We all got pet peeves whether we call them that or something else.  Here are a few of mine...some less serious than others, but nevertheless stuff that has the POTENTIAL to drive me bonkers.  I confess now to being partially cookoo:

1.  People crunching on hard candy.  I.e. peppermints, jolly ranchers, etc....I mean..Why?  You cant just suck it down like the rest of us?  I know one girl who will literally hold a large bag of starlight mints and EAT....no, MANGLE them like popcorn, popping in one after another.....that sounds makes my teeth itch.

2.  Fake people.  Self explanatory.

3.  Flip Flops in winter.  Why?  We know u got a pedicure.

4.  People driving in overdrive for no reason.  Why? 

5. When people perpetuate myths & urban legends w/o taking the time out to research for themselves.  I.e. someone once told me they 'heard' if you have a heavy key chain(s) attached to ur car keys while its in the ignition, it could mess up your transmission.  HUH?

6.  Irrational thinkers.  Someone made someone I know remove their purse from the dash of the car because they said if they got into an accident their purse would fly one direction and their body would fly another and the police wont be able to identify you.....who said?

7.  When people beat around the bush.  A waiter came and asked if we were done w/our "receipts" aka tip slips.  He claims he wanted to know so he could start cleaning off the table....No, u wanna know how much money we left you. And thats exactly what I told him.

8.  When people order off the dollar menu..just like that: "I'd like the dollar fry and a dollar drink"  Just sounding BROKE! LOL...Try:  "I'll take a value fry and a small drink."  Call it what they call it on the menu to keep your business your business!

9.  "Reply All" on emails:  Please dont respond to one person, but reply to 50 other people.  I dont need to read, "Thanks Sylvia for your email."  Just send it back to Sylvia for goodness sakes!

10.  The unoffical boss: If your job title is the same as mine dont try to tell  me what to do like yours says supervisor or manager.  You can give me advice, but keep your tone pleasant.

11.  Stop putting your crinkled, old and dingy dollar bill in a tithe envelope.  The envelope cost more than the offering.  And while I do not discourage giving the dollar--I dont think u need an envelope for that.  EVERYTHING doesnt have to be on record.

12.  Peek-a-boo on altar:  If you have fallen out at the altar, but u have energy and are cohearrant enough to peek out the side of your eye to see if we're looking at you--you're done here....the Lord has done his work and I need you to start heading back to your seat.

13.  Halter tops at church and anything showing Clevage, Ohio at church.

14.  Making box macaronni and trying to make it like homemade...there is no need to BAKE that in my book.

15.  When people leave stuff like a plate full of chicken w/flour that they were too lazy to finish cooking just sitting OUT in the fridge.  HUH?

16.  When the waiter says, "Do you need change back?"  Partner, I gave you a twenty....my bill was only eight dollars!

17.  When people try to slight-match their clothes.  We know that your red dollar store sandals w/the flower on top does NOT go with your fuschia pink tank top--we see you.

18.  When big people always try to act like they're not hungry or don't eat that much.  Again, we can see you.  I knew someone who said they didnt eat red or orange popsickles.....THEY ALL TASTE THE SAME.....but by the end of the day they kept saying, "pass me a pop sickle."  Same person said they didnt eat chicken thighs, but tore a whole in the KFC box of chicken; wrestling for the last THIGH!

19.  Sleep Rules:  I have door issues.  I need all doors that I can see from my bedroom CLOSED...including extra bedroom(s) and closets.  I also need my bed atleast semi-made up and those pillows fluffed.  Also, please dont sleep in my bed cause I get an attitude going to sleep smelling someone else.

20.  Small Print:  Big sign says "Save 75% today only" so you do a U-turn and run into the store only to find out in 2pt font they wrote "up to"  Save up to 75% today only"

21.  Shirts tucked in w/large bellies.....why draw more attention?  And where is your belt?  And speaking of belts....ladies....if you're gonna wear a belt...it needs to be seen in the back as well.

22.  Body odor....no need for it!  There is soft soap and water even at McDonalds bathroom and Macy's has mad test bottles.....if we smell you....you know you smell yourself.

23.  When people model walk in the public.....i.e. the mall.  Stop it... this is not a Chanel runway....why are you stomping down the food court?

24.  People who always say they can't pick u up or make events because of their lack of gas or their vehicle needs maintainance.  You had enough gas when you wanted a big mac!  And if you can go 50mph on the beltline you can surely go 65mph on the xway.

25.  When people squeeeze into smallest spots...i.e. THIS is a loveseat--developed for two persons...why oh why art tho attempting to squeeze yourself on this loveseat....grab a chunk of that carpet.

26.  OH here is a good one:  McDonalds---Now the filet o fish already comes w/a half slice of cheese...so if I order extra cheese at 20 cents a slice..how much total cheese should my sandwich have?  Anyone who took elementary math knows 1/2 +1 = 1 1/2  -- well McDonalds will only give you a whole slice of cheese if u order extra cheese...WHERE is my 1/2 of slice that was complimentary.  Either give me my 1/2 slice or only chaarge me 10 cents dog gone it! LOL...Now, I'm fed up!

