Goodbye 2008

Today I'm grateful for:

• Tonka, who's been very cute lately. Last night we shared the same pillow on the couch.
• My mom, who makes me feel welcome at home every time I decide to pass through.
  
• Bluegrass, or any music you can dance silly to and get away with it.
• Honest conversation.
• Getting to see friends who I haven't seen in forever!
• The end of 2008. While some major awesome things happened in 2008, I'm looking forward to a new year.
• The annual "Chicago New Years Bash." I've attended this for the past... 4 years? This will be my 5th? Maybe more.

Happy Christmas

I just got back from a 4 day vacation with my family at Disney World. Eighty degree weather and super fun rides that reminded me of my childhood seemed to suit me quite well. However, I only have two pictures on my camera from the event. One of my mom, my sister, my cousin and her cousin standing in front of a Chinese looking building at Epcot, and another picture of the cool jellyfish on the Finding Nemo ride. Which has led me to this conclusion:

New Years Resolution #2: Take more pictures like you used to.

For those of you who don't know:

New Years Resolution #1: Try harder to live in the present.

I may be starting early, but I think I did a pretty good job of living in the present over my vacation. I tried really hard to focus on what was going around me, and to try to pay attention to the wonderful people who spent the weekend with me. I tried to notice new things about my family that I didn't know. I tried to observe the scenery around me and find it beautiful. Mainly, I tried to focus on how sweet it was that I was at Disney World over the holiday weekend.



I've really enjoyed my break away from Detroit these past couple of weeks. However, I've missed a lot of people in Detroit as well. I really need to stop breaking up my friendships into sections of my life... It makes things difficult. Paw Paw... Hope... London... Detroit... etc. Too much!

My break has been good because:

• I've spent a lot of time with my family.
• I've spent a lot of time with my friends. Especially Katie and Ryan.
• I've seen a lot of friends from High School that I never thought I would see again (mainly from way too many visits to Sportsman's Bar in one week).
• I've had really deep conversations with new people.
• I've had a lot of free/alone time to think about what I need to do in the next year to accomplish some of my life goals.
• I've had a lot of free time to read real books... not text books.
• There is still two weeks left.

The time I've had to think has led me to another conclusion:

New Years Resolution #3 (the final one): Focus on listening more.

I love to talk to people. However, when looking back on good conversations, I find that there are a lot of topics that get overlooked because I have interrupted them with some useless comment.

One final thought.

Why is it that when people break up, the individuals start to focus on things that strengthen who they are, who they want to be, and what they have lost in the past? I don't know know if this is a trend for most people, but I've run by it a few times in my lifetime. When a break up occurs, myself, along with my other ex-sig's, start picking up hobbies they once loved, pick up relationships that were lost but are really important, or start working towards their lifelong dreams. Why does this only occur as a part of a breakup, when in reality, it should have been happening when the two were together?

I think that a person you're meant to be with should help bring out the best person in you all along, and you should do the same for him/her. I envy those who have found it. However, I'm grateful that I can see it in others, and that I can hope for the same with myself.

Merry Christmas

This blog is about my family.

We are a tiny family. Six years ago, my extended family consisted of 10 people. Over three years, it diminished to 7. Today we celebrated Christmas with only 6 because my cousin David couldn't get the time off of work to fly home from L.A.

I love my family because:

• They are always there for me... both emotionally and financially. I wish I didn't need the financial help of my family, but I seriously do.
  
• We have the best traditions. Christmas is celebrated like there is no other holiday. I just got done eating our traditional prime rib dinner and it was to die for.
• We are all interestingly different. I learn a lot of new things when I'm around my extended family.
  
• Even though we hardly see each other, we always try to keep up with each other's lives.
• We're dorks. Even though some of us can come off as overly intelligent or incredibly odd, we're all dorks underneath.
• They are the only true family I have, and I will try my best to cherish that fact.

