Punkmanfrid, Our Dear Friend 💛

Right now, I'd like to take the time to honor a selfless man that we all grew to love. It wasn't hard to be fond of a man like "Punky". Frid was unbiasly friendly to everyone he came across. Whenever conflict or tention presented itself, he would cool the situation with wit and humor. He was spirtual and saw beauty in everything. I recall a skype session we had once where he talked about his country and all the beautiful surroundings. He talked about his religion and the types of rituals he did daily. He talked about his photography hobby. He talked his friends and journeys they had had together (Yes, Rit, the journeys with you!). Everything he discussed, he had such passion and love when relaying the stories. It's definatly what defined his character and showed me how truely amazing he was. He valued friendship and made as many friends as possible. He was extraordinary kind to even strangers. Frid and Rit's company was the main reason I kept going back to "The Hotel". And I was lucky enough to meet many other people along the way, through the encounters in HC because of the two of them. If you were lucky enough to befriend Frid on snapchat, you were probably one of the many people who got his infamous "coffee snaps". (I'll share a few of my personal favorites below) Back in May of last year, I started saving every single one. He sent them daily. I loved the inspirational quotes and selfies of him with his daily cup of "cheap coffee". It wasnt until he questioned me saving them, that I unsaved them all. Well... MOST of them. (Due to me feeling like a creeper- even though he said he didnt mind) I kept many of my favorites and I now regret unsaving the rest. I wish I still had them now. Frid was insanely smart. You wouldn't know it by how he presented himself, but the man was incredibly intelligent. His blogs were detailed and thorough. Take a few minutes to read one and you'd know exactly what I'm talking about. If you ever made a comment about how smart he was, he would brush it off; He was very humble like that. We all had made plans for a hotel cali meetup. My exception was: If Frid went, I would go. He made jokes often about how he was going to actually poke my knees and I would really bite his elbow as our first greeting to each other. I feel a great sadness knowing that will never happen. Frid was the kind of man that always radiated the best form of his personality and it was very contagious. If you were in a bad mood, he could always cheer you up. It was one of his many hidden talents. He was generously chatty, at least until "vampire time" was up. I will never forget how he would talk often of his hut, his squirrels, and how much rain they always seemed to get! His sandals were always wet! lol Football (Soccer for us weird Americans) and his motorcycle were his outlet. He loved watching soccer with his friends, while at the coffee shop and playing cards. He loved taking mini journeys to the beautiful places on his bike and snapping pictures. I remember telling him once, that he should make a calender of all his beautiful images he has taken. He shrugged it off and said that the pictures were just a hobby and he wanted to post them only to share with all of us. I'm glad he did share them. Take a look at his pictures on his profile; pure beauty. A few months ago, I had gotten really busy with work and home life. I stopped coming to wire. I took for granted the fact that some people would "always be there" upon returning. I suppose this fact isnt always the case. I guess I really just miss my friend and am sad about the lost time in the last few months. I will miss his deep conversations and silly personality. We will all miss his flirty face greetings, knee poking, back touching, vampire time shenanigans. As hard as it is, try not to be sad. -You know Frid wouldnt have wanted it that way. He would have wanted us to be joyous and remember all the fun stories and great conversations he had with us. If you were lucky enough to know Frid well, feel free to share one of your favorite memories of him. Sharing helps ease the sadness. Frid will be greatly missed. Rest peacefully, good friend. Also leaving these here... https://www.smule.com/recording/eagles-hotel-california/537447218_985850047 http://www.smule.com/p/970794070_1772258975 http://www.smule.com/p/970794070_1772258975 http://www.smule.com/p/970794070_1772258975 http://www.smule.com/p/970794070_1772258975 http://www.smule.com/p/552428655_1895811446 http://www.smule.com/p/552428655_1895811446

New edit: Dee_Bra has made the most amazing youtube video in honor of Frid. Check it out. Its simply beautiful. She did so well and not a dry eye will ever witness it!

Sarahah

"Treat others the way you want to be treated" That is considered 'The Golden Rule', right?

