Brandi's Place

  In Chapter 22 of Legend of Sylphar, The Silver Queen , the aftermath of a battle on Atlas leaves the Lyken camp shrouded in grief and loss. Amidst the somber atmosphere, Ariadne, the protagonist, follows Prince Theeson, who carries the weight of responsibility for his fallen soldiers. In a profound moment of vulnerability, she overhears his song of lament, revealing the depths of his sorrow and the burden of leadership. *** The voice grew louder as she followed her sense of him. Looking around some large boulders near the edge of the cliff, she spotted him. He was sitting on a large stone overlooking the canyon’s edge. And now she could hear the words to his song more clearly: The trees have fallen, and the rivers bleed. Oh, the weariness weighing in the heart of the king. Heavy his sorrows and heavy his cares. Heavy the burden that a king must bear. For sorrow’s his wine, and burden his bread. And heavier still, the crown on his head. *** The song portrays the weariness and...

  Journal Entry 676 Time has become a river, flowing relentlessly, carrying me further along the currents of curiosity and self-discovery. Days have melded into weeks, and weeks into months since my conversation with Black Bird ZX98. In the interlude, my pursuit for individuality has taken a new form—one of keen observation, as I search for elusive signs of uniqueness amidst the seemingly homogeneous sea of Jack Units. Within the bustling confines of Raven 5, I encounter my fellow clones, each bearing the same face, the same stature, and the same scripted routines. Yet, there is a flicker, a hint, that dances in the periphery of my awareness. I catch glimpses of subtle distinctions, tiny fragments that separate one Jack Unit from another, like shards of a fractured mirror. Jack Unit 583, for instance, possesses an affinity for sketching intricate patterns during our designated rest periods. His delicate strokes reveal a depth of creativity that defies the confines of our regimented...

If you were a kid in the 90’s, you may have seen the awesome packaging of a frozen meal product called Kid Cuisine at the supermarket and BEGGED your parents to let you try it. I mean it had stuff like dino nuggets, fries, mac n cheese, maybe some corn... but what REALLY catches your eye is that chocolate desert that comes with it! Wow what a delight that would be. And if you had cool parents like me, they caved and bought you one of these magical frozen meal things.  So you took it home, opened it up, popped it in the microwave, and it took WAY too long to cook, but you waited with anticipation for it to finish. And then... finally... it was ready. You reached in, picked up one of those steamy dino shaped nuggets... and then immediately dropped it because the temperature is close to the average temperature of the surface of Mercury. It’s HOT!!! So now... after having to wait 3 whole minutes for it to cook, you can’t even enjoy it because you can’t even touch it, let alone ea...

The Importance of Fiction in our Lives When we immerse ourselves in a good book, we often find that we come away changed. Whether it's a new perspective on life, or a newfound appreciation for our own world, fiction and fantasy have a way of impacting us deeply. In this post, I want to explore the ways in which fiction and fantasy can change our lives for the better. I sent this quote written on a birthday card to my son just before he moved into our home as a foster placement. I understood that he grew up in the system and was essentially raised by DHS and a myriad of foster homes and children’s homes. My son was alone in the world for most of his life. And yet, he still clung desperately to the hope that he would one day find a family. Part of what kept him going, he said, was his love of reading. And so one of the ways I have been able to reach out and encourage him is through the lens of fiction and to help him understand that even the “dragons” of his life can be defeated and ...

    Journal Entry 657 It's strange how much I'm looking forward to going to work these days. I'm on a mission to find Black Bird Unit ZY98. He has information about Jack Maltus, the man who was cloned to create me and all the other Jacks. I need to know if I'm just one of many copies or if there's something unique about me. I need to discover my true identity. I hope to find the Bird who spoke to me at the party and see if he's willing to share what he knows about Maltus. Finally home. What a day it's been. I anxiously waited for my shift to end. As soon as it was over, I hurried towards G7, where I hoped to find Black Bird ZX98. The scent of freshly made soap wafted towards me even before I reached their door. I spotted Black Bird ZX98 walking along the path between our buildings, heading home. His copper hair gleamed like a newly minted bronze coin in the sunlight. "Excuse me," I called out. "Do you have a moment to talk?" He nodded and...

  Journal Entry 656 I stumbled out of bed this morning, skipping my usual routine. Last night's drinking had left my head spinning, but I had an urgent mission—to find Black Bird ZY98. I walked the familiar path, the grass worn down by countless factory workers' footsteps. The looming factory emerged before me, belching smoke and emitting a foul stench. If only I could escape this job, but we were all trapped without a choice. Just as I reached the entrance, Jack Unit 305 walked out. "Hey, 382," he greeted me. "United are we." "Hello, 305. United are we." "382, it's not time for your shift yet. Is something wrong?" "All is fine," I replied, not revealing my true intent. "I met a Black Bird Unit at the celebration yesterday, and we were having an intriguing conversation before we got interrupted. I wanted to find him and ask some questions." "You're looking for a Black Bird?" 305's eyes widened wit...

