God Bless Texas...

Oh, Hey, Hi'ya, Howdy!

Ok, gonna go on a bit of a ramble here. 

I live in Texas. We eat out a lot in Texas. I love when I go into a restaurant and hear music that is NOT country music. This is actually rare, though. I don't expect to hear hard core rock, (would be awesome though lol), but just because this is Texas, don't assume that 100% of your customers are big ol country music fans. 

I am not.  I SO am not.

Please allow me a moment to dispel several myths about living in Texas.

1. No, we don't all listen to country music. For the love of *insert deity of choice here,* can ya give me a damn break with the whiny, tear in yer beer, gotta crush on yer cousin twangy ass country music while I'm trying to eat?! Just stop. STOP IT!!! I mean, mix it up at least...Please! Nothing wrong with a little variety? (Just hold the rap. K'thanks!) Unless it's "Texas Roadhouse" or any Barbecue joint. There, I am prepared and expect to hear the twangy tunes.

2. No, we don't all drive a Ford/Chevy/GMC Pickup Truck.

3. No, we don't all own a Pickup Truck of any kind. (Although O and I do own a truck, it's a sporty "racing" style. Not country. And no gun rack. LOL!)

4. No, we don't all wear cowboy boots. I don't even and have never ever owned a pair. And I will never own a pair. I don't have a problem with them, they're just not for me.

5. No, we don't all wear cowboy hats. (See # 4 above)
I do, however, remember when I very first moved here. As soon as I drove across the state line into Texas, I was passed on the left by a big ol pickup truck being driven by a man with a handlebar mustache & wearing a big ol cowboy hat. It might have even been a 10 gallon hat, but probably not. But I remember just cracking up. I dunno why it struck me funny, but it just did. I was all like, "Welcome to Texas y'all!" LOL!

6. No, we don't all have horses. I have, however, had a horse. But that was when I lived in Georgia. And yes, I have seen someone get served in a drive thru, while on horseback. 

7. No, we're not all rich from the oil industry. Shew, I wish!

8. No, we're not all Ranchers, or Ranch Hands. Or Farmers. But we do have plenty of them here, and thank heavens for them too. I am a carnivore, and I do enjoy the price of beef here. And I also love that, every day, driving to or from our home, I get to see cows, longhorns, even some goats and donkeys. And guinea hens sometimes too. And horses. Always horses.

9. No, we don't all have big ol gigantic, huge hair. I have, in my lifetime, had big big hair. But again, I lived in Georgia. And it was the 80's, and everyone had big hair. I'm convinced the ladies of the 80's are responsible for the hole in the ozone layer, with all that AquaNet Aerosol Hairspray we used. 

10. We don't all say "Howdy" or "Pod'ner". But I do occasionally like to say Howdy. Obviously.

There are many, many things I have enjoyed about living in Texas. Which is a good thing, since I've lived in Texas longer than I've lived anywhere else. But that's another post for another time.

God Bless Texas.

2012 in Texas' famous Bluebonnets

If You're Happy And You Know It.... (Flashback Friday Repost)

Here's a Flashback Friday repost from 2012... Still agree with most of this, except my feelings for the kitty. 

If You're Happy And You Know It....

Photo Credit: Grumpy Cat

Hahahaaa! I just love this kitty! And memes with this grumpy little face are just sweepin the interwebs!  She even has her own website, Facebook & Twitter! Such a cute kitty! But she sure does look pissed off! LOL!  Anyway....this & some posts on Facebook & Twitter got me thinkin.  You see stuff all the time online about how you should be happy no matter what.  That it's totally up to you to feel happy... Things like "You have the power to create your own happiness!!"... "If you don't like something about your life, CHANGE IT!"..."True happiness is to enjoy the present"...."Why be mad or sad when we can be happy instead?"..."I am in charge of how I feel & today I choose to be happy"..."YOU make sure you have a good day!". You know....that stuff.  And I'm sure y'all all know that I have a good answer for each one of those quotes as to why I may NOT feel happy, even if that was my choice....my druthers, my desire for every day for the rest of my life.  Right?

I do get why people post this stuff.  They mean no harm at all.  They are usually super happy, smiley, ever cheerful people themselves, who are just lovin life SO much that they only want that for you as well.  Because they love you.  They love life.  They want you to love life right there with them.

But really it's not always possible to CHOOSE to be happy, is it?  I guess it is for some.  I'm sure somewhere, at some time there was SOMEONE who got a terrible, life threatening diagnosis & it totally didn't piss on their parade.  Right? I've yet to MEET that person.  Or maybe I have. I dunno.

O & I were talkin about this sort of stuff the other day, and we came to the conclusion that, the majority of people who appear to be all Happy Happy Joy Joy, like ALL the time, have never had to face their own mortality or be concerned about where they & their family will sleep that night, or any stuff equally as terrifying. OR, the exact opposite is true.  They are miserable, unhappy & just trying to find their way back to happy with these lovely affirmations.

I don't have issues anymore with seeing these quotes & stuff everywhere, really, so please don't think that's what this post is tryin to say...at all.  I'm just sayin...folks, try to keep in mind that for some, Happy may just have to be put on hold for a bit.  Could be a few hours, days, weeks....maybe even months or years.  Some will never be happy again.  I, thankfully, am not one of those people.  I have found my way back to happy.  For the most part.  I could be wayhappier, too.  But I can tell you this.  There was a good long stretch of time that seein that stuff posted in my news feeds had the exact opposite effect for me.  

Not sayin anybody should change anything about what they say or do, or post online, or feel or whatever.  Just another random musing....thoughts...

I'm not sayin, I'm just sayin.