Shells, sand, and friends

July 4th I was so fortunate to be able to go down to the beach near Georgetown, SC in DeBordieu.
I spent time with my friend's family- it was much like a fantasy world of large beautiful homes and pristine, private beach front.

Here are some photos from my time there:

Drinking 1,000 Calories

I went on a tour of three Asheville, NC Breweries this past weekend. The Brews Cruise was great, the friends were great, and the drinking was great. Probably around 1,000 calories great.
Pisgah Brewing, Asheville Pizza and Brew, and Highland Brewing. All had tasty beers, my favorites were Pisgah Brewing's Abbey, and Highland Gaelic Ale.

Here are some fermenting tanks at Highland Brewing

And an artsy beer bottle photo.

Mobile, Surreal, For Real, Alabama!

I have been keeping a journal of my thoughts about my parent's story. I looked back over that tonight and saw that I'm questioning everything, and doing nothing about it. That said, I'm going to conduct a phone interview by the end of the week with my mom and ask the questions I'm afraid to ask and see how it goes.

I also found out a couple of days ago that my family is going on a trip to Mobile, AL and New Orleans, LA. This will be a great opportunity to get some more information.

On a side note, I have made it a goal that I will have people over to my apartment by the end of the month, which means I need to get my act together and straighten up and finally get everything set. Hmm, I'll need some chairs.

Little Max

A couple of weeks ago, my mom's dog, Max had surgery to repair a disc in his back. She sent me some photos of him post surgery and I thought I would share them. He is recovering remarkably well, and will only have to do a very little physical therapy to fully recover.
The staples you see have been removed now, and he is back to his mischievous ways.

It looks painful, but mom says he is acting completely normal, running around, chasing squirrels, etc.

Barrett the Bird Man

This past Monday my roommate came up the stairs to our apartment and announced that he had almost ran over a baby bird on his bike. Naturally, I wanted to go check it out. We went outside and watched the bird for a while- it was screaming it's little head off and who we thought was the mother, was flying around frantically. Barrett looked up and around for a nest that this little fellow may have fallen out of, but none could be found. So, Barrett put on some gloves, got a box and after some wrangling, scooped up the bird and put him in the box. We called around for about 30 minutes to find out where we could take the bird and finally got someone on the phone that could help us. The woman we got on the phone was a volunteer with the Audubon Society and gave us some great tips that I will share with you now:1) Its usually best to get a baby bird connected back with it's mother
2) Fledgling birds often fall out of their nests when they start hopping around and try to fly for the first time
3) Feeding a baby bird anything to eat is never a good idea- some birds eat insects, some seed, the best food comes from the mother.
4) Many communities have a 24-hr. vet clinic and usually have contacts for wildlife refuges, clinics, and volunteer foster parents for birds, squirrels, etc.
5) In our case, we were told to put a hanging basket filled with tissue up in the tree where we thought the bird came from and put him in it. We were told that 9 times out of 10 the mother would come back and take care of it.

We did exactly what the woman told us to do- well, sort of. Barrett used his shoe laces and a fruit basket to rig a hanging basket. He put the bird in the basket, hung it up and then we went inside. I think around 2 hrs. went by and he checked the basket and the bird was gone and nowhere to be found, so the fate of our little friend is unknown, but we did the best we could.

I wanted to find out what kind of bird it was so I looked at many many baby bird pictures online and I beleive based on looks alone, that we were dealing with a baby Robin. It was great to see Barrett care so much for it, not that it was a suprise, because he is such a caring person in general.

Something old, something new, something borrowed, something green?

I went on my third annual trip to Savannah for St. Patrick Day's Hoop-la. There were two blackouts that night. One was caused by the storm, the other by a horrible drinking game.


Here are some photos from three St. Pattys.

Ketchup

Whoa. I have neglected the blog in a bad way. Sorry if you have been checking and waiting for another entry. I'll try and make it up to you.

Since my last blog I have moved into the new pad on Spring Street. Woo-hoo! I really liked it when we decided to rent it and so far I'm liking it more and more. I think it fits my personality better than Woodland did. It has a great layout. There is any easy flow between spaces here, unlike "the corridor" that was Woodland Street.
I would say that the only downside to Spring Street is the kitchen. I'll post some pictures of Barrett trying to use the kitchen when we made our first "meal" the other night.
Gio and Bailey are in love with the place. As much as dogs can love that is. They have their own little fenced in yard that they hang out in while Barrett and I are at work, and when Barrett gets home they peer up over the fence and get very excited that their owner/friend is home. I don't like to admit it, but its cute.

