Just imagine.  Diva is sitting in a quiet, corner booth at Catscratch Jane’s.  It’s 9:30pm on a Wednesday night.  Diva is occupying this booth solo.   This is surreal, and I started thinking, which is usually not a good thing when beer is involved.

My 1st thought is this:  I am sitting here, alone.  Am I bummed that my friends aren’t here?  Am I feeling as if my friends have deserted me for bigger and better things?  Do I feel like I am being neglected?  Am I getting bitter?  No. No. No. No. And no.

I am actually quite content with my life and the way it’s turning out. I’m glad to see all of my friends are happy, content and satisfied in where the last year has taken them.  I am totally capable of amuzing myself and having fun in the situation I find myself in.

My second thought:  Yes, I miss my friends.  But, we have a lifetime of memories made in the short span of approximately one year.  It’s not often that a group of mis-matched people come together like we did.  Every single one of us had some sort of need that this rowdy, loud bunch was filling.  Why, it was only a year ago that we all magically morphed to Catscratch Jane’s.  And dear Lord, the place wouldn’t be the same for several months.

Then something happened.  We all started to settle down.  Some of us fell in love.  Some of us found satisfaction in our careers… Regardless of what it was, we all started to find what we were looking for in life.

All of this brings me to a minor crash in self-analyzation.  I’m 100% secure to know that, although I’m sitting quietly in a corner watching the goings on around me, we all meant and still mean alot to each other.  In some cases, we’re far apart in our physical being. In some cases, we’re just right down the road.  Regardless, we are still together in soul.  Pirates deep down?  Maybe just a little… that Pirate dwells in each one of us forever.

We are really fortunate to have had the opportunity to build bonds that keep us close enough to have a quick lunch, early dinner, a cold beer, or even just a comment on MySpace.  God bless technology.

I really do love where my life is now.  But I still thank God every day that I’ve been blessed with a bounty of friends ~ near and far~ ~old and new~

Sappy, yes.  But, sometimes even Pirates can be sentimental.

Remember: Beer is proof that God loves us and wants to see us happy.

Monday Melee

1. The Misanthropic: Name something (about humanity) you absolutely hate.

The obsession with the Great Green Evil… MONEY!  Why must everyone be obsessed with it?  Is it not possible to do without this concept in its entirety and still have a successful society?  Oh well, I suppose I will have to learn to at least live with this in some shape, form or fashion.  (Barring total armageddon or the collapse of society as we know it…  Which I can’t have, I love my computer… It allows me to keep in touch with people who are out of reach.)

2. The Meretricious: Expose something or someone that’s phony, fraudulent or bogus.

I will now offer a tribute to the bogusness of the town I so formerly was a resident of…  Now beyond time and space we shall travel back a few years.  Yes, you have now reached the time of the Wilks Bucks Scandal of Maryville, Tennessee.  Funny how the only newspaper article I could find was from The Oak Ridger and his name was changed. 

Hmm… Something fishy is afoot I do believe.

The Maryville paper quite possibly could have just forgotten about the whole incident for some reason.  What that may or may not be I will never know.  Although it seems kind of unusual for Oak Ridge to have made a report on the topic and no where else in the state.  I was there I knew what happened. 

The moral of this story is: Kiddies think twice before trying to defraud our glorious government because big brother is watching.

3. The Malcontent: Name something you’re unhappy with.

I am rather distraught with my total lack of faith in people that are around me.  It’s not necessarily that I don’t trust them.  It falls more along the lines of I seriously question their ability to follow through with things.  After all most people are easily much more easily distracted with things that directly affect their own person.

Secondly, I am let down by the lack of excellent and groovy living in the world.  With this lack of easygoing natural course of living,  life is difficult.  While I realize that for the most part life can be summed up from a quote in The Princess Bride, “Life is pain.” I require myself to think differently. 

Last but not least, on this note can’t we all just f*cking get along.  (I know I used the word f*ck, but when I used it it had more emphasis didn’t it?)   

4. The Meritorious: Give someone credit for something and name it if you can.

The rest of the reading world, well hell you made it this far.  Just keep on truckin’.

