What exactly does that mean, anyway?
So, I kinda liked what I did at the end of 2009 when I recapped the year and put down what I was looking forward to this year, so I believe I shall do it again. It was really interesting going back and reading it and seeing everything that had happened and then seeing how close I came to getting all of my goals for this year.
So, as for the year 2010:
1) Mike and I bought our first house in Culpeper!
2) My second oldest brother, Steve, and Anna got married in a gorgeous church in Pittsburg.
3) At said wedding, I realized that I was at my highest weight and decided to join a gym and go on a diet. The diet went pretty well...I lost almost 30 pounds. But then it got "screwed up" when I discovered...
4) I'm pregnant! Yep, Mike and I found out in October that we are expecting our first child in July of 2011. We're really SUPER excited!
5) I got a raise at work.
6) Mike joined the Culpeper Fire Department.
7) Lost a camera to Sprite...possibly acting out against mommy's changes!
8) Mike and I celebrated our first anniversary...It's been a wonderful year, and we can't wait for more to come!
9) I became an aunt again! Eric and Anna had their first child, Britt Louise, at the end of November.
10) Mike and I traded in Alex, my 2005 Hyundai Santa Fe, for Billy, a 2009 Dodge Ram 1500. (Yes, I name my cars...I've had George, the Ford Escort, and Fred, the Saturn SL2)
Looking forward to next year...
1) Mike and I will have our first child...Jacob Thomas or Juliette Grace (Grace is still up in the air, but a major possibility)
2) Hopefully we will be spending our first Thanksgiving with the Kestners at the beach (if I can manage to get enough time off and still be able to pay the bills!)
That's all I can think of for the new year. Not very many goals, I know! But as my husband just told me..."It'll come as you go!"
Happy New Year, everyone! 2011 will be a good one!
Friday, December 31, 2010
Saturday, November 20, 2010
Certain Puppies Aren't Much Fun
We as humans are supposed to be the most intelligent species on the planet, right? That's what I've heard, anyway. So why would we treat creatures who only want to love us and want our love so terribly?
I have a bone to pick with people (no pun intended). If you want to get a pet, go out and actually do some research. If you want to try to use that pet for money, again, go out and put some time and thought and EFFORT into planning it out. Don't just say, "Hey, this is such a cute pet! Let's take it home and see how it does," and then not take the time to train it and nourish it and love it.
This is all coming from work. The animal shelter brings animals over for us to euthanize from time to time, and a lot of times the pets are healthy, but the shelter just doesn't have the room. A couple weeks ago, every day we had supposedly feral (once tame, now wild) cats come in to be put down. The cats were obviously taken care of somewhere. They were in perfect health, and the white ones were actually white, not dingy and dirty from living outside. They were scared, not wild. Every now and then we can save one or two. My coworker saved a kitten that had come in right about the time of the "feral" cats, and other than a bout of ringworm, the kitten is growing and thriving and the most loving thing you've ever seen! And we were going to put it down. It hadn't even GOTTEN to the shelter.
But today I almost lost it. I don't know if it was from overactive hormones or just getting fed up with it. We had to put down two dogs today. Two pit bulls. One was a puppy, right about three months old and completely healthy. The other one was maybe a one or two year old who was in heat. The puppy was scared, but the older female wanted to play and give kisses. That is one breed that is completely misunderstood. I can't tell you how many people in Culpeper have signs out with "pit bull pups for sale." But all they care about is trying to get the money. They don't care about who takes the pups. And the people who spend hundreds of dollars on this dog later realize that it's too rambunctious and strong to be around their small children. Pit bulls are one of the sweetest tempered dogs around. But all people hear is Michael Vick and fighting rings and pit bulls terrorizing the neighborhood. They are not like that, people. Pit bulls, like any dog, are clay. However you mold them, they will become that. If you mistreat them and force them to fight, they will become mean. If you love them and teach them and train them, they will be your most loyal friend until death.
