What I'm thinking

I love that my nephew just finished his first year of elementary school. I think he's awesome and feel incredibly blessed that at this time and place in our lives we live just miles apart and I'm able to attend his school programs and baseball games. I treasure those times together, watching him grow, listening to him talk about birds and baseball and reading and movies and music.

I'm loving the new little house I'm renting. I love that I'm close to work, close to hip-hang-outs, and actually part of a real neighborhood. In the two months I've lived there I've met more neighbors than in all the 5+ years I've lived in Phoenix. I saw one of my neighbors making sun tea on his porch the other day and thought it was the coolest thing (and something you can almost do year-round here in Phoenix!).

I'm incredibly proud of my Dakotan heritage. The rural farming community that my parents and grandparents grew up in is celebrating their 125th anniversary next year--a quasquicentennial, or "Big Q" as I saw on a poster (because quasquicentennial apparently doesn't roll off the tongue). I was 9-years-old when the town celebrated it's centennial (100 years) and I have crystal clear memories of the amusement park rides that took over Main Street, the city-wide parade (that I helped build a float for), and the amazing pageant/drama show that the town put on. My grandpa grew a beard, my grandma donned a bonnet, and our entire family gathered together for the celebration. Now, with only one living grandparent still in residence, our family doesn't get back up there very often, but on a recent visit I realized that there are folks in that community that have known me my entire life. I've never lived there but they've seen me at auction sales and centennial celebrations, at funerals and 80th birthday gatherings. They've seen me in photos on my grandma's wall and in newspaper stories announcing our visit to town. We may not be Facebook friends or Christmas card exchangers, but they know me, or rather, they know my family. Both lines of my family. And though they may think me a "city girl" and my love for lattes a little looney, they accept me as a part of their extended community. And I'm realizing that in some ways, that small community is more "home" than any place I've ever, or will ever, live.

I think I'm getting lazy. I'm not talking gym-lazy here (though that is also an issue), I'm talking I need to buy a garden hose and seriously considered ordering one from Amazon just so I wouldn't have to lug one home from an actual store. For now I'm going to blame the summer heat of Phoenix for causing this line of thinking.

I'm not using the internet at home for a few weeks (due to somehow exceeding my monthly home internet data-usage limit last month--though I was out of town for almost 2 weeks). Instead, I'm teaching myself how to utilize my iPhone for more things (like shopping on Amazon, see paragraph above), and I'm reading more. Crazy concepts, right? It's been a bit eye-opening. There's only so much time I can spend looking at my tiny iPhone screen, so unlike with my laptop, I'm not losing track of time reading my favorite blogs, planning my next travel adventure, or getting caught up with my favorite TV shows. I think this mini-vacation from internet overuse is not necessarily a bad thing (though it's still easier to pick up a book then to tackle items on my to do list).

Today is my parent's 37th (I think) wedding anniversary. They do so much for our family (babysitting, house projects, loaning of vehicles), and I'm so grateful for them. I can never repay all the things they've done for me, all the complaints they've listened to, all the coffees they've bought and meals they've cooked. My heart overflows with gratitude and I'm thankful for the blessing they are to our family.

I've promised blog posts to several friends, and though this post doesn't really cover any of the things it's supposed to (photos of my new house, my crazy auction sale adventure, visiting a new church), it's randomness sort of characterizes my state of mind these days.

Oh, and one more thing I've learned of late--words can hurt. I've received some harsh criticism recently, and whether justly or unjustly received, it's called me to take a closer look at my own communications with others. Because (shockingly) I do sometimes speak without thinking. Or, think and then speak (with the intention to hurt). And apparently I sometimes say/do things that I think are innocent, but have completely different implications. This is life, right? And sometimes it's not always a bowl of cherries, but I'm trying to learn to "take the high road" and "grow a thicker skin" but, man, sometimes that's just hard. And hard ain't easy (though margaritas, lattes and Culver's hamburgers help).

Hello, hello? Is this thing on?

So...I haven't posted in awhile.

No single reason why...though the downward slide started when things got a bit crazy last summer.  I returned from Europe (without a tattoo or boyfriend). I changed jobs. I insanely tried to juggle several jobs. I wanted to run away and join the circus.

But now I'm back and have oh-so-many-things to post about.

An overview of my 2011 trip-a-month travels and plans for 2012.
My new car, new job, new plans to move into downtown Phoenix.
An update on my 101 list (my 1,001 days expires on Oct. 14, 2012 so I had better get crackin' on things!).
My adventures in babysitting, my so-called dating life, my love for all things book club & Downton Abbey related.
A short story about how Tastefully Simple has changed my "cooking" and gift-giving life forever.
My new iphone and exposure to the phenomenon of itunes.
Etc., etc., etc.

Let the fun begin!

Some perspective

When I first started blogging, a little over a year ago, I started my online writing adventure as a way to 1) mark events/thoughts/experiences at a point in time of my own life, and 2) to share those events/thoughts/experiences with others. Some months I blogged more than others. I've noticed a trend lately that I haven't been blogging as often, pretty much because, unless there's something actually going on (trip, event, etc.), I'm not sure what to blog about. Which makes me wonder...is my life totally boring? AM I totally boring? Do I not have thoughts/feelings/opinions about things going on (that aren't necessarily travel or event-related)?? Ack!!! Talk about pressure!!!

