He was straight laced and corny, with a penchant for expensive shoes and designer gifts. He had abominable taste in music and wore copious amounts of khaki. He golfed. I told him dirty jokes while slamming whiskey and dragged him to rock shows in filthy dive bars. I wore skintight denim and had his birthday tattooed on my wrist.
the smashing pumpkins and marilyn manson ‘the end times’ tour show at pnc was incredible. the people in attendance…. beyond rude. everywhere i turned i witnessed blatant disregard for the bands as well as fellow concertgoers. i came home and feverishly compiled the following set of rock and roll etiquette guidelines.
“rise up, take courage, and do it.” .ezra 10:4
we are told never to judge a book by its cover. instructed to know people before making judgements. for the most part, this advise is sound. for the most part. but i fiercely believe the clothing people choose wear and the way they decorate themselves speaks volumes. where ever i go, i am on the lookout for members of my tribe.
i handed my identity over to a petite government agent with a head full of tightly wound curls. i scribbled my new signature on a sheet of paper and was promised a social security card with my new name in return. back in my beat up honda civic, i sat in the blistering heat and cried.
a few years ago i penned my single girl vows to my single people friends. today i set down a new set of promises. this time to my husband.
with the wedding only thirteen days away i entered panic mode this morning. hard.
when you ask a woman on the brink of marriage, “how do you feel?” almost always the immediate and repeated answer is “so excited!” and with my own wedding just thirty baby days away, yes, i am psyched. i would also like to admit, for myself and for all women about to walk down the aisle, there are other feelings too!
there is no avoiding chaos. instead it must be embraced.
“Writing isn’t about making money, getting famous, or making friends. It’s about doing what you love the best you know how. It’s about making a heart pound in fear, shrink from rage, weep with understanding, or soar with excitement. It’s about making worlds and living in them deeply enough someone else can join you there.…