Resolutions, Procrastinating Style

It's been a bit of a rough start to 2010 in a few different ways, so I'm a little late on getting to my resolutions.  Well, these aren't all resolutions exactly, but they are nice to think about.  I robbed them off of an e-mail forward from Duncan.  I edited out both the hokey lines and the ones that I didn't feel applied to me.  This is what was left: 



Health

-Eat breakfast like a king, lunch like a prince, and dinner like a beggar.

-Eat more foods that grow on trees and plants and less food that is manufactured in plants.

-Sleep for 7 hours.

Personality

-Don't compare your life to others.  You have no idea what their journey is about.

-Don't overdo.  Keep your limits.

-Don't take yourself so seriously.  No one else does.

-Don't waste your precious energy on gossip.

-Envy is a waste of time.  You already have all you need.

-Make peace with your past so it won't spoil your present.

Society

-Call your family often.

-Each day give something good to others.

-Spend time with people over the age of 70 and under the age of 6.

-What other people think of you is none of your business.

-Your job won't take care of you when you were sick.  Your friends will.  Stay in touch.

Life

-Get rid of everything that isn't useful, beautiful, or joyful.

-No matter how you feel, get up, dress up, and show up.



I would like to think that I will be able to keep these in mind for longer than just today.  My past work with New Year's Resolutions does not leave much hope for that, but I'm remaining optimistic that this is the year that all that changes.  Good luck to all of you on the changes you wish to make for 2010. 

Secondly, I'd also like to say welcome....

Jillian Riley Payne came into the world at 2:30 this morning.  This was not the most convenient time, as most of the family was trapped in their houses due to a giant winter snowstorm.  The power was off at the hospital and the room was lit by emergency lights.  Jillian didn't seem to mind the conditions.  She had put off her journey into all of our lives long enough, only eight days after the arrival of her cousin Lydia.  Jillian, I wish we could have been there, but we are glad to have you nonetheless. 

First off, I'd like to say welcome....

While we all thought that Jillian would be the first to grace us with her presence, little Lydia came out of nowhere on Friday, January 22, 2010 to the tune of 7 lbs and 8 oz.

Congratulations to Karen and Nathan!  She was definitely worth the wait:

I'm an Indian Outlaw...

Well, not really.  I did find out a couple of weeks ago, however, that my Cherokee heritage is more significant than I once thought.  Ivey and I traveled to Cherokee (via Maggie Valley to pick up Dad) to spend some time with my Papaw Bill.  It had been way too long since I had seen him.  He wanted to take Dad and I around Cherokee to visit some of the graves of our ancestors.  We began the trip up from the museum at the grave of my great-great-great-great grandfather, Nimrod J. Smith.

Nimrod was quite the historical figure.  He's got to be the only member of our family with a Wikipedia page.  He was the fourth Principal Chief of the Eastern Band of the Cherokee Indians.  He fought for the Confederacy during the Civil War.  His Indian name was Tsaladihi (this roughly translates to "Charlie-killer" and was a conversion of his middle name "Jarrett.")  He worked very hard to get his people recognized as a tribe under federal law by the U.S. government and is generally credited as being the main driving force behind this taking place.  In short, he was pretty much a badass, although the world really could have done without that jheri-curl mullet:

From there we drove up into Birdtown where I saw the fantastically amazing headstone of Johnny (Bubba) Rowland:

Not only did this thing have an engraving of a dump truck on it, but his nickname seems to have been Cue Ball.  I can't remember exactly how he was related to me, but, based on these two things alone, I wish I could have gotten to meet him.  We also ran across the gravesite of Beauford Roland:

Beauford was shot in the back after a poker game gone wrong.  Three different brothers were tried for the murder, but none were ever convicted.  Seeing as how Papaw Bill and I both love Texas Hold'em a lot more than we should, it seems that the Roland gambling gene didn't die with Beauford on that night in 1981. 

We saw what has to be one of the coolest trees in the world:

It was a fun day and I really enjoyed learning a little more about the family history.  It's not often that you get three generations of Roland's together.  I'm glad Ivey finally got to meet Papaw Bill and I'm glad that she was there to take some good pictures.  I'll have to make sure not to put as much time in between the next visits.

I DO

I'm engaged to the most wonderful woman that I have ever met.  It's been a crazy ride, no doubt,  but worth every up and down to get to this point.  I know this news has surprised friends and family alike, and for good reason.  We were not even dating at the time of the proposal.  I have been asked more than once if I am sure I know what I am doing.

I do.

While it may seem a little sudden (and it is), this is the culmination of four and a half years of two people figuring one another out.  Love, passion, and compatability were never a problem.  I have never met someone so much like me.  She's funny, she loves football, and she has a giant heart.  No, we seemed to have everything you need, but we could never quite get over the hump.  I have always been quite scared of commitment of any sort.  Try me.  Come up and say "Travis, what is your favorite _________?"  and watch the blood drain from my face.  I will immediately start prefacing my answer with things like "I haven't thought about this a lot lately" or "I'm sure I'm leaving something out" or (my personal favorite) "How about a top 5?" 

I have finally found something I can commit to, though.  Once the realization hit, it was really quite easy.  Without this lady, my life seems a little darker, not as much fun, and very bland.  With her it's exciting, hopeful, and full of possibilities.  Could I make it without her, and her without me?  Sure we could.  But why would you want to, when the best life you can have is together?  I'm convinced I have found my soul mate and I'm excited about our future together.  We are planning a beach wedding, the leading candidate being

Charleston, SC

We will certainly have more details to share in the coming weeks.  We are so looking forward to sharing that day with our friends and family.  Thanks to all of you for riding this roller coaster over the years.  We never would have made it here without you.