There's a gorgeous male pit on our street that gets out occassionally (the gate gets left open sometimes). He was loose when I came home the other day and the owner was trying to catch him. He saw me and started wagging his tail. The owner freaked out, I guess thinking I would freak out, and frantically tried to call him. I bent down and whistled and he just trotted over to me and threw his probably 75-pound body into my knees, begging me to love on him. As I pet him, the owner came up to me and thanked me, relieved.
This is a sore subject for me. It's not just pit bulls, but pets in general. There are too many animals in shelters who don't deserve to be in there. It's because of the stupid owners that they lose their lives every day. And all they want is love.
I have a bone to pick with people (no pun intended). If you want to get a pet, go out and actually do some research. If you want to try to use that pet for money, again, go out and put some time and thought and EFFORT into planning it out. Don't just say, "Hey, this is such a cute pet! Let's take it home and see how it does," and then not take the time to train it and nourish it and love it.
This is all coming from work. The animal shelter brings animals over for us to euthanize from time to time, and a lot of times the pets are healthy, but the shelter just doesn't have the room. A couple weeks ago, every day we had supposedly feral (once tame, now wild) cats come in to be put down. The cats were obviously taken care of somewhere. They were in perfect health, and the white ones were actually white, not dingy and dirty from living outside. They were scared, not wild. Every now and then we can save one or two. My coworker saved a kitten that had come in right about the time of the "feral" cats, and other than a bout of ringworm, the kitten is growing and thriving and the most loving thing you've ever seen! And we were going to put it down. It hadn't even GOTTEN to the shelter.
But today I almost lost it. I don't know if it was from overactive hormones or just getting fed up with it. We had to put down two dogs today. Two pit bulls. One was a puppy, right about three months old and completely healthy. The other one was maybe a one or two year old who was in heat. The puppy was scared, but the older female wanted to play and give kisses. That is one breed that is completely misunderstood. I can't tell you how many people in Culpeper have signs out with "pit bull pups for sale." But all they care about is trying to get the money. They don't care about who takes the pups. And the people who spend hundreds of dollars on this dog later realize that it's too rambunctious and strong to be around their small children. Pit bulls are one of the sweetest tempered dogs around. But all people hear is Michael Vick and fighting rings and pit bulls terrorizing the neighborhood. They are not like that, people. Pit bulls, like any dog, are clay. However you mold them, they will become that. If you mistreat them and force them to fight, they will become mean. If you love them and teach them and train them, they will be your most loyal friend until death.
There's a gorgeous male pit on our street that gets out occassionally (the gate gets left open sometimes). He was loose when I came home the other day and the owner was trying to catch him. He saw me and started wagging his tail. The owner freaked out, I guess thinking I would freak out, and frantically tried to call him. I bent down and whistled and he just trotted over to me and threw his probably 75-pound body into my knees, begging me to love on him. As I pet him, the owner came up to me and thanked me, relieved.
This is a sore subject for me. It's not just pit bulls, but pets in general. There are too many animals in shelters who don't deserve to be in there. It's because of the stupid owners that they lose their lives every day. And all they want is love.
Sunday, October 31, 2010
Happy Halloween
It irks me a little when people say they don't celebrate Halloween because it's "against their religion" or "they don't worship the devil." It's fine if you don't like Halloween or don't feel like celebrating it, but these claims people make show that people don't really know what Halloween is and/or was.
There's a few origins of Halloween. Most of them are of Celtic or Western European heritage. One story is that it is the "end of the light," meaning the days are now getting shorter and the nights longer. Our ancestors believed that spirits were able to come forth during this period, both good and bad. The good were paid respects, whereas the bad were warded off. This is where the costumes come in. They are not to worship the devil or anything evil...they were used to try to scare the evil away.
Nowadays, we don't have any "evil" to scare away (at least we hope not!). It's more for fun than anything. And fun is to be had by all! The kids enjoy it because they play dress-up and get candy. I don't know about any other adults, but I enjoy it because I get to see all the kids having so much fun! This was my first "real" Halloween as an adult, meaning I got a TON of trick-or-treaters tonight! I saw the Mario Brothers, fairies, princesses, the puppet from Saw, the Hulk, Woody from Toy Story, cheerleaders, and so much more! It was so great! I kinda can't wait until next year...I'll definitely dress up the outside of the house a little more (I know, Sam Lambert, you were against spending so much money on the decorations!). I wouldn't do too much, though. Just some homemade ghosts in the trees, a pumpkin/Jack-o-lantern or two, maybe some cobwebs. We'll see. I have a whole year to think about it! 
