Julie Pippert: Using My Words

Hi friends...I'm traveling for a bit so won't be doing my usual lengthy ruminations about the pursuit of a well-lived life. So I wanted to use this space to promote other blogs and posts. Add yourself, your friend, a recent or an old post...any post you think other people should read. Make sure in the text you put a brief description and make sure your link goes to the specific post. Add yourself as the person who made the suggestion and why you're suggesting in the comments, if you want (so everyone make sure to check comments). Thanks and have a great weekend everyone! Copyright 2008 Julie Pippert. Do not reprint or reproduce without permission. Also blogging at: Julie Pippert REVIEWS : Get a real opinion about BOOKS, MUSIC and MORE Julie Pippert RECOMMENDS : A real opinion about HELPFUL and TIME-SAVING products Moms Speak Up : Talking about the environment, dangerous imports, health care, food safety, media and marketing, education, politics and many other hot topics of...

Elvin Bishop singing "Fooled Around and Fell In Love," an oldie but goodie and fave of mine through the ages (literally). I'd have preferred to put up the Rod Stewart modern cover of it but Rod says no. It's true: the mighty has fallen. After all my kvetching and questioning about social media, all my fooling around with Flickr, Twitter et al. you could call me a player. I dabble with Facebook, but it was clear: I was not really ready to settle down. But then. Michael Stelzner introduced me to LinkedIn . I fooled around. And fell in love. That place has purpose, use, functionality and fabulous resources. It's everything I was looking for. I think we'll live happily ever after. Even better...you can join us. Like one, big, happy family. ************************************************************************************* Drawing Winner In last week's Hump Day Hmm , I asked you to deliver and offered an incentive (art or editing). You followed through won...

It was more of a meerkat-y kind of feeling. When we arrived at the Zoo on Saturday, the parking lot was packed. Cars stalked pedestrians exiting the zoo like big cats starved for antelope. Families turned wary eyes to the cars skulking behind them; mothers clutched little ones closer, and fathers hunched protectively over strollers as multiple cars circled their herd. We drove slowly up each row, Ten minutes passed. Fifteen minutes passed. We'd long ago lost my sister's minivan. It was every vehicle for himself. "Go to the front rows," I told my husband, "The early arrivers will be leaving now." He took my suggestion and drove to the very first row. We turned down the row just behind a family who was leaving. We followed them to their car. Another car came from the opposite direction. We both paused, waiting. As the father loaded the toddler into the car seat, the driver of the other car rolled down her window and called the mother over. She slinked over to ...

A month ago, Gwen at Woman on the Verge wrote a post for the Hump Day Hmm topic "Things we need to learn over and over." Her description of the parental paradox of love was brilliant, moving and bittersweet. It described perfectly what I think all of us feel at some point. There is the overwhelming love we have for our children, and then there is how we feel in any given moment. You can (and may I suggest you should) read it here . You can check out the rest of the Perfect Posts at Lindsay's or Kimberly's . Copyright 2007 Julie Pippert Also blogging at: Using My Words Julie Pippert REVIEWS : Get a real opinion about BOOKS, MUSIC and MORE Julie Pippert RECOMMENDS : A real opinion about HELPFUL and TIME-SAVING products Moms Speak Up : Talking about the environment, dangerous imports, health care, food safety, media and marketing, education, politics and many other hot topics of concern.

Things on the horizon... 1. Blogging Pledge Class of November October's Pledge Class was a great round-up of blogs! So I've decided to do it again---plus I got some late submissions that need a place to go. In case you missed the first anouncement , let me explain what this is. If you are a new blogger, undiscovered blogger, blogger who wants to reach a broader audience, or if you know a blogger like this...send me the information! I have a great list going already and will post that at the end of the month-ish (to give everyone time). These do not have to be newbie bloggers. I do want to promote the newbies as best I can, but also enjoy pointing people to great blogs other people know and think people ought to know about. So please free free to "nominate" a blog, as well as submit your own. To get listed simply email me at j pippert at g mail dot com with a subject line of Blogging Pledge Class-November, and include a brief synopsis of your blog and a link to your b...

The other day, I visited Slouching Mom, one of my favorite bloggers. I know that bit isn't news to anyone who watches me trail her around, saying, "Ditto to Slouchy!" The news bit is that she was handing out an award , this one: I saw one to a "Julie" and although my heart surged, I didn't believe she meant me until I clicked the link and it went to my blog. LOL Thank you, Slouching Mom, for the honor! *********************************************************************************** When I got that award, it tickled a memory. Kellan gave me one recently too, which I haven't passed along. I'm not sure but this one probably needs passing along, too. There is certainly "deservedness" out there for both awards. However, for some reason, now simply doesn't feel like the right time to pass them along. It feels like I am waiting for something that is coming. Isn't that odd? As I contemplated these awards and the obligation I have to pay ...

I hope everyone had a happy weekend. I have a little bloggy business so I'll get right to it; this way we get back to the fun that is this week sooner! 1. Blogging Pledge Class of October 2007 If you are a new blogger, undiscovered blogger, blogger who wants to reach a broader audience, or if you know a blogger like this...send me the deets! I have a great list going already and will post that later this week (to give everyone who wants to time to join in). To get listed simply email me at j pippert at g mail dot com or comment here with a brief synopsis of your blog and a link to your blog. 2. Hump Day Hmm for Halloween 10-31: What other topic can I possibly ask everyone to talk about except something Halloweenish on this date? :) Tell us a scary story, a fun story, an experience, a tradition, anything you'd like to that has to do with the event most people celebrate on 10-31. If it means more than a night of silliness and trick or treating to you, tell us about that. If you d...

