Just A Little Red

Hate Has No Place Here: The Separation of Church and State and This Country’s Blistery History

Posted on July 21, 2015 by DMW

The last few weeks have been kind of a big deal and everyone seems to be on high alert of either a progressive revolution (being on the right side of history and keeping up the momentum, so if you want to sit and celebrate – for shame!) or the literal apocalypse because now this nation “has gone too far” and are persecuting Christians while flipping God off and saying, “Get the f*ck out of our country!” It’s so ridiculous that I’ve kept quiet about it. I have celebrated the victories and put away the guilt of not rushing onto the next cause. And when it comes to the people shouting about fire and brimstone, I just shake my head. Because the most frustrating part is I actually know my Bible better than they do. I mean if you’re going to push a cause to the extremes, at least be knowledgeable about it.

I’m talking about the legalization of same-sex marriage/marriage equality, but I’m not really talking about it, more like the fallout over it. And I’m not staying there long… somehow the aftermath of, “This is worse than 9/11 for Christians!” (Really? I am lucky to not know anyone who was directly affected by that terrible tragedy, but on their behalf I am seriously offended.) turned into something else. Very quickly, people seemed to compare same-sex marriage to recent calls for getting rid of confederate flags on government property. As if the two were inherently connected and horrible examples of crazy liberals going too far. The only way they are connected is that marriage equality and taking down confederate flags from government spaces both should have happened years ago. That. Is. All.

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Posted in Christianity, History, Opinion, Politics, Religion, Thoughts | Tagged "the bible", agenda, confederate flag, evolution, founding fathers, good human being, government, homophobia, racism, separation of church and state | Leave a comment

Here We Go: Justalittlered 2.0 – Focus, Splits And My Reviews’ Relocation

Posted on July 20, 2015 by DMW

If you read my blog on a regular basis, you’ve probably noticed some changes the past few weeks. I haven’t written a single review, including a Guilty Pleasures post all month. And I’m posting less than my regular four-posts-per week. Except I’m not!

For about a month I thought about the direction of this blog. I wanted to write four posts per week, but I didn’t necessarily want to post four times to a single blog. I thought my blog had become two blogs in one – a book blog, and a miscellaneous blog that covered everything from writing and publishing to current events/opinions to personal stories of child abuse and surviving crazy health issues (autoimmune diseases, multi-organ failure, brain surgery) to things that are light and humorous like getting into my dog’s head, my cat’s antics or my crazy May Day and baking shenanigans. So, I started thinking about what to do – I even wrote a post about what I felt my blog was turning into and my idea to split it up to try and find some direction by writing it out.

I always liked being a little something of everything, and I see this blog still in that role. But as far as the book posts – they’ve moved! I created a new blog just for reviews. I’m really excited about it, because it has allowed me to redefine what I think of when I think of writing a review. It’s not just books: movies, TV shows, destinations, books and of course my guilty pleasures all have their place on that blog. I’m adding a bar at the top of this blog, so people can be redirected to the new site, but you can also check it out here: justalittleredreviews.wordpress.com. So far, I’ve covered movies (Jurassic World – coming soon), two wonderful TV surprises, books, guilty pleasure reads, and the top five (FABULOUS!) coffee destinations in Colorado.

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Posted in Blog, blogger, blogging, Journal, Thoughts, Writing | Tagged changing direction, evolution, journey, new blog, review, Reviews, split into two | Leave a comment

Orphan No More: Finding A Father As An Adult

Posted on July 14, 2015 by DMW

My name is Michael. I’m thirty years old. Both of my parents are living, but I’m an orphan. This has been a part of my identity for as long as I can remember – the orphan part. And now I have to get used to a new identity, one where it looks like I might have a father. I am both happy and terrified and I don’t know how to navigate any of it…

I had parents in the conventional sense for the first seven years of my life, and then they got divorced and everything came apart for me. My mother was physically, verbally and emotionally abusive. My dad had been her target and when he left I became the substitute.

