I can see you from here

Ship Island

So I did a thing, I turned 42 this year. We were in Louisiana visiting David’s family and friends. For my birthday David took me out to Ship Island, a place that means so much to me. We walked up the beach until we found a quiet spot away from the crowd. We swam and ate and played. This time I put on my goggles and snorkel and went to float on my belly. The world became silent and close. David grabbed my feet and floated me around as I relaxed in my oceanic cocoon.

When we got back to David’s parents house we found that his mom had set up a little birthday dinner complete with brownies and 2 kinds of ice cream.

Birthdays after about 36 or 37 don’t really seem to matter as much unless it’s a ‘milestone’, like 40. I turned 42 and it wasn’t a big deal but also it was perfect.

As a bit of a side note… there was almost no life in the waters where we were swimming. No crabs, maybe 2 comb jellies, no periwinkles on the beach. A sheepshead fish followed us a bit but there was nothing to stir up for him to eat. Weird? Sad?

Adios, here we come

We leave tomorrow morning for Minnesota. Anna is getting married to a delightful young man and I am thrilled for her. Is a wonderful thing.

We have a pretty tight schedule traveling to Minnesota, but we are ambling a bit on the way back. Going to do some camping and sightseeing and, most importantly, visiting with friends and family. And we’re swinging south to Philadelphia to meet up with Pantsters. I love the Pantsters!

So, it’s all packing and cleaning and the dogs are freaking out because suitcases mean someone is leaving and I can’t tell them that they are also leaving with us. There is much anxious cuddling.

We’re staying with my mom up on Mille Lacs and will be driving in and out of the city a few times. We’re doing pancakes at the OPH, send me a message for details. Pancakes are delicious.

His and hers

The thing that is true is

I live in a new state for the first time in my life.
Dang!
So what happened on our drive to Vermont? Well, we ate lunch at a picnic table near the dumpster at a Bob Evans. I had a screaming meltdown in the parking lot of a Days Inn next to the Toledo airport. I learned to drive a stick shift in Chicago, in Chicago traffic, during a Chicago rain storm. It was like Lake Michigan belched its whole self up into the sky and fell in great pleated sheets on us. I ate a lot of peanut m&ms. Chester didn’t puke.
It is obnoxiously bucolic here. It’s almost as if nature hired Disney to make this place all beautiful and Vermonty. The trees are just starting to change and it is amazing to watch. We live in a little town, a little cute rural town with a little bit of tourism and a lot of very cute everything!
Our truck had a squid
HOLY CRAP!!!! SQUID!!!!
HOLY CRAP! SQUID!
We live in a big, jumbly house. One part was built in the late 1700s and has been added on to so many times over the years. It’s all doors and stairs and halls. Our apartment is little but it’s cheap and we rented a storage space for most of our stuff.
Our home
Right out the front door (too bad about the power lines, it’s actually really awesome)
Out the front door
Obligatory pre-move-in apartment photos
Mostly empty
Mostly empty
Maddie
Maddie doing what she does
Obligatory moved-in-but-not-unpacked photos
So much to unpack
So much to unpack
Dogs in Nature
Jerkwalters in nature
Jerkwalters in nature
I live by this
Mountain
We’re getting our plan together. I’ve started collecting resources and making lists of things we need to learn, we’ll spend the winter doing that. We’re also taking advantage of our (intentional) no-job situation and using that time to go out and explore. There’s a lot of hiking and investigating to be done. Mostly, right now we are tired, though.
There should be internet set up in our place this weekend, but I’m super loving the internet-accessing bakery up the road (because what I need in my life is more pastry).

Goodbye Goodbye

So so busy packing and moving and packing and trying to make dinner when the only things you have in your kitchen are a bottle opener and a tub of coffee beans.
There were 2 going away parties this past weekend and they were wonderful and sad. There are lots of photos and lots to tell but I don’t have time! So, here’s a quick and dirty and unlabeled set of photos.
Also, Viivi…
DSCF2479
Viivi