Archives for 2015

1. My birthday is tomorrow and I am having a very hard time with it and that seems to be the way of the world but I don’t recall a birthday being quite this rough since 35 and 35 well, that was pretty brutal. This is no milestone year but it’s been a year that has tested me and I’m not sure how I feel about 39 yet, but 38 has been a bitch.

2. I’ve also been sick now for over a week and that has done nothing to improve my surly mood. The cough comes and goes and so does the runny nose and fever face. NO IT IS NOT A HOT FLASH.

3. Who’s already starting to look for matching Christmas pajamas? WE ARE. The girls and their cousins have worn matching jammies for the past few Christmas mornings and I LOVE IT – so, October 15. Shopping for Christmas pajamas.

4. ArtPrize has come and gone in Grand Rapids. Honestly? I love it for a week but much beyond that, I just want everyone to get out of my way and go home. I don’t even know what pieces won this year – but I know that there were very few pieces that made an impact on me this year – unlike last year’s winner – which took my breath away from the moment I saw it. This piece, below, was one that I really loved this year.

5. My netflix binges lately have been HGTV inspired – which is mostly because since giving up cable, all I really miss is HGTV and Food Network. So, we’ve all the episodes of all the Genevieve Gorder shows we can find. And I’m about to start in on Fixer Upper… with a bit of Throw Down with Bobby Flay on the side to change things up. I don’t even really miss live television, but I will if I ever get all caught up on the good stuff.

6. Dude. I just helped my eight grader with math homework.

7. I’m not saying she’s going to get the right answer.

8. I’m really trying very hard to keep my chin up lately. I have a big stack of library books to read. Reading helps – sometimes it’s nice to be in an imaginary world.

9. The girls and I had family pictures done a few weeks ago – I can’t wait to see them. It’s weird to be on the other side of the lens, and I’m… kind of terrified a bit to be on the other side of the lens.

10. Ah. Tomorrow is a new day. An older day. Sigh.

1. I buy fancy butter. In our house, that’s the name for the brick of European salted butter that we’re all convinced just tastes better. It’s better on toasted bagels and pretty much rules the world.

2. The kids are BACK! IN! SCHOOL! Glory be. Never thought the day would come. And so far, so good.

3. Trying really hard to find the joy in life because I’ve been such a grumpelstiltsken lately. I found myself getting so frazzled by things lately and I hate that feeling. The feeling of overwhelm is not one that I cope well with – and so I’m trying to tell myself to just mosey on through life and get through it little by little. Yeah, obstacles suck… but if they didn’t, they’d call them something else. Like… waffles. I don’t know.

4. Been thinking a lot about the state of the health care system in the United States. It’s broken and I have no idea what the right answer is to make it not broken – but you know – yeesh. I’ve heard enough horror stories in just the past few days of people having to damn near beg their insurance companies to actually DO WHAT THEY ARE THERE TO DO. Y’all, that ain’t right.

5. Last night it was cool enough to sleep. Bliss.

6. There is a major construction detour in my town and it’s irritating the snot out of me. I think of how frazzled I get at work when I think I’ve messed up and I wonder about the dude who grossly underestimated the time it would take to do this project and I hope the fact that he’s inconvenienced everyone’s lives for MONTHS ON END has caused him to lose some sleep.

7. Sooooooo. Who’s ready for this election to be over already?

8. Everybody wants to be viral and while I love some of the messages, for the love of potatoes, I’m tired of videos of people standing in their underwear in public asking people to draw hearts on them. It was moving the first time. The second, third, fourth… not so much. It ceases to be effective when other people rehash someone’s idea over and over so it’s no longer something that feels authentic, but more so, “Well, it worked for the other girl, so maybe everyone will like it if I do it too!” Just. Be you, do your own thing, have your own idea.

9. I’m not saying that skinny people shouldn’t be standing in their underwear in public. Or that not so skinny people shouldn’t be standing in their underwear in public. I’m saying BE ORIGINAL for goodness sakes. Put the markers away. Do the hokey pokey for body acceptance. (Or don’t – because that would be stealing my idea.)

10. One of these days, I’m really going to follow through on that “getting more sleep” thing.

1. After three out of town trips this month, I’ve gotta say, I’m really tuckered out, and ready for summer to be over. I love to travel and have enjoyed myself – but I’m ready to spend some real time at home. I’ve been away three weekends this month and I feel like I’m drowning in all that hasn’t gotten done around my house.  This weekend I think I’ve gotta write myself a massive honey-do list and try to make some progress.

