The Collective

So the last few weeks months years have been hard on a lot of people. To be blunt, many of you who are used to being on the winning side of issues have lost. Repeatedly.

This has been hard for you to take. On top of that, some of you have learned some disappointing things about people you thought you knew.

Well, I have two things to say about this: First, as a person of color, I can tell you it’s not the end of the world. POC have been disappointed by our government and people we thought we knew since we’ve been here. But we’re still here and we’re still fighting. As a woman, I make the same statement.

My second thought: I think we’re at a point where things could change if we’re willing to take a step back, put our personal biases and opinions to the side and look at the bigger picture.

Instead of separate groups fighting individually, we need to be one huge force.

People who kneel. People in pussy hats. People who fly the rainbow flag. People who are in the thick of the immigration fight or battling the opioid epidemic…

All of us.

At some point, we’re going to have to come together as a collective. The issues might be different, but the foe is the same: We’re fighting the power. Until those of us who are being oppressed in one way or another come together with one voice, we’re just going to keep spinning our wheels. Sure the power might give us an inch or two once in a while to make us think we’re making progress, but in actuality, we’re not getting anywhere fast.

And for those of you who say, “Yeah, we’ve tried that, but when causes group together the meaning of the causes lose their impact,” you are missing the point. Do you know why the impact was lost? Three words:

Divide and Conquer

And here’s three more:

Separate but Equal.

Individual causes stood side-by-side, yes. But they still fought their battles separately. And this allowed the people with the power to whisper in each group leader’s ear that the other groups really didn’t care about their issue, they were just using their platform, resources, etc. So the leaders of each group turned on each other.

Separate but equal and divide and conquer. The oldest tricks in the book and we fall for them both time and time again.

So, one more time for the latecomers, and a bit louder for the people in the back:

WE NEED TO WORK TOGETHER. We need to quit with the crazy, “Well you should have been with us when it didn’t directly affect you,” nonsense and join forces. And for emphasis, more examples:

Did you join the #MeToo movement, even if you weren’t personally involved or directly affected?

Did you kneel even if you weren’t a target of police brutality?

Are you voicing your concern about how immigrants (legal or otherwise) are being treated in this country? Or are being denied entry?

How about the LGBTQ+ community, the homeless, veterans or the mentally ill?

The opioid crisis?

If you’re not front and center on every last one of these issues, I don’t see how you can shoot down the idea of all these groups banding together. Matter of fact, I think you and your opinion should take several seats.

This is all about power, folks. The ones who have it don’t want to relinquish it. It’s obvious that the balance of power is not equal and it’s just as obvious that each group taking a turn on the scale isn’t enough weight to tip the balance in anyone’s favor.

But if we all stand on the scale…that would be the tipping point.

Anyway, those are my thoughts. Agree? Disagree? Let me know in the comments.

 

 

Big announcement about my future! *not clickbait*

LOL…I’ve always wanted to do a headline like that.

But seriously, I think I have figured out what I want to do.

There are a lot of problems in this world, and a lot of people need help with a lot of things.

I am going to help them.

There’s a reason I started teaching…and there’s a reason I got an advanced degree in Adult Education.

There’s a reason that I honed my copy writing and product description writing skills.

And there’s a reason I keep coming back to this Valley, when it would make way more sense for me to live elsewhere.

Finally I think my actual purpose has been revealed to me. And I am *stoked*!

I think I have found a way to be a real resource and help to the people in the Ohio Valley.

But that’s all I can say for now. All I can say is…

$92 Million

22 military vets commit suicide each day. That’s one soldier every 65 minutes.

23,000 active military members access SNAP to help feed their families.

Over 40,000 veterans are homeless on any given night.

The White House and Congress are headbutting over how to fund the new Veterans’ bill, with the WH wanting cuts to come from other places in the budget, excluding defense.

So, to summarize, we have vets killing themselves because they can’t get the mental health assistance they need, vets sleeping on the street because, mental health issues and poverty, and some who are still serving don’t make enough to feed their families without government assistance.

But we do have $92 million to throw a parade to stoke and stroke the ego of a man who did everything possible to avoid serving. According to what is being reported, $50 million is for personnel and equipment being used in the parade. The other $42 million is going toward security.

