Tag: originality

Shh.
Two-Bit Musings.

Shh.

SnapDragon X.4 Comments

Just Another Day in Paradise, Yo.

. . .

Hi. How are you, Dear Reader? How do you feel today: body, mind, and soul?

Pause. Think. Answer honestly.

Me? I’m doing just fine, thanks.

I’m currently sitting on our RV love seat, clicking past the miles somewhere between Ohio and Indiana. Sweet Baby Snap is sleeping; Toddler Snap is hopefully about to do the same up in his car seat.

I’m sipping iced coffee, laughingly shrugging at the insane diesel prices, and singing songs from Father John Misty’s latest album in my head.

I feel good.

. . .

I just turned 35.

Seems kinda weird, like that’s much too old and much too young, all at the same time. Sometimes I feel like I’ve lived a thousand lives; I also feel like I’ve just been born.

And when I close my eyes and quiet my mind, I think about this life. I think about how much I value the simple idea of respect.

I want to show respect in everything I do.

Toward other human beings, animals, and Mother Earth herself.

I want to respect other people’s time. I want to respect their turn to speak.

I want to respect the public goods we all need, like clean water and food. Health. Education. The arts and humanities.

I want it to be known that I respect you because not everything is about me.

. . .

(shrugs)

That’s it for now.

. . .

SnapDragon is a writer and artist currently residing on Planet Earth.

October: A Month in Review.
Two-Bit Musings.

October: A Month in Review.

SnapDragon X.6 Comments

So umm. . . yeah. I was going to do this for each month in 2021. This is the second time I remembered. Oh well. So it goes.

. . .

1. Trick or Treat, Yo. October is my favorite month, and pretty much always has been. It’s mysterious somehow, which comforts a literary old-soul like me. Toddler Snap and I have been out each and everyday, living it up. I try to capture the beauty of the leaves on my phone, but alas, the magic inevitably eludes the camera. We also carved our first Jack o’ Lantern as a family, and I literally tell my husband each day that it makes me happy in my young heart.

2. Small Comforts. Each day is different, Dear Reader. Sometimes I wake up feeling like a kick-ass SnapDragon, and other days I wake up feeling like a termite-infested tree stump. So I savor every moment I can. I dip into the candy dish. I watch an episode of Frasier before bed. I remind myself that sometimes you win, and sometimes you lose. I remind myself that every feeling comes and goes.

3. Time for a Trim. It’s no surprise I’m a fan of the simple life: give me my SnapDragon Family, some quality food and cinema, and I’m good to go, yo. There are only so many hours in the day, and I vow to spend them on people and things that enrich my soul. Ain’t nobody got time for bullshit, am I right?

I am just one person in this infinite universe.

And so are you, love.

So are you.

Wishing a Happy November to everyone out there!

. . .

SnapDragon is a writer who frequently orders drinks with extra ice.

Follow Snippets of SnapDragon for her chronicles of everyday life.

Chip Lips.
Two-Bit Musings.

Chip Lips.

SnapDragon X.16 Comments

I’ve been eating barbecue chips like they’re goin’ outta style, yo. (But that’s not what this post is about. Better read on. . .)

. . .

Hi.

I’m perched here in our RV, cozied up in fruit-punch-colored sweatpants, the dim hum of the heater droning on in an inexplicably comforting way.

It’s unseasonably cold here in PA, so The SnapDragon Family is playing inside today.

Oh well.

Time for thinking.

Time for dreaming.

Time for resting these weary bones.

. . .

After reading a post by a friend of mine, I’m thinking a lot about control.

And, how very little of it we have in our lives.

Infancy. Toddlerhood. Childhood. Adolescence.

Family. Society. School. Economics.

Then, at last: Adulthood.

Adulthood. Which, generally speaking, is the bulk of our time spent on this planet.

(pause)

(Cue another cycle of circumstances beyond our control.)

. . .

I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again, Dear Reader:

All I can control are my own actions.

All I can control are my own actions.

All I can control are my own actions.

. . .

I want to be:

-Patient. Because wouldn’t I want someone to be patient with me? I’m a flawed human being, just like the rest of ‘em. Sometimes it takes awhile to learn, to get it right. And that’s okay. It’s okay.

-Kind. Again: Golden Rule. Life’s much better when you’re kind. We’re so much prettier when we smile. Plus, people always remember how we made them feel. And I want people to feel valued. I want people to feel loved: friends and strangers both.

-Curious. There is a ridiculous amount to learn in this world, in this universe! Why would I not ask questions? Because I’m afraid of looking stupid? Stupid is as stupid does, Mrs. Blue. I’m going to spend my days learning, and growing. The journey never ends.

-Authentic. I spent far too many years hiding pieces of me. People-pleasing. Dogma-abiding. Apologizing for being human. I. Am. Human. This body is finite. It’s amazing. It’s dirty, and requires a rather unfair amount of upkeep. But it’s mine. And, I hope to use it in ways to spread joy: both to myself, and others.

. . .

And there we have it.

Another snippet from your girl SnapDragon.

(smiles and waves, and grabs another handful of kettle-cooked goodness)

‘Til next time.