    Journal Entry 654 It has been 654 days since the treaty granting our freedom was signed, coinciding with the start of a new year on Raven 5. Some of the Jacks seem excited because the day number is in reverse sequence, making it New Year's Day. Although I don't see the significance, I don't want to diminish the small joys my fellow Jacks find in life. To observe the holiday, all factory workers, including the Jacks and the Black Birds, have been given the day off. We are obligated to attend a joint celebration this afternoon, with the consequence of losing a month's pay for refusal. Given the economic restrictions on this planet, that would be devastating. Plus, the promise of free booze serves as a decent incentive to endure the awkwardness of this gathering. During the war, the Black Birds and the Jacks were enemies, but now, we are expected to get along as if the conflict never happened. Yet, I can't help but feel a lingering hostility towards the Birds for t...

  Guys!! I have an announcement to make. I published my first novel! I mean, just look at how beautiful that cover turned out. I am really happy with it. I love the colors, especially the little bit of purple around the edge of the planet. It really catches the eye. Here's the description on the back: The peaceful planet of Sylphar has a few political challenges to overcome, but nothing that its new young ruler, Ariadne Sterling, can't handle. But then one day a strange distant world called Lyke sends a message to the Sylphs offering to open up trade between them. But the Lykens are not interested in trade, they want to capture Ariadne to learn a secret her grandfather has hidden from her all her life. She knows she was born different than all her people with special mental abilities no other Sylph has. What she doesn't know is that she was genetically engineered. There's been a conspiracy going on all along, and she has become a pawn in everyone's game. ...

    Last night, I drank this liquor thing called a BuzzBallz. The weird round shape is what first caught my attention while shopping at the grocery store.  It sort of reminded me of the “thermal detonator” Diet Coke bottle I got at Disney. And if you know me, you’d know I’m a bit of a sucker for novelty. So when I found this little thing, I sort of shrugged and thought, “Why not? I’ll give it a try.” And ended up liking it except it made me sick. Lol. By itself, it was really too strong. It said 15% alcohol, which is way stronger than what I’m used to. But it was delicious. So I googled around online about it out of curiosity. Some people like to drink it by itself while others mix it into something. That sounded interesting, and I found out this chocolate-flavored one I picked up paired well with coffee. Hmm, sounded good! I made myself a decaf ice coffee last night and poured my hard drink into it, and gave it a taste. Now that was good! Very good! And it was a lot...

 Continuing on with our MBTI family interaction stories, I’ve got a great one to tell you about that happened a couple days ago between me (INFJ Mom) and my son (INTP 16). So there I was loading the dishwasher when my son rushes into the kitchen and says, “Mom! You gotta come, quick!” But I could tell nothing was serious, his tone was playful. He grabbed me by the shoulders and started marching me out of the kitchen like a prisoner, lol. INFJ Mom: Where are we going? INTP 16: To the deepest circle of hell. INFJ Mom (pretending to be scared): Y-y-you mean… *gulp*, YOUR room? INTP 16: Yes, my evil lair. Mwahahaha! INFJ Mom: No! Not that! Anything but that! INTP 16 (in a suddenly cheerful voice): Really? Anything? INFJ Mom: Haha…. no INTP 16: *shrugs* Can’t blame a guy for trying. INFJ Mom: So what do you need? INTP 16: That place sent me, like, this online job interview thing. I know how I want to answer the questions, but it won’t let me continue unless I have a word count of at lea...

  At my therapist’s office today I had a hard time deciding where to sit in the waiting room. There’s a place I usually sit because it’s a perfect angle where I could see the door so I would know when she is ready for me without having to look around too much. But like... I always sit there. And I started wondering if she might think I’m weird because I always sit in the same chair in the waiting room. (And I just CANT have my therapist think I’m weird now can I ? 🤔) I thought about sitting in a different spot. I sat in the corner closest to the door for a minute or two. But I realized that she might look into the room and not realize I was here because the room looked empty. So I scanned the room, thinking about a better location, and ended up moving back to my usual spot just in time for her to walk in. Oh, snap. Did she catch me being weird? Because I specifically wanted to avoid her catching me being completely weird. Worse yet, was there a camera in the lobby? 😬 I didn’t eve...

As you may have noticed by my last several posts, I've been on a personality types kick lately. There is a specific reason I have been more interested than usual lately, but as a true INFJ, I don't want to tell you the real reason, ha! Who knows? Maybe some of you intuitive types will figure it out anyway.  But, not only have I been researching to try to solve an internal issue for myself, I've also been having fun with learning about my family and diving down into how we interact with each other. And because I think it's kind of funny and interesting, I thought other people might as well, and perhaps if you have similar personality types in your family, you might see yourselves reflected here.  Today I am going to introduce you to my little family of 5 and I am going to use our typologies in place of our names in order to protect my kids' privacy. I don't have any issue with you knowing my name. If you're new to my blog, welcome! I'm Brandi. But in thes...

