Take a Brake

My Car's Brake Pad

(In my best Golden Girl Sophia Petrillo voice)  Picture it... Friday, September 14...I'm making my way to the park for my 3 mile run.  I pull up to my normal parking space and try to come to a stop.  My foot (and brake pedal) hit the floor.  My car keeps rolling.  Luckily, I wasn't going fast and there was nothing in front of me.  I was able to come to a stop using my emergency brake.  When my brake pedal hit the floor, I heard something that sounded like metal hit the ground.  I'd find out later it was my brake pad (shown above) or what was left of it anyway.  

I spent the entire weekend trapped in the house.  My mechanic was not available until Monday.  I had all sorts of plans.  They were all promptly canceled. I spent the entire weekend confined to my home like Lindsay Lohan or Martha Stewart (minus the sexy ankle bracelet).  In the hours that passed, I think I did more cleaning, organizing, and DVD watching than I'd done in the entire last year.  

During this sequestration, I also had way too much time to think.  It was painful at times.  In the week following the brake pad incident, I couldn't help but notice how rusty and greasy and gross it was (yes, I kept it lying around on my desk...don't judge me!).  To me, it looked exactly how that weekend at home felt.  Then it kind of clicked... The "brake break" was a good thing!  I'd finally come to realize that I needed that weekend.  I needed that moment for my world to stop spinning.  I needed the noise of being social to quiet.  I needed to face some things that I'd been ignoring.  Had I not been forced to stop, my personal revelations may have taken months to surface.  

As cliche as it sounds, sometimes we really do need the world around us to pause...the sports, the movies, the bars, the clubs, the parties, the dates, and the rest of the social butterfly routine.  Taking an extended moment to acknowledge our feelings, desires, fears, hopes, and dreams can be invaluable.  It can be invigorating.  It can be life-saving.  

The Bottom Line:

The next time you have to slam on your brakes, consider this...Sometimes the only way to get a break is to hit the brakes.  Remember, a break isn't a bad thing.  Not taking one can be.

The Life of a Fly

When I open my front door to let in the fresh air and sunshine, I can't help but be prepared for the attack of the flies.  They seem to be everywhere these days.  They are buzzing in my windows at home.  They are at the restaurant where I eat.  Every once in a while, they even take a car ride with me.  Then, as I walked along the sidewalk in a Dallas neighborhood this past Saturday, I saw a group of flies all nestled on what had to be the largest turd EVER.  I wanted to barf.

Once my disgust subsided, I began to ponder the life of a fly.  Yes, I'm strange like that.  I thought to myself that here is an insect, a being, if you will, that is constantly hunted and swatted at.  Some of them narrowly escape instant death while others are not so lucky.  They spend their lives feeding on things that would make even the most macho of men gag.  They are hated.  They are despised.  They have been labeled by society as one of the worst creations.  There are entire industries built upon the effort to wipe them out.  Even with all of world conspiring against them, they find a way to leave their mark.  They find a way to survive.  They literally make the best of a shitty situation.

That's when it occurred to me that we should all strive to be a little more like flies.  Obviously I'm not advocating a literal application here, but think about it...  Obstacles don't really matter to a fly.  Their persistence is unmatched.  They find ways to survive and prosper all while working with the worst resources in life.  There is something to be said for trying to find parallels in strange places.

The Bottom Line:
The next time life hands you a gigantic pile of shit, make a shit sandwich and keep on dodging the fly-swatter at all costs!  With a little fly-like determination, anything is possible!