Diva Dialogue IV

So I have been a tad incognegro. Sorry peeps, I love you all but I gotta make the dollas while I can. April 15th is right around the corner and I have been busy. You gotta give Uncle Sam his due. Those days I chilled with my family over Spring Break made a sista have to do double time. But after this week, I should be back. Well, maybe not. I got a temporary gig. I am going to work for the US Census Bureau for a couple of months. Should be interesting to say the least. Have you returned your forms? They were due on April 1st. You definitely want to be counted.

Anyhoo, I was in my car on Sunday and was was overwhelmed with a huge dose of profound sadness over 3 family members who have all passed on. It was the weirdest thing. All three of the individuals just popped in my mind and I felt so sad over them being absent from my life. I thought of my grandfather who died in January, 1988, my dad who passed in May 2005, and my aunt Lennie who died in March 2007. Usually I think of each of them at random points but never all at the same time. The grief and sadness I felt was really strong and it came out of the blue. Each of them impacted my life in ways great and small and honestly, I feel like they are all in Heaven watching over me. I can't tell you how much I wish they would pop up in my dreams. Occasionally they do show up in my dreams but it is so infrequently and random that I am never satisfied. God knows best. Anyway, let me remind you to love on your family while you still have them. Life really is precious and you never know what the next day holds. Grief never really ends, it just gets easier each year. It comes out of nowhere and it disappears just as quickly.

I have all kinds of thoughts running through my head so bear with me as I roll from topic to topic. they will not be at all related to each other. Just a warning! Tiger Woods, at the Masters without Elin. He's back, his game was a tad off. No surprise there. I think Tiger was given way too much press. Tiger brought it all on himself but really there are so many other things that could've been focused on. By contrast, how sweet it was to see Amy Mickelson greet her victorious husband while battling breast cancer.

I finally saw Tyler Perry's Why Did I Get Married Too. If I have not put the disclaimer out, let me do it now. I love TP but I always hate the way his movies end. This was no exception. The situation between Janet Jackson's character and her husband never gets resolved. As usual, Tasha Smith's character was over the top. The most realistic situation was the one between Jill Scott's character and her husband. Good men can't take it when they aren't providing for their families. Their pride takes a hit and they suffer from a depression that I don't think we as women can understand. A friend of mine out out a FB status about TP always having a light-skinned man come in and rescue the damsel in distress. I laughed and joked but it really is true. Look at the body of his work and you will agree. All that said, I think TP's movie are purely entertainment and they provide good fodder for conversation. I also think he could benefit from an excellent writing team. They could close up loose ends and offer some less predictable scenarios. I will give him props for doing the damn thing though. His studios are awesome!

I think the Gosselins are conniving manipulative individuals milking their fans (and haters) to the Nth degree. Kate goes on a whirlwind promotional tour and Jon accuses her of being negligent and pursues custody of their 8 crumb snatchers. Personally, and you heard it here first, I think they plan this stuff. He had been relatively silent and unseen until she needed to promote her latest book and her stint on Dancing With The Stars. Oh dare I mention that TLC is giving Kate and the kids two new shows. I see a pattern emerging here. Or am I the crazy one?

Satan is on the prowl. I know, no surprise there either. Marriage is not easy for anyone. It seems that the devil is attacking relationships and folks who are professing Christians are buckling under pressure. I am convinced that God had high expectations about how he envisioned marriage and that He is disappointed that we continuously fall short, sometimes, intentionally. Marriage is work and it should not be entered into lightly. Men are called to love their wives and women are called to respect their husbands. It sounds so easy but I can certainly attest to the fact that is never is quite that simple. Our flesh gets in the way. We place conditions on the situation that God did not ordain. We get advice from the wrong people. We forget to have fun, have dates, and be spontaneous. We forget to let go of our anger, hurts and personal agendas. We go to bed angry. In short, we operate out of selfishness instead of love. Okay, so I am thinking I need to do a whole other blog about marriage. So I will end here for now. Pray for your future spouse. Pray for your marriage. Pray for the marriages of your friends. Don't give Satan an opportunity to destroy families from the inside out.

Well meaning Christians can damage ministries and individuals. Well that could be a blog too. For now, I'm just gonna say that I have seen it happen a few times too many. Self righteous people trying to correct wrongs from their personal perspective instead of God's. It pisses me off because not only do feelings get hurt but ministries(or organizations) get stunted because of underlying and often unresolved issues or unchecked attitudes. Sometimes things don't need to be fixed because God has a plan and it might not have included you and your well intentioned self. You could be in the way of something bigger and more meaningful. Enough said.

This is my forum and I can say whatever I want. If I offend you, you can CHOOSE not to read this blog. I am saying that because I am sick of folks using Facebook in a passive aggressive manner and trying to tell people off with their statuses. How juvenile!!!! Last week I saw a segment about people bashing bloggers. Another passive aggressive tactic. If you have an opinion don't hide behind a social networking site or anonymous comments, be woman enough to confront the issue with the person. Really!

I have hit a plateau with my weight loss. That is not a good thing. Any suggestions? It has been about 4 months and I have lost about 16 pounds. I am so very proud of myself. I have been diligent in my AM workouts and with the exception of Spring Break, I have pretty much only been drinking water. I had a reunion with Pepsi for a week and it was so sweet. Parting is such sweet sorrow but parting was necessary for me to remain discipline. I am not thinking of giving up, I just want to continue to see results.

You all know that I love to read. I have a new favorite author. Her name is Kristin Hannah. She writes wonderful stories about family relationships. They are fresh and unpredictable. Check er out. She has a plethora of stories out there. My girl Jodi Picoult has a new book out, but I need to give her a break. She has Tyler Perry syndrome. I hate the endings of her novels. She makes me think but enough is enough. The endings make me want to throw the book across the room. I will also be checking out more of Barbara Delinsky's novels. I read one on Spring Break and it was excellent. Check her out too.

BTW_I am seriously waiting for Barack to have a Southside of Chicago Ghetto moment. It as been a year and I just want him to pull rank and let everyone know that he is the HNIC! Ahh, it would be so liberating. I am just sayin........you know you agree. LOL!

Okay so I guess, I have cleared my mind little. Thanks for bearing with me. I love you all. I would love feedback. Talk to me folks! I really want to hear from you.

Copyright April 13, 2010 by Pamela Cole Thorpe