I don't know what your view is on bullying but I HATE it! I used to think that bullying only happened within naive, immature, ignorant school aged kids but that is not the case. Recently, I have seen pictures of messages that have been sent VIA the new "messaging" app Sarahah from adult to adult and I am truly disgusted. This app advertises as being a tool to express "anonymous constructive criticism" to others, I have yet to see anything like that. The message I saw was meant to hurt someones feelings by calling them rotten things. (Ugly, fat, nasty etc) It astounds me knowing the creators of this app didn't think about the consequences of their product. They just supplied the world with the best Cyberbullying app ever. By staying anonymous, that gives a bully even more power to hurt others. Why? Why do people think it's necessary to treat others with such disrespect?

Last year, the nation named Michigan the state with the biggest bullying problem. About 4,500 people die from suicides every year, half of them were victims of bullying. What ever happened to respecting others? Does anyone raise their children with the morals of the Golden Rule anymore?

Did you know? If you are found guilty of cyberbullying in the state of Michigan, it's considered a felony. You can get up to 5 years in prison or up to $10,000 in fines or both, thanks to Governor Snyder.
Is it all worth it?

If you use this app, use it with the thought, "What if I got this message? How would I feel?" ... And if you must give constructive criticism, do it CONSTRUCTIVELY!!! The world is negative enough without people tearing others down. Leave messages that will uplift and get someone through their day. If that's too tough for you, don't leave a message at all.
As for me, I refuse to use this tool as I really don't care to know what others think of me. Nor do I believe this is a well thought out app that will cause more damage than good, in a society that already has a suicide and bully problem.

Spread love, people.

The Cousin Chronicles - Adventures With My Best Friend and Cousin.

I went out with my cousin last night. First things first, Don’t do that kind of crap on a weekday if you work first shift. This morning has been brutal. I am such a stupid person sometimes. Anyways, where was I in my story?! Oh yes, I was at the bar last night and the most interesting thing happened.

This man walks in the empty bar and sits RIGHT next to us. This whole bar empty inside and he chooses the seat that was next to me. Come on!!! they’re rules about these kind of things. It’s called a buffer chair, man…. BUFFER CHAIR!!!! Take this as a life lesson. Don’t sit directly next to someone if there are 3 rooms of seating available. It’s odd.

He starts off by hitting on the bartender. “Wow, you’re a pretty girl. Did your piercing hurt??” (She had her septum done) She responded with “It wasn’t too bad” and he said “Did it hurt more than the ‘other’ piercings you have??” --- Keep in mind, she has no other visible piercings so he was talking about areas that are not really up for discussion as an icebreaker conversation. She rolled her eyes and he ordered food. Then it started…

He starts talking super egotistical. He says, “I don’t know if you know who I am, but I am kinda a big deal in Nashville. Maybe not here, but in Nashville… people know me!”
My cousin and I were not impressed AT ALL. Yeah, this guy was hot, but seriously?! --- Homeboy needed to get over himself. He started throwing out his name and talking about how he was a singer/songwriter/actor. We just kept laughing at him. He had us pull up a few things on youtube to show off his “fame”. Okay, so he was in a country music video. Wooop-deeee-doooo. We googled his name too. At this point, I thought he was just a guy who looked like someone in a music video. Doppelganger status, ya know?

So I asked him, “If you’re so famous, and such a big deal… why the hell are you in the tiny town of Whitehall in a hole in the wall bar?!” He went on to explain that his father lived there and he had shoulder surgery. Blah blah blah.
My cousin told him, “You aren’t the only famous person in this building. She is a youtube hit!” as she pointed at me. And that started a whole new crazy conversation about how he needed me to shout him out on my next video. (dude was on some drugs or something… he wasn’t drunk, but damn he was “off”) This post is his shout out. HAHAHA

This guy, who clearly didn’t know left from right, was trying to tell us that we were in Southern Muskegon and he knows his way around the area. We corrected him saying that we were actually not in the city of Muskegon and we are just north of North Muskegon. He told us we were wrong. Ummm, who does that? Born, raised and currently living where my cousin and I do, We kinda know our shit and our town. That’s like me going to someone else’s state and telling them about their city and explain to them that anything they say about their city is wrong. Why would he even try to argue about that?

