God Bless, Steve Harvey

All my life, I've been told I should let a man do the things I'm quite capable of doing myself. A friend's older aunt once said, "You girls won't find a man till you learn to let them do things for you. You can open the olive jar, but just pretend you can't."

I couldn't do it. To me, 'pretending' is the same as lying or manipulating. 

Since Harvey's book, Act Like a Lady, Think Like a Man, was a best seller, I decided to read it. He words it a bit differently than everyone else who ever advised me. His advice - Relax, let a man do what a man can do. That's not a lie or manipulation. It's realizing a man can open that olive jar faster and with more ease than you, so let him. Don't strain yourself. Simply, hand him the jar. 

This, I can do.
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Almost the Same Name

Gabourey Sidibe is the funniest actress I have ever heard in interviews. She is clever, sarcastic, and quick witted.
I haven't seen the movie Precious. It simply doesn't look like anything I'd want to see, so the first time she showed up on a talk show I wasn't going to watch her interview. I thought it would be one of those akward interviews with a new celebrity. I'm sure you've seen them. They hem and haw and don't really know what to say. Not Gabourey. She will blow you away.
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The Jukebox in My Head

For several months now, the jukebox in my head has been playing Sukiyaki.

Not exclusively, but on heavy rotation.

Usually, the most recent song I've heard sticks in my head. Lately, when I haven't heard a song for a couple hours, Sukiyaki pops into play. I never liked that song. Curses!
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Don't Hate Her Because She's Beautiful

I heard that Taylor Swift song on the radio. You know the one, I'm the perfect girl because I'm so down to earth. Since I'm usually wearing my Chuck Taylor's, I assume the position of the best friend girl, Taylor's position in the song. But, you know what? I wear heels. I used to hang out with the cheerleaders. I didn't want a crowd staring at me, so I never joined the squad, but I did learn all the cheers with them. Who's writing their song?

What's wrong with the girl who wears heels and cares about her appearance? What's wrong with the girl who doesn't like the (usually locker room style) humor of boys? What's wrong with a girl who likes a different type of music? Why is she assumed to be the 'wrong' girl? Opposites attract, after all - or so they say.

Maybe Taylor's right and that girl would be perfect for that guy, but maybe not. Maybe that girl would not push the guy to be more than he is right now. Maybe he'd end up working at a garage, drinking, and not having any ambition.

I'm just saying, I'd like to hear the cheerleader's side of the story.
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Filthy Stinking Humans

I'm having a problem with the smell of humans. Where I work, there are a lot of people coming through all the time. I've gotten to the point of holding my breath when I walk past the main areas they gather.

The smells that bother me the most are food smells. I can't stand people who smell like dinner. I don't mean a specific food smell, but like they hang their coats in the kitchen and all the dinners they've had are embedded in the cloth. I don't think people should smell like food. I'd rather they smell like cigars, or bleach, or just about anything - but not food.

Second worst are hair smells. If you aren't familiar with hair smells, scratch your head and smell your fingernails. Now, imagine that smell so strong someone walking past you could smell it. I don't know how the smell gets that strong. It's not like I'm working around homeless people. These are normal, everyday people - well-dressed, clean-looking, yet stinky.

It's really hard to help someone with Zim's voice in my head - 'Filthy, stinking, humans.'
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