The Work Laugh

A dedication before I begin: To all my beloved colleagues, you know I love you guys and really think you are all funny, I just had to parallel my thoughts with a Friends episode. The work laugh can be used in many situations. And you know you have done it too!

I don’t know if anybody remembers the Friends episode where Monica discovers that Chandler has a horribly annoying work laugh and she tries to convince him that he doesn’t need it. But after a terribly awkward situation Monica realizes that it is just better to have a fake work laugh.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Agb8h0fGlVw

In the essence of drawing parallels, my current life situation complements this Friends episode quite nicely. See the problem is, that people make jokes and I don’t think they are funny. When people say something that is not funny, doesn’t make sense, or isn’t relevant I just don’t laugh. It’s not funny, and it doesn’t need my laugh. My thought was that hopefully the absence of laughter would help mold their humor. * I am not saying that my opinion on funny/not funny is the end all. We all know I have told me fair share of bad stories, jokes, and one-liners.

However, my plan has backfired. It turns out that this is a rather pompous attitude and I am just coming off as a stick in the mud; with no sense of humor…go figure. Either that or nobody that I work with is funny. So I talked to a good friend that told me I might just need to get a work laugh. She said her work laugh was…”ha, that’s funny”. So I have been practicing work laughs and I think I have a good one. Here’s how it goes…I do a quick closed mouthed “ha ha” and then calmly move my head back then to the side and then point my finger at the person, and give them the YOU RASCAL look. So my new plan is to test it out and let you guys know how it goes. Let me know if you have a good work laugh that I could try.

Man/Women crushes

Before I get started I must state that this is a joke and nobody in this story actually has a crush on anybody.

So a couple of years ago I was dating a guy that was really into wakeboarding. He had a nice wakeboarding boat and we would go to the lake a lot. One time we met a guy on the dock that had a wakeboard, but no boat and he asked my boyfriend if he could have a quick ride. So we took the guy for a ride. It turns out he was a professional wakeboarded and my boyfriend was completely ecstatic the he was driving him. After the ride was over my boyfriend had forgotten, in my opinion, that I even existed. He must have asked the poor guy about a hundred questions. After the whole event I told my boyfriend that he had a man crush on the guy. My boyfriend didn’t like that, but I couldn’t resist. (Note to self: you probably don’t currently have a boyfriend because of reasons as such).

On a more current note, due to a similar situation, the idea of man crushes came up in a group discussion, and the question was thrown to the girls, “Do any of ya’ll have women crushes?” I immediately informed the group….“phhh NO”. BUT Later that night I was headed to bed and all of a sudden I realized that I have a women crush and I was surprising okay with it!!! Even to the point, where I told my women crush that I had a women crush on her. Oddly enough it was, whoI refer to as, “my math boss”. (Note to self: don’t tell my boss I have a crush on her). It’s a wonder I make it through life…

Funks with a Purpose

I think God has set aside certain days to be funk days. A funk day is a day where you just can’t figure out what’s going on…you are in a funk. If you are at work, you seem to be more of a sideline player. If you are in a social setting you seem to be a wallflower. In a funk day there might be a point of break down or tears looming, and many times you feel just socially awkward.

So what is the purpose of these days? Just recently I had a funk day. It was the first day of a conference for work at a beautiful resort near Austin. I woke up, had my coffee, read my bible and went on what I thought was my merry way. About 30 minutes into the conference I started to realize that I was entering funk mode. The funk went with me through the day. That night two friends/co-workers of mine and I took a float on the lazy river and out it came…”So what was up with my funk today” I said. It was like, I was finally ready to verbalize the funk. We got to talking about it and realized that maybe this funk gave me the opportunity to listen to my colleagues, gain perspective, and develop thoughts. By the end of the river ride my funk had pretty much dissipated and I was able to chalk up my weird day to just being in a funk. BUT my funk had a purpose.

So what’s the purpose of your most recent funk?

Caution: I must warn against on-going funks. Sometimes you might have a two-week period of mild funkness or maybe even as long as a month. If your funk lasts for longer than a month, I might suggest talking it out with someone you trust.

Contentment

I was reading in Philippians the other day and Paul said,

“Not that I speak in regard to need, for I have learned, in whatever state I am, to be content.”