. . .

SnapDragon is a homebody who enjoys putting stamps on envelopes.

Follow Snippets of SnapDragon for all things whimsically-authentic.

The Daily Treat.
Two-Bit Musings.

The Daily Treat.

SnapDragon X.5 Comments

Each day, yo.

. . .

I’ve never had an advent calendar.

But I very much like the idea of making my own, even if it’s in my head.

The 30 or 31 days before me would be neatly arranged in a grid.

Or perhaps it’d be a ceramic shelf of sorts, with little glazey drawers to pull open, one by one, and timidly peer inside.

Tiny trinkets and treats would await.

Mood rings.

Chocolates in golden wrappers.

Knickknacks of bluebirds and mermaids and sailboats.

For in this unpredictable world, to take a slice of time for enjoyment?

It may be the best plan we have.

. . .

SnapDragon is an artist who’s pissed she forgot to post yesterday. There goes her streak for the new year. (shrugs)

Snippets of SnapDragon

Whatcha Planting?
Two-Bit Musings.

Whatcha Planting?

SnapDragon X.6 Comments

Every moment of every day is filled with energy.

Happiness. Sadness.

Exhilaration. Apathy.

Life. Death.

The only control I have in this world lies within my own self.

Think about that.

My mind.

My body.

My actions.

For every day we awake and arise, we sow a little seed that will one day bloom.

May we choose wisely.

. . .

SnapDragon is an educator, artist, and friend.

Follow her Two-Bit Musings and more on Snippets of SnapDragon.

(Untitled).
Two-Bit Musings.

(Untitled).

SnapDragon X.8 Comments
Curlies, 2020. Pennsylvania.
Original Photo by SnapDragon X.
All rights reserved.

Close your tired eyes. Taste the tingle of mint upon your lips as your chest rises and falls in an unrealized rhythm.

You are here. You are here. You are here.

Remember in the fourth grade when they said you’d changed?

Or when you saw your name written on an old youth group prayer list?

When you yelled in the bullhorn and your colleagues heard your true, unashamed voice after all those years?

You’ve been here all along, Snap.

How many times must you apologize for being you?

. . .

Close your eyes. Hear the hum of the nighttime fan.

Shed the skin of yesterday’s ghosts and greet the day anew.

. . .

SnapDragon is a writer, artist, and couch-curler-upper.

Follow her Two-Bit Musings and more on Snippets of SnapDragon.

Down Days.
Two-Bit Musings.

Down Days.

SnapDragon X.5 Comments

Hello, Dear Reader. Happy Saturday.

Today is one of Those Days.

I feel itchy. Like, from head to toe. I’ve always had troubled skin. And for whatever reason I feel especially scratchy today. Itchiness has got to be in the running for effective torture devices, no?

I feel like the human version of an M&M. We were looking through old pictures on the computer today, and. . . Damn, age is cruel. I promised myself after our son was born that I would never berate my body again. And I won’t. It’s amazing. But I tell you, Dear Reader: those standards of beauty that were drilled into my head for so many years? They can be hard to break.

Everything is still closed. I know, I know. What else is new? We’re bored. And during a pandemic we should remember what really matters: We’re healthy, and grateful. But we’re also starting to climb the walls a bit. Even having the option to go out puts a spring in my step.

(shrug)

And there we have it.

But, things will look up, friends. They always do.

The Bluebird of Happiness is just around the bend.

And she’s singing a song for you.

. . .

SnapDragon is a wife, mom, writer, artist, and homemaker. And she wants to tell you it’ll be all right, love.

Follow her Two-Bit Musings and more on Snippets of SnapDragon, yo.

The Shoulds.
Two-Bit Musings.

The Shoulds.

SnapDragon X.12 Comments
Hello Again, 2020.
Original Photo by SnapDragon X.
All rights reserved.

Let’s agree to take it easy on the shoulds, shall we?

I should be cleaning. I should be grading. I should take advantage of this weather and be outside.

What a waste of time.

You should have told me. We should be closer. I should be the one you turn to.

Please shut up, voice.

Leave me alone.

Because I could be doing anything.

But there’s only what is.

. . .

SnapDragon is a weirdo artist who just ate a most delicious sandwich.

Follow her Two-Bit Musings and more on Snippets of SnapDragon.

New Feature on Snippets of SnapDragon, yo!
Tuesday Talks.

New Feature on Snippets of SnapDragon, yo!

SnapDragon X.Leave a comment

Hello, Dear Readers!

There’s a New Feature here on Snippets of SnapDragon!

It’s called “Tuesday Talks”. As the name suggests, each Tuesday I’ll offer a post with a specific question to spark discussion among us blogging friends.

Please note that while passionate, lively discussion is welcomed, disrespectful hate speech is NOT. But I’m sure you’re better than that, and this disclaimer is overkill, right? Okay, good. I thought so.

Anyway, stay tuned!

Love,

SnapDragon X.

. . .

SnapDragon is a writer, painter, and lover of wine and exotic cheeses.

Follow her Two-Bit Musings and more on Snippets of SnapDragon.