Why do YOU ever Say HELLO to strangers?

I am doing my best here to "grow" by blog readership, why you ask??---and the answer is somewhere between , why not??,--- cause I can??, and I just happen to be congenial by nature. Actually what this post title is geared towards ---is how do YOU go about first meeting strangers. You the wall flower type, and wait til somebody DARES to talk to ya?, or the Aggressor type that practically growls "HELLO", daring the other person to make an issue out of it?? Most , myself included are somewhere in between, depending on who, when and where we are at the time
Focusing on the one particular action---YOU initiating the first step, saying hello----?? Whats your opening line?? Mine usually runs along the theme of , "Ah HI, my names Gary, I was invited by the host/hostess (fill in the blank), but I really don't know very many here, what brings you here?"
Anyway lame as the above is, it beats just clutching a drink and having a frozen smile on your face as you hug the wall-----how do YOU deal with the situation? (I'm flashing on the line from the Broadway play "A Streetcar Named Desire", where the female leads remarks, "---I have always been dependent upon the kindness of friends.!")-----so whats YOUR opening line with total strangers??

SWEEP OR SWOOP

Is a hectic world we all live in these days. To many its a dawn to dark flat out rat race, leaving them no time to relax and smell the roses (hmm, who originated that expression anyway?). To many people get lost in trying to be or at least appear to be a person they aren't----the weight of the stress of maintaining that artificial persona can get very heavy.
Its not unusual that a person has a "on the job" persona, "a meet the neighbors persona", meet the in-laws Persona, and even different variations of persona's with our close friends. The problem is------there is a little bit of the real self in all the different persona's we put on---but at some point, you have to ask yourself----is it worth it, ?----wouldn't it be great to just be yourself all the time, and "damn the torpedoes---full speed ahead"---?? I suspect like most people your more or less agreeing with this concept and nodding your head---but in real life, its followed by , yeah, yeahh----NO WAIT!!!!!??. I fully understand that-----I don't have suicide tendencies either---was kinda just saying out loud----wouldn't it be great if we could?
So what has any of the above got to do with the Title of this post----"SWEEP OR SWOOP"? to be honest, not exactly sure, but---what I wanted to kinda find out, ask about is---you blog, and you read others blog----The question is, that is to say MY question is---when reading others blogs--do you just read the most recent post, and nothing prior, or do you really settle into their blog and read a number of their postings?? In short do you SWEEP DOWN suck up the most recent posting and move on to another blog---or do you SWOOP DOWN and savor a bunch of their postings at one time----you a SWEEPER or a SWOOPER??

"The Music Man Gambit"

I have to assume some majority of people reading my blog are familiar with the music from the Broadway Musical (and the Hollywood movie of the same name) "The Music Man". Basically its about a sleazy salesman (Professor Hill) selling the idea of a band , complete with uniforms and instruments, to keep the kids from going a stray----. One of the songs in this musical sums up his approach , his sales pitch to the good citizens of River City, "Theres Trouble in River City"---the lyrics of the Song---"Trouble, trouble, trouble, theres Trouble right here in River City, Trouble, thats Trouble with a "T", that rymes with "P", and that stands for POOL---and here comes the real pitch---now that he has everyones attention----"Does johnny leave the house and rebuckle his Knickers BELOW, the knee----does he hide books in the corn crib, books telling stories from Captain Willy's Wizbang (gasp), and are certain words creeping into your boys vocabulary, words like ---"Swell"---and "So's your old man!---WELL you got trouble folks, trouble right here in River City----it goes on from there, its a great lyric and a extremely well done bit in the movie done by Robert Preston.
I mention all of this as, each succeeding generation chafes under their elders, wanting to break free and do things they're way----the elders, pretty sure their younguns aint smart enough yet--fighting em tooth and nail, but -------time does march on. Oh man, if I HAD been born 50 years later -----why I could---?? aw hell who am I kidding----nothing has really changed all that much. Oh Sure today we have computers, IPods, everything is digital.
Kids today apply for a job, no experience, just some grades and a few folk willing to vouch that Johnny or Sally are really good kids---and the kids get the same answers we got, gosh we were looking for somebody that has real experience-----or I'm sorry we also have a person who is married who has the same experience and skill as you do. In short the current generation goes though the same crisis we did when we were they're age---and it is and WAS traumatic for all of us. I mention this just to caution Parents dealing with offspring who are trying to spread their wings, trying to fly---be supportive, don't laugh , don't do the ever so easy to do , "I Told ya, I told ya a hundred times, you never listen--" bit. At this point in their lives, they already KNOW ---don't humiliate them by making them admit it.-------Thats all I have to say about that (when they aren't around to see ya, THEN you can laugh and jump up and down and relish the moment----but only briefly, unless ya get the kid a job, your stuck with him living at home----forever---yeah, thats not so funny is it?

My Dream Cruise

I have had this "thing" for lack of a better word, ---my dream vacation---it would be a Cruise of Alaska's inland water passage. This is the cruise where you leisurely sail up the Alaska coast, sucking in all the fantastic scenery, and get to see the big glaciers and REAL Icebergs---not to mention six meals a day, ---like Hello, Cruising is the ONLY way to travel. Its just like Tallulah said in the movie, "Lifeboat", " and what time does this place arrive?".
Actually when you add it all up cost wise-----cruising is quite competitive with flying to ones destination and staying in hotels there, buying dinners etc. On a cruise one boards the ship, unpacks and begins to immediately enjoy 0ne's vacationing time. The fun of exploring the ship, finding the neat little bars, and dining areas, the pool, gym, library, movie theatre, casino, etc.
Its amazing to how fast one adapts to getting up early, hitting the deck for that breakfast buffet, on the port lido deck, maybe a couple Bloody Mary's, -------maybe getting in a hour of sun tanning, not to mention some enjoyable body watching ---then one has to meet friends (for you surely have met others by now) for drinks and the mid-morning snack break.----next thing ya know your all out having fun poolside, then its lunch time-----maybe a nap on a deck chair, watching the world go bye---afternoon snack, a couple more drinks (life is good)---back to the room to change for dinner, after dinner maybe a movie, then hit the dance club, some late snacks and midnight drinks---another hard day of vacationing done-----oooh yeahh , Cruising is MY style of Travel.