I was going to write a Valentine's Day blog full of gender-bending quips and wallow in my own unvalentine's feelings but feeling bad wasn't on my list yesterday. I wasn't going to let it get me down- so I didn't.
Barrett's family is coming down at the end of this month and my mom is paying a visit in April. Hopefully the visits will inspire some art work hanging and some "putting things together" times.
I'll do a photo blog possibly this afternoon, and if I feel very adventerous a video blog this weekend (for H.H.)

Please more love than truth...just for today...no? Ok, well at least truth then love.

So many things have happened since my last post. Thanksgiving in Florida, crazy 4AM shopping, light bulbs, Christmas trees, guinea pig cages, etc. Let your imagination take you where it will.

Lessons since my last post.
1) Irony is only funny when it happens to someone else. (Speeding ticket after "speeding can wreck your day" photo on my last post).
2) Just because your family loves you doesn't mean they will treat you with kid gloves. (apparently 26 going on 27 is the age when everything is fair game for conversation).
3) Never underestimate the power of your ability to change a light bulb. (Height is everything...in this case)
4) Instead of taking lots of pictures- live like your getting your picture taken. (I found myself seeing lots of kodak moments but instead of capturing them I watched them)
5) What your parents tell you about life lessons they have learned are true. (its hard as hell to admit, but it is what it is)

If you know me then this statement is pretty earth shattering- I could use a hug right now, and a pat on the back. I think it would get me "back in the game". This however is not a solicitation for hugs, I just have never really wanted one. Guess I'm getting over my self-loathing phase, sweet.

To Embark

Tomorrow I will drive around 81/2 hours to the lovely city of Tampa in the great state of Florida. I will hug and kiss many people (that sounds weird), eat tons of food, go shopping at insane hours, do a wide variety of chores like changing light bulbs, play with Sassy and Max, and then drive 81/2 hours back to Sparkle City.



I don't know if you can read it but the words on the bottom read, "Speeding can wreck your day". I love it. Sunshine state here I come!

Cleaning out some life.

I will be driving home for Thanksgiving and my car was a total mess. I had to clean it out but I hate cleaning out my car, I don't know why. Lazy I guess. I found some interesting stuff while cleaning it out though and I want to share the stuff with you. I found an Ale 8 soda bottle (A Late One) and a list that my driving companion kept of all the license plates we saw on the road. These are both items from my Kentucky Trip. As you can see from my day planner that trip was the end of September and the first week of October. This is just a backdrop for the photo- I didn't find my planner in the car although that could very well have happened.

Speaking of finding things, when I uploaded the pics of my found objects from the car I also found a picture of Bailey that I took wearing some sweet shades about a week ago.


Gio was not interested in wearing them.


It sure feels good to have my car cleaned, I had the exhaust pipe reattached as well so now it doesn't sound like I'm driving around on a lawn mower- I hope it makes it to Tampa. I'm gonna try and post some from home but Betty (mi madre) doesn't have the internet. I hope to steal some wireless from someone or go to a cafe or something. I dunno.


Get clean- it feels good.

If I don't write it later- HAPPY THANKSGIVING!

Oh, no!

I've had many bad phone calls within the last 8 years or so, and tonight when I got out of the shower I saw that my cousin had called three times. Normally, if she calls she will leave a message or she will call once. Three calls in a row freaked me out and I made up all kinds of horrible things that may have happened. I gathered myself back together and called her back. The three rings before she answered were like little punches in my stomach that stung deep inside. She answered and fortunately told me about some flight deals to Tampa. PHEW!

Now my mom and I have a deal at least- she never calls a work phone number unless it is an emergency. The same for me. Home phones are great for messages or normal calls. Calling over and over again in a row with no message is strictly prohibited.

So, tonight a crisis was not present and I am so thankful.

People Waiting

Ok, so I'm about to romanticize the airport. Get ready- it might be sappy.So I've done my fair share (and more) of waiting in the airport. I've been stuck in Atlanta for ages and waited for people at airports many many times. I thought about it recently as I waited for my roomie Barrett to fly into the Greenville-Spartanburg International Airport. This "international airport" has two concourses: A and B. I think something like 8 airlines service the airport. Long story short it's very small but has a big name.

