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Question of the Month

#Question of the Month: a #bloghop to think about. No. 16- What logical decision have you made that’s left you with #regret?

A little while ago, Michael D’Agostino, of A Life Examined, brought up the idea of a new blog hop called Question of the Month. He thinks blog readers would like to know a little more about us, the bloggers. So we’re all gathering to show you guys who we are by taking part in the Question of the Month blog hop. On the first Monday of each month, we answer the question that gets posted here.

This month’s question is: “What’s a decision you’ve made in the past that you know, logically, was the right decision to make, but which you still feel guilty or regretful about?”

This is a pretty deep question. I don’t want to shy away from it or not give it my full consideration. I’m just not sure if I have anything that really stands up to this.

In my mind, this question is a matter of making a correct choice that doesn’t maybe feel right or hurts someone along the way. Example; a manager makes the choice to fire someone who comes to work a little late every day and is the lowest ranked sales rep, but who is also the nicest person in the department and a really hard worker. The manager has to let someone go, but they still feel bad about it. I just don’t know that I’ve had to make any decisions like that.

I guess the closest I’m come to something like this would be letting go of certain attachments and friendships. I’ve had to do that at different times in my life and I always feel bad afterwards. In retrospect, it’s obvious that I made the right choice because my life is less dramatic and more peaceful overall without those people in it. At the time, though, that I ended those relationships, it was me being the bad guy, telling the other person they needed to change or walk away.

It takes a lot to tell someone that they are toxic and that their choices and or behavior is harmful. No one likes to feel that they are less than anyone else, but when someone says, “You gotta change,” how else could you possibly feel. So, I did the right and logical thing, but I still feel bad.

Please visit the other participants in this hop and even join in if you’d like. I’m curious to see if I interpreted the question correctly. I also wonder what kinds of responses others will share.

Thank you for taking the time to read this post. If you like it let me know and share it with others. See you next time, Toi Thomas. #thetoiboxofwords

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Question of the Month

#Question of the Month: a #bloghop to think about. No. 15- What kind of music best speaks to you? #MusicMonday

A little while ago, Michael D’Agostino, of A Life Examined, brought up the idea of a new blog hop called Question of the Month. He thinks blog readers would like to know a little more about us, the bloggers. So we’re all gathering to show you guys who we are by taking part in the Question of the Month blog hop. On the first Monday of each month, we answer the question that gets posted here.

This month’s question is: “What kind of music best speaks to you?”

First, HAPPY LABOR DAY, USA!

And now, to the music…

I find it hard to comprehend the notion that some people just don’t like music, but I know it’s a fact. I’ve interviewed a few of those people. I can understand people having musical preferences and not liking certain musical genres, but to simply not like any music baffles my mind.

I can’t imagine living a healthy and satisfying life without music. I even ask authors I interview about their musical inspiration, but I think many of them are turned off by how I phrase the question, “When the soundtrack of your life is playing in your head, what songs express your glee and what songs bring out your rage?” I personally think it’s a good question; that’s probably why I never have and never will change it.

I, for one, use music in all aspects of my life. Music is for praise and worship, celebrating, grieving, relaxing, creating, and everything else. I sometimes think of songs that would be great for the soundtracks of my books (if my books had soundtracks). I created storyboards with song inspiration on Pinterest for both Eternal Curse: Giovanni’s Angel and Eternal Curse: Battleground. I went all out for my one contemporary story, It’s like the Full Moon, and created a playlist assigning a song to every chapter (see Side A here and Side B here).

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GOAT 1 by Eric Thomas hanging over a custom shelf for storing vinyl records also made by Eric Thomas (my husband). Can you guess who goat 1 is?

But, if you want to know what music really speaks to me, it would all depend on when you’re asking. It changes constantly. Right now, Big Band music is playing in my head. Last night, my husband and I played a few Louis Armstrong records (I feel vinyl is way underrated. Good vinyl has an amazing sound quality people overlook because it’s not digital). Usually, when blogging, I listen to jazz or oldies. When I’m writing, I listen to classical, opera, and very rarely techno, but not that repetitive over-sampled house music you hear in European night clubs. There is a time and place for that, just not when I’m writing.

For daily life, I’m still a sucker for popular music, though as I get older, I find it hard to like a lot of it. Still, I like it more than many of my peers. I’ve always appreciated Hip Hop and R&B, but I’ve been spending a lot of time with the old school chart toppers as of late. Even though I’m not opposed to country music, I find that I just don’t listen to it much. I do however have a few Bluegrass records that I’ll play over and over. Again, this is not the repetitive foot stomp’n, burning fiddle music you mostly thing of (again, a time and place for that), but good Bluegrass is like an orchestra with a southern style and twang, and can be quite inspirational.

I think I’ll stop here. I could go on and on, but there are others to visit in this hop and I want to be sure to see what they all have to say.

Please visit the other participants in this hop and even join in if you’d like. I can’t wait to see what other music and or songs speak to others.

Thank you for taking the time to read this post. If you like it let me know and share it with others. See you next time, Toi Thomas. #thetoiboxofwords

Categories
Question of the Month

#Question of the Month: a #bloghop to think about. No. 14- What’s your favorite beach?

A little while ago, Michael D’Agostino, of A Life Examined, brought up the idea of a new blog hop called Question of the Month. He thinks blog readers would like to know a little more about us, the bloggers. So we’re all gathering to show you guys who we are by taking part in the Question of the Month blog hop. On the first Monday of each month, we answer the question that gets posted here.

This month’s question is: “What’s your favorite beach?”

This is a question that’s hard for me to answer for three main reasons.

1. I live in a beach town (Virginia Beach & Chesapeake Bay) and therefore don’t have the great admiration for it that someone might have, not being a beach dweller. Don’t get me wrong, I like the beach, but when it’s just down the road, it doesn’t see so exotic. Then there are the tourist that also affect my appreciation of the beach.

2. I’ve never seen a beach off the eastern shore of the U.S. I don’t really have anything to compare my cold, cloudy water experiences too just yet. I’m going on a cruise later this year and will finally get to see some mid Atlantic (closer to tropical) waters.

3. There is no sand at pools and depending on my mood, that can be a deal breaker.

beachWith all this considered, a Spring Break in Myrtle Beach was one of my most relaxing beach experiences. I was delighted by an artificial indoor beach in Atlantic City. After a day of touring casinos and the boardwalk, we headed inside to escape strong winds and looked out over the water in the safety of department stores and food vendors. I guess I’m still waiting for a beach experience that makes me fall in love with it. For now, I like the beach and appreciate that it’s something to do on a nice day when there’s nothing else to do.

Please visit the other participants in this hop and even join in if you’d like. I can’t wait to see what other beaches people like or don’t like.

Thank you for taking the time to read this post. If you like it let me know and share it with others. See you next time, Toi Thomas. #thetoiboxofwords