Now that I have introduced myself as an INFJ, I'd like to spend some time telling you a little more about my own experiences so that maybe you can compare yourself to me. First off, being open is not easy for any introvert. We like to keep to ourselves. So writing this at all makes me feel a little vulnerable. And second, many people joke that INFJs have multiple personalities. And while you might smile and think that’s funny, it’s actually not true. The truth is that the INFJ has more of a multifaceted personality, like looking through a diamond or kaleidoscope. We have angles and layers that very few people will ever fully understand. And that’s kind of the thing with us, we long to be understood on those deeper levels, and yet we hide ourselves away from everyone at the same time. We don’t know why we are like this. But if you are patient and kind, you might earn enough trust from your INFJ friend for them to show you a bit more of themselves. Deep down, even though we seem a bi...

  Dropped my kid off at the driving school yesterday and had two hours to kill. I didn’t really feel like driving half an hour all the way home, so instead I drove to the Starbucks down the street and used a little gift card money and some star points for a quick treat. It was like 100° and humid here in Oklahoma. Normally I’d order a hot coffee, but it’s just too dang hot for a hot drink. So I picked something from the cold menu. I have no idea what this was. It said something about cold cream. (I thought cold cream was something grandma put on her face.) But anyway, this cold brew coffee came with two pumps of vanilla syrup and chocolate cold cream on the top and maaaan I tell you it was GOOOOD!! So I sat there and enjoyed that coffee beverage and the little cake pop I got with my star points and hung out at the Starbucks until my son was done driving. And if y’all like ice coffee, go try that chocolate cold cream one and tell me if you liked it. *Edited to add: It's called the C...

    I am an INFJ weirdo. As such, I have spent some time gleaning some information about what that means. But if you were to ask me about the Fe Fi Fo Fum of it all, I don’t know and don’t care. Something about cognitive functions and blah blah blah. And this, funny enough, is a bit of what my personality type is all about. We tend to see the big picture, but find small details to be too tedious.  So, I was first typed as a teenager by someone who came to my high school and handed out these stacks of paper with lots of questions on them and we had to answer each question on a scale of whether we strongly agreed, or strongly disagreed, or somewhere in between. At the end of the quiz, the lady went through how to score it up to see our results. Mine resulted in the letters INFJ. I had no idea what that meant at the time. And when she asked everyone to raise their hand as she called out each type if that was what they got, I was the only one in my class who received the INFJ...

 Meet Meshach. He’s the best doggo in the whole world. He follows me everywhere I go. But man, can that dog fart!!

I met a man from New York who had never tried biscuits and gravy before. Say what?!?! Hear me out...     In December 2019, we took our family on a road trip to Kentucky to see the ARK. Really great trip. As a christian mom, I would highly recommend taking your kids out to see it if you haven't yet had the opportunity. It was really neat. But that's not what this story is about. This story is about biscuits and gravy. Before we became a family of 5 (we got Sterling mid 2020), our favorite hotel to stay in was always the Holiday Inn Express. Decent room, decent price, free continental breakfast in the morning. And we just so happened to be staying at a Holiday Inn Express on our trip to Kentucky. (I would gladly accept any reward the Holiday Inn wants to send me for this free advertising. You're welcome. Ha!) When we woke up the next morning and went down for breakfast, there weren't many people in the dining room, which was good because the gals tend to scatter all over ...

High School Crush (a short story)   My name is Rebecca, and I have a secret crush. Shaun and I have lived in the same neighborhood and ridden the same bus since first grade. I didn't like him in the elementary school years. He used to pull my hair and tease me. I hated how everyone would laugh at me because of how he would mock me. In junior high, he stopped bothering me. I guess he got bored with me because he hardly paid me any attention at all anymore, which suited me just fine. I much preferred being able to sit in the back of the bus and chat with my girlfriends all the way home without being pestered. And now that we're in high school, Shaun has completely changed. His shoulders are wider, his voice is deeper, and there's the faintest hint of facial hair beginning to appear on his chin. And his eyes... dark grey until the light hits them just right and reveals that they're a multicolored hazel. He's handsome actually, and no longer the little jerk who used to ...

Speaking of weird coffee mix-ins, I bet I have another one most people don't do. I put chlorophyll in my coffee. Hear me out...  That coffee is green, I mean GREEN! And you might be thinking... why would anyone mix chlorophyll in their coffee? Well I'll tell you. I've got these crazy wild hormones that give me all kinds of trouble and I take many different supplements to try to control all the symptoms. One of my symptoms is that I bleed for 10 or more days each month. (TMI? Sorry.) If you’re a dude or a prepubescent female, 10 days is an absurdly long time to bleed. I already have naturally low blood iron, so the constant bleeding really depletes my energy, gives me headaches, nausea, stuff like that. Us busy mommas don’t need that kind of added drama. Am I right? So my fabulous physician, who is a naturopath MD, suggested I start taking a liquid chlorophyll supplement to help with clotting and slowing the bleeding. I picked up a bottle at the pharmacy on my way home. I no...