Things that make me smile?
Have you ever had one of those really crazy moments in your car where you start laughing out loud? I had one earlier this week. I was sitting at a stoplight and the song, “Welcome to the Jungle” by Guns and Roses came on. At that exact moment, a homeless man with a bandana wrapped around his head shimmeyed past. I’m not sure you can call it dancing but whatever it was, he looked like he was having a fantastic time. I started to laugh and at that exact moment he turned to look at me! My first thought was, “I’m so busted”. My second thought after I saw him smile and nod at me, “He knows I wasn’t laughing at him. He knows I was appreciating his good time”. It made my day. And it makes me smile thinking about now.
You know what else makes my day? When a little girl looks up to you and wants to be just as tall as you. My friend, Teresa has a daughter who wants to grow as tall as ‘her mommy’s friend, Holli’. I love that! It’s almost as refreshing as my own 4 nieces who compete to be the tallest. I make a point to tell them that I’m saving all of my evening gowns for them someday so they won’t have to look as hard as I did and the excitement in their eyes is priceless. They can’t wait. They don’t know what they are waiting for but they know it’s something good. Height is something to behold with them. It’s exciting. It’s powerful. Kids want to be JUST LIKE YOU. But here’s the key that I think a lot of people may miss…kids don’t see just the height. Yeah that’s part of it but they see the confidence and how you carry yourself and that’s what they are picking up on. That’s who they want to embody when they grow up.
When one of my younger nieces was 4 or maybe 5 years old I visited her pre-school and she introduced me to everyone in the room. It wasn’t my name that mattered or even the fact that I was Miss Tall International® at the time. What mattered to the boys and the girls was, “Could I touch the ceiling?” (I could) and I felt like a hero that day. Had I been embarrassed about my height, I would not have walked away with that amazing feeling. My niece was proud because she had the ‘Cool Aunt’ for show-and-tell. (Okay, I might’ve made up the ‘Cool’ part, but you get my point). We both walked away feeling awesome.
Another random thing that made me smile this week was one of the many times I got noticed. I went to a comedy club and as I was leaving I passed by where the comedians were selling their CD’s and t-shirts. I walked right up to the table and all 3 of the comedians ignored everyone directly in front of them and they all greeted me, “Hey Tall Girl, thanks for coming to the show tonight.” “How did you like the show?” “Would you like to buy a t-shirt/CD?” “Is that your boyfriend with you?” “How’d you like to go out sometime with someone a little shorter?” Keep in mind, people are 3 deep in front of me but all 3 comedians only have eyes for me. Either that or I’m seriously the tallest woman they have ever seen! I’m shouting over the tops of everyone how I loved the show and that I have a saying about shorter men. I made a motion from shoulder to shoulder and I said, “Must be this tall to ride the ride, Fellas.” I smiled, waved and walked out the door with my boyfriend in tow. Now tell me, how could you NOT smile after that?
Here are some other quick thoughts on things that made me smile this week:
· Knowing that I have exit row seats for my Portland – to – Amsterdam flight because the Delta flight attendant saw our heights (both of us at 6’4”) and she knew that we would really appreciate them
· Receiving 8 free drink tickets from a co-worker for my Delta flight (what a great guy that Roy!
· Getting my hair highlighted and knowing that the lighter color makes me feel like spring is on the way
· Buying new make-up at MAC that can cover anything (you’ll understand when you read below)
Now, I do have something to tell you that does not make me smile. It doesn’t really have anything to do with height but perhaps if you have pets you can relate. I have cats and there’s one in particular who isn’t cuddly during the day, but at night he likes to sleep on my head (the cat in the picture is the offending cat, Meow-Meow). Earlier this week he was directly on top of my head and I must’ve moved during the night in a way that startled him because he launched himself straight off of my face using his back-claws. I now have a black-eye. Honestly, it looks kinda cool, like I’m rough and I got in an altercation however I’m leaving for my big trip very soon and I certainly hope that the bruising and scratches calm down. Nothing that a little make-up won’t cover, I suppose.
It’s been pretty darn good week around my neck of the woods and I can’t complain. I’ll be taking in some new adventures over the next couple of weeks which you can be sure I will write about. Until then…
As mentioned in many Spring Trend Reports Maxi dresses are big this season and i can't get enough of this trend. Maxi dresses with their carefree swish and sway have me swooning over them. What I absolutely LOVE about this trend is the ultra feminie look it combines with easy style. Maxi dresses are so versatile; they can be worn from day to night with a quick easy change of accessories. The key to having the perfect Maxi dress for us tall women is definately LENGTH !! Your entire look can go wrong in a hurry if the length isnt bang on. This season we have made our new cotton Maxi Dress 64" long from the shoulder seam. No more having to sacrifice not wearing heels or constantly pulling it down (hoping it will somehow stretch lol) . 
