A fine, fine line...

So this is what I've noticed: There is a fine line between being helpful and being a busy body. Dontcha think? Let me explain.

Say you're sitting in a theater, and you know what row you're in, and you hear the people in the row behind you sort of bickering over their seats. THey are all in the wrong seats. And you hear them distinctly say a row that you know they are NOT in, because they are right behind you, and you KNOW which row you are in... so.... you turn around and say "That's not row B, it's row A."

Busy body or helpful?

Or, lets say you're on the elevator in a department store and you hear two people wondering which floor they have the ladies shoes & you blurt out "third floor." YOu weren't asked. They weren't saying to each other "we should ask somebody" you just... ummm... blurt it out. I mean, it's not like you could HELP hearing what they were talking about - it's the friggin elevator! Right?

Busy body or helpful?

Or you're walking down the street and you hear the people behind you wondering where they should go out for dinner... and you turn around and make a suggestion. (Ok, that hasn't actually happened, but believe me - it's been close enough...and it COULD!)

Busy body or helpful?

I know, not so easy to distinguish. I"m trying. I'm really trying. I. Just. Can't. Helpit!

No fading star: Actress gets roles at 97 - Yahoo! News

No fading star: Actress gets roles at 97 - Yahoo! News

Very cool.

Passover Part Two

I wrote about Passover part 1 - over on Xanga --- but here's part two.

The second night of Passover - for the second seder - we will be going to J's sister's house. I will be meeting his parents & his neices. My boys will be meeting his parents & his neices. For the first time. At the seder. A nice, calm relaxing first meeting - dontcha think?

I mean, I'm nervous and I'm not. I suppose I would have preferred meeting his parents first - just the four of us - before this. Before I have to have five eyes to keep on my kids who will be in a strange house, with strange things and people they have not met before.

No pressure, or anything.

And that's not to mention that this will be the first time my kids will be sitting through BOTH parts of the seder.... so imagine, if you will... sitting at a table (albeit with food, singing, etc, etc) for a good three hours or so. My kids. While a service is going on.

No pressure, or anything.

So, we'll be going there the second night... and I'll be meeting his parents, watching my kids, worrying about their behavior, worrying about them eating, worrying about my behavior, worrying about my eating... worrying about the state of the world we live in, worrying if the gerbil is ok, worrying about US debt, worrying about if they spill something on the table, worrying about if I left the coffee pot on....

No pressure, or anything.

I'm joking. Half joking. I'm a little bit worried about all this... I mean, it will be a lot - but then I just have to realize that they're kids, that his family are probably all very nice & oh - have a few glasses of wine.

What year is this?!

Kentucky.com 03/26/2007 $27 million anti-evolution museum to open soon

Good Morning!

Hi! How are you? How's it going? Have a good week? (How long has it been since I posted here last...? Not really sure.) Keeping out of trouble? Good. I'd hate to think that my blogging rate in any way correlated to the amount of trouble you guys got into. (You guys! See how I make my readers plural -- when if I'm lucky there will be one! Ha!)

So anyhow, as you can tell from that introduction I got nuthin'. Nothing to write about. Oh, well maybe....

Facilitating. I had to facilitate a break out group at our all staff "conference" last Friday. All week it was weighing on me. Heck, since I found out about it it was weighing on me. But, my boss said it "looked good" and I was "nominated" to do it because she "knew I could".... and blah blah, blah -- lots of other stuff supposed to make me feel really good about myself. Which. Ok. I suppose it did. But still made me feel nervous as heck.

People don't think I'm shy. I speak up in meetings, always voice my opinion, make little wise cracks.... and they don't think I'm shy. But I do.

Although, I suppose if you analyzed my behavior it wouldn't really seem like that of a "shy" person. But I still see myself like that. Maybe like a really overweight person.... when they lose weight they still see themselves as fat? I don't know. Kind of like a phantom limb, maybe...

So anyhow, I get down to the area where the group is supposed to meet & I'm the first one there. One or two people come & I'm fine with that. I'm fine with chatting. I'm fine with banter. But then they're all there. Twenty friggin five of them! And they are ALL LOOKING AT ME.

So I start & realize I'm drenched with sweat. I talk and realize the minute something comes out of my mouth I have no idea what it was... But they are all looking at me, with the same attentive look - so I must not be making too much of a fool of myself.

I make a little joke. They laugh.

Finally, I start to feel relaxed, and it's over. I bump into one person later: "You did a good job." Wow, did she know I was feeling so crazy about it? Ok, but that was nice.

In the end I feel like I didn't keep them as focused as they should have been. That I didn't really explain what we should have been discussing well enough - but you know - the other group who discussed the same thing came up with the same suggestions... soooooooo Something must've happened.

We went back to the main room. All the directors are thanking me. Thanking the facilitators.... Ok, so now I'm known at the agency. Not a small agency, either. So that's good. I guess. Isn't it?

But I get back to my desk and I crash. Crash, crash, crash. Must. Have. Nap. We got out of work early, I went up to J's place, fed his dog, and crashed a big crash.

It's over.
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My friend H. who teaches public speaking says that fear of public speaking is the most common of phobias. She said she will work with me to give me some pointers.