usually....

September 6, 2017 Arlene Giddings

usually...september is my month...
not just because it's my birthday
and our anniversary...
but because it's always like a
mini january for me...
a bit of a fresh start,
a reason to make lists (like i need a reason, haha)
and set {or re-set} goals...
to prepare for the hunkering
down of winter
after the go-go-go feeling of summer...

but i'm struggling a little this year.

i don't know if it's because
i have no little ones
starting first days of school
backpacks in hand,
teeth missing and new sneakers to break in...

i am out of sorts.

lately there has been too much of
saying goodbye to people before you are ready
and stupid migraines in a cluster,
news that you try to avoid
cause what can you do about it
anyway
but yet it still manages
to creep into your brain
and keep you awake at night
wondering about the warmer oceans
and global discontent...

i am out of sorts this september.

but even as i write this...
i can feel it lifting a bit.
i started thinking about fall...and boots
on trail walks...crunchy leaves...
the smell of woodsmoke heavy in the air...
candles burning...books to read...
pajama pants and big soft blankets.
chicken fricot...hot chocolate with melty marshmallows...

yeah.
i feel better already!
i have to go...i have lists to make!
:)

muddy creek market & other things i love...{warning...there might be photos}

September 3, 2017 Arlene Giddings

so i know i have talked about
muddy creek market
on here before and on facebook
but i finally remembered to take
my camera on a recent visit
out there.

i know this doesn't have to be said...but...i totally want that tractor.

but first...
meet apples
the most adorable big bunny
i have ever met.
he lives at the muddy creek market.

jenna has stocked up on tons
of beautiful items since the last time
i visited...so many talented artists
and crafts people...
it always amazes me what people create.

and i always feel this tiny shocked surprised
feeling when i see some of my own
doodles nestled in among the rest...
it's like i forget sometimes that
something is mine.
it happens every now and then
when someone posts a wedding or family photo
and i think...awwww...that's so sweet
or that's cool
and then i'm like...oh...heh.
i took that.
and it kind of surprises me
in a good way...
well...unless i'm losing my mind...
that might not be such a good surprise.

after muddy creek market
(and i am not going to lie...
i am fighting myself not to spell it crick..
i think i have always spelled it that way in my head)
i took a drive to ch'town (to buy tombow markers,
but that is too long and far too sad/pathetic a story
that only emphasizes how cheap i am, to share here)
and ate at the chip shack!!!
and got a hug from the queen of fries
(and from her mom, too!)
fries are soooooo damn good.

the prettiness on the drive...those clouds...sigh

i found some cute little shops :)

and some old favorites...

such a great day...
(well..except that i got home
and INSTANTLY regretted being
too cheap to buy the tombow markers, heh)

annnnnd....one more of the tractor...cause look at it..so cute and red...sigh.

48 years...

August 30, 2017 Arlene Giddings

48 years ago today
my parents
walked down the aisle
and
everything that followed
has forever
shaped my life.

when i was kid
i thought
i wanted
to live in new york
to go to all the parties and concerts and be a rock star (or an astronaut)...
to drive a purple fiaro
and follow billy idol
around the world...

i know now
that what i really
always wanted
is a marriage
just like my parents.

they fit together.

she tones down his crazy
finger snapping whistling antsy kind of ways
in a way no one else can.
and he makes her laugh
at least 5 times a day...
usually without even trying to.

they taught me so many things...
without ever saying
"here are the things that you need to learn about love...pay attention"

don't ever, ever call each other names in anger. no matter what. ever.
listen to each other's stories...yeah...maybe you don't know what the other person is talking about when they explaining a timing belt or venting about cranky customers but still...listen.
things always look better in the morning.
money is not the important thing.
if someone judges you on your clothes or your car or your house, you don't want to be friends with them anyway.
laugh. in my family, teasing and sarcasm mean hey...we like you. telling embarrassing funny stories about you...repeatedly...well...we obviously LOVE you. it's how we show affection.
be proud of who you are. be interesting. be kind. be resourceful. be creative. be original. be you.

happy 48 years, mom and dad....
you make it look easy.
♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥

tuesday truths...

August 29, 2017 Arlene Giddings

the idea that summer is coming
to a close is making me feel
panicky and anxious
like
i haven't done it all yet,
i'm not ready for it to end!
i loved the garden so much
that i made myself
sick
of the friggin' garden.
enough already with the
watering
and the picking
and the watering...
next year, i'm using a hose.
and not planting 60 billion
of EVERYTHING.
i want to go to the trailside cafe
and see dylan menzie...
because seriously...
have you heard him?
(and this one is in my most-favorite-church!)
i had a small panic attack
and thought that EVERYTHING on my
summer bucket list
had to be done by labor day
until someone kindly pointed out to me
that labor day is NOT the first day of fall.
heh.
but still...SO LITTLE TIME...
(there's that panicky feeling again)
maudie may have replaced the muppets
for now as number one in my
desert island movies...
i know that seems like a weird contrast...
but...if you didn't know that i might be a little weird by now
then you may just want to stop reading...heh...
(but....don't really stop reading! i was just kidding!)

i like loud things...

August 28, 2017 Arlene Giddings

a couple of weekends ago
on the spur of the moment
i went to the truck and tractor pulls
in crapaud.

i saw it on facebook
and thought...hmmm...that sounds loud...
packed up my camera
and bug spray
and went.

AND IT WAS SO FUN.

i only got there for the last hour or so
but got to see the truck pulls...
AND the tractors that go fast...and rev their engine
for a long time before going
making for a huge black cloud of smoke
which i know is probably bad for the
environment
but i can't help how exciting it is...
THEY WERE SO LOUD.

people told me to get ready,
to plug my ears,
you better plug your ears,
you're gonna wanna plug your ears...
and i was like nooooo...i'm fine.
i love noise.
but holy.
they were loud.
(i still couldn't plug my ears anyway...
how would i hold the camera)...

after the excitement of the tractor pulls
i took a drive around Victoria by the Sea...
one of my favorite places...

and stopped at the beach...

and then i went to Deckers dairy bar in
Cornwall for a salted caramel oreo cookie
hard ice cream in a waffle cone
and it was so good
i had to eat it all right away
and could not wait to take photos of it.
sorry.
next time.
:)