah, that made me feel better. *ahem*
I tried to pick a song that wouldn’t make me look like a complete fool, because YOWZA! Everyone would be watching me. Which I guess is what technically happens when you hop up on stage, into the spotlight, and start belting out your rendition of Blondie.
So how do you handle this onslaught of attention when you are nervous out of your mind? You stuff your hands in your jeans of course! Cause you know, you look SO much better with your hands rammed in your pockets. All the real rock stars are doing it. No seriously, they are.
photo courtesy of Lotus Carroll
You will be happy to know I made it through the song unscathed. I am, however, not sure how everyone else managed. Thankfully they are all still talking to me so it couldn’t have been that bad. And I can cross yet another thing off my Bucket List! Go me!
During the heat of the summer, in the depths of Skype, a private room was born. One girl had a dream – a dream to FLASH! Flash Mob that is. She wrangled some crazy friends. They too had a dream and that dream was about to become a reality.
Many of hours were spent conspiring, scheming, discussing and dreaming. Others were added, videos analyzed, songs debated – OH were they debated!
What song are we going to dance too? What hasn’t been done before? What song will be easy to dance too? How many BPM (beats per minute) are in that song again???
the mobsketeers
Fast forward to October and a secret meeting of the minds. Here the dance was learned. Here the dance became a reality. There were giggles – oh were there giggles! There were nervous tummies – “oh my gosh we are really going to do this!” There was cake and PMS crunch – Oh how I love Sarah and Jana. Thank you!! Mad flip videos were made and remade and remade again. We left that weekend with a purpose. We left that weekend ready to dance.
Next job; find peeps that can keep a secret and want to dance. Oh! And of course, they have to be going to Blissdom. You are now entering – the “Tricky Zone”. This is where it could all come unraveled; this is where our whole secret could be blown wide open. All our hours of hard work could be blown by one loose-lipped blogger. Decisions, decisions.
Bloggers were discussed, secret emails sent, a private Facebook page created. All the while, the Skype room secretly lived on. The thought of posting something in another Skype room constantly loomed. Trying to remember who was all involved became a daunting task.
But all the hard work, time and energy was well worth it. And I am sure I can speak for everyone that was involved, it was AMAZING! I can now proudly check off that task from my Bucket List with a smile and I know that on that day, I brought the funk!
photo by Dawn Camp
by Mishelle Lane Photography
I just got back from Blissdom and while everyone is doing recap posts, I seem to be in a different place. While I am not going to lie – Blissdom was filled with squeals, laughter, crying and loving on peeps so hard it hurt. I solidified my online stalking love of friends and added new ones to the list. And while I can go on and one about how much I love her, and her and, oh, don’t forget my new crush her – I left this year with a lot more.
I have been lacking transparency for a long time. I have become the queen of writing on the surface. I tried to challenge myself with the 30 Days of Honesty – but then it got too hard, too real. So I stopped. The last honest post I wrote got so much backlash I shied away from sharing. I shied away from being me.
What struck me over and over again these past few days is that I need to be me. THAT is why I started writing in the first place, to make my voice heard. And while my real life friends love me for who I am – I often don’t see the beauty they see. You guys do see beauty right?? *ahem* That’s what I thought.
Then out of nowhere, a friend snaps this picture. A brief moment, not planned, totally random. Is this what people see? Because this is not what I see when I look at my reflection. I focus on the negative, what could be better, what needs fixed, lifted, botoxed, what isn’t pretty enough, what isn’t perfect to me.
I will take this opportunity to throw Hubby under the bus. I sent him this picture and crazed text messages soon followed. My favorite was, “This is how I see you everyday.” I began to cry. He confirmed that yes, I am the beautiful, smart, honest and funny person in this picture. I obviously also have some humility issues but hey, at least I am willing to admit them. At least for now. Check in with me in a few weeks. And if I am back to my plain old surfacey self… feel free to smack me up side the head. I’ll be sure to thank you for it.