27.  Telling stories:  When your giving a narrative.....tell me what I need to know thats relevant to todays point.  When you start off a story saying "It all started when I was 7 years old" and your 42 now....I'm already tuning you out.  You really expect me to listen to 35 years of chaos thats occurred since then?  Not gonna do it! LOL..

28.  Panhandlers:  We've all been down and out.  I've not had a dollar to my name...but the panhandlers are getting down right bold.  I went to Chicken Coop a few days ago and a man was EATING at the counter..even had hot sauce on his food.  He looked over at me and said, "let me have a dollar man."  i said, "Excuse me?!"  You're eating already...u give ME a dollar.

Once my cousin encountered a panhandler who  only wanted a mere quarter...she, in jest,  said "Oh, I love quarters, you're gonna give me a quarter?"  He asked again and she again said the same thing, this time w/more delight as if she was getting a quarter.  Fed up, the panhandler said, "Hun, I dont think you get it....I'M begging" LOL as he bicycled away; quarterless.

29.  When people's feet drag onthe ground when wearing sandals.  You dont feel that?  You dont see that your feet are literally turning gray and blistered.  Here's my advice:  Just once size bigger.  Maybe even a half.  It'll save you some embarassment and make your nail techs job a whole lot easier.

30.  Lastly, when people think you're upset when your not.  Being misunderstood period!  Especially when they keep asking, "Whats wrong? Whats wrong? Are you mad? Are you ok?"  If u keep ASKING me then yea, I'm going to get ticked off, but I'm fine....Can I have a quiet moment.  Give me 3 feet for a second.

These are just a few of mine......well, thirty of em.....Funny how when you start thinking about them stuff just unravels...LOL....

I'm out.

-Smith

I gotta talk about it.  People have left me no other choice. 

From time to time we see Amber Alert's notifying us of a missing child in our area.  Why haven't I seen the Amber Alert for Loyalty because she has been missing for quite some time.

Now called me an old fashioned sap, but what happened to those times when a (wo)man's word was their bond?  What happend to 'Because I said it..I'm gonna keep my word?'  What happened to because I love you ENOUGH and RESPECT you enough and APPRECIATE who you are to me that I'm gonna do what I said I would do to the best of my ability?  I mean, is that too much to ask; to ask YOU to do what YOU said YOU would do.  Afterall, I didn't bring it up--YOU did.  You're to blame!

Being a Communication major I am really adament about the communication process.  Being a forgiving person I am really adament about looking past and getting over being 'played.'  People, if you cant do what you originally set out to do--thats OKAY--things change, life changes, and for goodness sakes, your entitled to change your mind, BUT here is where I become perturbed....it's when you dont COMMUNICATE that change.  You can't call and say plans changed?  You can't text to say you changed your mind?  The wonderful world of technology has made it possible to be reached/contacted almost instantly even if one is across the world, trust me, I've done it!  Communicate that you can't do what you said you'd do.  It's easier then to keep confusion at bay.

Non-Communication simply says you dont give a rats-crack about me and you dont respect me or my time that I had set aside to do what you said we'd do when I wrote you in my planner last week.  So now, I've told 3 and 4 people I'm booked and can't meet them, help them, go with them because WE had plans.  Be mindful of what you're SAYING even when you're not verbally SAYING it.  Ask yourself, "What are my actions saying?"

And I'm done.

-Smith

Family and Friends,

Just wanted to let everyone know I made it safely to Tokyo.....I am very tired right now and I kinda got cheated out of a day. I left GR at 1030 am on Thursday, but when I arrived in Tokyo it was already 5:30pm or so on Friday.....thats cool, cause I'll get to live next Thursday twice as I "travel back in time" to arrive in the U.S.

Anyhow, do continue to keep me in prayer. I am here to have a good time and to explore this culture, which I love, but I am also here looking for Kingdom Connections and potential business partners.

Love you all and do get a good shout in (Cory/Chris) for me ... yall are about to CHU'CH on Sunday and lo key, I'm jealous :-)

Til later....

-Smith

God also dealt with me heavily regarding our concept of success in America; a land where we are consciously and subconsciously trained to gain as many material things as we can and THAT is how we measure success.  Whereas in the African culture, they value family, relationships, a good name, among other things. As we drove through parts of Soweto and saw the shanties, people fetching their own water, and the absence of sidewalks and numeric addresses my heart was humbled.  On the other hand, when you saw the joy on the faces of the children, the peace among the neighbors, and the will to live as 'normal' of a life as possible—you couldn't help BUT be encouraged.  They have less, but they are far richer than us Americans.  My heart rested in repentance for the remainder of the day.

Lastly, I learned the importance of knowing your roots.  When people would say things like "I want to go back to the Mother Lans," it would kind of irritate me, because it seemed so cliché.  You know how we do, just say stuff cause someone else said it.  But while here, I experienced a strong emotional intoxication regarding heritage and knowing that I was somehow connected to this land that I was standing on.  No cliché insight!  As we drove down the street I couldn't ignore the feeling that the older women who were walking down the street were my family; these were my "aunts." Those uniformed school kids; those are my "cousins." 

