Heaven and hell

In the midst of a discussion on religion this past Saturday, the question "do you believe in heaven and hell?" was posed. I could not answer the question back in July 2005:
I still haven’t been able to wrap my head around the idea that our short time on earth destines us a place in either heaven or hell for eternity. And I say again: there’s no point in worrying about something out of my control. If that exists, I’m sure I will be taken care of one way or another if I lead a good life on earth. It’ll just be the cherry on top of an already delicious sundae [I hope I am not overly optimistic in hoping that I will either be cured of my lactose intolerance or that there exists lactose free sundaes in heaven].

As a child, I thought heaven and hell were physical concepts. This time around, a new concept came to me. We hear from people who survived [obviously] near-death experiences that their lives flashed before their lives when they thought they were going to die. I think that when you realize your life is about to end, reliving your experiences in that split-second could feel like a lifetime. If you lived a good life and reviewed scenes from it, it would probably give you a comforting sense of satisfaction. If you lived a bad life and reviewed scenes from it, the regret that rush you must tortue you for what feels like an eternity.

A solid 4 on the girly-girl scale

I was always about a 1.5 on the girly-girl scale and was completely comfortable there. The rise started when Steve would not let me buy anymore polo tops (the compromise is that I can still wear the ones I currently own). And after getting hooked on buying nice clothes in Florida malls, I look for daintier pieces with nicer fabrics. Next, he got me a manicure, pedicure, facial, and make-up lesson as part of my Christmas present a year and a half ago. Just last month, I cashed in my birthday spa certificate from him for gel nail tips on my fingers for graduation. I'm also hooked on having pretty nails and will probably maintain them in some way from now on. This spring, I bought lots of pretty heels and sandals and get giddy when I look at nice shoes.

So now I consider myself a 4 on the girly-girl scale and am completely comfortable here. Any further increase needs to be supported by a generous cash flow. Every move up so far required investment. Pretty tops cost a lot more polo tops. I'd do my own nails if I could handle it...but I can't. I spent three hours trying to paint my toe nails and still did a crappy job because it kept smudging and clumping. I would've redone them for the 5th time if it weren't actually time to leave by then. So manicures and pedicures will put a dent in my pocket now and then.