Maybe it's because I have such a small family... but I've always attached myself to my friends as if they were related to me by blood. In a way, I want a large family and am trying to gain it through my friends. Maybe someday I will be able to achieve it on my own. I know I've said a lot that I'm not interested in having kids, or getting married, or starting a family... but I think a part of me has always wanted a tight knit family of my own. Maybe I've just been smart enough to know I'm not ready for it now.

I love my friends who are like a family because:

• They are always there for me, emotionally. I would never feel like a burden calling on these friends because I know that they would always be there to listen and lend their support.
• They have the ability to make me feel the most special.
• They have been witness to some of the most tragic events of my life, and have made sure I've made it through.
• In my heart, I know I will always be there for them as well.
• I'm not ashamed to show them my true self, which is a very empowering feeling.

Merry Christmas!

Another Birthday Blog

Happy Birthday Erin Page!

Dear Erin,

We've been friends since the 8th grade. And after Katie decided you were cool enough to join our group by successfully making it through a day long super extravaganza bike ride through Paw Paw, you became a permanent part of my high school group. (side note: Little has been made public about what we made people do to prove their worthiness to join our group in Middle School.) And well, honestly, I'm so happy to have you as a friend.

One of my favorite memories of you consists of the day the "crew" stalked the undercover cop by following her home from school one day, and chasing her down once she made her first move. I still have vivid images of your maroon Jimmy skidding around a corner when the cop tried to make a run for it! We were crazy.

Twenty-four is going to be a big year for you, and I'm happy that I'm going to be a part of it. While our friendship has been very distant since we graduated from high school, I still consider you to be one of my best friends. One of my favorite things about you is your ability to light up a room. Your smile and your laugh make it impossible for anyone not to enjoy your company.

Thank you Erin for being such an important part of my life. I hope you're birthday is great and I can't wait to see you over New Years.

Love,

Merry

Happy Birthday K.A.

To Katie (aka Katie A, Blonde Katie, Katiecat)

Happy 25th Birthday!!

For those who don't know Katie, she was one of my favorite Americans in London. By the time we left London, we had taken over five European trips together, spent countless days exploring London together, and spent countless nights either out at the pub or eating ice cream in Jess's room. After London, we still kept in contact. And to this day, we still get to see each other at least once a year.

25 things I love about you Katie

1. You have a huge heart. You're the type of person who loves with her whole self.
2. You are strong willed. You have had your fair of challenges in your lifetime, yet it never seems to break you in the end.
3. You always have the best stories. I live to hear what you've been up to because it's always entertaining.
4. You listen.
5. You care.
   
6. You don't judge me. For those three reasons, I've always felt like I could completely open up to you.
7. You've held me up when I was too drunk to walk.
8. You're always a great surprise. Every time I learn something new about you I always end up thinking, "Why am I surprised that she can/did that? I should know better."
   
9. You are very talented.
10. You can see beauty in almost everything.
    
11. You are very unique.
12. You are intelligent. Probably one of the more intelligent people I know, yet you never flaunt it or make others feel below you.
13. You lead with your heart.
14. You have courage. It takes a lot of courage to live life by your hearts desires.
    
15. You are lively and fun. I love how you can be the life of the party and then 20 seconds later you can be having an intellectual and personal conversation with whomever you choose to shine on that day.
16. You are true to yourself. There are way too many examples I could give to this fact.
17. You love the outdoors. I love that you are in to snowboarding and hiking and just being in nature.
18. You're beautiful, but don't flaunt it.
19. You're beautiful, but not shallow.
    
20. You like to travel, and appreciate what seeing the world can do for you.
21. You have an awesome sense of humor. You can take a joke and you can give them right back.
22. You give support. You're always there for your friends, and are always willing to lend them a hand if they need it.
23. You take amazing photographs. You have an eye for turning something ordinary into something extraordinary.
24. You made me drink tea. I love tea now and it always makes me think of you.
25. You are a most amazing friend. There are only a handful of people you meet in your lifetime that you know you should keep around. I fully intend on being lifelong friends with you. Even if you like it or not.
    