I think calling my mother a monster would be unfair, because it’s not that simple. But saying she did monstrous things would be almost understated and entirely accurate. Being punched, kicked, shoved became the norm for me. Being screamed at and berated and kept in the basement, not allowed to use the phone or have friends over or go outside – also the norm. And occasionally knives, being strangled and other more serious things were sprinkled in because the normal abuses just weren’t cutting it. From the ages of eight to fourteen, the time that I finally left her home for good, home was a warzone and existing was all about strategy. I always had a sharp tongue, and if she shoved me I would just stare her down. For me survival was about making sure she knew she couldn’t break me. I was stronger than she was, and she could not destroy me or control me no matter how much she tried to break me down. Some people thought this made things worse, but to be 100% honest, it was the only way I could keep going, and not break.

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Posted in Family, home, Parenting, Personal, Relationships, Thoughts | Tagged "child abuse", father, forgiveness, moving forward, neglect, orphan, reconciliation, redefining relationships | Leave a comment

Making The Switch: Finding A New Vet For My Furbaby

Posted on July 13, 2015 by DMW

My dog is my not just a pet, she’s my daughter. I know this can cue a few eyerolls from people who have kids, but I stand by that statement. I found our dog (Angel) when she was only a few days old, abandoned in a street, small and hairless. My boyfriend at the time thought she was a rat. I took her in, bottle fed her, and on the eighth day she opened her eyes, and I was the first thing she saw. I am her mother, she is my girl, and even when I have actual children – this will still be the case.

Angel is seven years old, though she doesn’t look or act it. I couldn’t ask for a better dog – or a more convenient one. She is so dainty; she actually walks around muddy areas and hops over puddles – so I am pretty sensitive when it comes to her health. While pets may not be the same as human children, they are up to twenty year commitments and are completely dependent on you for their most basic needs… they are members of the family. I have always researched the best dog food, never given her table scraps, walk her every day, socialize her with other dogs and cats regularly – she is a big part of my world. So when it came to changing vets, I was excited about our prospect and also worried or terrified I was making a mistake, and gambling with Angel’s health.

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Posted in Family, home, Life, Personal | Tagged Dog, dog as family member, dog mom, furbaby, pet, pets, vet, veterinarian | Leave a comment

Our Own Little Coffee Shop

Posted on July 10, 2015 by DMW

I love coffee. Okay, a more accurate statement would be: I love sweet coffee drinks like flavored lattes and mochas. I never used to distinguish between the two, but I married a coffee snob (and one of my best friends is also a coffee snob). I know it’s probably all in my head, but I seem to be dependent on a sweet latte or mocha in order to be truly productive – whether it’s business/work or putting in a quality writing session (or revising for that matter). I also love Italian sodas. And I love coming up with my own drinks (lattes, mochas and Italian sodas). To do this one needs the right equipment and materials including all the gadgets to make said drinks (we have everything we need, well except for a real espresso machine – we have several coffeemakers, a Nespresso machine, a frother, and this thing that makes Italian sodas) and just the other day we finally stocked up on enough flavor syrups to start making the more simple go-to drinks.

See, I prefer Monin syrups to Davinci syrups (all coffee houses use syrups to make lattes and mochas and I’ve always seen them carry Monin or Davinci syrups), but they’re pretty hard to find. I could always have them shipped but because it’s glass bottles full of liquid, the shipping ends up being more than the bottle itself – no thank you. Hunting down local vendors I had already acquired the following syrups: Cherry, Lime, Pomegranate, Pumpkin Pie (I have a pumpkin problem that is year-round), and Raspberry – I used to have Caramel and Strawberry but sadly I ran out. A few days ago, I surprised my husband with a coffee roasting tour in Colorado Springs and the discovered that this place sold Monin syrups. And when I say they sold Monin syrups – I mean they had dozens of flavors to choose from!