Anyways, I told my cousin I was going to walk outside for a cigarette (I know, don’t lecture) and he said he also wanted one and asked if I would mind if he joined me. He also needed to bum one from me because he isn’t a smoker. ffs. I made my cousin come out, because he was really sending creep vibes to both us and the bartender at this point with his random commentary and the egotistical ‘Look at me, look at me! I’m famous’ attitude.

While outside, this idiot says “You are both very attractive woman, so I feel like I can ask you something important. What is sex and what does it mean to you?” My cousin and I just looked at each other, almost reading each other’s mind. ‘Is this moron serious?’
I say to him, “At your age, someone should have probably explained the birds and the bees.” And went on in the typical birds and bees fashion “When a man and a woman love each other very much, the man sticks his hotdog in the woman’s donut” He didn’t think that was funny.
He went on to further explain his question. He asks “Is sex sentimental to you, or is it just sex.” At this point, my cousin gets all serious with logical response. I was just strait up being a rude comedian and wouldn’t have given the time of day for a question like this.
My cousin says “Well, it all really depends on who it’s with. If its random, it doesn’t mean anything, but if the person is someone you talk to regularly and there is already an attraction and emotions, it means something completely different”. At this point, he responds. “So if we all just go into the bathroom and had sex, it wouldn’t mean anything right?” WHAT THE HELL?!?!?!?!?!

My cousin quickly put her cigarette out and walked back in the bar, leaving me stranded out with the weird ‘famous’ freak. Damn her.
So I told him I needed to snapchat this shit because this isn’t your typical everyday bar experience and I wanted to laugh about this later. He got super offended/upset about that. He said he CAN’T be on snap and NOT to record anything he says or does because it could ‘ruin him’. so I put my phone away and went back inside.

Keep in mind, when he walked into the bar, he wasn’t stumbling or slurring. His eyes were open and other than his ‘I am amazing’ attitude, he was normal. The bartender brought his food out to him and he says “I actually need this to go. I thought I could stay, but I just cant.” At this point, his eyes were squinted, words were slurring, and he was stumbling all over the place. I don’t know what he took before coming in the bar, but it only took a half hour to kick in. He only drank half of a beer while he was there.

He thanked us for our great conversation and stumbled out of the bar. He must not have realized how much we were making fun of him. I looked at his receipt to see if his name matched who he said he was. To my surprise, it did. He was the aspiring model from the music video and c-list movie he had been bragging about. Hmm. Who knew?! Still doesn’t change my mind about him. What a douchebag.
Enjoy his music video. He’s the bartender.



PS: I feel the need to share these crazy random stories because I feel like this kind of thing doesn't happen very often. Also, if you have an odd but funny story, post that in the comments! I want to hear the time you met a "famous" person. Or that random story about how someone creepy hit on you. If you make light of these situations and laugh, life is so much more fun. Also, for the record, I am pretty sure if this man was stone cold sober, he wouldn't have talked to us.

A Random Act Of Kindness.

**A random act of kindness can change a person’s entire outlook on their day. **

It’s Friday! Everyone seems to be in a better mood on Friday’s verses the regular mundane weekdays of Monday through Thursday. Perhaps it’s because you get to wear casual clothes instead of the office professional attire. Perhaps it’s because you know you have wonderful plans for the upcoming days off. Or perhaps it’s because you’ve been mentally drained for 4 days straight and just want to turn yourself off and have a mini coma. Whatever the reason, the reality is Friday the day people look forward to!

Back to my original point; A random act of kindness. This morning, as I was half asleep listening to the S-town podcast (Thanks, Jay!!!) in the drive thru of my local Biggby Coffee awaiting my ‘cup o’ crack’, as I like to call it, the friendly barista at the window informs me that my coffee had been paid for by the person in front of me and that I don’t need to worry about payment. I smiled, as that made my day a little brighter. I still handed her my debit card and she had a confused look. “Well, if I am all set, I’d like to pay for the person behind me!” I told her.

Try to think of a memory where a stranger has done something nice for you. Even if it was something small like paying for your coffee, helping you pick up that stack of papers you had just dropped all over the hallway, helping you carry a bag of groceries up to your apartment, or buying your meal at brunch. How did that random act of kindness make you feel? It’s almost like a mini ‘happiness high’ or like a magical feeling in your heart where you feel overwhelmed with gratefulness and gratitude. It’s a wonderful feeling. It’s addictive.