While on the tour, I asked the guide how Africans viewed African-Americans.  His explanation made super sense.  He gave the analogy of a child who may have been with his siblings in the woods and happened to be kidnapped by another enemy tribe.  That's how they view African-Americans; as victims of an unfortunate incident, but nonetheless as brothers and sisters.  That notion resounds in the majority of the people in this culture.

World travel is wonderful as it expands the horizons of the traveler and helps one understand life is more than your local mall, skating rink, and favorite restaurant.  God has so much out there and He owns it all!  I am grateful that He has given me a desire to get a glimpse of what He has!

-Smith

For starters, Virgin Atlantic Airway's is the bomb! Very modern, very hip airline.  Any airline that lets you use your cell phone (on flight mode) DURING the flight is alright with me!

London was not all I expected it to be.  Since the city is so old, many of the things "to do" are historical.  Buckingham palace, Piccadilly Circus, Changing of the Guard . . . all historical and I just wasn't really in that kind of mood to be honest.  It was cold and dreary. I work a sweater one day and a shirt, sweater vest, and jacket on another day.  My hotel room deserves a paragraph all to itself . . . 

Without question, I was sure I was getting Punk'd when I walked into my room.  The exterior of the hotel was posh.  A beautiful, white exterior tucked away in a lavish neighborhood boasted nothing but London's finest accommodations—or so I thought.  My hotel room was THE smallest hotel room I've ever been in.  The floor creaked when I walked as well as the room above me.  So I had to sit and listen to the upstairs resident and count their footsteps; praying they'd sit DOWN somewhere!  The linen was old.  There was barely enough room for me AND my luggage to share the room.  There was no air conditioner for those stuffy nights.  You had to close one eye to see the TV good since it was only a 13 inch with 9 channels.  No alarm clock.  No clock period.  No iron.  And the straw that broke the camel's back…. The bed was a twin (brought me back to circa '99 when I was in college).  One thing I can't complain about was the location.  Right around the corner from the hotel, about 4 minutes walk, was a street lined with shops, stores, a mall, and restaurants—a street I walked to and fro a few times.

For those who may not know…London is expensive! Oh, yes it is! Right now the American Dollar is $2 per pound (their currency unit).  So, if a pair of shoes cost 35 pounds then I had to decide if they were worth paying $70 for. Usually they were not.  I'd pay $35 but not $70.  This small situation forced me to leave many things right there in London.  I arrived at the hotel at roughly 10am and thankfully they allowed me to check into the room.  I ended up taking a nap and didn't get up and leave the hotel 'til around dinner.  I had decided I was ready to step back into my American roots, after eating a South African cuisine for the last few days, I wanted some pizza. I walked down to the Pizza hut and ordered a medium pizza (which is literally a small) and a pop.  Why did that come to $25.  You playing right?  After dinner I did some shopping and familiarizing myself with the place before retreating back to the prison cell known as my hotel room.

The next day was filled with more shopping.  This time I was adventurous and took one of the double-deckers over to Oxford Street where there are as many stores as one could ever want or desire.  Just 'people watching' could be an all day task.  After being on Oxford until the early evening I headed back towards the hotel where I had dinner at a restaurant around the corner. 

I checked out of the hotel at about 9am and was picked up by the Hotel Link, which is an airport shuttle service.  They took me to a train station where I had to take a 30-minute train ride to the Gatwick Airport.  The train ride was a nice time to reflect on all I had just experienced.

Is what I had  . . . one last chance to get all I could from South Africa.  I checked out of the hotel at 11am and was scheduled to be picked up by Bro. Nicolas at 11 as well.  I met Nicolas through the medium of myspace about 3 months prior to my trip.  I did a search for people in my age bracket in South Africa and his profile came back on the first page of results.  After reading his profile and seeing that we shared much of the same belief system I contacted him about general S. Africa tips (where to stay, what hotels are nice, where to go, where not to go) and he was very helpful.  Later, I learned that he is a friend of a good friend of mine.  Small world.  Anyhow, he was supposed to pick me up at 11, but didn't come til about 3pm.  He got tied up in a business meeting with a client.  Once he arrived, I took another stab at the left-hand driving thing and we headed over to Rosebank where we shopped at a tri-mall . . . which was 3 malls in one.  One part was a market place where people rented sections and sold their own goods.  The salesmen there are relentless.  I found a few good buys and we headed over to downtown Joburg to a tiny boutique where I bought some shoes and fought off a piranha of a saleswoman trying to convince me I could fit a certain pair of Prada gym shoes despite the fact I told the woman they were too small! LOL… I was behind schedule by the time I left here.  We immediately darted off to the airport, which was a little ways away.  After turning in the rental car and rushing over to international departures, I bid Nicolas farewell.  Having gained a new friend and a South African brother I was off for the second leg of my trip to London.