here.

i am trying to ground myself this morning
on a dark, rainy saturday
where the house is messy
and the dishes are cluttered and undone.
bagpipe christmas music playing
to try to calm my fraying nerves.
last minute editing knowing that i won't have time later
as my boy is in the Christmas parade 45 minutes away
and we try to shop for Christmas
but my heart just isn't in it yet.

i feel like there is too much going
so many loose ends flapping around in the wind...
weddings not done yet,
money coming in but never enough...
i feel like everything is blowing around
and
i can't
catch it
all
and hold it
at once...
i grasp bits and pieces
but enough
to make the picture whole
for more than a moment or two.

i won that spot in the photography course
but can't even find time to read the information
much less get near my camera.

i'm running on empty.

hyperventilating and trying to remind myself to calm the fuck down.

things are getting better, things are getting better, things are getting better...
but sometimes i think maybe that is the irony in it all,
things are getting better and then i start worrying about the things that are
no longer in my control...S can drive now, i should be happy
but i worry about him out on his own, what if someone comes too close
and hits his cane, his leg is still so fragile and unstable...
i worry and i worry and i worry.

i need to let go.
chill out.
calm down.

it will all come together.  you just had a busy week and now things have fallen behind.
when the house is cluttered, you get stressed...that is all that this is.

wow.
this is not what i meant to write here today.
but part of me thinks that if i don't start just coming here
and writing...it will never happen.
and i feel better now.
:)

all hallows eve...

and i was pleasantly surprised.

i am not a halloween person.
i don't know why.
i'm just not.
people are always surprised by it.
apparently i'm dark and creative and artsy
so i am supposed to love halloween.
but i don't.

and last night,
the first night of neither of my kids needing me
for trick or treating?
i was prepared for sadness.

but i was pleasantly surprised.

i helped 13 with his costume
and we were all pretty happy with the end result
and then i put out our pumpkins
{another story all on it's own}
and blared creepy scary music from the windows.

and kids came, not many cause our street is pretty quiet,
but they came.  and it was fun.
a lot of fun.
it was so fun that i hardly felt that twinge of
they-are-all-grown-up-and-don't-need-me-anymore sadness.
{note i said hardly.  which doesn't mean none.}




the poor girl fix

so....

our second-hand-fridge started rusting on the outside...
i'm not sure why
but it was just getting uglier and uglier.

but it worked just fine.

so...
i did the poor girl's fix and covered it with contact paper...

pretty happy with the result, if i do say so.
:)

monday morning, typing in the dark...

echoes of the weekend
still lingering
lots of sleep on saturday
{along with a migraine}
followed by lots of editing on sunday.
back to work today
but first
another appointment with a specialist
another round of tests

the cat ripped open
the chicken i forgot in the sink
last night
and left a chunk of bloody thigh
on the floor

i found of picture of our dog
mixed in with the wedding photos
i was editing
last night
and it put me over the edge
i never thought losing hobbes would feel this.
i never thought i would cry this hard
that i would feel this empty and guilty and
regretful for the times i said
i wish i didn't have a dog.

i wrote, "oh random picker, please make me a winner"...

and IT DID!

:)

i found out last night that i have won a spot on
Erin Wallace's A Love Supreme
eyes open:  creative photography e-course!!!

i am so excited!!!
it startes nov 1 which gives me lots of time to get
caught up on other things
and be ready to try something new...

you should check it out,
it looks like lots of fun!

thanks soulemama, who hosted the contest
and to erin
and to the random picker...you made my day!
:)