Don't Be Fooled...

"...by the rocks that I got. I'm still, I'm still Jenny from the block."

- Jennifer Lopez

(-mini credit due to Angie Bowman's Facebook account)


Rocks. I like'em. A small confession, in fact, I used to want to eat them when I was little. Weird? Yeah, a little. But I can think of much more grotesque things that a wee one might want to nibble, can't you?

Remember this movie? I was enamored by the rock biter.

I was infatuated with this flick as a little girl. It was all things magical and make believe. It was far fetched and dramatic with adventures wrapped around mysteries and untold secrets...right up my alley.

I can remember watching this movie and trying to memorize every stage prop so that I could swiftly re-inact in my world. They were so detailed in colors from creamy whites as Falcore flew and dusky grays in the old attic; I can remember them vividly. It seemed there were lots of dark tones with only a pop of color every now and again. Being a person who is drawn to bright colors, I thought it was odd that I remember the monotone theme as a little girl. Perhaps it was the accessories in the settings that drew my memory in then. Looking back, now, it is the metaphor that this placement and use of color represents to me. Life, in general, is neutral in color. There are many details to keep us occupied, but routine and schedules dub down brights. It is with passion and an understanding of the bigger picture that one can add his/her own POP of color into the picture screen. Then, you can relish in the mundane all with your eyes fixed on the warmness and joy you get from your focus on this sweet hymn of color and exuberance. Wowzers. Didn't know I had that in me on a Monday morning!

Maybe that's why sunsets and sunrises are so inspriational. Flowers blooming, leaves falling, Christmas lights sparkling. These are all tiny examples of how color wraps us up in our happy.

Anyway, I loved to pretend.

Pretending is creating. I loved being able to step into my chosen theatre and play any given part. I loved writing the script so-to-speak. But most of all, I loved the setting. I love the crucial role it played in molding the tone for the mood. I can remember deliberating over whether or not Barbie's clothes should be lying on her bed folded as if she was planning a trip out of town with Ken or should they not be so that Ken would SURPRISE her with a trip! Oh the choices! See, those size zero clothes and 5 inch spiked heels made a HUGE inpact on the mood of this story, don't you think?? You can only imagine the intricate setting questions my mom and dad had to field when I was younger. Bless their heart.

Needless to say I played for hours on end and well into my junior high years. There, I said it. For all of you reading from the good ole junior high days...yep, I played Barbie and was even known to pick up a baby doll well into my 7th grade year. Shew. Glad I got that off my chest.

I had a really hard time playing with others that didn't appreciate the elements of story like I did. That bothered me. Like when Pamela from across the road wanted Barbie to get into her Barbie Jeep to go shopping WITHOUT her heels on...well, I lost it. This just wasn't real. It blew the mood. Geez, Pamela, could we just play Monpoly? Oh yeah, I forgot you can't count money yet. Bummer.

Moods mold our memories. Whether we like it or not, they do.

I had the pleasure of going here this Saturuday with my ole sidekick, Angie.

Her mom gets tickets and we go in cognito as one of her mom's workers. Role play. Perfect!

We had a great time. We've done this in years past. I can remember our giddiness as we filled our pockets full of wholesale jewelry. Funds drastically limited my pocket overload this year, BUT the good company and the break from the boys was much enjoyed.

The picture above is 2 treasures I nabbed up from this fun Saturday. Rocks. I love'em. Fake or real, they still sparkle to me. Sparkle is critical to my mood.

I had to be on the road by 5:00AM to get to Angie's mom's house by 7:00AM. WOW!! Didn't get to bed until 1:00AM the night before as I had random chores to tidy up after the boys when I got home from Coach Cobble's football game. He won 35-0!

SOOOOOOOOOO, really tired as my shiny black car (that's what Eli named my black accord) treked down 75N.

Radio was in full effect. Coffee in hand. I jammed out.

Which brings me to mood.

Music is a great component to the setting of life.


I love the seek button. Some people hate it. I love the element of surprise that one gets from just pressing that good ole button deemed: SEEK.

So seek I did. And oh, what I found. Man, my mood was heightened, my body was groovin', and I was taking one of the best walks down memory lane.

Here is a sampling of my walk and where it took me...


1. This one. Oh college. Getting ready for going out. What to wear? Where we goin'? Who's comin'? Man, this little ditty put me right back to my MC days. Cannot love this song anymore.

2. And this one. One of the best movies ever. I don't care how cliche and popular this movie is, it's a staple to any girl. Baby learning to dance. Johnny teaching her. Teaching her. Hmmmmmmmmmmmmm. Just a moment there for me. Okay I'm back. It is any girl's dream: to be wanted, taken over by love, and fought for. Classic, I say.

3. Such a sweet song. So simple. So whimsical. The list of what you love. I think we should all make a song of our lists. This song, without a doubt, reminds me of the love I have for my boys. Their uniqueness, their passions for trains and balls, the reality that they are mine forever and ever amen.

4. Jam out to this one I did. Yeah, I even played air guitar and did the whole steering wheel drums too. Hyped to drain some threes and play some d. Somebody get me to a ball court. Where's the round ball?

5. Dreams. They are everything. You gotta have them. You have to reach for them and never stop until you grab'em. This song allows me to delight in hope and the one-day that will be for all if we just keep dreaming.

6. Point me to the dance floor, please. (WARNING: I could only find the unsensored version. This one is not my first preference AT ALL, but one has to provide the mood for all random samplings) This song gets my hind end IN MOTION! And it did just that in my shiny black car. I was rockin' out! Man, I LOVE to dance!!!

7. My dad and brother. The old days. Dad taught us as much about music as mom did. The love of Bruce. That's what he gave us. Any time I hear a song of his it takes me back to chocolate Yoo-Hoos on the way home from the lake in the back of dad's truck with the dogs and Bruce blaring. Adam and Dad, this one is for you.

8. Kenny. My rock. Man, it just keeps getting better. He is more the man of my dreams now than he ever has been. In love takes such new meaning every year that passes as Mrs. Howard Kenneth Cobble III. I am thankful for each and every one. Keep'em comin', Ken.

9. In His hands. That's where I am. My walk with Him grounds me and makes me so much more than I ever thought I could be. Mom loved this song. I can remember Sunday spring afternoons with the windows open, this song prancing about our house, and mom changing the sheets. Good memories. God is good.

There they are. A random sampling of my rocks. All found by just a push of that seek button. Each song moved me in a different way. My setting was molded; my mood altered.

The Never Ending Story. Perhaps, I am the rock biter, in a way.

:-) .mac