Note: Touch

My friend Sally came up to me the other day and flat out said, "You have a people-touching problem." See, I have this weird quirk where I need to have physical contact with someone when I am around them. Don't take this the wrong way; I mean simple, light, innocent touch - like arm to arm or palm to palm. It's not romantic nor is it to gain something. I am constantly touching my friends - whether it be poking them, making them run into me, or sitting close to them. Most of the time is ok, but other times, my friends turn to me and say, "You have a people-touching problem."

I have no idea why I love innocent physical human contact so much. Maybe it's because I didn't get enough when I was younger. Maybe it's because I was too afraid of being hurt. Maybe I felt I would be rejected. Who knows. But I do know that now, all I want is touch that has no point other than to feel another person's pulse and warmth against mine. I need to know that people are real. I want to know that my heart is not the only one beating in the world.

Why is it such taboo to hold someone's hand that isn't your romantic partner? Where along the line of things did holding hands become specific to romantic partners? I love to hold hands - the feeling of immediate connection and being able to feel their pulse. I can talk to someone, but sometimes I feel like I am so far removed from them that I can't relate to them. But putting my hand in theirs, they become real and human. It is a reassuring squeeze of the hand.

The benefits of human contact is immense. A baby needs to be held to know they are safe. Their mother's heartbeat is something that will calm a fussy baby easily, but that cannot be done unless the baby is near the mother's chest. Even now, when I'm feeling lonely or sad, a hug makes it better.

I may not know the science behind it, but I know for me, touch is what really connects us with each other. You truly cannot know if someone is real and solid or just an image unless you touch them. Once you touch them, they become real. Think of movies when a couple or two friends see each other for the first time in years. They slowly approach each other and put a hand somewhere on the person (face, shoulder, arm, etc.). They need to know they are real and they simply aren't a mirage.

We all need to know we are not alone in this universe. Sometimes words aren't enough to keep us sane; sometimes holding someone's hand keeps us grounded.

Let yourself touch and be touched - emotionally and physically. It's innocent and absolutely lovely.

Peace!

-Nicole

Best Facebook Hack Ever

1. 3 hour naps are glorious.
2. Twizzlers are yummy.
3. Don't leave your computer open...your Facebook will be hacked.
4. Sometimes crazy things happen.

So Megan left her computer open in my dorm while she ran back to her dorm to grab a few things. So, I hacked her Facebook, Tumblr, and Twitter. (A 'hack' is when you pose as a person on their profile, often done when the person is gone.) I took my opportunity to write something on her Facebook. So instead of writing another post, I thought I would share what I wrote. Here you go.

Hello world. I am Nicole and Megan made the mistake of leaving her compute open in my dorm while she was running back to her's to grab some stuff. So, I took this opportunity to hack her Facebook and post something for the world to see.

Let me start off by saying it's been quite the adventure the past few months of college. I grew up near Concordia (only about 15 minutes away), so I didn't expect to experience too much change. But boy was I wrong. I grew up an only child living with just my mom. Now I am living with 30 girls, sharing one bathroom and having to figure out a balance with them. I have met people who I never would have had the opportunity to meet otherwise, even though I am only 15 minutes away from home. One of those people is Megan. Megan and I were talking a few days ago about how we probably would have never been friends before college. We aren't completely sure why this is true, but somehow the circumstances and timing were right to make this friendship work.

So here's my little message to you: sometimes crazy things happen. Sometimes you end up tackling someone to the ground and think that now that person is going to hate you...but then you end up connected at the heart and spending hours talking about anything and everything. (Yay Megan!) Or maybe sometimes you are at a football game and you are a little too hyper for your own good and the person next to you leans over and says, "Do you speak whale?" and then you end up being "those girls" on your floor that everyone has to tell to shut up because you are laughing too loud. (Yay Melissa!)

The thing is all this wouldn't have happened if I hadn't let myself be a bit crazy. Maybe sometimes you need to be a bit insane to become sane...who knows?

Well, Megan's back and is currently sitting on a bed, writing what I'm sure is an poem or thought. It's really cool to see - she's sort of in her element.

Ok, that's all I've got. Thanks for reading my hack note.

Peace!

-Nicole

Note: Verbing

So today in my written communication class, we were talking about the invention of ideas. In groups, we were supposed to take a recent fad and do a spiderweb chart/graph to analyze it. My group had a fairly large list of idea we could expand. One of items: Verbing.

"What's that?," you ask. Well, let me tell you. Verbing (v): the action of adding -ing to a noun to create a verb. ex: Googling, YouTubing, Facebooking, etc.

We have been doing this for as long as we can remember. I heard the other day that the word "friend" is not longer just a noun. It has been added as a verb. I wanted to see if this was true so I opened my dictionary on my computer and sure enough, there it is. friend (v): add (someone) to a list of contacts associated with a social networking website: I am friended by 29 people who I have not friended back.

My group was trying to figure out why this is true. We first thought that is a marketing tool for companies, like Google. They were able to make 'to Google' an actual phrase. Then we thought it could possibly be used for news reports. Since a news report needs to be short and sweet, it might just be easier to shorten it up. But then we said it could be that we are possibly just lazy. Instead of saying, "I am going to go search for that on the internet using Google," we say instead, "Google it."

Is it laziness or is it ingenuity? It's just food for thought. Comment and let me know!

Peace!

-Nicole

Note: Dear You

Dear Readers,

Exciting news! Today we hit 1,234 views! I don't know how this is bigger than 1,000 page views, but somehow it is.

Oh, and I want more comments. I know you are all reading this, but I still get no comments. You don't need a profile to post a comment. Please? I want feedback.

Another thing, check out the new page...it's a comprehensive list of simple pleasures. If you have something that you think should be added, just comment on the page and I'll list it!

That's all. Enjoy your Monday.

-Nicole

Note: Glances

Hmm. Two posts in one day? Yes, it is true. I had two really great ideas for an entry for today but they didn't seem to go together. So I decided to separate them and create a small note. They won't contain a list of lessons (cause I already said them). Instead, it is going to be a random thought or two.

Do you ever have the feeling you are being watched? I seem to be getting that feeling more often now. But more than being watched, I seem to be watching (and sometimes staring at) people. I am constantly intrigued by people. I often can't believe that they would choose to talk to me, sit next to me, or even be in the same room as me. It isn't that I am not deserving of being talked to or looked at, it is that they are just so amazing. Just amazing that I can't help but stare at them in utter awe.

I didn't have much of an opportunity to do so in high school. I did go to school with some pretty funky people but I had also known them for so long that nothing was new to me or awe-inspiring.  Plus some people didn't even want to be there, so it put a damper on things.

So here I am, at a college some would die to go to. I have met people who are like-minded and who I can connect to without much effort, which has never really happened. Or if it did, the people didn't want to give me the time of day. It is like the feeling you had when you were younger: you wanted to be friends with that certain person, but they thought you were weird so they ran away. But here, I am suddenly someone to get to know. And it's cool.

I am also finding myself looking for reactions. Again, in high school, people reacted differently to situations than I did. It was a very rare thing to find someone who reacted to a situation in about the same way as I did. So I am looking for reactions. I am still wary of how this will all work out and if I will be suddenly outcasted (which I know logically I won't be).

So next time you catch me staring at you, it's not because I am creepy, but it is because I am looking at you in awe and waiting for your reaction.

Hope you enjoyed my little note.

Peace!

-Nicole