I have read this verse for years and never fully understood how that was supposed to look in my life, or why it wasn’t at work in my life. However, I can tell you to the month (November 2007) when this verse really took up residency in my heart. Over the course of about 2 weeks I just became so content with my life. I hadn’t “acquired” the great things I desired to achieve. I was just glad to be where I was. So I wonder how this great understanding came about. I had been reading that verse for years…why now? I think the Lord works in a very specific time. That specific time has purpose in meaning that reveals itself in, yes, its own time as well. So I can only eagerly wait for my next revealed truth, but if I were to have an agenda of such truth it would be from 2 Corinthians 10:5.

80’s Hair Bands

I was always the little sister that wanted to be just like her brother. If my brother knew how to do something, I needed to know how to do that very same thing. The upside: my brother taught me how to climb out of my crib, so I got the “big girl” bed early. The unfortunate side: WWF wrestling and 80’s hair bands. I loved all the hair bands that my brother loved; Guns n’ Roses, Aerosmith, Warrant, Firehouse…to name a few. For wrestling, we had all the gear; wrestling buddies, wrestling action figures, a mini wrestling rink, and of course a state of the art foam championship belt. We even went as far as going to an actual WWF wrestling match at, then, Reunion Arena. Now you might think…wrestling…hair bands, I don’t remember the Edwards’ family being redneck?!? Well we’re not; we just appreciate the finer things in life.

I had the recent opportunity to relive this phase of my life on my latest adventure. It was a fun girls trip to the Woodlands for a Brian Adams concert. Little did we know that we would be listening to the wonderful music of the opening band, Foreigner, an entertaining 80’s hair band. As I walked into the venue, I quickly noticed…Toto we’re not in Kansas anymore…or maybe we were in Kansas and that’s why we were overrun by rockers of all ages, rocking it out. I mean we're talking slashed jeans, hard-core head banging, mullets as far as the eye can see, and SEVERAL middle aged women rocking like they have never rocked before. I just want to say that I appreciate the little opportunities I receive along the way to remind me of the way life was when 80’s hair bands filled the airwaves.

It's Worth It

I think, as of late, I haven’t let the softness in my heart show. I keep these things inside for some reason, and I want to convey my overwhelming feelings of joy. I know where that joy comes from and that is why I am ready to blog about it. So here goes…

I have walked with the Lord since the seventh grade. It just made total since at that point, I knew all I wanted was to please the Lord. As I reflect on this short walk with the Lord, I can remember times that I have been a little rough around the edges and times where I seem to walk in harmony. It seems that I have made things more difficult than necessary, but with love I have learned countless lessons.

Back to the walk…as a junior higher and into high school, I had a strong group of 4 girlfriends. During these years the only things that mattered to me were these 3 girls and the Lord. While it seems a bit selfish, I can only assert that at this point in life selfishness is inevitable, so why not spend it with a group of girls that didn’t require I make a choice I would utterly regret. I also credit that blessing to the consistent wise choices of my parents.

Into college, things were a bit tough for about a year and a half. I am not going to go into OU now, maybe in another blog. I will just say it was hard. At the end of that huge trial, I saw and understood for the first time, God moving in my life. He opened a way to my next phase. He also blessed me with many great years to finish out college. While I would probably say I went through several different trials in college, they have all yielded, in their time, fruit.

Like I said, things haven’t always been easy, but if I hadn’t done these last 13 years with the Lord...I have no words to finish that statement. I just must say it’s worth it. I am so in love with God and the peace, patience, joy, love, self-control, goodness, kindness, and gentleness that are His, are my fruit for life.

When I think about the blessings I have in this life, I just stop in amazement. So here they are, my Lord loves me, my mother, father and brother love me, and countless friends love me. Some people only wish for one friend that is as amazing as the people I have met and continue to meet in my life. I have learned everyday of the last 13 years what it means to walk with the Lord, and it’s worth it.

One day at a time, with You loving me. I am blessed.


“It’s worth it brothers, it’s worth it friends, to know your Maker, to lose your sin. Do you know that you are dearly loved?” -JN

Push-pops

Today, on my way home from work, I pulled up next to two men in a truck. I would say they were about 30 and they were just going to town on 2 bright orange, old school, Flinstone push-pops! I tried to get their attention and present them with two thumbs up for coolness, but they just did not care. So to the the push-pop men...just go on in all of your ice cream glory. You deserve it!!