There's a Reason.

It seems bad, but I tend to assume the worst in people. My trust is something that's very, very difficult to earn, and very, very easy to lose. I can count the number of people who've earned it on one hand.

But every now and then, I let my guard down. I allow the world to coax me out of my shell of mistrust. This is rare, and it only happens when things are going well for me, abnormally well. This state never lasts long though. Reality eventually swoops in, pecking at that temporary bubble of bliss until it pops, allowing all the crap of daily life to come pouring in. This surge wakes me up, reminds me that this place is not my home.

I'm in this world, but I'm not of it. I have my sights set on a better place and my heart set on a higher purpose.

Thank God, I have more than just this life. I have a reason to live.
 

Marionette.

It disturbs me that, as I sit here staring at my computer screen, I have no goal or topic for writing. I usually have, at least, a general plan, but not tonight. Honestly, I don't know how this will play out. I'm making it up as I go.

The recurring theme this past week or so has been manipulation, so yeah, let's go with that.

I am 100% guilty of manipulating people, but it's strictly to a verbal extent. I've come to the realization that I'm rather skilled at twisting words, especially the words of others, to work to my advantage. That's probably a bad thing, but in a sense, I'm cool with that. It's not that I'm any more intelligent or cunning than the next guy. I can just read people.

You know that feeling you get when you suspect someone of something, but you have no evidence to back it up? I have those feelings on a daily basis. And 9 times out of 10? I'm right on the money.

A few people call me a mind reader. I prefer to refer to it as "advanced probability," which is fancy psychology speak for, "I'm just lucky."

Don't mistake me for the kind of person that goes around manipulating with some self-serving motivation, leaving behind an aftermath of confused, disoriented victims and a newly acquired position of power. I've dealt with that rare breed of "human" before, recently in fact, and I can assure you, my DNA could NEVER be coded in a structure containing that magnitude of evil.

I'm no puppetmaster, hiding among the rafters shrouded in darkness. I don't delight in every swift tug of the strings and every forced motion of my current marionette, knowing that ultimately once they have served their purpose, I will cast them aside along with the other firewood. I've come into contact with people just like that though, people who watch each painted face go up in flames.

Without a single regret.

I construct this metaphor only to warn you. From a guy who's been on both sides of the fence, consider this: Who's really in control?
  

Spicy.

I don't really feel like blogging, but this was kinda funny, so I'll share.

One of my friends at work, who I'm convinced is a nine-year-old trapped in a thirty-year-old's body, was headed out, so he made one last run through the kitchen to see that everything was in order.

As he left though, he grabbed a couple of our sandwich stickers that had fallen onto the counter, and instead of throwing them away, he proceeded to very cautiously place them on the back of our unsuspecting coworker's butt. One on each side.

The sticker looks like this...

Unfortunately, the victim felt him when he came back and tried to add a "2 for $3" to the mix. There's really nothing more hilarious than the inappropriate use of stickers.