Me? Reckless?

So, today I got my very first speeding ticket. How much it is. I don’t know.I was told by the very nice state trooper (can you sense the sarcasm?) that I’d be told how much I owe when I show up for my mandatory court date. Where’s the court? I don’t know. I wasn’t given an address or phone number or anything. When I asked the ever accommodating  Officer Cherry (seriously, that’s his name), he informed me that everyone has the Internet or owns a phone book I could look it up and he didn’t have the time for my questions or for me to read the form I had to sign before I signed it because it’s dangerous sitting on the side of the road (yet he took a half hour to run my tags).While I surprised myself by remaining completely calm and polite, although at times I felt like he was just waiting for me to argue or something, I was even more surprised about being stopped and accused of reckless driving. Seriously? I was stuck between cars in front of me, on the side of me and behind me with only the passing lane open beside me. If I was really going that fast, then was everyone else speeding as well? And if I truly wanted to go that fast, why wouldn’t I speed on down the open lane? It’s really funny how part of today’s sermon was on not letting people and things steal your joy. That was totally put to the test for me today. Unfortunately, I didn’t quite pass the way I’d want to.  Oh well. What’s done is done. Until January 17. 

Happiness is

Don’t you remember this song from “You’re a Good Man, Charlie Brown”? I learned this song and many others from “Pippin” back in middle school, when I was at Freedom Theatre performing arts school. Ahh, such memories of Mr. R.L., my voice teacher, and his processed braid, tight short shorts, and fanny pack are all coming back to me. That was the year I idolized fellow classmate Maia Campbell (BeBe Moore Campbell’s daughter? You know, the girl from L.L. Cool J’s short-lived sitcom) and had the biggest crush on Robbie Pardlow and all things Boyz II Men. And so, I digress. Well, maybe not exactly.

Over the weekend, I had the pleasure of taking a roadtrip to Richmond with one of my co-workers to see my childhood bestfriend’s band. It was such a fun time. I even received a shoutout on stage!

But, of course, the best part of it all was seeing my dear friend. And seeing that she is doing so well. I mean, she looked amazing! So much happier and healthier than I saw her a few years ago when she was moving back home from a disasterous relationship in Cali. (Seriously, she was my hero in that one though because she was the one that saw it wasn’t working, and that the guy wasn’t who she needed him to be.) Currently, she is a dog groomer, doing the job that makes her absolutely happy, and she’s touring with a very cool band. She’s found that true happiness, and honestly Saturday night, she was so radiant!

Hmm. That’s what I’ve got to find. My true, inner happiness. As I drove home last night (or early this morning) frustrated over how sometimes I feel like people at work truly underestimate my abilities and treat me like I’m a newbie to all of this, I realized in order to find such happiness, I have to stop worrying so much about what other people think (such as stressing that someone’s going to read this and criticize my heavy use of commas and bounty of potential run-on sentences). I’ve got to start legally living what makes me happy

Well, “I’ve got magic to do…” (a little Ben Vereen, anyone?)