There's a few origins of Halloween. Most of them are of Celtic or Western European heritage. One story is that it is the "end of the light," meaning the days are now getting shorter and the nights longer. Our ancestors believed that spirits were able to come forth during this period, both good and bad. The good were paid respects, whereas the bad were warded off. This is where the costumes come in. They are not to worship the devil or anything evil...they were used to try to scare the evil away.
Nowadays, we don't have any "evil" to scare away (at least we hope not!). It's more for fun than anything. And fun is to be had by all! The kids enjoy it because they play dress-up and get candy. I don't know about any other adults, but I enjoy it because I get to see all the kids having so much fun! This was my first "real" Halloween as an adult, meaning I got a TON of trick-or-treaters tonight! I saw the Mario Brothers, fairies, princesses, the puppet from Saw, the Hulk, Woody from Toy Story, cheerleaders, and so much more! It was so great! I kinda can't wait until next year...I'll definitely dress up the outside of the house a little more (I know, Sam Lambert, you were against spending so much money on the decorations!). I wouldn't do too much, though. Just some homemade ghosts in the trees, a pumpkin/Jack-o-lantern or two, maybe some cobwebs. We'll see. I have a whole year to think about it!
I took the following pictures from inside my house. Sorry they're a little dark. I didn't want to turn on the flash because 1) it would have reflected on the window and 2) I didn't want to freak people out with random flashes coming from our house!
Wednesday, October 20, 2010
In Your Head
It's been a while, I know. I just had an experience tonight, though, that I have to get down. As a preface, I'll tell you that I believe our house is haunted. Most of the activity is in or around the office downstairs. Keep this in mind...
I had made some Chinese noodles in the microwave. Well, the microwave, which I thought had died (it's been acting like it's wanted to since we bought the place), had actually just tripped the circuit. I called dad to see if that was something that was okay or if we should worry and found out that Eric and Anna were still there. I had thought they had left yesterday, but finding out they leave tomorrow instead, I decided to eat my noodles and head on over to see them one last time before they headed back to Oklahoma. I quickly changed my clothes, shut the upstairs window in the hall, shut the kitchen window, and locked the sliding glass door...lock, bolt, and key. The dogs were jumping up and down, thinking they were going back outside. Then, after locking the front door, I headed on over to my parents'.
I had a nice visit with my brother and his wife...and my other brother and his wife (Steve and Anna came over, too). We finally drew names for Christmas. Finally, feeling a little tired, I decided to say goodbye then head on home.
Here's where the problem is. I get home and lock the car. When I walked in the house, the dogs weren't there waiting for me. That's weird because normally when they hear the beep of the car, they come running downstairs to see me. Instead, it took about two to three calls for them to come downstairs. Well, I went to let them out the sliding door...only to discover the door is unlocked! Lock, bolt, and key...all unlocked. I let the dogs out, then went into the bathroom. I was really freaked out by this point, so after calling Mike, I went back out to the car and called first my parents then 911. They sent two officers right over. They went in the house to look around, but found nothing. They then asked me to come in to be sure nothing had been taken. I went to find Mike's guns...the rifle was still locked. I looked in the handgun case and saw...no gun! I called Mike to ask where he had put it and he told me it was where I had found the case. Mike freaked a bit when I told him. Then, come to find out, there was a layer of foam covering it that I had never seen before. I feel like such an IDIOT! So the officers left after all clear.
I KNOW I locked the back door. I know because the dogs thinking they were going back outside. That's where the ghost may come in...?