So, some random things that are on my mind lately...

1) I'm trying to find more 'joy on the job'--I have a good position, a great boss, a comfortable work environment--sounds like it should be enough to keep me joyful and content, right? Right. But, some days I really have to work at the joyful and contentment part. And some days I'm not very good at it and I have this internal dialogue with myself that goes something like this: "Girl--get it TOGETHER! You are where God wants you to be, right here, right now, and He has a plan and purpose for your life! Stop being so selfish!"

2) I'm getting tired of freeway/rush hour driving. Let me amend that--I'm getting tired of freeway/rush hour driving when my destination is church (45 miles from home round trip - a route I take 3x/week), or work (20 miles from home round trip - a route I take 5x/week ). It seems that I don't mind the driving at all when my destinations are say, the mall, or homes of friends and family. I miss the days, back in South Dakota, when I lived across the street from my office, and within walking distance of my church. (I do not however, miss the snow/ice/cold of living in a northern state!) I don't have an ipod, or a CD player in my car, so it could be that I'm getting tired of listening to the radio (NPR and the classical music station are my go-tos now--everything else just sounds the same). I think a run to the library for some books on tape is in order (do they even make books on tape anymore?!?).

3) I attended a lecture a few weeks ago featuring a presentation by the provost of the institution where I work. The presentation was on food and the research the provost is doing in food psychology--the title of her lecture was "Why we like the foods we do: the Good, the Bad & the Fattening." Though I originally went, basically to see the provost in person, the lecture was actually really interesting and informative. Some of my take-aways: the more you eat something, the more you'll like it; candy is basically sugar and butter; kids will eat vegetables if you flavor them with something sweet/fatty like cream cheese and sugar--eventually faze out the sweet/fat and they'll still eat the veggies because their body has been conditioned to like them; giving rewards for food consumption is not a good way to train kids to eat their green beans (ie, if you eat your green beans, you can have dessert, etc.). At one point the presenter made a comment that she rarely, if ever, goes out to eat--that she loves to cook and prefers to cook with fresh/natural ingredients (she also mentioned she's currently working on a cookbook). I was fascinated by this comment, mostly because I eat out a lot--sometimes at least 5 days/week (take-out, etc.), and even those days when I do eat at home, it's usually one of four things: cereal, frozen pizza (or some other type of frozen meal), crepes, or salad. Boring--yes. Easy to clean up and plan for--yes. I know some people just love to cook, but cooking for one, and then being left with all the clean-up is, for the most part, just not worth the effort to me. I do try, on occasion, to whip out a new recipe (with sometimes mixed results)--on the one hand, I wish I cooked more, but on the other hand, cooking exhausts me and I'd rather expend my energies elsewhere!

I've read lots of blogs where the author goes through a dry-spell, has writer's block, or is busy with other things in life. I suppose I don't really believe that my life is boring but maybe I'm just going through my own drought season...waiting for spring! Which makes me think of the lyrics to the song 'Make Our Garden Grow', from Candide (an operetta composed by Leonard Bernstein in the 1950s).

MAKE OUR GARDEN GROW - from Candide

You've been a fool, and so have I,
But come and by my wife.
And let us try, before we die,
To make some sense of life.

We're neither pure, nor wise, nor good;
We'll do the best we know.
We'll build our house and chop our wood
And make our garden grow,
And make our garden grow...

I thought the world was sugar cake,
For so our master said.
But now I'll teach my hands to bake
Our loaf of daily bread.

We're neither pure, nor wise, nor good;
We'll do the best we know.
We'll build our house and chop our wood
And make our garden grow,
And make our garden grow...

Let dreamers dream what worlds they please,
Those Edens can't be found.
The sweetest flowers, the fairest trees
Are grown in solid ground.

We're neither pure, nor wise, nor good;
We'll do the best we know.
We'll build our house and chop our wood
And make our garden grow,
And make our garden grow.

A Blog is Born

Welcome to my new blog!

So, for over a year now (and probably even longer) I’ve been wanting to start a blog. I know, I know. It seems like everyone is doing it. Many are. But I wasn’t and I wanted to. Not to make myself famous (who wants that?!), or share pictures or stories about my kids (I don’t have any), or talk about the newest meal plans I’ve been working on (I’m single—a meal for me is a bowl of cereal or a frozen pizza), or even to talk about my great travel adventures (if only I had a blog when I lived in Bangkok in ‘03—now THAT would have been something to write about!). I love reading blogs about all of those things, and who knows, I’ll most likely include similar discussions about similar things in my new blog, but in the beginning, this is all about me. Me wanting to “write-out” some of the random things that I experience; to contribute to the electronic medium and not just benefit from it; to slow down the passing of time by recognizing some of the little things that make up this big adventure we call life.

And, hopefully in the process, to find my voice; to learn more about myself than I knew before; and to maybe even stretch myself in awesome and scary ways.

Stay tuned world—are you ready? I know I am.