200 Things - Part 4 - the Final 50

The long anticipated (by whom?) conclusion to my list of 200 things about me. You can find the first three parts here: Part 1, Part 2, Part 3.


Now, where was I? Ah yes, I was discussing how much I love the males of our species, and how they fascinate me.


151. I have always gotten along well with men (boys, guys, blokes, whatever), and in fact, through most of my life, I always had more male friends than female friends.


152. This is no longer true, and in fact, with the exception of a couple of male friends who live hundreds of miles from me, I don't currently have all that many guy friends.

153. I think this probably has something to do with the fact that I'm single, and most of my guy friends have gotten married, and well, it just doesn't do to have a "single female friend" when you are married does it? From a wife's point of view, I can see how that would be an issue.


154. I miss having guy friends, they always bring an interesting perspective to things.


155. However, for the first time in my life I have this amazing conglomerate of female friends.


156. I honestly believe I have been blessed with some of the most amazing friends a woman can have.


157. I have friends from all walks of life, and from different times in my life, who sort of "Fit" into different areas of my life. For example, I have my shopping buddy, my travel buddy, my serious conversation "oh my God my life is falling apart" friend, my martini friend, and so on and so forth.


158. I do not, however, have a "group" of girlfriends like most women do, a la "Sex and the City" who all know each other, and do things together.


159. Most of my friends have, however, met each other, because at least twice a year I host a "girl's night" at my place, and bring all my girlfriends together.


160. These evenings when I gather sometimes as many as 16 girls under my roof are some of my favorite evenings every year.


161. As blessed as I feel I am in my friendships, it wasn't always so. I've suffered a lot at the hands of so called friends, and more than once have had to remove myself from unhealthy "friend" relationships.


162. I've come to terms with those painful times in my life, and feel I have learned from them. The most important lesson I have learned, is that it is okay to walk away from a toxic friendship.


163. Besides my friends, I have my family, and within my family, I have yet more amazing friendships with my cousins, and of course, my mother.


164. My mom is without a doubt my best friend.


165. She is also and has always been, a fantastic mom.


166. The older I get, the closer my friendship with my dad has become as well.


167. He too, is a fantastic parent, and probably one of the nicest people you will ever meet.


168. My parents, my brother, and I have a very tightnit family like few families I know.


169. I am very blessed in this regard as well.


170. At the moment I have a pet Beta fish named "Blueberry 2.0".


171. He lives in a fish bowl on my desk, at work.


171. There was a Blueberry 1.0, but he died a few months ago, so 2.0 took his place.


172. No offense to the original Blueberry, but 2.0 is a much friendlier and livelier fish, and makes me smile daily with his antics in the fishbowl.


173. I've been writing poetry and short stories since I learned how to write.


174. I always thought one day I'd be a "writer", and although I'm not published, I very much consider myself to be a writer.


175. I finished a novel at least 10 years ago, but never went back to edit it, and finalize all the important details.


176. I look at my unfinalized manuscript every few months and tell myself I'll work on it, but for some reason, I never do.


177. One of these days, I'll actually complete the damn thing.


178. Sometimes, when I read some of my older works, I'm surprised by how good they are, and am impressed that I created them.


179. Sometimes, I laugh at how bad other pieces are.


180. I'm glad I've gotten back into writing more often, and I have "blogging" to thank for that.


181. I've recently discovered a love for photography I didn't realize I possessed.


182. More interestingly, I've begun to realize that I actually have a decent eye when it comes to taking photographs, and can take some pretty good pictures.


183. This makes me want to learn as much as I can about photography, so that I can add this skill to my creative outlets.


184. There is something about both writing and photography that feels almost spiritual to me. As if these art forms open my eyes to a part of the world I wouldn't otherwise see.


185. I wonder if all artists, writers, etc. feel this way.


186. I'm a very introspective person, and spend a lot of time analyzing my feelings and emotions in relation to the world around me.


187. Due to this, I'm constantly questioning society's norms and rules and expectations.


188. This is why I have a hard time conforming to any one belief system, any one political party, and probably why I have always surrounded myself with people of different races, ages, economic backgrounds, and walks of life.


189. In terms of religion, I am Catholic by birth and baptism. However, I've always struggled with organized religion, and questioned whether it was the place for me.


190. As I get older, I become more and more comfortable with my faith, but in doing so, I realize that for me, faith isn't so much about the organized religion part, as it is about my inner spirituatlity.


191. I'm comfortable and at peace with that.


192. Now that I've accepted this, I feel stronger in my faith than I ever have before.


192. In terms of politics, I'd say I'm pretty liberal minded, but don't pigeon hole me, that never works for me.


193. I don't discuss politics or religion very much in public, because my views are pretty much always controversial, and as much as I love a good debate, I don't enjoy debating with people who get too emotional about such things.


194. This does not mean I am not passionate about my beliefs, it's just that I'm just as passionate about my belief that everyone has a right to their beliefs as well. Even if I think they're wrong.


195. Unless your beliefs directly harm " an innocent", then I'm all over you like white on rice.


196. Once I do allow myself to get started "fighting" for something, you'll be hard pressed to get me to back down until you've proven to me that you have enough knowledge to back up your position.


197. If you show me you do, I won't necessarily agree with you, but I'll agree to disagree.


198. I think life is way too short to waste any of it actually "fighting" about trivial things and could probably count on the fingers of one hand the number of "fights" I've had with anyone in the last 5 years.


199. I don't think I'd need my whole hand.


200. I wonder if that has anything to do with the fact that I've been single for most of that time?


;-) If you've read this far, thanks. I can't believe I really wrote all that stuff about myself. It was fun in a self-indulgent sort of way. If you're not bored yet, scroll down, I posted quite a bit this weekend, including my entry into the world of Martha Stewart (not really) and an update on the situation with Lawboy.