Overwhelming lucky

By no means do I hope that this blog makes me out to be some all gracious, super happy person. I'm assured by the fact that most of the people who read this blog know the real me and know that I am certainly not a happy or gracious person all the time. This blog is meant as a check. It's to say, "hey Merry, guess what? You're life is pretty good, stop fretting."

That's why I think it's a great idea when others send me guest lists. Even though I've only had this blog for a week, I can already see the positive affects of writing down what you've got "going on for your fine self." Send them to me! merryroberts@gmail.com




I think it's interesting to think of the people who have come in and out of your life. I have one person, in particular, who has come in to my life and that I look up to like no other. He's no more than an friendly acquaintance, but I've seen his life turn inside out, then turn up side down. I admire him because through all of his challenges, he has kept his head on straight, and he has kept his chin held high. He accepted everything that was thrown at him, and he found a way to make the very best of each situation and to turn his life in to something he truly enjoys. I doubt he thinks that anyone looks up to him. I doubt he thinks that anyone admires him. However, if I ever need inspiration, I will always look to him. Thank you Christopher Burlingham.




This weekend has been great. I felt lucky this weekend because:

• My new friend, Sean, that I haven't spoken to in a year, called me and invited me to the Piston's game. My very first Pistons game, might I add! It was an entirely great night full of new people, new adventures, and good experiences.
• Katie came all the way out to Detroit to see me... which she's been doing a lot lately! Only a few of my home friends have come to see me in Detroit, and Katie has come more than I could ever ask of her.
• Dan, Katie and Brenden came snowboarding with me. It's great to be able to share my hobbies with people.
• TV shows are put on DVD / People accept my teenage-drama obsession. Thank you to that special one who watched hours of 90210 with me.
• Brian made an effort to hang out with me. I got to share a lot of quality time with Brian and Kevin. I always love hanging out with those two.
• Kristina thought of me and gave me a token to remember it. How could you not feel special when someone picks you up a present that "reminds you of them"?
• I got to see my favorite Grosse Pointe girls. They always make me so happy.

On my drive home tonight, I got overwhelming thankful. I can say this feeling doesn't happen to me often, so I tried to relish in it.

I am so lucky to have so many people who accept me for the person I am.

I am so lucky that I've let people into my life and they've elected to stay.

Thank you.

Leah Pogliano

Introduction: This next guest blogger is a new friend of mine. She's the wonderful girlfriend of one of my best friends. She's bright, witty, cheerful and one of my favorite writers. I'm still hoping for the day that she will write her own book in which I will purchase for everyone I know. While I haven't been so fortunate with a lot of my friends' girlfriends, Leah treats me as a friend, and I'm grateful that she's let me into her life.

INTRODUCING
GUEST BLOGGER
LEAH POGLIANO

Things that make my life pizazzy, in no particular order:

• My job: Even though it's a pain in the ass, a lot of people I know are unemployed or soon will be.
• My gym membership: AND that work is footing the bill for a very small (I mean minuscule) portion of it.
• Dan Peat: Anyone that knows Dan knows why I'm lucky. If you don't know Dan, I'll tell you why you should. He makes you feel like you're the only person in the room, no matter who you are to him--girlfriend, friends, family, etc...
• My Family: We call ourselves the bad luck family because if anything can go wrong for any one of our members, it will. When this happens, the whole family rallies around and it doesn't seem as bad as you first thought.
• My non-addictive personality: I know so many people who are addicted to things...mainly online shopping and cigarettes. I find neither of these things thrilling, and I'm extremely grateful for that!

UDM I/O 09

This little bit of gratitude goes out to my graduate school cohort.

I love my group because:

• Most of them were my first new friends in Detroit.
• We are an exceptionally tight graduate group compared to some programs.
  
• They are the only people I don't have to explain what I/O Psychology is.
• They are accepting and knowledgeable of why I'm disappointed with our program.
• Along with that sentiment, they are by far the best perk of my program.
  
• They are accepting and supportive of my schemes.
• We work as a team better than any team I've ever worked with. While I'm sure a lot of times we are held back by "group think" and "social loafing," I think these people are some of the brightest, funnest, most interesting people in the world.
• A few of them always respond to my daily e-mails, and seem happy to show up for my group events.
  