I had made some Chinese noodles in the microwave. Well, the microwave, which I thought had died (it's been acting like it's wanted to since we bought the place), had actually just tripped the circuit. I called dad to see if that was something that was okay or if we should worry and found out that Eric and Anna were still there. I had thought they had left yesterday, but finding out they leave tomorrow instead, I decided to eat my noodles and head on over to see them one last time before they headed back to Oklahoma. I quickly changed my clothes, shut the upstairs window in the hall, shut the kitchen window, and locked the sliding glass door...lock, bolt, and key. The dogs were jumping up and down, thinking they were going back outside. Then, after locking the front door, I headed on over to my parents'.
I had a nice visit with my brother and his wife...and my other brother and his wife (Steve and Anna came over, too). We finally drew names for Christmas. Finally, feeling a little tired, I decided to say goodbye then head on home.
Here's where the problem is. I get home and lock the car. When I walked in the house, the dogs weren't there waiting for me. That's weird because normally when they hear the beep of the car, they come running downstairs to see me. Instead, it took about two to three calls for them to come downstairs. Well, I went to let them out the sliding door...only to discover the door is unlocked! Lock, bolt, and key...all unlocked. I let the dogs out, then went into the bathroom. I was really freaked out by this point, so after calling Mike, I went back out to the car and called first my parents then 911. They sent two officers right over. They went in the house to look around, but found nothing. They then asked me to come in to be sure nothing had been taken. I went to find Mike's guns...the rifle was still locked. I looked in the handgun case and saw...no gun! I called Mike to ask where he had put it and he told me it was where I had found the case. Mike freaked a bit when I told him. Then, come to find out, there was a layer of foam covering it that I had never seen before. I feel like such an IDIOT! So the officers left after all clear.
I KNOW I locked the back door. I know because the dogs thinking they were going back outside. That's where the ghost may come in...?
Thursday, September 30, 2010
Human Nature
There are a lot of times in my life when I just sit back and observe...well...life itself. I always feel like I'm outside a window, just looking in at the event taking place. I guess it doesn't just have to be an event, but whatever happens to be going on at the time. My feelings and emotions don't take any precedence over what's happening...I have no opinions, really. I'm just watching.
For instance, the biggest thing that's happened lately to me is I got to go to my first concert. Exciting, right? My friend April and I went to a Lady Gaga concert. What an experience! It was great! Looking back on it now I can say for sure that it was so fun and exciting and fascinating. While I was there, however, none of these emotions really surfaced. Don't get me wrong, I had tons of fun at the time, but I guess I just took it all in. As April and I made our way through the crowd, I noticed all the extremes Gaga fans took to show their...loyalty, for lack of a better word, to the singer. There were girls dressed similarly to how she dresses out in public as well as on her tours. Aluminum cans rolled in the hair like curlers, bathing suits over fishnet stockings, there was even a girl we noticed on the way out of the concert that was just walking down the street in nothing but short shorts, suspenders, and pasties. (Crazy, I know...especially since it was cold that night!) I took in the opening band, Semi-Precious Weapons...how they acted, how they sounded, what they did on stage. When the main event came on, it wasn't exactly what I expected. I figured a concert would be singing (duh!) and maybe some talking here and there, you know, stories from the road, little comments. No, it was a production. I guess I shouldn't have expected any less from Lady Gaga. But it was like a musical, as weird as that sounds. There was a script, and Gaga's music coinsided with each scene. It was truly a show!
What made me think of this blog entry is the fact that I have DVR'd the show "Sister Wives" that comes on TLC. I just finished watching the first episode. It was...interesting. I use that word a lot for descriptions, I know. I can think of no other word. For those of you that don't know about it or don't care to watch it, it has introduced the world to a polygamist Mormon family in Utah. A man, Kody, has three wives and 12 going on 13 children. At the end of the first episode, he has announced to his entire family that he is considering marrying again. There are many people that would immediately say this is not right. Polygamy is just a way for a man to get some more action once he's done with one wife. That he doesn't or can't possibly care for his entire family and that the children and/or wives will be left out. Watching this show, however, I can see that none of this is true. Now, I know Hollywood can twist things and show you only what it wants you to see. But what I saw was love. The wives all loved each other, were best friends. The children all got along well. And Kody, the leading man...he loves each and every member of his family. You can see it in his eyes, how he acts, how he speaks. He has made schedules to be sure that NO ONE gets left out.
