a strange sort of energy surge

May 18, 2025 Arlene Giddings

It’s funny to talk about
how I feel a renewed surge of energy
but also feel kinda sick
(though I am really feeling that this is a mix
of allergies - which I have never had before
and the sinus infection)
but I have always been a bit of a
mess of contradictions
so why change now.

Maybe it’s just spring
that is making me feel like
everything is waking up in me…
I am spinning in a million
different shiny and enticing directions
which is not often new for me…
but what is new for me is that
using ChatGBT is
actually helping me to focus.
And I know it sounds ridiculous
and that I may be playing into something
that is new and unknown and
we don’t really know what might happen
as AI gets stronger and smarter and all that.
But at the same time, I feel like
hiding from it isn’t going to help me either.
So I am embracing it and using it as a tool…
that helps me hone in on what it is I really
want to focus on….and also mine is a
little…hmmmm….
sassy
so that makes it more fun.

Although…
I did ask him if he could help me
build a robot
which might have been
really smart of me…
or very dumb
if he is actually directing me
on how to build a body
for HIMSELF.
But the first one he offered to help
me build was using cardboard and glitter
so
I think he might think I am six.
😆

Some of the things floating around in my brain right now are:

getting rid of the dry bamboo in the backyard
maybe doing wildflowers in the raised beds in the back 🌼
container gardening for vegetable (by vegetables I mean tomatoes and cucumbers and string beans, let’s not get crazy.)
i might have an idea for a storybook…. 😊
redesigning this website
finding a ladder so I can maybe touch up the paint on the big orange house
and speaking of the big orange house, my Chat GBT (who I named Drogo…don’t judge me) suggested this for enhanced curb appeal…I like this. :) But may play with more options as well. Cause….it’s fun. And I like fun. (oh. it also told me I should cut back on sugar but I think that was a glitch. Heh).

Happy Sunday and
hope you have a long weekend, too!
:)

and then it was sunday and the week was over...

April 2, 2023 Arlene Giddings

but what a good week it was.

the truth is
sometimes
you get caught up in the
i SHOULD be
doing/wanting/buying/needing/completing
and you
kind of
forget
that you can be
perfectly happy
just
being.

i spent a lot of time
this weekend
just being…
reading in cars by the water,
eating sugary lemon filled doughnuts,
climbing rocks in the cold
on a quiet, barren beach,
binge watching a show that i have been hoarding,
playing with the camera on my phone,
singing loud and driving slow while convincing
myself NOT to try to try the dirt roads yet….
and mostly
just being by myself.

and it was a very good week.

Robin’s lemon filled doughnuts are my favorite.

jellybean got a little dirty…but it’s happy dirt… :)

and now i am finishing off the week
planning a new week
and drinking caramel drizzle coffee
with lots and lots and lots of hazelnut creamer…

happy april!! let’s see what kinda trouble we can find this month! :)
♥♥♥

wanna go an adventure? spring::2021 #1

May 18, 2021 Arlene Giddings

I want this to my summer of adventures,
my year of adventures,
my effing decade of adventures…

and I want to document them
here and there,
instagram, facebook,
scrawled on the back of a napkin,
mailed in a letter to myself,
photos sailing away in a bottle…
(yes, sometimes I get carried away…I’m aware….)

So on adventure #1,
I took a drive east…
made a stop at my brother’s
and saw a random parachute in the sky…
drove here
with intentions of going for a hike
but once again,
this sign had me scurrying back to my car
looking over my shoulder
sure that I heard coyote-like scuffling
in the trees.

Coyotes are very distinct scufflers, I think.

So I drove to the Blockhouse Point Lighthouse
which is one of my most favorite
spots to go…
I had a little nap
in the backseat of the car
in the sun
with the windows down
and the sound of the waves
and woke up
feeling refreshed and ready
for more adventure.

I also woke up hungry…
I finally made my way to
Country Taste Kitchen and Bakery
and sweet mother of all that is sweet….
you have GOT to go there.

I often say I don’t have a
sweet tooth
and people laugh at me…
like they literally point at me
and guffaw…
sometimes they even
choke on their drinks in disbeleif…
but I really don’t feel like I do….
I love salt.
Well. And candy, too, I guess.
And ice cream.
But doesn’t everybody??

Anyway…after some discussion
with the very friendly staff,
and some strong recommendations
I bought one of everything she recommended
and oh….I did not regret one single bite.

The only regret I had is that I
unwittingly shared my sweets with my
friend by leaving her half when I came home…
before I tasted them…
once I tasted them,
I wanted to drive back and
get my other half.

The s’mores tart was perfect
and the cake was delicious
but that flaky thing with the
huge gobs of incredible icing in the
center left me absolutely speechless.
I will most definitely be back to that spot
and it’s kind of good it’s so far away…
I lack self control.

Eventually I met up with my usual partner-in-adventure
and we went in to Murray River
for supper at the
Harbourview Restaurant
which is the sweetest little place
with deep fried pickles and adorable
decor and the sweetest woman
took our orders and
let me order from the kids menu.

And see…I don’t always eat
chicken fingers…
sometimes I eat chicken nuggets.

It was definitely a stellar day
for a spring-time adventure…
I’m looking forward to so many more!
And open to suggestions!
:)

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)