And Just Like That, Summer Is Over
And my vacation. And the BF’s vacation. And actually summer was over on Wednesday of last week. But I really was on vacation, and I did not post one darn thing to this site! I used Facebook to track a few things we did, but I tried to stay away from the technology if I could. Quick re-cap: The kids are both settled into high school so far, schedules, practice, even homework already. The BF took his motorcycle trip to “The Tail of The Dragon” (and got rained on every single day), and he’s home again. I had a stay-cation and accomplished about half of a list of things to do. And now I have work in a few hours. The BF goes back in the AM. Just a typical pre-autumn Sunday morning. The pic above is from when we fished. I’ll post the arty stuff later. Maybe. I’m not good at follow up apparently. I did manage to consolidate all my picture folders though, so I feel good about that. Everything that I want to use is in one tidy spot. And all my closets are cleaned! I know, go crazy on vacay. I told you, it’s not always an exciting life. Sometimes you have to clean closets. And it takes a week to do them. The laundry is done too. AND the socks are matched and put away. The socks. My giant, month-long, loose basket, of 4-people socks, is gone and done. My kids didn’t even have a spot for socks anymore in their dressers because they have been wearing them straight from the basket for so long. Anyway, I have to hit the shower. I am hoping for a quick and painless night on my first day back. Luckily, Monday is my normal day off, and then I can really prepare for the work jump with the next 4 days on. At least I have the weekend! Ok. Well, thanks for staying with me, or checking here to see if anything was happening, I will start daily again. As a special surprise, I found all my street money in one of the closets and that needs to be posted asap. We found a one hundred dollar bill last year! And birds. And benches. And wildlife. Birds and benches and wildlife, on my. So you can see, the thrill-ride continues. Let me also just put those extra fishing pics here for you right now. There’s not even a lot of them. And no actual fish. We didn’t catch a thing. Later.
Just One More Day…
We always want one more day. I wish I could win the lottery. I wish I was independently wealthy. I wish I had a rich uncle who left me a boatload of cash. I wish I was a housewife. Well, maybe not that last one. But we do always want just one more day off from work and life right? To go fishing and have long lunches. Today is Friday. Back to work for me. The BF is on his way home. The kids are now fully entrenched in The Walking Dead. The TV show. The girl just started watching it. The boy has been watching it. But now he’s watching it again with her. She is staying up late and having nightmares, but she won’t stop. She is stomping around the house, yelling at the TV when things are getting tense during an episode, but she won’t stop. My boy has to keep calling her back into the room so she doesn’t miss the next thing that is going to make her mad. She loves Daryll. She hates Rick. She hates Shane. But not really. She just doesn’t like them. But she loves loves loves Daryll. And Glen. And the blonde. It’s complicated. Apparently. I will say this show does inspire strong feelings. At least I know they will be fine when I leave. I think she is only at season 2. Plenty to keep them busy with. I have been up for a few hours and let me tell you, I think I got more done just this morning than I got done in the 2 days I was actually off. Why does it always work that way for me? Too much time and I do nothing. Not enough and I have it almost all done. Grass watered. Flowers revived (hopefully). Laundry nearly finished. That’s the surprising one. House is clean and I need to hop into the shower asap. At least I know that my house will stay clean because the kids probably won’t move now for the next 10 hours.
Alright. Let me wrap this up. I really got to go. I hope it rains just a little. My outdoor stuff needs that good rainwater. First day of summer. Do something fun. Here’s another pic from the fishing hole. FYI. We didn’t catch one darn fish. And, these are Stevie’s photos. All credit goes to her. Later.
Desolation Row
Another one and a half months goes by…and here we are again.
That pic above is from the BF’s 2 week, cross country, gorgeous scenery, motorcycle trip I had previously written about, oh say, 4 or 5 months ago. (And perfectly illustrates the vast emptiness that can be found here in this rolling, hilly, disaster of a website as well.) He planned it, funded it, took the vacation time, rode it, and came back home. And I didn’t post a word about it. I had such big plans: tracking him across the country, mapping out the route on a day by day basis, posting all the cool pics he sent back…but no. I am a bad GF. Besides completely ignoring this site, I barely even went ON the computer, much less the internet for fun. I checked money and paid bills. Thank goodness for a system that allows you to pay anything instantly and at the very last minute. The checks I actually have to mail now, are always soooo late. I stink at maintaining the high level of entertainment and info all NONE of you expect. Oh yes. I see my numbers. I see my site visits. ZERO. But that’s cool. Nothing to see here anyway folks. Let’s just keep moving along.