It's such a controversial issue...as controversial as homosexuality/bisexuality. As controversial as (to some people) interracial relationships or even as far as relationships where two people are from different religious backgrounds. Who are we to say what is right or wrong with how other people live? If people love each other, then what's the issue? It's their life, let them live it. Who is the government to say people can't live their lives?
I guess when I said earlier that I don't really have an opinion on certain goings-on, that's not entirely true. What I was trying to say is that I'm neither for nor against certain issues. And this is where I get in trouble with people. I have made people mad/frustrated with me in the past because of my views on life. I say let people live their lives. If it makes them happy, then it is right. Just because someone else says you shouldn't live your life a certain way, doesn't mean their right and your wrong. I have homosexual/bisexual friends. I don't have any polygamist friends (at least none I know of), but if I did, I'd support them. I do have friends in interracial relationships. I have friends in interreligious (a word?) relationships. I love them and support them all. They are all happy. THAT'S what matters. This is the 21st century, people. Get off your high horses and look around you. If you don't like how something is, get over it! Just because you feel that way doesn't mean it's not right.
And my entry just spiralled WAY out of control! I just had to get it out, though. There are so many hypocrites out there that say don't judge people, and yet who is the first to judge? Them! I'm not perfect...nor do I wish to be. I try not to judge, but I'll admit that I even do it myself at times before I can catch myself and be that outsider looking in the window.
SIDE NOTE: (I know, the majority of this blog seemed to have nothing to do with the Lady Gaga concert. I mainly put that in there to let people know how I liked it, since I never reported in on it! But in a way, it did have a lot to do with it, as Gaga's message that night was not to judge people just because their lifestyle is different from yours.)
For instance, the biggest thing that's happened lately to me is I got to go to my first concert. Exciting, right? My friend April and I went to a Lady Gaga concert. What an experience! It was great! Looking back on it now I can say for sure that it was so fun and exciting and fascinating. While I was there, however, none of these emotions really surfaced. Don't get me wrong, I had tons of fun at the time, but I guess I just took it all in. As April and I made our way through the crowd, I noticed all the extremes Gaga fans took to show their...loyalty, for lack of a better word, to the singer. There were girls dressed similarly to how she dresses out in public as well as on her tours. Aluminum cans rolled in the hair like curlers, bathing suits over fishnet stockings, there was even a girl we noticed on the way out of the concert that was just walking down the street in nothing but short shorts, suspenders, and pasties. (Crazy, I know...especially since it was cold that night!) I took in the opening band, Semi-Precious Weapons...how they acted, how they sounded, what they did on stage. When the main event came on, it wasn't exactly what I expected. I figured a concert would be singing (duh!) and maybe some talking here and there, you know, stories from the road, little comments. No, it was a production. I guess I shouldn't have expected any less from Lady Gaga. But it was like a musical, as weird as that sounds. There was a script, and Gaga's music coinsided with each scene. It was truly a show!
What made me think of this blog entry is the fact that I have DVR'd the show "Sister Wives" that comes on TLC. I just finished watching the first episode. It was...interesting. I use that word a lot for descriptions, I know. I can think of no other word. For those of you that don't know about it or don't care to watch it, it has introduced the world to a polygamist Mormon family in Utah. A man, Kody, has three wives and 12 going on 13 children. At the end of the first episode, he has announced to his entire family that he is considering marrying again. There are many people that would immediately say this is not right. Polygamy is just a way for a man to get some more action once he's done with one wife. That he doesn't or can't possibly care for his entire family and that the children and/or wives will be left out. Watching this show, however, I can see that none of this is true. Now, I know Hollywood can twist things and show you only what it wants you to see. But what I saw was love. The wives all loved each other, were best friends. The children all got along well. And Kody, the leading man...he loves each and every member of his family. You can see it in his eyes, how he acts, how he speaks. He has made schedules to be sure that NO ONE gets left out.