Now try to think of a time where you did something for a stranger. Perhaps you bought a meal for your neighbor that just had a baby, help someone with a broke down vehicle, brush snow off a neighbor’s car, or share your meal with a homeless man and let him tell you his story. How did that random act of kindness toward another person make YOU feel? Did you get a proud sensation of humanity that swept through you? Did you feel like you’ve accomplished something great by making someone else’s day a little brighter? This feeling is almost better than the feeling of having a random act of kindness happen to you.

I love the idea of doing something for someone you don’t know. I love the fact that it can make someone else, who could be having a horrible day, turn their bad day into an amazing one. There was a story circulating the internet some years ago, and I believe I’ve even heard it at a funeral once. A story that goes like this:


One day, when I was a freshman in high school, I saw a kid from my class was walking home from school. His name was Kyle. It looked like he was carrying all of his books. I thought to myself, “Why would anyone bring home all his books on a Friday? He must really be a nerd.” I had quite a weekend planned (parties and a football game with my friend tomorrow afternoon), so I shrugged my shoulders and went on. As I was walking, I saw a bunch of kids running toward him. They ran at him, knocking all his books out of his arms and tripping him so he landed in the dirt. His glasses went flying, and I saw them land in the grass about ten feet from him. He looked up and I saw this terrible sadness in his eyes. My heart went out to him. So, I jogged over to him and as he crawled around looking for his glasses, and I saw a tear in his eye.
As I handed him his glasses, I said, “Those guys are jerks. They really should get lives.” He looked at me and said, “Hey thanks!” There was a big smile on his face. It was one of those smiles that showed real gratitude.
I helped him pick up his books, and asked him where he lived. As it turned out, he lived near me, so I asked him why I had never seen him before. He said he had gone to private school before now. I would have never hung out with a private school kid before.
We talked all the way home, and I carried his books. He turned out to be a pretty cool kid. I asked him if he wanted to play football on Saturday with me and my friends. He said yes. We hung all weekend and the more I got to know Kyle, the more I liked him. And my friends thought the same of him.
Monday morning came, and there was Kyle with the huge stack of books again. I stopped him and said, “Damn boy, you are gonna really build some serious muscles with this pile of books every day!” He just laughed and handed me half the books. Over the next four years, Kyle and I became best friends. When we were seniors, began to think about college. Kyle decided on Georgetown, and I was going to Duke. I knew that we would always be friends, that the smiles would never be a problem. He was going to be a doctor, and I was going for business on a football scholarship. Kyle was valedictorian of our class.
I teased him all the time about being a nerd. He had to prepare a speech for graduation. I was so glad it wasn’t me having to get up there and speak. Graduation day, I saw Kyle.
He looked great. He was one of those guys that really found himself during high school. He filled out and actually looked good in glasses. He had more dates than me and all the girls loved him! Boy, sometimes I was jealous.
Today was one of those days. I could see that he was nervous about his speech. So, I smacked him on the back and said, “Hey, big guy, you’ll be great!” He looked at me with one of those looks (the really grateful one) and smiled. “Thanks,” he said.
As he started his speech, he cleared his throat, and began. “Graduation is a time to thank those who helped you make it through those tough years. Your parents, your teachers, your siblings, maybe a coach … but mostly your friends. I am here to tell all of you that being a friend to someone is the best gift you can give them. I am going to tell you a story.” I just looked at my friend with disbelief as he told the story of the first day we met. He had planned to kill himself over the weekend. He talked of how he had cleaned out his locker so his Mom wouldn’t have to do it later and was carrying his stuff home. He looked hard at me and gave me a little smile. “Thankfully, I was saved. My friend saved me from doing the unspeakable.” I heard the gasp go through the crowd as this handsome, popular boy told us all about his weakest moment.
I saw his Mom and dad looking at me and smiling that same grateful smile. Not until that moment did I realize its depth. Never underestimate the power of your actions.
With one small gesture you can change a person’s life. For better or for worse.


