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.

mooney's pond...

June 4, 2020 Arlene Giddings

this was not my first time here…
the last time i was here,
it was fall
and i was still married
although things
were starting to fall apart,
i just didn’t really know.

it’s funny how my life is
still divided into
before the separation/
after the separation.

i love this place though.
this spot totally being my favorite,
the sound of rushing water,
the stillness, the calm.
i could have stayed there for a long time.

it is such a beautiful walk through here…
and just the perfect length of time
AND I don’t get lost.
i just wish it wasn’t quite so far away

finding my way back to me....

May 24, 2020 Arlene Giddings

For the first time since this COVID 19 thing started,
I felt a little bit more like myself.
I actually got up early Friday morning
and did a real “Friday Adventure”….
tried Dromore trail for the first time….
I did the South Loop,
well, actually, it’s possible I did the South Loop
twice
because I got confused and might have gone
the wrong way.

It’s a wonder I can make it out of a roundabout really.

After Dromore, I found a great, winding
but very narrow dirt road
that seemed to go on forever.

Then I accidentally came across Mooney’s Pond,
which I absolutely love.
I took photos there, too
but will have to share them on a different day.

I had a quick nap in the parking lot
of the trail with the windows open
and a light breeze blowing in
the smell of fresh cut grass.

Then came back to Summerside
to meet up with a best friend
who I haven’t seen for far too long
and we video called another friend
who is too far away…

I came home exhausted and happy.

As soon as I set foot on that trail,
all I could think is
THIS is what I needed…
I realize I have to make a bigger effort
to get out of the house
now that I am working from home.
It is very easy to slide into a rut of
home and home…and home.

The rest of the weekend was
pretty great too….but I have
rambled long enough… :)

(oh. but the other thing I realized
I have missed…is my camera….
this also made me very happy all weekend…
kinda like reconnecting with an old friend)

sunday adventures...& a little bit of unexpected truth...

September 29, 2019 Arlene Giddings

I generally don’t have a car on fridays anymore
so I have to take my adventure days
when I can get them…
this week, it happened to be on sunday.

I took a drive to Bonshaw
and did a little part of the trail there.
Fun fact…when I am on the trail with my camera,
I may be in there for an hour or more
but have only walked for 15 minutes.
Every detail catches me…
I stop for moss and mushrooms,
rotting tree trunks, bright colored leaves
and mud puddles.

Today was no exception.

The truth is I have been struggling a little bit lately
in an up and down kind of way.
Some days, I am perfectly happy being by myself
(not that I am ever really “by myself”,
I have my amazing kids and family and friends)
but other days, I struggle a teeny tiny bit.

Which is what I love about getting out with my camera.
I can lose myself for hours
looking for angles and light and color and bokeh
and when it all comes together
it just makes me so happy….
like this photo below…I smiled the rest of way down the trail
because I knew I was going to love this one,
I knew I got my “one good shot”.

and sometimes,
i think….
you have to lose yourself
a little bit in something
in order to find yourself.

When I think back to
where I was a year ago…
well….I don’t even like to think
about this time last year…
things were pretty dark and dreary and sad and scary
but that kind of helps put
my little “down days” into perspective.

It makes me realize how far I have come.

Honestly…
this is not what I came here to write today
but it’s what came out…
so I am going to go with it
and this time next year,
I can come back again
& see how much farther I have gone.

Forward is forward…even the baby steps…
and if you are struggling with something right now,
go easy on yourself…and know you are not alone either…
:)