5. The Mirror: See something good about yourself and name it.

 The mirror broke this week, check back later… (I apologize for the complete lack of interesting and funny dialogue but  I’m just full of sour satire this week…)

On the other hand I did find a six pack of Samuel Adams Cream Stout… Boy is it yummy it really hits the spot.   Also it is great to blog by and as Moe says, “I highly recommend it!”

6. The Make-Believe: Name something you wish for.

Visible progress in four key areas (not the armpits, a**hole, crotch and teeth…*): my love life, unfortunate financial situation, extending the arm of friendship my daily grasp, and feeling as if I can’t quite fulfill the requests of friends and family.

* In most civilized communties, these are great places to keep clean. In addition, you can save time if you use the same brush for all four areas.

Thus is the conclusion of my Monday Melee.  You too can join in the fun by visiting The Monday Melee page and completing the steps.  Kick-start your brains on Mondays, meet other bloggers, and by George have a darn good time too.

[ Note: This is Diva’s first Monday Melee, published on 11-Jun-2007 ]

1. The Misanthtropic: Name something (about humanity) you absolutely hate.
I hate haters. I’m sarcastic and all, but I don’t really hate anyone. I just think some people are completely ignorant and should wear a cone-dork hat all the time.

But people who hate everybody and everything (generally for no reason at all) annoy me greatly. Two words: hater blockers. You can find them at your corner store, reasonably priced, of course.

2. The Meretricious: Expose something or someone that’s phony, fraudulent or bogus.
Until proven otherwise, the voice on my voice mail the other night was really an extremely good impression of a female voice. Had I not known better, I would have thought it was really a chick leaving me that message.

UPDATE:  Diva has found out that Diva is way off.  I should be whipped with a wet noodle for spreading such rumors without concrete proof.  I admit it.  I was wrong.   I’m sorry.  Forgive a Diva, won’tcha?

3. The Malcontent: Name something you’re unhappy with.
I am honestly unhappy with my daddy right now. I love him so much, I really do. And this may sound hateful, but I can’t help it.

He is drinking himself to death. No matter how much I love him, talk to him, beg him, get mad at him, ignore him, taxi him, and try to care for him… he just won’t knock it off. And I’ll be honest. I’m pissed about it. I’d like to have him around for a while. He’s not that old, but he’s diggin his own grave on drink at a time. If I was doing an asshat of the day post, he’s a prime target.

4. The Meritorious: Give someone credit for something and name it if you can.
I give that salesman at Lance Cunningham Ford credit for sucking my man into buying that damn truck after I had a tissy fit over it. Good for him.

5. The Mirror: See something good about yourself and name it.
I may not have all the money in the world. I may not be able to give my kids all the crap that I’d like to give them. But I give them what’s really important. I love them.

So, I guess the answer is I’m a kick ass mama that would go through hell and high-water for her kiddies.

6. The Make-Believe: Name something you wish for.
I wish that all of the many parts of my life would come together, for one fleeting moment even, and I could have that happy, content feeling inside. Pretty damn big wish I suppose.

Now it’s your turn.

You can take part in The Monday Melee, even make it a regular feature at your site by visiting The Monday Melee page and following the steps. Kick-start your brain on Mondays and meet other bloggers.

     I arrived at Bailey’s just after 6PM to find Doug McCaughan (of Reality Me!) pulling in at the same time with his son Tommy.   We entered to find Michael Silence (No Silence Here) and Mushy (Mushy’s Moochings and others).
     Over the next few minutes, Tish (The Kat House), Rich Halley (Shots Across the Bow), Les Jones (lesjones.com) and Lissa Kay (Oh… Really?) showed up.

     A little later, the last of us headed to Oak Ridge to see The Atomic Horns at the Eagle’s Club — featuring none other than Barry (Inn of the Last Home) on keyboards.  There aren’t many “full bands” around the area these days, and these guys & gals were really fun — a mixture of soul, rock, disco and funk from the previous thirty years.  The ode to the Blues Brothers was hilarious.  😉

     Here’s a photo of Tish from The Kat House and Mushy from Mushy’s Moochings, standing there side-by-side, as if they were a couple or something.

     Notably absent: Diva, who messaged me at 11:21PM to ask whether or not these people really existed.  LOL

     Because it was exactly three months ago …

     And everyone who knew her will know exactly who this is …

     ( I close my eyes, remember her, and die laughing — that’s the way it should be *grin* )

     Cheers, babe.  Miss ya.