2. Making progress would be easier if things would QUIT BREAKING around my house. I’ve replaced my washing machine and tomorrow, my new refrigerator is due to arrive. When I got my oil changed yesterday, I was told I needed new tires like ASAP, and so basically I’m looking up at the sky saying, “Hey UNIVERSE – what the h-e-double-hockey-sticks is this really all about because dang!” I’m feeling a little overwhelmed by it all.

3. Especially because I JUST WANT TO RIP OUT THE STUPID 15 YEAR OLD CARPET AND REPLACE IT. It’s ugly, matted and just gross. But, y’know, no money tree.

4. This past weekend, the family got together and went up north to Mackinaw City. This is the Mackinac Bridge.

5. The thing about expecting a new fridge is you have to clean out your old one. Do you know how much salad dressing I threw away? Tons. Like seven half-used bottles that had expired. And barbecue sauce? I threw out two bottles of barbecue sauce – AND I DON’T EVEN USE THE STUFF (so you know it’s been in there a long time).

6. Just a few days left of the latest 365 project – cannot believe it’s been nearly another year. Time just keeps on keeping on.

7. And two weeks until school starts. I think the girls are ready for fifth grade and eight grade. This summer flew by faster than most – but every year I get to the point where I think year round schools are actually a really great idea. Now, two weeks before school starts, we’re at that point.

8. I got the results of my genetic testing and I would think I’d feel a bit something more – but instead it was fairly anticlimactic – because you know, it’s all well and good to know the cause but there aren’t any cures yet and my retinas are still stupid.

9. A taste of fall weather this week and while I know that most people are all, “WHERE IS SUMMER?!” and I’m like, “Oh! I don’t need to turn on the heater or the AC and I can wear jeans and not sweat a whole bunch.” In short: It’s bliss. BRING ON SEPTEMBER.

10. The thing about a three vacation month is that you never entirely catch up on sleep. I think I shall be exhausted until October, at this rate. I’m so tired I can still drink caffeine at 10 p.m. and still zonk right out. Zzzzzzz.

1. Annoyance levels are running high, y’all. Between schmucky people being schmucky, work loads being heavy, allergies being stupid. people on Facebook being ignorant, well… Pfffffft. Not sure why it’s so complicated, getting people to act nice but y’all: Just. Act. Nice.

2. My toaster is broken and heating toaster waffles isn’t the same. It’s not very efficient either. How the heck did my toaster break?

3. I don’t care what YOU do, but you’ll never convince me to spiral up some zucchini and actually refer to it as noodles. It’s not noodles. It’s vegetables. Leave my carbs alone.

4. We’ve been on a roll trying a new restaurant every month. This month was Grand Rapids Brewing Company. Our visit coincided with the GR Grandwich competition so Chris and I both ordered the Peach Pitt – but since we were at a brewing company (and I don’t beer much!), I got a lemon thyme margarita. The sandwich? Yum. The margarita? Mine are better.

5. We are smack in the middle of July. Summer is half over. And 2015 is more than half over. Time spins quickly. Too. Quickly.

6. I have started a blog for my retinitis pigmentosa whosie whatsit because it just seemed that all of my feelings related to it tend to be all icky and emotional and even though I’m still me – I have a hard time with bringing all of that here. Writing all that here. Perhaps it’s silly to look at this place as a haven when I’ve been through some other ugly stuff over the past nine and a half years (yeah) that I’ve been blogging – but… you know. That’s how it is.

7. We took an adventure this past weekend and went to see The Minions at a drive-in theater! I haven’t been to a drive in since I was a kid – I remember going with my family to see “Airplane!”. It was a fun adventure to put blankets out under the stars and watch a movie outside (the girls and I eventually went to sit in the car – the sound was better via the radio and the seats were comfier!).

8. I’ve never understood anxiety about dentists. Our family dentist is hilarious and calls each of us “homegirl.” Related: the girls have to go to the dentist today.

9. I realize that the fear is legit – I’m sure some of you who are scared of dentists aren’t scared of your eye doctors, so I feel ya.

10. There’s been so much rain this summer (boo) but more perfect weather days than any summer I can recall and at least one of those is a very good thing.