So here is the best way I could think of to let folks know a little bit about me, the basics. I'm sure that most of you are well aware of the game 20 Questions, and if you aren't you should be! I took the challenge for myself. Let the questions begin.

20 Questions

1) Full Name: Ebony Rachelle Rose
2) Education: Bachelor of Arts, Communications
3) Favorite Color: Pink
4) Favorite Food: Pineapples, Strawberries and Mexican Food
5) Boxers or Briefs: Boxer-briefs, you know, the tight ones
6) Favorite Actress/Actor: Barbra Streisand / Denzel Washington
7) Favorite Singer: Barbra Streisand
8) Favorite Movie: Tie—Funny Girl, The Way We Were
9) Most Embarrassing Moment: I didn’t have one of these until recently…well worth the wait: My best friend sent me an e-mail. I was having a horrible day and found it as the perfect opportunity to vent about all of the things that had me down. Well, needless to say I vented alright and then proceeded to e-mail the note back to her…so I thought. In my anger I hadn’t realized that she had forwarded me a note and I had responded back to all twenty people. A couple responded and tried to console me about my crappy day, but I missed most of them as I was curled up in a ball under my desk!
10) Favorite Place Visited: Tie—Rome, Italy and Edinburgh, Scotland
11) Favorite Smell: Vanilla
12) Favorite Flower: Pink Roses
13) Hobbies: Cooking, travel, all mass media consumption
14) Favorite Day of the Week: Sundays
15) Favorite Ice Cream Flavor: Amy’s Mexican Vanilla
16) Favorite Animal: Lions
17) Favorite Drink: Vodka Tonic
18) Letterman or Leno: Letterman
19) Favorite TV Show: The Cosby Show, Will & Grace, ER
20) Best Part About 20 Questions: Finishing!

How Quickly Things Change

I have certainly neglected my new budding site over the last week, but sometimes life moves quicker than you are prepared for. Since my last posting I have celebrated my mom's birthday, re-evaluated a few friendships and been accepted to graduate school...what a week! Whew, talk about brain overload. I'm in the middle of a lot of change sin life which is pretty exciting but terrifying at the same time. I'm hoping that the next few months go by with little to no drama to give me time to prepare for all of the real adjustments yet to take place. I knew that I started this blog for a reason, I'll certainly need it to keep in touch with all of the poeple I'm leaving behind. Wow, that sounded sad! But now all of my friends and family have a reason to hit the "big Apple"...maybe I should start thinking about how much I am going to charge for room rentals in my tiny NYC apartment.

But right now I am off to continue the celebration of my upcoming move. Last night dinner, tonight drinks. Viva la Happy Hour!

So I just spent the last couple of days in Louisiana, Shreveport to be exact. Though not the most beautiful city, a bit industrial, it has a certain charm. There is just something about a place where you can lose all of your money and then stroll through fancy hotel lobbies looking at old Hollywood memoribillia. Let's just call Shreveport Las Vegas Lite--all of the charm of the original "Sin City" without all of the glitz!

I come from a long line of gamblers but it must skip a generation here and there because the thrill of gambling is completely lost on me. I just don't see the point of spending lots of cash on a game of pure chance and reeping little to no pay off--literally! I know that there is logic and skill inloved in a game of poker or black jack but as someone who can hardly bare to spend five bucks on a machine, there is no way I am paying ten times that just to get inot a game of cards. The main attraction at the casino is the slot machine and the draw of that is pretty much the sparkly lights and the power of pulling the arm to take a spin at your chance to be an instant thousandaire! But these days, even that thrill is gone as most machine have opted for buttons to spin instead of the arm...I suppose that it is easier to push your money away than to pull. I must admit that I even got sucked in to Regis' attempt at the slot machine version of Who Wants to be a Millionaire? I was able to work my way up the ladder to 100 nickels but without a lifeline I was soon left with zero nickels, and I didn't even get to shake his hand! I must hand it to the gamblers anonymous folks though, their billboards are not lost on me!

I'm planning a trip to the original gambler's hot bed, Las Vegas, this summer. For me, it's more of a chance to hang out in a fun place then gamble my money away. Although the free drinks are a nice perk, I definitalyprefer to pay for my own drink and enjoy it than loose all of my cash on a machine that doesn't gaurantee a buzz!

Till next time...

A Rose In Bloom
Blog Post #1

I started reading blogs just before Christmas time 2002 at the urging of a friend, before then I had never even heard of a blog. I was immediately drawn into reading blogs for a number of reasons, but mainly, I was comforted by the ramblings of others who so clearly expressed many of the things that I think about everyday. Perhaps there is something voyerstic about reading into the thoughts and lives of people we don't know, but ultimately I feel as if I have gotten to know the people whose blogs I visit on a regular basis. And though I may never meet them in real life, I take comfort in knowing that they are there.

So that is part of the reason I decided to start a blog. I wanted to have a place where I could express my own opinions and ideas--no one has to agree--but it is nice to put them out there. I plan to use my blog to chronicle the ordinary and the extraordinary in my life. The mundane and the often insane things that I seem to find my self attached to. Later down the line I will post a fact sheet about myself and links to some of my favorite places on the web, but for now I will write about the one thing that I know best, me!

I think that the journey will be rewarding. I hope that it eventually becomes a way to keep me connected to my friends and family who quickly seem to be spanning the globe. Perhaps it will even give me the chance to connect with others who enjoy the process...of blooming.

Let the journey begin....