Yeah, I’m sure it’s going to cost a pretty penny to sweep the streets of the homeless that are living along the parade route. I wonder how many are vets with mental health issues?

How many marching in the parade will go home to meals prepared with the help of SNAP benefits?

But yes, by all means, let’s have a parade. We don’t have anything better to do with that money.

My father, who served in Korea for over 2 years and then served an additional 31 years in the Army and National Guard is fond of pointing to his dog tags and saying, “I am the property of the United States government.”

Ladies and Gentlemen, you need to take better care of your stuff.

 

 

So I’m Still…

trying to figure all this out. LOL

I get asked a lot of questions.

What’s your favorite color?*

Who’s your favorite band?**

Do you prefer Pepsi or Coke?***

Why do you always wear bandanas?****

For the most part, I just answer the question and keep it pushin’. But there’s one question that makes me cringe when dread whenever it’s asked because I never know how to answer it.

What do you do for a living?

UUUUUUGGGGGGGGHHHHHHH!

Now you might be wondering, “Kim, why is this question so hard? Surely you know how you make a living!”

Well, yeah, of course, I do. But explaining it to people…

UUUUUUUGGGGGGGHHHHHH!!!!!

So, why is answering this question so difficult? Let me show you:

Person: Hi, Normal Person, what do you do for a living?

Normal Person: I’m an accountant.

Person: Oh, cool.

—————————————-

Person: Hi Another Normal Person, what do you do for a living?

Another Normal Person: I’m an attorney.

Person: Oh, okay. Cool.

———————————————————-

Person: Hi Yet Another Normal Person, what do you do for a living?

Yet Another Normal Person: I’m a teacher/ mechanic/stylist/Walmart Greeter’

Person: Very good.

———————————————————-

Person: So, Kim, what do you do for a living?

Me: Do I tell them I’m a writer? If I say I’m a writer, which kind do I tell them? Copywriter? Articles? My books? Do I tell them I’m a mystery shopper? A former teacher turned craft pro? A YouTuber? What? WHHHAAAAATTTT?!?

Person: You DO know what you do, right?

Me: <laughing nervously> Of course I do! I’m an animal anesthesiologist.

No, I’ve never actually told anyone that, but I’ve been sorely tempted. It would be easier for me to fake my way through that conversation than to explain how one person has five different professions (with countless subsets). Because that’s just not normal.

Yeah, I know, neither am I, but that’s not what we’re talking about right now.

Or is it?

Sometimes, and especially when I have my planner sitting in front of me, I wonder why and how I manage to juggle all this. Some days are better than others, but for the most part, I manage it. (I’m kinda taking a break from YouTube at the moment until I can upgrade my equipment or at least settle on a place to film on a regular basis.) I guess I am not a one job/career kinda person. I’ve got too many interests and way too short an attention span to just do one job every day for the rest of my life. I thrive on trying to write blog posts and articles, complete mystery shops, and still have enough time to get my items made so I can sell them (and donate part of the proceeds to charity). I’m no longer in an actual classroom anymore, but writing, YouTube, and even mystery shopping to an extent help to educate people. I cannot imagine my life without all of these things in it.

So, instead of fighting the steering wheel, I’m going to turn into the skid. The next time someone asks:

Someone: Hey, Kim, what do you do for a living? I’m going to respond with:

I’m an unconventional educator who uses words, videos and covert operations to inform the masses. Oh and I make and sell stuff.

Then while they’re unpacking all that, I’ll run away.

*Red

**Too many to choose.

***Coke

****Stay tuned…

 

My Return to the Beginning of the End of the Start

Hi everyone,

They say the first step to conquering a problem is admitting you have one.

I’m floundering.

There I said it.

I have spent the last couple of years going through the motions. I’m all of the things I said I wanted to be, but low-level and or barely. I’m kinda tired of being a “kinda” writer. I’m tired of being a “sorta” jewelry/accessory designer and creator. I’m tired of “kinda” dating, being “sorta” social…

This ish is getting old. No, it’s been old, I’m just owning up to it.

I thought posting videos on YouTube was the answer, but all it really did was illuminate the fact that I had NO IDEA where I wanted my life to go. I want the platform to mean something, to stand for something. I want to use my channel to ultimately help those who need it.

