spring-sunday...

March 31, 2019 Arlene Giddings

i made a list
of all the things
that i needed to get done today…
not wanted…
needed.

things like
laundry
and kitty litter,
dishes
and the sweeping up never ending
furballs…

and had thought that if
i crossed everything off
my need-to-do
list, i would reward myself
with a drive with the camera
and maybe (most definitely)
a stop at the dairy bar.

well…i crossed everything off the stupid list
and i did get out for a drive
and the sun even made a few short appearances
while i was out so that was a nice surprise.

i ended up at this wharf/lighthouse
(as i often do)….
spring always brings me through st nicholas
where i grew up,
where all my best memories are still vivid
and driving through there
always stirs up
strong emotion…
happy and bittersweet/sad

and then to our beach…
(yes, yes, I know…it’s a public beach…)

where the sun started to set

and i remembered I hadn’t gotten my ice cream yet!
but as i got close to the dairy bar,
i realized there were 682 cars and 3 trucks and possibly a snowmobile
ahead of me so
i settled for the next best thing…
a happy meal with a new robot toy!

my “i kinda wanted ice cream but i’ll settle for a new member of the robot army” face.

all in all
a very good spring-sunday!
:)
(well, it would have been better with a sundae.)
sigh.

friday i'm in love...(the one where I get totally off track)...

January 11, 2019 Arlene Giddings

♥ I love these little barns. And when I say I love them them,
I mean I love them with my whole heart…I love the pop of red,
the fact that they are all alone out there, but together…
a big one and a little one…that one tree…the worn paint, the doors…
I just love them. :)

I couldn’t tell you how to get to them
but I can tell you that I have taken dozens of photos of them
over the years. I kind of like that I am so bad at directions that finding them
always comes as a bit of a surprise to me…like seeing old friends at the grocery store
and being so happy that you pulled your cart/car over to catch up again.

I also love that I posted this on Facebook and so many people
not only recognized them but shared their love for them, too!
And one person even gave me a little bit of history about them…
which I love knowing. It just makes me happy.

Social media is a funny thing. :)
I know it has its pitfalls and downsides and dark sides…
but mostly…I love it….because it gives me the possibility of
connection
that a self proclaimed introvert like me
would not normally be able to make.

I’m getting off topic. :)

♥ Except that I am not really getting off topic. :)
The next thing I love is kinda related to social media, too.
For a long time, I only used my photography page for
sharing photography…and when I say photography,
I mean mainly paid sessions…and by that, I mean, mainly weddings.

And it was fantastic. I had great success with that page…
lots of interactions, connections, likes and comments
(and you know I like comments & likes! heehee)
but when the weddings stopped, I kind of stopped posting there.

I didn’t think that the people that followed my page for that
would be interested in what I am doing now…
haha….whatever it is that I am doing now…
dabbling….that’s what I am doing.
Picking at this, doodling that…little bit of writing,
a lot of random posts about mundane things in my life…
but I started slowly sharing little bits of that on my photography page
and, to my surprise and IMMENSE happiness,
not only did I not really lose any friends there,
I have actually started gaining some more! :)
And they comment and like and share and read my blog sometimes (hi there!!)
and we talk about books and cards and
where I should go on my next Friday adventure and
it makes me so incredibly happy.

Which makes me think about where to go next…
I feel like I would like to revamp that page a little…
but I would also like to revamp the blog…
and maybe start a Patreon page
which would give me another platform for sharing
some of the ideas that I have thinking about…
and might also help me be able to accomplish
some of the ideas that I have.
I feel like a Patreon page would force me to be
accountable and productive
and stop spinning my wheels and
jumping from one idea to another….
if I had paid subscribers waiting for specific things,
then that forces me to buckle down and focus…
but then…it’s about money…
and if you know me at all, you know I have issues
when it comes to pricing.

(I did my first wedding for 60.00 if that gives you an idea
of what I mean by that. Heh.)

Anyway…it’s a lot to think about and totally NOT where I
intended this post to go.

I wanted to tell you that I played Apples to Apples & Skip-Bo
for the first time last night and it was so fun, even though I lost.

And that I have a brand new bag of cinnamon hearts.
Oh…..and to say thanks for sticking with me for this long rambling muddled
post of a post. ♥

tuesday truths...

October 16, 2018 Arlene Giddings

***
i am not going to lie…
i absolutely love these giant crows.
i can’t remember the last time
i saw a piece of art that
stopped me in my tracks
and filled me with such
strong emotion….
with such strong
sadness.

and they are made out of tires.

and yet,
so
much
feeling.

wow.

you can read more about them here…

***
our cat, casey, had 2 kittens.
no photos yet,
because,
well…really…they aren’t all that cute.

they just look like mice that
can’t open their eyes.

***
annnnd i know i can’t keep them…
we already have 2 cats that kind of drive me crazy
but
i really want to keep them
and name them
ziggy stardust
and
major tom.

***

mackintosh toffee
and
an after eight bar
eaten at the same time
is a delicious combination.

i did not come up with this
on my own
but now
i can’t stop eating it…

(even though i might have
appeared to be grossed out by
the combination
when he suggested it…heh)

***
oh…and…i have writing group
on saturday…
and I HAVE NOT WRITTEN ONE WORD
ON THAT STORY
SINCE LAST SPRING.

sigh.

which might be a good reason
for me to commit to
nanowrimo
in november….
(once i get through in
inktober in october…heh)

i wasn't going to go out this morning...

September 22, 2018 Arlene Giddings

it sounded windy, it looked like it might rain…
I wasn’t going to go.

I woke up late.
I had a little bit of a headache.
I wasn’t going to go.

But then I did
AND I AM SO HAPPY THAT I DID!

It’s funny. I go for drives
all the time…
and I have gone to this wharf
in Egmont Bay
a million zillion times
but this was the first time
I ever drove down the little
dirt road that takes you
to the lighthouse
and I literally
was so excited
that I am pretty sure
I squealed and
clapped my hands
when I saw the view…
all I could think was
HOW have I never been here before?

and how many other views
on the island
have I never seen before?

and, for the record, it was REALLY windy…
to the point that I was a little afraid to go too close to the edge
of the cliffs because I was literally afraid
of getting blown off…

all in all, a pretty good first day of fall <3

the weekend of planes...

August 26, 2018 Arlene Giddings

I don't think it is a secret
that I
like the air show.

I go every time it comes to Summerside.

And, by "go", I mean, I don't just buy a ticket
and go one day...
on Friday, I drive around until I can find somewhere
to sit and watch them and practice
(which means sitting in a field from about 10:30
until 4:00 in order to see anything...)

Then, on Saturday, I make my son drive around
with me until we find a spot to watch them from...
this year, we found a great spot
but unfortunately, the CF18 was down for repair
but we did get to see the Snowbirds!

But then on Sunday, I go for the whole day.
18 came with me today and we got to see my brothers for a bit, too.
It was a beautiful day with blue skies
and fluffy white clouds...
and the CF18 was all fixed!!!!

PLUS I got to sit in the Hornet.
Completely stationary but...still!!!!
I was pretty excited...
even if I felt a little silly being the only grown up
in a group of 5-7 year olds waiting to get a chance
to sit in a stationary plane
and pretend they were driving it
(don't judge me...the little kids already did that.)

All in all....
it was a VERY successful weekend.

I can't wait for next time!