Who Can You Really Count On In Your Time of Need?

Having a broken arm is like being on a deserted island. People come to visit you within the first week making promises that they never keep to come see you again. In a time like this I have figured out who my real friends are. This even includes family.

I have one friend who has been here Monday through Friday. She comes around 10 AM and leaves by 1 PM. She walks Beanie-Bean and Hair Ball, does some light house chores, cooks dinner, and makes my lunch. I know she has other pressing things to do. BUT, she comes everyday. The first week, she stayed with me through Sunday. I'm ever grateful for her.

When I put out a request for help to my 5 daughters, only 2 responded. The youngest came once. That was 2 Saturdays ago. The one who lives in Israel will be here next Tuesday to relieve my friend for 2 weeks. At least, I have 2 daughters out of 5 that I can count on. Funny, too. These are the 2 who never ask for money. Strange how that works.

At one time, I had a client who had a series of bad health issues. It took him to a bedridden state. He told me many times, that in the beginning of his plight, friends came to see him. But by years end, those friends had stopped contact all together. His highlight of the month until he passed away was me cutting his hair and his son visiting him every other day.


In 2013, I took up something on my bucket list. Read the Torah and the Christian Bible all the way through. Doing this gave me a whole new perspective on life and how we treat each other. God wanted us to love Him with all our might and then love our neighbors as ourselves. The Ten Commandments were the standard on how to do that. But for years, like the majority, I saw this as an impossible feat because of the words 'THOU SHALT NOT'.

No longer do I focus on those words. Instead, I focus on how some one would feel if I lied about them, stole from them, etc. It's about putting your needs aside to benefit the other person or people in your lives.

If everyone practiced this concept, there would be no divorce, no venereal disease, no war, no hunger, no child or animal abuse, no domestic violence, no homelessness, no broken hearts or homes, no racism, no violence, no need for guns. I could go on and on here.

Before the fall of Adam and Eve, I'm sure this was God's intention for humanity. But, y'll know the story.

Hope this post inspires you to do something kind today.

Hugs and chocolate,
Shelly

PS God has my back.

The Days are Numbered

Oh boy! The last 48 hours have been tough. One of my most bestests friends in the whole wide world was rushed to the vet yesterday morning.

This is Sir Poops from several months back.

When he woke up yesterday, he was breathing funny and his legs were wobbly.

After the vet ran a few labs and gave him an x-Ray, I was told his heart was enlarged and that he had fluid in his lungs. Not too mention, his intestines were inflamed and full of gas.

A couple of weeks back, he had a severe colitis attack. This made his heart weaker.

I've been told that his days are numbered. Before bringing him home, the vet gave him some shots to help revive him. I was also given heart and lung meds.

Today, he's much better. But he can't walk or stand for long. He's still drinking and eating. He's still wanting to be held. And he still wants to be on the sofa with us. Right now, he's watching a Transformer's movie. He loves his TV.

If there is one thing I know, he's been the most loyal being I've ever had in my life. He loves me no matter what and has always went out of his way to cheer me up. And even in his current state, he's still trying to keep me happy. We've been together for 13 years.

This fur peep has been there through my dating blunders, my daughter drama, meeting the Sweetman, and then marrying him. I'm sure he has a few good stories to write himself.

Anyway, please forgive me if I don't get around to read and comment on your blogs. My life has changed just a wee bit, once more. Sir Poops will be in diapers for the rest of what life he has left. And since he can't stand for very long, I'm back to hand feeding him.

So as you can see, this writer has a another life outside of her imagination.

Hugs and chocolate and hug your fur-peeps!

Shelly

Will the Real Social Network Friends Please Stand UP

Yesterday, I posted this on my Facebook Fan Page: If there is one thing I never want to do, is to bug peeps to buy my books and stories. Especially other authors. YIKES!

And I mean it. It's annoying to me as a struggling author to have my message box at Twitter, Facebook, and Linkedin ... or even my email bombarded with desperate pleas to buy someone's book. And I'm not talking about planned books tours, cover reveals, and invites from Goodreads. What I am talking about are the peeps who never say 'hi, how are you doing', because they really want to know that. But instead, they say, 'hi, please buy my book'. As authors we already have plenty of stuff to weed through daily and probably feel guilty about. Mine is I just can't read as fast as I'd like, write a review quick enough, and comment on everyone's blog that I follow.

A lot of us...maybe all who write are grabbing at straws trying to make a sale. I know I can't always sell something at The Salon until I've sold myself. And that might be a whole year.

As a hairdresser, a relationship and a good reputation with our own kind have to happen before we can have the same with the public. I believe the same goes for us writers. Of course, this  is my opinion. 

Relationship is highly important for any kind of cooperation and cohesiveness. 

Anybody else feel the same?

Hugs and chocolate,
Shelly