But damn if I can figure out how to get there.

So, I’m starting over. No “sorta” or “kinda,” just “.”.

However, I’m not sure where THE beginning is. If I take it ALLLL the way back, I caught the craft and writing bug practically at the same time. I’ve wanted to be a writer since I was 10, and I first discovered crafts were cool that same year as well.

I honed my writing and I know that my passions lie in personal essays and How-to/Help topics. Anything that helps someone is fair game. Craft wise, I lean toward crochet, chainmaille and Native American loom beadwork. I do other crafts as well, but these are the ones I always have supplies on hand for projects when the mood strikes.

As a weird aside, I include commentary on political and social issues a form of helping people. We’ll never get along without an open dialogue and free communication.

So, to summarize:

I’m a crafty writer who enjoys helping people via crafts and social commentary via YouTube.

A video of my making scarves with beaded uplifting quotes for everyone coming soon!

I kid…I kid.

Sorta.

I do want to figure out a way to combine all these interests. So, maybe I’ll record (a how-to?) me making a craft item that ties directly into a social issue I want to discuss, sell it and donate part of the proceeds to a charity.

Huh…

That just might work. What do you think? Let me know!

Anyway, this is my attempt to figure out my life and help others at the same time. Think it could work? Think it has a fighting chance? Again, let me know.

 

 

Hi!

Yeah, I know…it’s been awhile. If you follow me on Facebook, you’ve read posts there that I probably should have put here. I mean it was high-quality content, why not share it with the world instead of just my FB friends and followers?

Because I’m lazy. I mean, to post here, I have to open a browser window, type http://www.wordpress.com/wordsfromawriter and then wait for the page to load, log in click “Write” and finally *finally* I can share my thoughts. Then I have to choose the platform on which to share, create tags…blah blah blah. It’s just easier to post to Facebook.

Just one problem. As much as I love Love LOVE my FB fam, posting there is a lot like preaching to the choir. When you post something and either everyone’s going to agree with you or those who don’t just keep scrolling sans comment…it becomes an echo chamber.

Now, as much as I love it when people agree with me, it quickly becomes boring AF.

So.

I’m going to make a conscious effort to post on this blog more often. You know, I’ve started two other blogs since this one and they are even more woefully neglected. If blogs were children, they’d be in foster care. If blogs were goldfish, they’d be dead. If my blogs were a carton of milk, the contents would be curdled and my face would be on the carton.

Have I sufficiently beaten the concept into the ground? Cool.

But I digress.

As usual.

Anyway.

I’m going to commit to posting here once a week, most likely on Friday. It’ll probably be some sort of round up regarding how my week went and updates about my writing work, you know, since the blog IS called Words from a WRITER. That being said, I’m going to do that right now by answer some of your most pressing questions.

Hey Kim, where’s the dating book?

I’m working on it! I vacillate between “The world could really use this book, if for no other reason, so some know they aren’t the only ones going through this,” and “What’s the freakin’ point? Our society is doomed.” The stance goes the way of my messages from guys on dating sites. This week I’ve started an interesting experiment that was based on a post based on a Twitter thread. The results have been….interesting. The experiment is ongoing, so I’ll post more about it next week, but the waves just keep ebbing and flowing in the dating pool. For example, this “gem”: (WARNING: scroll through and read this part later because *NSFW*)

I bet his mother is so proud.

Anyway, I’m sifting though messages I’ve received and putting together the dos and don’ts now. As soon as I’m done with that, I can work on the other portions of the book, such as success stories, etc.

Okay great Kim…now what about the sequel to Words from the Rents? There was supposed to be a sequel. Where is the sequel???

….it’s coming too. You see, I used up a HUGE chunk of Skip and Mary Belle’s witticisms writing the first book. They’re older…crankier…and on to me so now if I laugh at something they say, I get a stern look and “Oh sure, this is going in your next book, isn’t it?” So, I have to be covert in my collecting methods. Also, I’m thinking of incorporating more personal essays into the next one. So there will still be plenty of Skip and Mary but a. not necessarily in conversation form and b. more me. Diva coming along for the ride (grudgingly) and the grandkid is at the age where she’ll make a debut as well. All in good time, my friends. All in good time.