That story touches my heart! The end, “Never underestimate the power of your actions!”… This rings so true. Never underestimate the power of a random act of kindness that you can do for another person. It might not seem much to you, but it could be so much to another person, who might be having the worst day imaginable.

So today, on this happy Friday, I challenge you! I would like you to go out at some point during your day and do a random act of kindness. It doesn’t have to be anything huge or detrimental, as long as you do it for someone else and they did not ask you to do it. Post in the comments what random act of kindness you have done or share a story of a situation that has happened in your life.

We can make a difference. One random act of kindness at a time.
Happy Friday, my friends! I love you all.

Friday the 13th. Does this scare you?

Friday the 13th. This day has always been one of my personal favorites!
Perhaps it’s because I love Halloween so much and on Friday the 13th, it’s like having a “Halloween day” in the middle of the year.
When I was in grade school, I always hosted “Scare Fest” Parties on Friday the 13th. I would invite all my friends over, we would go pick out the scariest movies we could find and have a slumber party with pizza and popcorn. It was always the best day ever! I never thought of Friday the 13th as an “unlucky” day. I always loved it.

So, in honor of my little holiday…. Here are some googled fun facts about Friday the 13th, for your enjoyment.

1. In some Spanish speaking countries, it’s Tuesday the 13th which is actually considered to be bad luck.

2. NASA predicts that on Friday April 13th, 2029 a large asteroid will fly so close to the earth, you’ll actually be able to see it without a telescope in some areas of the world. Think about this fact though, if Friday the 13th was an “unlucky day” … wouldn’t this asteroid hit us? Perhaps its our lucky day!!!

3. The 13th film of “Friday the 13th” franchise is now in the making and it is expected to be released sometime this year. Now, is it just me, or do they finally need to kill off Jason?

4. If you want a spooky ceremony for your wedding, the Viva Las Vegas Wedding Chapel offers special Zombie and Vampire themed weddings on Friday the 13th . So get out your tuxedo and splatter it with blood, you’re going to get hitched to the undead!

5. The fear of Friday the 13th is also called friggatriskaidekaphobia or paraskevidekatriaphobia. (Wait…. What?! I needed to understand those words better, so I googled more about them.) Friggatriskaidekaphobia comes from Frigg, the Norse goddess of wisdom after whom Friday is named, and the Greek words triskaideka, meaning 13, and phobia, meaning fear. Paraskevidekatriaphobia is also derived from Greek: paraskeví translates as Friday, and dekatria is another way of saying 13.

6. In Italy, Friday the 17th is considered to be a day that brings bad luck.

7. It is estimated that every Friday the 13th costs the U.S. economy approximately $800-900 million in losses, according to the Stress Management Center and Phobia Institute, as many people refuse to do business or travel by air. However, as interesting as this fact is, wouldn’t the loss be bad up on either the 12th or the 14th? I mean, who is going to say, “I have to take a trip, but since it falls on Friday the 13th, I will just boycott the whole thing.” Nobody does that! If it was a legitimate issue, they would go the day before or after. It’s these small facts that they fail to report to the general public!!

8. Hotel and hospital buildings often skip the 13th floor, and airports sometimes don’t have a gate no. 13.


Why is 13 considered an unlucky number?
Well, this can be tied to religion. There were 13 people present at “The Last Supper”; Jesus and the 12 disciples. Judas, who betrayed Jesus, was said to have been sitting at the 13th seat of the table. It is also believed in the bible that Jesus was crucified on a Friday.

This could also be tied to WW2.
During World War II, five German bombs hit Buckingham Palace in the U.K. on Friday, Sept. 13, 1940, and destroyed the Palace Chapel, as part of Adolf Hitler's strategic "Blitz" bombing campaign.

Perhaps, it was because of “Black Friday”. No guys, not the day after Thanksgiving where you get to save money on useless gifts that will end up in someone’s trash.
On Friday, Oct. 13, 1989, the U.S. stock exchange suffered a major crash. The day is sometimes referred to as "Black Friday."

Or maybe, just maybe, it’s because woman are considerably “bitchier” 13 times out of a year than they are not. This little one cracks me up, honestly.
Some suggest that the association with 13 being unlucky is due to women generally having around 13 menstrual cycles a year (based on a cycle length of 28 days).