• Some of them have become truly great friends. I couldn't ask for anything more.
  

Katie Tapper

As a note**** Katie told me I could not edit or refuse to post this. It was never my intention to get obscene amounts of gratitude placed towards me, but I will not refuse the offer! Katie Tapper has been my longest, most cherished friend. I've known her since before my brain could fully make memories, and have traveled on this journey called life with her ever since. Not many people are lucky as me to know the truth depths of Katie, but I know I'm very lucky to have her as part of my life every day.

INTRODUCING
GUEST BLOGGER
KATIE TAPPER

Dear Merry,

As long as i can remember myself i can remember you. I consider our friendship to be unlike all others. I have always held you up to high standards and looked up to you in so many different ways. Today i wanted to let you know that i am truly grateful for you!

I'm grateful to have a friend...

• That inspires me to be a better person
• Who has always had my best interest in mind when helping me make a decision
• That is always there to listen
• Who has put my insecurities in front of her own
• That has seen my highest highs and lowest lows and does not judge me for any of it

Merry, once again you have caught me off guard. Thanks for inspiring me to be a little more grateful everyday.

People are nice

I've received a lot of nice feedback from people on my new blog. Thank you everyone who has sent me a message or given me a call. It has made me feel very special.

On another note, I've been asked if others can post gratitude lists to my blog. Well, of course,I think this is a great idea! If anyone would like me to post a list, paragraph, letter, etc on what makes you grateful, lucky, or special, I would love to post it. I will post as many as you send me! Just email them to me at merryroberts@gmail.com . Our first guest poster will be Katie Tapper, so keep an eye out for her list.

For the most of the day I've been sitting around my house feeling like my throat has closed in and my head is spinning. When I was in the kitchen making my soup that I hardly had the appetite to eat, I laughed when I thought "I can't even be grateful for my health today!."


Things that have made me happy lately:

• The United States of America. While undoubtedly about 45.7% of you will not agree, our recent election of Barack Obama has left me feeling more happy about our values as a nation than ever before.
• Myself. I know I haven't made all the right decisions, and that I've been puttering around for the past 3 months depressed about the economy, but overall, I'm happy with how I've turned out. Thanks friends and family!
• Enduring Friendships. Katie put me on her "to call every night" list; I've seen Ramsey at least 3 separate weekends since she's moved to Chicago; I've had time to catch up with Rybot, Franny, EP, Danno, Dom the bomb, Carebear and the rest of my high school friends that still mean the world to me; and I've strengthened relationships with others that I hope will become enduring.
• Traveling. In the past year I've taken many cool trips with lots of cool people. Each trip has opened my eyes to something new and has allowed me to get to know my friends a little better.
• My car. After Ryan fixed my car for the eight-millionth time, it's finally to a point where there is nothing noticeably wrong with it. What a great feeling!
  

Again, if anyone is interested in posting their own list on this blog, send it to merryroberts@gmail.com .

Lost in the middle of a head cold

Today I'm grateful for:

• People who befriend the new girl in town, because without them I would've been very alone all these years.
• My brain, which makes school easy for me to get good grades in.
• Pets, and their unusual personalities.
• My hometown friends, who call or IM me for no reason at all. This makes me feel really special.
• People who bring me food; enough said really.

I had a really good conversation with someone yesterday about "living in the moment." It's amazing how much time I spend looking forward to the future without paying attention to the present. Well, I'm determined to be through with it... for the most part (who doesn't like looking forward to the future? Winter Park, baby!) I just have to remember: There's nothing so certain as the here and now.

A New Beginning

Today I'm grateful for:

• Tonka, who lets me be the "daddy spoon" when I'm feeling down.
• Friends, who still want to be a part of my life even though I've hurt them.
• Fresh snow, that makes snowboarding live up to its potential.
• Good conversation, with someone you really respect.
• Mexican food, because I love it!
• Muscles, that will repair even though the next couple of days will be hell.
• The Internet, which not only gives me endless hours of entertainment and insight, but is the source of this new blog.