Spinning plates again

Every year when school starts, it's a mad rush to get into a groove, even after 21 years of doing the same thing. It's like that juggling act with the plates spinning on sticks. You get some spinning really fast, and then move on to other plates, only paying attention to the ones that get wobbly.

The problem is, I'm busy spinning plates that belong to other people and the plates I want aren't even in sight. I'm always busy working on someone else's idea. When I get a spare moment to think about what I really want out of life, I'm too tired to care, let alone do anything about it.

MisMatched.com

So I decided to try the online dating thing again. Figured maybe if I took it seriously, I might actually enjoy it. Not so much. The online part, anyway. Can't make any comments about the dating part cuz that hasn't really happened. In fact, it seems that on average, about 3 out of 5 profiles are fake. If someone DOES make contact with you, they immediately want to e-mail OUTSIDE of the "safe" parameters of the dating website. I have an e-mail that I only use for that purpose, so I don't care. It has no identifying information, so whatever. Except then they person turns into someone with a sob story about being a widow, living outside of the country and needing money...blah blah blah. It would be amusing if it weren't so annoying.

I spent an hour tonight just clearing out profiles out of my "connection" box because those profiles don't exist anymore. Out of 31 connections, 11 profiles are gone. Either those 11 people found the love of their life or they were fake profiles of people who don't even exist.

It's been 29 days. The website has a "6 month promise." If you don't meet someone in 6 months, your next 6 months are free. Hmmmmmm.....that sound kinda like having a really crappy meal somewhere, having terrible service and getting food poisoning only to get a free gift certificate to come back.

Would you?

Weddings and such

I just got a call from my youngest sister. She and her boyfriend just got engaged. I knew it was coming because she called me last week to ask if I would consider getting ordained in Illinois and perform the ceremony for them. I told her I couldn't and I know she was disappointed.

It's not that I don't value their relationship. She's had quite a rough time finding that perfect match for her. She never fails to mention this will be her THIRD marriage, but really, I think this is the first "adult" relationship she's had. I think in the first two she was just trying to find something stable to grab on to in order to keep from falling in a pit. When your whole world is unstable, even a wobbly railing feels better than the edge of a cliff. Been there, done that myself. Since then, she's made an incredible journey and I really think this guy is going to be a safe, guiding force for her.

I told her that I can't do it because I really respect those who feel "called by God" to be in a position to perform such an important event. I know they go through incredible amounts of time and energy to be able to bring His glory into such an event. She sees it as just a ceremony and a piece of paper. I see it as so much more. I don't feel qualified.

People are funny

I was riding with a friend the other day. He was driving and is often impatient with other drivers. (Could be a guy thing; could be a Miami thing.)

So as he's trying to merge, an oblivious woman wasn't letting him in. He squeezed tight and did it anyway, much to her dismay. I've never understood people who get mad when one car gets in front of them - by the next stoplight, you're still right next to each other.

Anyway, he gets in front of her and observes that she's driving too slow, two other cars got in front of her, he's glad he's not behind her, blah blah blah. It was amusing how much energy went into the whole exchange.

Then traffic slows to a crawl. Right in front of us we see a disabled van, with one guy steering and another desperately trying to push it out of the roadway.

What does my friend do? Pulls over to the side of the road, hops out, helps them push with enough momentum to clear the road, tells them, "Have a better day!" Then gets back in the car and we're on our way.

Meanwhile, Ms. Oblivious is probably 3 blocks ahead of us by now. He'd forgotten all about that.

People are funny.