things i learned this week.

1. I'm not getting any younger. I'm starting to require too much sleep and I preset my coffee maker. Gross.
2. I'm starting to really really really wonder if marriage is for me. I'm starting to worship at the Church of the Single Lady. I like it. It suits me.
3. Gary Allan is dreamy. I could listen to him all day every day. His heartbreak songs actually sound like his heart is breaking. "i'm just sitting out here, watching airplanes, take off and fly. trying to figure out which one you might be on, and why you don't love me anymore." Amen brother, amen.
4. Commitment is hard. It's even harder when its to yourself. I've said this multiple times before. I want to quit, it's starting to require so much time, energy, and resource. But if I can quit on myself, then really what kind of person would I be? Not one I would want to hang out with.
5. I'm ready for summer. My butt isn't. I hung my swimsuit in my bathroom so I would look at it everyday and make better food choices. So far, it hasn't helped.
6. I hate Apple and the Apple nation.
7. Being nice to people really is the best possible way to live your life. Say "Please and Thank You" open the door for people. Smile. Make someone else's day brighter. It's the simplest form of self fulfillment.

i made this for you.

I get the big stuff. Who doesn't? I mean, you gotta be pretty silly not to understand when something hits ya like a mack truck. Oil crisis in the Gulf, world hunger and poverty, AIDS, earthquakes and floods. These things are sad. The whole world knows it. You can text FEEDTHEHUNGRY to a number and donate money to the cause. A nameless boy scout has a camping accident in nowhere Oklahoma 20 years ago and loses a frontal lobe. He can't walk, is extremely limited in his activities of daily living, can't go to work full time, and will be forever dependent on someone else to make it on a day to day basis. Sure, we "sort of remember hearing something about that", but who follows up on stories like this? No one. Talk about having severe psycho-social issues. Dear Heavens.

These are my friends. The one on the left works for a non profit organization that trains dogs to be companions to people with various disabilities. The one on the right is going to be paired with the boy scout who had an unfortunate accident 20 years ago and lost the use of his legs. David has had Monte for over two years, trained him to pick up keys, shoes, laundry, and whatever else needed to be picked up off the floor. He has had the patience and tolerance to put up with not only raising a puppy, but raising a puppy to not bark at other dogs, chase after rabbits, pee on things in public, eat off a movie theatre floor, or to act out in general. The relationship they have is mutually respectful and super duper sweet. Monte will go live with his new buddy on Monday, and although a boy is gaining a dog, another one is losing his. So here's to the unsung hero. To the person who puts himself last in line. To the one who is not afraid of the challenge and commitment to better someone else. To my friend David: Congratulations on a job well done. I'm so very proud of you. The next round's on me.

XOXO,

Ray Ray