It's such a controversial issue...as controversial as homosexuality/bisexuality. As controversial as (to some people) interracial relationships or even as far as relationships where two people are from different religious backgrounds. Who are we to say what is right or wrong with how other people live? If people love each other, then what's the issue? It's their life, let them live it. Who is the government to say people can't live their lives?
I guess when I said earlier that I don't really have an opinion on certain goings-on, that's not entirely true. What I was trying to say is that I'm neither for nor against certain issues. And this is where I get in trouble with people. I have made people mad/frustrated with me in the past because of my views on life. I say let people live their lives. If it makes them happy, then it is right. Just because someone else says you shouldn't live your life a certain way, doesn't mean their right and your wrong. I have homosexual/bisexual friends. I don't have any polygamist friends (at least none I know of), but if I did, I'd support them. I do have friends in interracial relationships. I have friends in interreligious (a word?) relationships. I love them and support them all. They are all happy. THAT'S what matters. This is the 21st century, people. Get off your high horses and look around you. If you don't like how something is, get over it! Just because you feel that way doesn't mean it's not right.
And my entry just spiralled WAY out of control! I just had to get it out, though. There are so many hypocrites out there that say don't judge people, and yet who is the first to judge? Them! I'm not perfect...nor do I wish to be. I try not to judge, but I'll admit that I even do it myself at times before I can catch myself and be that outsider looking in the window.
SIDE NOTE: (I know, the majority of this blog seemed to have nothing to do with the Lady Gaga concert. I mainly put that in there to let people know how I liked it, since I never reported in on it! But in a way, it did have a lot to do with it, as Gaga's message that night was not to judge people just because their lifestyle is different from yours.)
Friday, September 3, 2010
And They Say...She's so Lucky
Something happened tonight that made me stop for a moment, but then after I thought about it a bit, a smile spread across my face from ear to ear. Well, not really from ear to ear, because my lips don't go that far, and if they did then I'd have a really big mouth, but I digress...
I was walking in Walmart tonight, heading back up front to the checkout, when a party of three girls were walking towards me. Now, I was clad in flip-flops, jeans, and a T-shirt that had the word "Lucky" written across it. The girls were each dressed in a not-so-wide range of grunge-punk-chic of torn off Daisy Duke shorts with half their butts hanging out and torn '80's-style T-shirts that were off the shoulder. Lots of make-up and chunky, cheap costume jewelry finished off their "style." I tell you this because as I'm walking by them, minding my own business, I happen to hear one of them say none-too-softly and rather scoffingly to her friends, "Yeah, she's REAL lucky."
At first, I was appalled. What the heck?! What makes you think that you know me enough to think otherwise? What was it about my appearance that made them think they were any better than me? Look at what they were wearing! Look at how they acted! What gave them the right to judge me?
After all that rushed through my brain in about half a second, I had a different thought process. You know what...I AM real lucky. I have a huge loving family that would support me with just about anything (I think they may cut the line at murder and grand larceny and the like). I have two of the absolute BEST parents in the world who have molded me into who I am today, teaching me good morals to live by and showing me in everything they have done just how much they love me. Four older brothers who have been, are, and will be there for me (physically, emotionally, spiritually...all the "ally"s) whenever I need them. I have a loving husband who...well...loves me and is my rock and best friend. I have friends around me. I have a decent job and one on the side to help with extra money (which, let's face it...in this economy people have to take what they can get...IF they can get it!). Mike and I are financially sound enough to own our own home. I have food in my belly and clothes on my back.
Lucky? Oh, no. I'm not lucky. I am truly blessed!
I was walking in Walmart tonight, heading back up front to the checkout, when a party of three girls were walking towards me. Now, I was clad in flip-flops, jeans, and a T-shirt that had the word "Lucky" written across it. The girls were each dressed in a not-so-wide range of grunge-punk-chic of torn off Daisy Duke shorts with half their butts hanging out and torn '80's-style T-shirts that were off the shoulder. Lots of make-up and chunky, cheap costume jewelry finished off their "style." I tell you this because as I'm walking by them, minding my own business, I happen to hear one of them say none-too-softly and rather scoffingly to her friends, "Yeah, she's REAL lucky."