There is so much more I could share, but this is already a novel (with pictures!) so I’ll save them for another post. Until then (most likely next Friday but could be sooner we’ll see), thanks for sticking around and reading along. Enjoy your weekend! 🙂

 

 

 

Hi There!

I know, it’s been a while, I’m sorry. If I had to describe the last six months of my life, I’d have to say it looked something like this:

Between health issues, work issues and an overall displeasure with my life’s path, I knew changes had to be made. But look at all that tangle and mess! Where does one begin?

Well, I started with the obvious. I started taking some meds and I started changing up my diet. I’m still getting around to exercising more, but since the meds seem to be working, I’m dealing with less pain so now I can seriously look at the exercise options.

I also made some professional decisions. I went back to a regular, 9-5 day job like normal folks.

Yeah, stop laughing. It was worth a shot. It didn’t last long but I did learn some valuable lessons. No, I’m not sharing them here, and I’ll explain why in a moment.

There’s something I’ve always known about myself that I tend to ignore for a myriad of reasons. I don’t “do” normal. I don’t think normal, I don’t react to things the way normal people do, my brain has some different wiring. And I’m okay with that, until I start to believe when people say I shouldn’t be okay with it. When people (who for the most part only want me to be happy) tell me that if I just “play along,” or “play the game,” or “think of it as a role and I’m going for the Academy Award,” I’m tempted to buy into it because quite frankly, being me is exhausting. So, I try it. Then I quickly remember why I stopped playing along in the first place.

Because you see, as exhausted as I am being me, at least I don’t feel defeated. As tired as my own brain makes me, at least at the end of the day I can look in the mirror and stare down my own reflection. And as weary as being me can make me, at the end of the day, I’m proud that I am who I am and when I get up the next day, I’m ready to do it all again.

If that’s not enough for some people, if the real me isn’t good enough, I really don’t give a damn.

Okay, got a bit off topic, but apparently I needed to say that, so there you go. 🙂 Now to the real reason for this post: I’m switching this blog to writing only. That’s kinda what it was supposed to be from the beginning but me being me, (see I get in my own way!) I kinda let it become a catch-all. Well not anymore. This blog is about writing. My books, articles, rants about clients, all that will be here. My personal thoughts have a new home: Unapologetically Mocha. Follow me over there for my thoughts, feeling and rants about the world.

This is just my attempt to unravel the tangles and make my life more doable. If I had to wager, I’d guess my life currently looks like this:

Progress! 🙂

Kim’s Excellent Auditing Adventure (aka The time the crazy rode shotgun)

Okay, so today this happened:

The day started normally enough. I got up, got some coffee and waited for Diva to get ready for work. I dropped her off and proceeded to start my work day. Many of you know that along with my freelance writing and jewelry design gigs I’m also a mystery shopper. Well I’m also a quality auditor for gas stations, and today I had a route I needed to complete. Seven stations in one town.

I get to the first station and I’m doing the spiel. Let the station know I’m there. Give them my letter of authorization (LoA…remember this, it will be important later), then I take pictures and complete the inspection. I’m walking back to my car and a woman approaches me.

Woman: pretty gutsy casing the joint during the day.

Me: Yeah, I’m not planning a robbery, I’m doing a site inspection.

Woman: Oh, of course (wink wink nudge nudge)

Me: Yeah…okay bye.

I get in my car and drive to the next location, all of two blocks away. Do my thing again, alert the station, hand over the LoA, take the photos, do the inspection (from now on, I’m referring to this as ‘Do my thing.’ As I’m walking to my car, guess who approaches me again? Yep. Lady from station #1.

Woman: What the hell kinda heist are you planning?

Me: No heist. Site inspections.

Woman: Good. Glad you’ve got your story down. Makes it way more believable if the cops find out.

Me: Yeah…sure. Bye.

As I got in my car, I thought, “Great, crazy lady is following me thinking I’m going on a crime spree. My luck she’ll say she wants in on it.” I start the car and headed for station #3, which is five or six blocks down the street.

