don't be a bully.

I told this story at work today... it was sort of a PSA about not bullying:

I've sort of been a nerd for most of my life... well, not second grade... in second grade I was pretty awesome and had like three boyfriends. But I was sort of especially nerdy in the sixth grade. You know... middle school... where they hide all the awkward kids in different stages of puberty with all kinds of zits and weight gain and emotions and hormonal instincts? Well, in sixth grade I had this group of equally nerdy friends who would play Euchre with me in Mr. Seifert's homeroom. One particular friend of mine was named Eric. Now you remember the adorable kid in Jerry McGuire... "the human head weighs eight pounds..." well, Eric sort of looked how I may imagine that kid to look in the sixth grade; goofy glasses, spikey blond hair, plaid shirts and stone wash jeans and just a little too smart for his own good. Well, Eric was part of my nerdy Euchre playing posse. After eighth grade, Eric transferred to a different high school. Fast forward to LaFollette High School. It was senior year and some of my other friends, nerdy kids grown up to be metal heads, had a band. I was sitting watching their rehearsal for battle of the bands, when one of the most beautiful young men I had ever seen comes and sits next to me and says "Hi Karen." I mean muscular, tan, blond... very hot. He asks if I remember him and I say... "um... yes??(shaking head 'no')" He then tells me that he is none other than Eric... my nerdy Euchre playing posse-mate from sixth grade. We catch up while I catch my breath and that is the end of the story.

The moral of the story: Don't ever bully people... you never know who is going to grow up to be a total hottie.

Southern Comfort

I woke up this morning at 6am central time. It is now 2:30a eastern time in Atlanta where I lay my head tonight. However, I don't just lay my head in some dingy hotel, but rather at casa de Adams... ATL style. I grew up as a mid western, rather MMSD (Madison Metropolitan School District) kid. By the time I hit 18, it wasn't a question of whether I was going to college, it was the question of where. I finished college with an elitist entitled attitude and the world was my oyster. So I moved to South Carolina with some friends on a whim. Little did I know that it would change me so much.

Now, I am 30 and visiting places south of the Mason Dixon line and all I can say is "I'm home." This may be disheartening to my mid-western roots family, but it is what it is. I feel so at home in the south... or more accurately the Southeast. I love everything about this culture. Things move at a slower pace... not unproductive, just relaxed. The people are REAL. What I mean by this is there isn't nearly as much fake kindness... people are who they are and wear their opinions on their sleeve.

My good friends Mike and Jillian are now displaced Midwesterners in the Southeast. I am so excited for the opportunities they have found... but even more so for those that they have yet to discover. I hope that they find the southern hospitality to be as heart warming as I did. I hope they can see the patience through the slow pace. I hope they can learn to love everything this culture has to offer... and maybe even teach me a thing or two about Georgia culture that I don't know. I know they will succeed wherever the wind blows them and truly look forward to hearing their stories of ATL as they grow into the Southern culture.

I am so blessed to have such wonderful friends throughout the country. And I can not lie, I am happy for a few of them to give me such a good reason for a vacation. So... unto the next leg of my Southern vacation journey tomorrow... back to my roots in SC. Y'all... seriously... its gonna be a party!

Goodnight

again.

Everyone says I should write. And I always try to come up with some clever theme to write about, but end up writing about or wanting to write about the same things. Faith. Music. Relationships. So... I came up with a new clever title for a blog: Hymns and Hers.

Anyone who has followed me in the past knows that you can not expect a post a day or sometimes even a post a week, but I do love to write. And the only parameters I am following for this blog is to write about the things I want to write about... you may hear a bit about lots of things, but you will probably hear a lot about a few things.

Music. I have toured Europe twice with choirs. I have been singing since I could talk. I have tinkered in piano, violin, flute, guitar and kind of want to learn to play the bass. My musical life is defined at this moment by karaoke. Yes, I am known to occasionally go to karaoke 4 nights a week. So look forward to hearing about those adventures.

Faith. I grew up a Pastor's kid in the ELCA. I went to an ELCA college. I worked at two ELCA summer camps. I graduated from an ELCA seminary with a Master of Arts in Religion and finished most of a Master of Sacred Theology. I haven't been to church in over a year. I have lost faith and found it again and given up on the church and still consider my faith to be one of the most important parts of my life.

Relationships. I won't say too much about this yet. I am sure that it will color the writings of the posts that will come. I've been through the beginnings and ends of relationships and muddled through the middle. Now, I'm 30 and single... yep, watching a lot of Sex in the City.

If you read and enjoy... follow. If you read and disagree comment... I love a healthy debate. Until later, then. Goodnight.