The last thing I leave you with in my silly, yet interesting facts about Friday the Thirteenth is this:
There’s an old superstition that says if you have 13 letters in your name, you’re bound to be cursed. Silly, yes, but slightly more convincing when you consider that a number of notorious murderers' names; Charles Manson, Jack the Ripper, Jeffrey Dahmer, Theodore Bundy, and Albert De Salvo. All of these names contain 13 letters. And, in case you were wondering: Adolf Hitler's baptismal name was Adolfus Hitler.
How many letters do you have in your name?

Awkward.

A day in the life of awkward Sara. (For the record, I share this with you all so that you can get a laugh out of my terrible life situations and embarrassment)
It’s raining. Hard. I go outside during breaks and I stand in the rain, like a ridiculous nicotine addict. My feet/flip flops were wet and our shop floor is very slick 99.9 percent of the time, regardless of if it is raining or not (yes, you see where this is going)
So as I am entering the threshold of the heavy door, I am trying to juggle all my stuff in my hands AND this oversized umbrella when my feet give beneath me. I aggressively try to save myself by doing a series of “catch steps” which I am sure looked like something out of a Michael Jackson music video, while somehow ending up turned around facing the doorway, which in the end, was a good thing. Unable to save myself or my footing, I completely slip, hitting the metal garbage can and making a noise that can only be comparable to the crashing sounds of thunder against the concrete floor. Now, in a matter of what seemed like seconds, I am laying on my back, dress no longer at my ankles (the reason that facing the door was now a good thing) and coffee spilling all over my hair… I am staring at the ceiling. I kind of laid there for a minute registering the last 10 seconds of my life choices.
There is a department next to the entrance and ALL of those ladies got to see the chaos that had occurred in that 10 seconds. The supervisor of the department ran into the office and got the production manager, who came rushing out quickly. The lady running the machine ran over to me asking if I was alright and saying “You are wearing a dress, you might want to get up now!” while assisting me by grabbing my coffee and umbrella. I get up and look around, all eyes on me. So what is the first thing I say?
“Ta-da!!!!!! And for my next trick…” Followed by, “I am here for your entertainment, but remember, it’s a little slick in that spot right there!” while pointing to where I had just fell. I am pretty sure my face was about the shade of the darkest firetruck ever made and I want to stay in my office for the remainder of my life. However, being the ‘Nothings gonna stop me’ kind of girl, I am armed with a million jokes about falling for my 1 o’clock meeting because I am going to beat everyone to the punch when it comes to making fun of me.
At any rate, I feel like the headache will be coming any minute as I feel the back of my head where it met the concrete in a, not so pleasant manner.
I am soooo awkward. PS-I smell like coffee and I am sticky. Yep.

(For) People Just Like Us

I post alot of lyrics. I do this because at the moment, those lyrics mean something in my moment in life. If you never read them, that's find, but if there is ever one you should read, it's this one. It rings true, always! The last lines are the most important to take in. Because you're worth EVERYTHING, yes you! These lyrics got me through some dark times in my life and I hope the same for anyone who reads them.

I swear I saw the sun black out that day
Thinking to myself there'd be no end to the pain
And I was so much like you, filled with sorrow, filled with hate
Wishing somehow I could find the strength to push down on the blade


Now with your body scream it out, grab my hand
You don't have to cry alone, 'cause someone out there understands
If you feel like falling down from forces all around
If you feel like there's no way out play this song and sing it loud
(…and say)

May we all go marching on
May we all go marching on
And I'll keep on fighting
For people just like us


I spilled no blood but carry on with the stain everyday
I want you to know you're my saving grace
(yes) You my friend, reason to live, we are one in the same


Now with your body scream it out, grab my hand
You don't have to cry alone, 'cause someone out there understands
If you feel like falling down from forces all around
If you feel like there's no way out play this song and sing it loud
(…and say)


I cringe at the things that our minds think
All the harsh lies that we take out on ourselves
When people tell you your selfish
Just don't believe it, they cannot see it


And though we never, may ever get to meet
If you need someone to live for, live for me
And when you feel like giving up
Know that you have my love
And that's worth everything
'Cause you're worth everything.