Pick Up Lines That Aren’t

Have you ever been in that situation where a stranger walks up to you and makes a statement that sounds odd, but then you assess the context and realize that the person meant something completely different and more conventional? This seems to happen to me a lot.

In any event, all of the statements below are things that people have actually said to me. Each of these expressions could be considered as a pick-up line and, in some cases, I thought it was until I learned the full context of the comment.

1. “Excuse me, but didn’t I marry you?”
These were the first words a stranger said to me at a party. When he approached me this way, I first thought he was a lunatic. Turns out the guy was a judge and he thought I had been the bride at a ceremony he performed.

2. “I checked you out at the library.”
He was referring to one of the books I’ve written. He had never seen me in person before.

3. “You look hot.”
I have very sensitive fair skin and get flushed easily when I drink things like wine or coffee or just breathe air. However, no matter who says this to me I still take it as a compliment every time and graciously thank the person. Usually at that point, the person becomes embarrassed and tries to avoid me. At my age I don’t really care what they meant. I only care what I heard.

4. “Will you please do me?”
When my husband said this to me I got very excited and screamed “#$%@ YES!” right in front of the kids.  Turns out he only wanted me to put sunscreen on his back.

It’s been said that timing is everything, but context is pretty important, too. Well, it’s only important if your goal is to be understood.

A Season of Thankfulness

A lot of people are doing “30 Days of Thankfulness” and listing one thing for which they’re thankful each day during the month of November. While some people find this boring, I think it’s a great exercise in remembering how we have so much to be thankful for.

However, instead of listing 30 individual items or specific people, I thought I’d list the top 5 things for which I’m thankful right now.

1. The little things. Because so often little things turn out to be really big things. Like the smile from a stranger when you’re having the worst day of your life.

2. People who take the time to help other people even when they don’t really have the time to do so. The truth is that we’re all busy, but some people stop their hectic schedules long enough to put other people first. I’m thankful for these people.

3. That the past is gone. I’ve learned a few things and had some fun, but I don’t ever want to live in my past. I believe it’s almost always the quickest road to death.

4. The love of a good dog. While I love people, no one else thinks I’m wonderful after a two hour workout. My dog thinks I’m awesome no matter how much I stink and she’s not afraid to cuddle up with me. I think we humans could learn a lot about love from dogs.

5. Art in all forms. Nothing is more powerful or more beautiful than art done well. It has the potential to change the world or one person’s world forever. Literature, paintings, sculpture, photographs, dance, music, etc. The forms of art are as limitless as the potential because art can speak intellectually, emotionally and spiritually. Art may be the one universal language because of this.

This is my list. Yours may be different and that’s okay. But I think that if we could all experience a little of each of these things every day I think we’d see the beauty in life and remember to be thankful more often.

Skinny Dipping In Daylight - Book Review

 People who know me well know that words are my drug of choice. I have other addictions, such as good coffee, red wine and visually stunning movies, but I could walk away from any of these, with the exception of well-placed words. I have deep appreciation for well crafted ideas, especially when these ideas are expressed verbally. Skinny Dipping in Daylight by Cory Basil is a beautifully crafted work that will appeal to readers like me.

The title reflects the raw honesty of the book’s content. The pieces are thoughtful and accurately reflect the different facets of human experience: Love, humor, pain, struggle, falling and getting back up again. Poetry has rhythm and good poetry reflects the rhythm of life, like Skinny Dipping in Daylight.

Even in the prose sections Cory has a very lyrical style of writing, and yet it often contains pithy aspects or whimsical elements that keep me engaged. The words he chooses eloquently support his message without clouding it or overtaking it and that’s what makes his writing so appealing.

I could write paragraphs about the book to describe the writing and illustrations, but I think your time would be better spent reading it for yourself. Check out Cory’s description in the video trailer and then go buy a copy. Better yet, read it with friends or a reading group so you can talk about it with someone else. The discussion time will be well-spent.

Lastly, for those of you unfamiliar with Cory’s artwork, please take the time to check out the links below. He is as imaginative as he is articulate. In fact, I was so impressed with his work that I own several of his prints and also hired him to do the cover for my next book.

Related Links:

Cory’s Website

Cory's Artwork on Etsy

Facebook

Twitter

If you live in Nashville, please visit The Frothy Monkey coffeehouse on 12th Ave. and check out Cory’s original art work which will be there on display from December 1 through January 31, 2013. But get there before everything’s purchased and there’s nothing left to see.

Note: My review was based on a free, advanced-review copy of the book.