that time i actually left the island...for another island...

October 18, 2020 Arlene Giddings

for years
i have been saying
i am going to go back
to cabot trail.

when we were kids
cabot trail was the family vacation
for many years…
4 kids (sometimes more)
2 adults (sometimes more)
jammed in the back of a van
with no windows
and no seatbelts
(sounds more like an abduction, i know
but i like to flair on the side of the dramatic…heehee).

this year, i did it
with the help of my brother and his sweet girlfriend
who let me tag along
with two of the teenage kids
and it was so much fun…
(plus i had my own window AND a seatbelt!)

we had to do a pretty quick trip
but it was so fall and pretty and
was also a great time to spend some concentrated
time with family.

i can’t wait to go again.

(also…one more thing off my 50-in-50 list!)

mary mary quite contrary

July 19, 2020 Arlene Giddings

how does your garden grow…

I actually took these
photos a couple of weeks ago…
it is looking even bigger now
plus, thanks to a good friend,
I was able to add 4 more deck tomato plants.

The cucumber plants are actually
way bigger now.
Next year, I would like to try to
make something cute
that will also keep them up a bit
but now, I am just trying to “train”
them to grow around the bamboo.

Sadly, my string bean plants
were eaten in infancy
by some heartless monster…
or possibly slugs?
I don’t know.
But I am going to try replanting some…
I do have a couple that might give me
few string beans
but
I WANT A LOT!

heehee.

This is the path I take
countless times a day
to water the garden
(the hose won’t reach
AND it leaks
so I have to use a watering can)
and to check on its progress
multiple times a day…

At some point,
I would like to put a real path
in here
with some cute stones
but not sure that
is going to happen this summer.

Good intentions though.
That counts, I think.
Heehee.

friday i'm in love...even if it's kinda rainy...

June 12, 2020 Arlene Giddings

I haven’t done a friday i’m in love for a bit…
just a few things that I am loving right now
and grateful for.

♥ i have been obsessed with this show “Bonus Family”
It’s Swedish…and ALLLLLLL subtitles
which I actually don’t mind because it means I can’t
scroll mindlessly on my phone while watching it…
but I seriously adore it.

♥ when a friend messages to tell you to look outside your door
and when you do, you find the cutest little tomato and pepper plants!
and then the same friend offers to show you how to make salsa
AND can it or bottle it or whatever it’s called in the fall
and you giggle to yourself because this friend
obviously
has no idea what she is getting herself into….hahahaha.
let’s not forget the fact that i once deep fried french fries…
in water….just to give some perspective. Haha.

♥ this. I am not sure what it is about the cello but
i kinda love it…

♥ jumbo mr freezies

♥ sugar cones with ice cream

♥ how green and vibrant the world looks after it rains

♥ listening to the radio loud while working from home

♥ that my favorite ice cream truck is opening up again!

Happy weekend! Hopefully the rain holds off
and if it doesn’t,
hopefully you find a nice dry place
to curl up and watch a movie or read a book or listen to music
that takes you to somewhere nice.

Also…taking recommendations on
any 3 of those things! Heehee.

the world can also be sweet... (a sappy sunday post)

June 7, 2020 Arlene Giddings

i have been meaning
to write a blog post about this
all week
but time kept
getting away from me,
as it often does.

last weekend,
i got a fb message from a friend
telling me that she knew someone
who was selling some smurfs.

(Note: this is not an odd message
for me to get. Haha. I actually get
things like this pretty frequently
& love that people think of me
when they see this stuff, but I digress…)

normally, they are smurfs i have or
newer smurfs which is still pretty exciting
but this…
this was different.

i didn’t have these smurfs
AND THERE WERE
LITTLE TINY MUSHROOM HOUSES!
and…
YOU CAN OPEN THE DOORS
TO THE LITTLE TINY MUSHROOM HOUSES.

i will be honest.
i wanted them all.
but…i am a grown up
and sometimes grown ups have to
suck it up and settle for a little less
than what they really want
in the name of stupid bills and responsibility
and blah-dididy blah blah-blah.

so…
i said i would definitely take the houses
(cause…did i tell you? THE DOORS OPEN!)
and the baby smurf with the teddy bear.

then i went for a walk.

my friend said she had a friend
that was coming to summerside
& would drop the smurfs off in mailbox
(also not a strange occurrence…heehee)

later that day, i find that cute little red & blue
box in my mailbox…
WITH ALL THE SMURFS
and the HOUSES WITH THE DOORS THAT OPEN
in it.

i am not gonna lie…
i squealed out loud (and scared the dog)
and might have jumped up and down a little
and immediately texted my friend
to ask what she was doing!!
and to get her email address so I could etransfer…

and she just said…
pay it forward.

every day i am so incredibly grateful
for the people in my life.

whether it’s smurfs, tomato plants, lilacs,
a kind word, a hug, a borrowed book, a smile,
some teasing (which I take as a sign of affection),
an ice cream recommendation, a card order,
a blog comment, an offer to help,
a quick “just checking in” message,
a bit of advice, sweets left on my deck…
all of these little things make me feel…
happy.
and so frigging grateful. ♥

now….to plot how to pay this forward…heehee

Happy Sunday.

friday i'm in love....the one in which i wax poetic about my broken down house...

February 7, 2020 Arlene Giddings

there is something about
being home
that just makes me
incredibly happy.

my house is not fancy…hell…
it’s not even finished.
half a string of christmas lights
still hang over the door
and bang against the window
but i like the little flash of bright colors
against the white of the snow outside.

i have water damage on the ceiling
and a makeshift ramp
to get to the leaking
front door…the same front door
you have to slam
to make sure it’s shut.
there’s a pumpkin head
with a top hat that was carved out of
one of our trees years ago
and i can’t bear to move it…
the kitchen faucet sprays like a geyser
and the countertop is broken…
one plug doesn’t work
and i am missing light fixtures
and baseboard
and have a couple holes in the wall…

oh. and i am pretty sure something might be
living
in the attic but i try not to think about that.

yet there is no place else i want to be.

every hole, every crack, every broken bit
holds a memory...a funny story…
a secret no one else knows.

i am home
and the freezing rain is pelting
against the windows,
the cat is sleeping on my computer chair,
the heater ticks and whirs behind me
while i listen to ben howard
and click away at the keyboard
thinking about how
happy i am
to be home.

currently loving:

♥ my newly decluttered little blue desk space
♥ ben howard
♥ lemon, garlic and olive oil…on everything
♥ such a great idea!
♥ getting back to the bullet journal
♥ sunflower seeds
♥ this made me cry…just a little tiny bit
♥ this made me cry just a little bit more

happy freezing rain friday….stay warm. :)