1. Using my words You may have noticed the new blog name? I mentioned a while back my increasing dissatisfaction with the former name (and excuse my laziness, no linky to that post). Then, one day, this name (Using My Words) popped into my head. It immediately felt delicious, like a death by chocolate cake a la mode, or putting on that outfit that feels perfect. It's too great, probably already used , I thought. So I checked. No, not that I could find. Better put my name in front, just in case my searching isn't as good as I like to think , I reckoned. Hold off, sit on the name a bit, see if it still feels good , I decided. So I waited. Still felt good. Be cautious, try it out slowly, without a big announcement, make sure it's good , I determined. So I let it breathe a bit, and I kept checking the flavor and bouquet. Still good. Then a few of you started noticing, and commenting on it (nicely, too!) and I figured, the cat is out of the bag...I better get this on the record ...

This is me, lately. Well, okay, how I feel life is requiring me to be. I've been doing the nice thing for a really long time and it's got me nowhere so...this? Is me now. I'm back to basics, hardball, burning woman. Or something like that. I'm just going to jump right in with all my Round Tuits here so bear with me as I do my Linear List Thing. Edited to add 0, the number before 1. 0. The Hump Day Hmm for next week. In order to placate my sister who says she's tired of me frying her brain every week (Girlfriend joined the JUNIOR LEAGUE...and she accuses ME of frying HER brain. KIDDING, hon. You know it. I'm all into the Sugarplum Fairy Sell-a-thon and crap next month.) I'm going a bit lighter next week. Take a topic, any topic, something that is weighing on you, bothering you, troubling you...and find the humor in it. Write about it from a humorous angle. It can be general or personal, just take a troubling topic and bring out the humor. FWIW, sarcasm counts...

Although it seems hard to believe, the earth is still spinning and regular life is still ongoing even though there is a hurricane out there. There are a lot of things in life I didn't get around to this week, and hopefully that's just a "yet" but I acknowledge some things will have to be dropped. Here are a few that won't: 1. A big heartfelt thanks to Chani for awarding me the Blogger Reflection award. This award should make you reflect on five bloggers who have been an encouragement, a source of love, impacted you in some way, and have been a Godly example to you. Five Bloggers who when you reflect on them you get a sense of pride and joy... of knowing them and being blessed by them. Even with the blatant abuse of the word "impact" and the nebulous wording of "Godly example" I find this a lovely award. Even lovelier is what Chani wrote Julie and I have very different cultural perspectives. She is also far brighter than me. Just the same, I am...

I cannot explain the many ways in which last week got away from me. But one thing I ought to have done was let you know that I read a post so amazing, I was moved to nominate it then and there for a July Perfect Post. It was a post that stroked and smoothed my soul while igniting hope and joy. Slouching Mom's A Nine-Year-Old Boy's Fourth of July If you haven't read it, spend a few minutes. If you have read it, I find it's worth another read. Congratulations to Slouching Mom, and many thanks for sharing your talent. To participate in the Perfect Post Awards, all you need to do is e-mail Momma K -- Petroville(at)gmail(dot)com and ask her to put you on the Perfect Post mailing list. She'll e-mail you every month when it's time to send in your Perfect Post pick. Every nominee is a winner. See all the Perfect Posts at Petroville or Suburban Turmoil . copyright 2007 Julie Pippert

Somebody from Nebraska's board/department of tourism hired the Jay Leno advertising agency to attract people to their state this summer. Ummm...?????? I see their plan: let's draw all those tourist dollars to Nebraska. I mean, after all, how many times can you go to hotshot destinations like Orlando and Williamsburg? So...might as well go to Nebraska! I get it, and I know there are lovely parts of Nebraska. But tell me...does this commercial draw you in? I still feel a wee bit suspicious, like someone is having me on at my expense. While on the topic of nothing much whatsoever... And after weighting this blog down with the unbearable heaviness of being all week, I have some bloggy business to take care of that is much lighter. About a month ago my buddy Roz tagged me for a meme , and since things are a little heavy there now too, this is one silly thing I can do in support of Roz. 1. What were you doing ten years ago today? Today exactly? July 20? Uhhh...??? How about generall...

I know...your eyes are crossing from the posts I've churned out this week. Mine too. I tell you, the only consolation of having a migraine for a week is that suffering creates great art . ;) This one is short. It's not my words here that matter. Last month I read this awesome post. It was something amazing, really. Perfect. I sent it right over to Momma K . So the award goes to Andrea at Garden of Nna Mmoy and her post Siding with Thoreau for points such as: how many people do you know who consider themselves chained into some other form of misery, who live Thoreau's "lives of quiet desperation," who consider it their sign of strength and maturity that they simply endure an intolerable situation? and So what is a requirement for happiness? No one knows--that's the problem--but I'm going to go out on a limb and suggest that the first one is a belief that we don't owe the world our misery. That there is no Noble Suffering. There's Nobility, and ther...

After being confronted with written evidence, Julie admits that she is a total attention whore. In some things, in some ways, sometimes I look outward for validation of my worth and existence. I admit it. It's my weak spot, my vanity spot . If you say I am clever, comment on a post, offer me an award, mention me on your blog, reply to a comment I left on your blog, or in any way flatter me as a writer...I am hopelessly, slavishly devoted to you. I will probably even add you to my blogroll just so everyone can see the list of all the cool kids who actually like me . The girl, she knows she is vain in this regard , but after much vanity discussion and navel-gazing , she has decided to love herself anyway, as she is (ironically) and will keep searching for (1) internal validation and (2) her first person . Until I reach a better point of self-actualization, though, may I just say that this week you people have been better than prozac and chocolate (together, with a side of white choc...