Maybe another day…maybe in a few more hours…if I stay up really late and use my time to be productive instead of sitting on the couch watching Sex and the City reruns over and over. That’s another picture from the trip that I really like. Lots of loose ends. Raw material. Big sky. It’s solid and unstable at the same time. Like this site. Like it’s owner. And now I’ve discovered this fab new game called Coin Dozer and Coin Dozer-World Tour that I can play on my smart phone. (See how I added that “smart” thing in there?, to ironically point out that I am participating in the polar opposite of anything that would be considered “smart”.) I am done for. I have sunk so low that I cannot even be bothered to form words (sorry Words with Friends–you are too hard on my few last functioning brain cells) or draw even the simplest of pictures (stick men, bow your heads in shame, Draw Something is also too difficult for my slowly atrophying brain to handle at this time), only you, Coin Dozer, are the thing keeping my mind from total mush. Like a bad melon. Drop coins on tray. Coins push forward. Coins barely move. Coins drop into prize area. Coins drop off side gutter. Get more coins. That’s it. Drop and roll. Nothing to it. I use up all my coins and I quit the game. When I come back in a few hours, I magically have more coins! I drop them all on the tray and quit again. So easy. So effortless. No stress. Takes about 5 minutes. I can switch back and forth between the two games (I hear that’s what some people do) but I prefer to just drop them all in one big load and come back later. I’m sure that’s a metaphor for something, but I am not going there. I’ve typed too much today already. Picture moment.
Anyway. This was just a quick hey and how ya doing until I can somehow get back on track with life. Again. It’s not bad, it’s just busy. And if I haven’t said it enough in the last 6 months, the shift I work sucks for social time. My schedule blows but I’m learning to adapt. Slowly. But things have been happening. I got a raise. The difference is literally in change…you know…cents. But it’s more. And I accrued 2 whole days of sick time if I need it! Nice. I never call off, but you never know. Winter is a coming. And I have managed to lose a nonfluctuating, solid, thirty pounds now, with a high/low weight differential of about 33-35 pounds total. And I have somehow managed to keep it all off. Even when I actually have time to eat food. Healthier choices, blah blah blah. I really need to add that exercise thing in again. Then I can really put up some numbers. But that kind of talk is for another time and place. BF vacation insert. Oregon. At the ocean. Just lounging.
Besides me, the kids are gearing up for school again. The boy is already back. Freshman year. Started Monday. Jumped right in. Full day with football practice for 3 hours after that. And then every day this week. And every day next week. And so on until football season is over. Adjustment. But he’s such a cool kid I know he can handle it all. The girl is on reprieve until next week. I do need to get her up and out of this house though because we need school supplies and some pants. Notebooks and jeans, notebooks and jeans, notebooks and jeans……Yeah! Notebooks and jeans! That’s a Target commercial. In case you were wondering what that was all about. High fives if you totally sang it in your head. Bonus if you sang it out loud!
I really need to finish here.
Since my last post even more crap happened that I have pics of, and words for, but no motivation to put into action.
A second water main break, two weeks after the first one, in my front yard. It’s just dirt now with a patch of grass.
Some fence damage from another, separate, tree limb throwing itself to its death on the same stormy day. It landed in the neighbors driveway. Rude.
Another tree in my back yard decided it had enough of all that “standing” and “staying rooted to the ground” type nonsense, and forced me to take her down professionally before she split herself in two and took out the neighbors garage and house and the main power lines to the block.
Now I have an entire 50 years and 60 feet of tree laying all over my grass.
And I paid $1500 for the privilege of helping out this lazy tree!
Gratuitous product placement. That’s one big chainsaw!
In action.
Debris.
Parameters. At least it all fit in the yard.
We had some real ugly weather around here too. And I posted nothing! Everyone who knows me, knows I love talking about that weather! 100+ degrees! Tornados! Microbursts! Scary ass lightning! I had a car break down. Stevie got trapped in a safety belt. The kids went on vacation. Madison, Wisconsin. Benches. Bugs. Birds. Racoons. Skunks. Opossums. Football. A car museum. The list goes on and on. Without looking at all the pictures I can’t even remember what we did, what I’ve already talked about and what I’ve missed. I will sum up safely with, probably not much. It’s all preview and hints and expectation. No substance. No meat. Speaking of meat, I really really really need to finish this “quick” post, because I also have to go “shopping” shopping too. Down to the last rolls of TP and some spoiled milk. I want to make a nice dinner tonight and possibly drink some wine. Dream big! Besides I think I have more coins I could be dropping. Here are some more pictures. Without comment. They really don’t need anything else.
Thanks for hanging. Now get out there and do anything else besides staring at your computer reading fluff pieces like this. Life is too short! 11 AM! I have got to go! Here is another random pic from the big trip! It’s a monument! Later!
Kentucky Kids. Arriving at 8:05 AM Friday Morning
Catching the first fish....4:45 PM Friday afternoon.
Hanging out on the boat at about 6 PM. Life is good!
just shy of pretty 