You know, you’d think that I would have learned by now that speaking things aloud to the universe is inviting the universe to act. Apparently I haven’t learned that lesson because, sure enough, after I did my thing…

Woman: Look, if I can anticipate your next move, the cops will. You need a partner, I volunteer me!

Me: Thanks for the offer, but I work alone.

Woman: That’s never a good idea. There should always be two in a heist.

Me: Sorry. Loner.

Station #4:

Woman: I’m an excellent driver.

Me: Me too, plus my insurance won’t cover you.

Station #5:

Woman: I have an excellent eye for detail.

Me: Without looking, how many lights are on under the canopy?

Woman: Uh…

Me: buuzzz! Too late, we’re in jail and it’s your fault. Thanks for playing.

I get to station #6…no sign of her. Did she give up? Did I lose her? Did she find something more amusing to do? After the nanosecond I took to ponder all that, I finished the gig and jumped in the car in the hopes that I could get the last site done..just in case she decided I was interesting again.

I get to the last station. There she is. With the station attendant.

Me: Seriously?

Woman: Told you I knew what you were doing.

Me: Lady you don’t know what you’re  doing, let alone what I’m doing.

Woman: Well you won’t be casing this joint!

Me:  (To the attendant)  I’m here to do your site inspection.

Attendant: Do you have a LoA?

Me: Yep. (hand over the letter)

Woman: That doesn’t mean anything. Any witless moron could make one of those.

Me: And yet here you stand without one.

And with that, I finished the inspection and left.

Now I’m at home thinking about all the ways that could have went wrong. But you know what? It didn’t and therefore it lands in the “must blog this because this only happens to me” box.

Apparently…

I need to declare my worthlessness to the universe more often. I had one of my most productive days in a very long time today. It’s as if the universe looked down on me and said, “Well, you know that the first step is admitting you have a problem.”

Well, as great as it was to get stuff done, I’m so far behind from such a long dry spell, I’m still not out of the woods. So, Universe, if you could see fit to keep things rolling tomorrow that’d be great. I had forgotten what it was like to actually get stuff done. It was awesome. I want to feel that again.

Don’t really have much to say otherwise. I’m living a pretty boring life right now. But that’s what happens when you’ve been sick. It throws everything off. But this is the week leading up to my Birthday week, so I’m determined to get as much done this week as possible so I can enjoy my birthday week. I’m getting excited for that. It’ll be fun! I’ll fill y’all in on the possible activities tomorrow.

Okay, I’m off to do a bit more work before calling it a night. Namaste all!

29 Days of Me! :-)

It’s the first of February, 2016. This means three things:

1. It’s Black History Month
2. There are 29 days in the month thanks to the Leap year
3. It’s My Birthday Month!

Numbers one and two are important, but I’m making this all about me! My birthday is literally smack dab in the middle of the month (it’s the 14th), so I’ve decided I’m going to have fun with the run up to it and the downward slide after it. I mean why not? I’ve been on the planet for almost 47 years, that’s something worth celebrating!

However, this isn’t going to be a month of drinking, debauchery and/or mayhem (though some of that may occur, heh!); I’ve got serious plans for the month on both the professional and personal levels. I could spell them out here, but that wouldn’t be much fun, but I will share two with you now…

Blog What I’m Thinking When I Think It – 2016

I get the question, “Kim why don’t you blog more?” quite often. I really don’t find myself that interesting and therefore don’t always think people would care about what I was thinking, but apparently some do (?).  So, to make what could be a long, drawn out explanation short, I’m going to blog about whatever pops into my head. I have the blogging app installed on my phone and tablet, so I’ll almost always have the tool I need in reach. I promise I will keep it to actual thoughts about actual issues (you really don’t need to read me ponder what to fix for dinner). My quicker, quirkier thoughts might make it onto Twitter, just to keep things interesting. This could mean several blog posts each day, or several blogs posts and tweets a day, but I pledge to blog at least once a day.

The book signing and the new book will happen this month

I am having my book signing this month. I am also going to finish the first draft of the second book this month. I’m sure that will be a topic of conversation here as well as on the WordsFromtheRents blog.

I have other things planned, and other things have been planned for me, so I think I’m in for a really fun month. So, let’s get it started, shall we? Have some cake!

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