At first, I was appalled. What the heck?! What makes you think that you know me enough to think otherwise? What was it about my appearance that made them think they were any better than me? Look at what they were wearing! Look at how they acted! What gave them the right to judge me?
After all that rushed through my brain in about half a second, I had a different thought process. You know what...I AM real lucky. I have a huge loving family that would support me with just about anything (I think they may cut the line at murder and grand larceny and the like). I have two of the absolute BEST parents in the world who have molded me into who I am today, teaching me good morals to live by and showing me in everything they have done just how much they love me. Four older brothers who have been, are, and will be there for me (physically, emotionally, spiritually...all the "ally"s) whenever I need them. I have a loving husband who...well...loves me and is my rock and best friend. I have friends around me. I have a decent job and one on the side to help with extra money (which, let's face it...in this economy people have to take what they can get...IF they can get it!). Mike and I are financially sound enough to own our own home. I have food in my belly and clothes on my back.
Lucky? Oh, no. I'm not lucky. I am truly blessed!
Thursday, August 26, 2010
Something to Talk About
Legends...fairy tales...rumors...superstitions...fables...
How do these things come to be? Obviously they start with rumors, but how do rumors start? It's like when you used to play the game Telephone as a kid. Everyone sits in a line or a circle and one person starts off with a phrase. By the end of the chain, the phrase is NOTHING like the beginning. So how do these things get started? One person sees one thing, so they decide to pass it on. The next person then adds a bit of their own embellishment, no matter how minor. Then the next adds on to that, maybe leaves out a few things they think have no relation to core story, and so on and so forth. Some happen to be embellished so extraordinarily they turn into fairy tales.
So where do the tales of Sleepy Hollow or urban legends like someone taking a kidney without the person knowing about it come to be so well known? What was the original story that led to such an explosion of literary debate come to be? Are these tales true? False? Is there any basis to them?
I'm the type of person that likes the history behind things. I never liked history in school (though I did well at it), but things like this interest me. Stories, sayings...for example, the other day Jimmy and I were at the bar for karaoke. One of us made a comment about making biscuits from scratch. I was wondering where the phrase "made from scratch" came from. So Jimmy proceeded to whip out his handy Droid and looked it up. It actually originally comes from a sports term. In ancient times, one would draw a line in the dirt...a scratch, if you will...as a starting point. Over the years, it somehow switched to a cooking term, meaning to start from the beginning, no boxes or mixes.
So in a world that practically relies on heresay and gossip, how do we know what is true, what is real?
How do these things come to be? Obviously they start with rumors, but how do rumors start? It's like when you used to play the game Telephone as a kid. Everyone sits in a line or a circle and one person starts off with a phrase. By the end of the chain, the phrase is NOTHING like the beginning. So how do these things get started? One person sees one thing, so they decide to pass it on. The next person then adds a bit of their own embellishment, no matter how minor. Then the next adds on to that, maybe leaves out a few things they think have no relation to core story, and so on and so forth. Some happen to be embellished so extraordinarily they turn into fairy tales.
So where do the tales of Sleepy Hollow or urban legends like someone taking a kidney without the person knowing about it come to be so well known? What was the original story that led to such an explosion of literary debate come to be? Are these tales true? False? Is there any basis to them?
I'm the type of person that likes the history behind things. I never liked history in school (though I did well at it), but things like this interest me. Stories, sayings...for example, the other day Jimmy and I were at the bar for karaoke. One of us made a comment about making biscuits from scratch. I was wondering where the phrase "made from scratch" came from. So Jimmy proceeded to whip out his handy Droid and looked it up. It actually originally comes from a sports term. In ancient times, one would draw a line in the dirt...a scratch, if you will...as a starting point. Over the years, it somehow switched to a cooking term, meaning to start from the beginning, no boxes or mixes.
So in a world that practically relies on heresay and gossip, how do we know what is true, what is real?
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