Trav's Thoughts

Quick note: I didn't make it around to everyone's MM post yesterday. Sorry about that. I'll catch up as the week goes on.

This is the infamous Archive Meme, devised by Kyra and passed to me by Starrlight.

Starrlight says...

Kyra at The 108th has invented a brand new, fresh out of the oven Meme!

This is how it will work:

-Go back through your archives and post the links to your five favorite blog posts that you've written. ... but there is a catch:

Link 1 must be about family.
Link 2 must be about friends.
Link 3 must be about yourself, who you are... what you're all about...
Link 4 must be about something you love
Link 5 can be anything you choose.

Kyra thinks (and I agree) that this is a great way to circulate some of the great older posts everyone had written, return to a few great places in our memories and also learn a little something about ourselves and each other that we may not know.

Post your five links and then tag five other people. At least TWO of the people you tag must be newer acquaintences so that you get to know each other better.... and don't forget to read the archive posts and leave comments!

Now this is tough. I had to really search because I don't often write about family and don't get real personal. And I wanted to do the meme justice by choosing good posts. And what do you know? I found that I had been more open that I thought I had.

About Family - It is important to me to honor service. This post is about the men in my family who have served in the military. I have also learned from the women in my life that the honor is in the act of service as much as the kind of service. That's why I'm breaking the rules already and giving you another post About Family. Yup - I'm a rascal!

About Friends - This post is actually more FOR friends than about them. I was feeling silly and a little nostalgic back in February when I hit my 100th post. And while I was putting this meme together, I was thinking just today how extraordinary the last 15 months have been. I made real friends on a message board. You can scoff, but if you're reading this post then you know exactly what I'm talking about. Our online communities are every bit as real as the friends we can see and touch every day.

About Me - I really am not the kind of guy who lives in the past. My glory days are not all behind me. But football is so much a part of who I am. This particular post was both painful and joyful to write.

Something I love - Well, it's not something. It's someone and her name is Pam. I still remember the details of this like I was in the moment again.

Anything I choose - I write. I write poems and scenes and character sketches and actions. When I began this blog I was mired in a seriously debilitating case of writer's block. And although my novel still languishes unfinished, other words have come to me and many times I've shared them here.

I hope you enjoy this trip into the archives. I tried to find some posts that meant something to me, and that many of my newer visitors might not have seen the first time around.

I already broke the rules once in this meme, which is always very liberating and paves the way for more rule breaking. I don't really like to tag that often, so I'm only going to tag three other bloggers with this, instead of the requisite five as stated in the rules.

I suspect Kyra and Starrlight will appreciate my deviant behavior and punish me.

What?

Oh! I meant NOT punish me! Heehee!!

First off, I tag Shelby over at ...Time With Shelby, who is new to my daily blogging rounds.

Next I tag the delightful Sanni at Coffe 2 Go because she recently celebrated her bloggiversay and I know she has some fantastic posts in her archives.

And finally I tag Tammie Jean at Long Drives To Nowhere. I'm often mesmerized by the way TJ's memories unfold in beautiful, thought-provoking prose.

That's it. Take your time ladies.