Anyway, I was waiting for him and when I wasn't talking on the phone with a friend, thanks Holland and Amber, I noticed the people waiting. They all stood or sat around the tvs that show arrival times. This airport even had the screen with the US map and little planes flying closer and closer to the dot labeled GSP: the airport that we all waited in.
I watched the people read magazines, books, do stuff on their laptops and I noticed that almost like clockwork they would glance up at the screens every 2-3 minutes. Updated information I think was posted every 5-10 minutes. I couldn't help but think how fun it would be to be in charge of the little planes on the screen and make them do crazy loops while their loved ones grabbed their hearts in panic and gasped for air until I made their course right again. (This is what you do in the airport while you wait).
I tried to guess by peoples faces how long it had been since they had last seen the person they were waiting for. I'm pretty sure some of the people had seen their arriving friends/family not so long ago (it was like they were waiting in line for free pens and pencils: no emotion) others were nervous looking- I liked this the best. I made up stories of long lost loves and moms and dads in Iraq being reunited with children, crying and having teddybears with gi-joe outfits and yellow ribbons. Wow, I get teary just making it up.

What I liked most about the airport is that everyone around me was there for the same reason. We were waiting. Waiting on people. People we must like I assumed. Who waits for people they don't like? It made me feel good that those getting off the plane were about to embrace people that waited for them. Thats nice, huh? Next time I get off a plane and people are waiting I'm gonna hug them hard, and try not to cry and thank them for waiting.

Feeling loved is hard to beat, and the airport with it's bad carpeting colors, expensive gum and magazines brought me something great.

Mission Accomplished

It has been a while since I have accomplished a to do list. Allow me to submit this report and you can decide if I met all the points on my to do list. I took a shower and stood there for a while just enjoying the warm water- a luxury that I don't often get because I'm usually running around five minutes late for work and jumping in the shower. I washed two loads of laundry today, one being my sheets and pillow cases which helped me knock out a part of cleaning my room. My rooms not perfect, but I can see most of the floor and a lot of dresser tops now plus with new clean sheets and a made bed it looks good.

I made it to Asheville and saw Sarah and her sweet boyfriend, Jude along with many other mountain people. Gosh, I love Asheville and their rugged, scruffy, patchouli people. Care free and pleasant. I could stand it for a couple of years I'm guessing.
This is what patchouli looks like:



While I was in Asheville we went to a great place called Barley's- lots of different local brews to choose from, darts, Foosball, and billiards. This is their logo. Exciting, huh?
I got to eat a bite of a venison/beef burger, so I guess that meets the exotic food task.

Parting picture-
Some peeps playing foosball...

Monday is mere hours away. Grrr.

Dominoes!

What a night! Pizza ala Amber, laughter ala Chris, and dominoes and conversation ala everyone else. I finally made it to Dominoes night and it was all I remembered from my first experience at Family Camp, well minus the heavy drinking by some of the participants. What more could one ask for on a Sunday night which is usually spent going to bed early, getting ready to face the week by watching TV and being lazy? It was so much fun in fact that I have made an "appointment" for this Wednesday to do it all again! This could be a weekly event I think, and why not? This is what I want in life- people to talk with, agree with, disagree with all in a friendly, loving setting. I'm not sure if everyone there would be as excited or would romanticize the evening in the same way and that's o.k. It is just another reason for me to like it! hahahaha

I encourage everyone to set up a weekly get together of some sort- bridge, dominoes, book club, pot luck, whatever. Just get together, talk, argue, laugh. It does a mind and body good.

Jet Plane

Everyone needs to watch this clip first of all. Second of all, I said goodbye to a good friend tonight, and it hurts, but this clip can always be a pick me up and a good memory.

Make good memories out there!

Home

I realised this summer that I use the term "home" in a way that is different than the norm. To most people home is where your permanent address is, or where your parents are: your hometown, etc. I understand that some people don't have a real home because they have traveled all their lives, but I've found from a couple of those cases that they still have an idea of home. To me home changes. I can talk about going home in the summer and mean either a shack, Tampa, FL or Spartanburg, SC. Sometimes I even feel like the camp kitchen where I work in the summer is home.

Last night I felt a real warmth that only a "home' can provide. This home happened to be in Spartanburg, SC. It's great coming back to friends who can just pick up where things were left, jump right back in. Its great.

Homes are amazing I've decided because not everyone has one, and some people have a home but they want to get as far away as possible from it. So, if you are like me and have a home that you like or homes that you like, feel good about today, let the blessings of everything that makes home great put things in perspective for you. It has helped me not be so sad about leaving my summer home.