Back from two weeks at the beach

Lovely. Really.

Nothing beats two weeks relaxing on the beach at Lake Michigan. Great weather. Warm water (mostly), which was a huge improvement over last year's frigid water week. Lake Michigan was seriously cold last year the week we were there-- we could barely stand to put a toe in the water last year it was that cold. Thank goodness there were no HUGE storms that turned the whole lake over just before our vacation this year.

It was perfect for reading on the beach, swimming, feasting with family, and doing a little bit of exploring of the local scenery. How many families make multiple visits to a soda fountain that's been around since the 1880's? Ours. :) Yummy!

More later. Tired, tired, tired. And lots of laundry to do.

Thank goodness Rico and I agree that we can wait until tomorrow to unload the camper -- even it it means we have no pillows to sleep with tonight -- because, of course, they're in the camper. We'll have sweet dreams of our vacation at Karamu anyway, pillows or not.

Love.

I'm so thankful we had another opportunity to spend time at Diane's haven on the lake in Montague. I love Lake Michigan.

Apparently I write like David Foster Wallace. Who's he?

I write like
David Foster Wallace

I Write Like by Mémoires, Mac journal software. Analyze your writing!

I came across this site "I Write Like", and apparently I write like David Foster Wallace. Should I feel bad that I've never heard of him?

He looks like a cool guy in that long-haired, I'd-rather-be-at-the-beach-surfing way that some guys have. Looks like someone you wouldn't mind hangin' with by the campfire listening to his stories. Right? He'd be perfectly comfy in a polar fleece and jeans. Yeah, man, I'm all about that (except for the campfire smoke -- which, for some reason, always blows my way -- and then it really aggravates my allergies!

According to Wikipedia, he "was an American author of novels, essays, and short stories ... He was widely known for his 1996 novel Infinite Jest, which Time included in its All-Time 100 Greatest Novels list (covering the period 1923–2006). Los Angeles Times book editor David Ulin called Wallace "one of the most influential and innovative writers of the last 20 years ... Wallace's novels often combine various writing modes or voices, and incorporate jargon and vocabulary (sometimes invented) from a wide variety of fields. His writing featured self-generated abbreviations and acronyms, long multi-clause sentences, and a notable use of explanatory footnotes and endnotes—often nearly as expansive as the text proper."

If that means he was comfortable with comma-splicing in his writing, then I'm down with that (how's that for incorporating jargon, baby?). Too bad I didn't have the term "long multi-clause sentences" at my fingertips in high school when Mrs. VanAntwerp was all up in my face (again with the jargon) about such activities. I might have had some luck defending my writing a bit more in my College English class (just kidding, Mrs. V. -- you rocked!).

He was a professor... he became "the first Roy E. Disney Professor of Creative Writing and Professor of English at Pomona College." Have I mentioned that I LOVE Disney World. :)

Not bad ... and he was a dog lover too. His dog could be a Rottie or a Pitt -- and I have a Rottie sweetheart dog. Cool... but wait, there's more ...

I gotta confess, much of what was on Wiki was a bit over the top for me. In search of a simpler summation of his writing I hit upon wpr.org. They say "David Foster Wallace may have understood the modern American better than any writer of our time ... Wallace was a master at capturing the way we think, feel and live, and his books and essays conveyed an intimacy that made a lot of people feel like Wallace was a friend they'd never met."

They liken him to a literary rockstar. As my brother would say, "Cool beans." But wait, there's more ...

He suffered from depression, and he committed suicide.
Hmmm.

So much angst. And he liked math too. (Totally not me. Yikes.)

Now I've got another author to add to the list of reading I need to do. I'm going to start with a book of his essays entitled "A Supposedly Fun Thing I'll Never Do Again"

Will I like him?

I brake for Garage Sales

I brake for Garage Sales. Really, I do, and I'm not afraid to admit it. Do you?

My sister would say I enjoy putzing around in other people's junk (which she, decidedly, does not). I'm not sure I like how that sounds, but I guess it's a fair estimate -- because, I do after all stop at Garage Sales and many of them are filled with junk. But, one man's junk, and all that.

What is it about Garage Sales? What's the draw?

For me I think it can be boiled down to these things:

I'm nosy (a fact that I don't think most people would identify with me, because I can also be anti-social). I think it's fun to see what people accumulate and then discard at a sale. Junk can tell a tale about what captured a persons interest, what their hobbies are, where they grew up. Any number of things. And I like to see what's what. Nosy. Yup.

I like bargains. I think a Garage Sale is the ultimate in bargain hunting. Where else can you find stuff for a quarter or 50 cents that doesn't come in a plastic bubble from a grocery store vending machine? Because I'm a bargain hunter, garage sale-ing is an inexpensive hobby for me. Since I don't generally go to a sale with an objective in mind I generally don't spend much. I just see what catches my eye and then decide if I'm willing to pay the asking price for it. If it's a toss up I don't have a problem negotiating on the price (something that makes my husband cringe with embarrassment every time). I'm not shy about bargains.

I enjoy finding something unique that I likely wouldn't find in a store. Like the cool bronze Smith and Hawkins porch planters that I picked up last year for a few dollars each (never mind that I don't have a porch -- that's beside the point). Or the sweet wooden bowl from a sale two years ago which turned out to be a sailing regatta trophy from 20 years ago -- a fact I wasn't aware of until I was putting it in my car and saw the wood-burned writing on the other side (I was so taken by the shape and the patina that I didn't do a 180 degree inspection of it). Or the cute horizontal geranium artwork I picked up for 50 cents last month that was done by a Michigan artist. Unique stuff on the cheap.

I like the thrill of the hunt. Hunting down something that's "just right" gives me great satisfaction. A bowl that fits in the media center to tuck all the extra iPod accessories into? Check. A glass container with a lid to display my collection of beach glass? Check. Gently used, size 4T jeans for my nephew? Check (big time -- and brand name too). Noisemakers to use at our next Relay For Life of Lowell event? Check.

Someday I want to go to the world's largest yard sale ... Highway 127 Yard Sale ... 240 miles of salels from Michigan through Ohio ... miles and miles of yard sales. Just think what I could find!

So, what's not to like about a Garage Sale? It's kind of like shopping at TJ Maxx. You never know what you're going to find, but you know you'll have a good time on the hunt. Or is that just me?

No excuses

I have no excuse, but let's face it, I fell off the blogging wagon. (And I'm pretty sure that sentence involved inappropriate comma-splicing, but I don't care). I just haven't been able to muster up any enthusiasm for booting up the computer once I get home from work... since April. Oy. April, really?

I doesn't seems like it's been that long. Just the other day Rico said "I'm not going to follow this blog anymore because they never post." Guess whose blog he was checking? Mine. Oops.

Aside from not wanting to spend time on the computer after a day of work spent computing, I just haven't been feeling "on" -- which is frequently a problem for me. I've been wanting to just veg more than ever lately. Motivational issues, I guess. I have the same problem with exercise. Ha ha. I just don't wanna.

I wish I could want to do more. How's that for motivational?

Really, it's time to start making some changes. What to change? I'll make a list. I'll start working on it as soon as House Hunters is done. Really.

Cha-cha-cha-changes.

Photo credit: http://listicles.thelmagazine.com/wp-content/upload/draft_lens1882833module8528698photo_motivational-poster.jpg

Gettin' old

Getting old bites the big one. Working this weekend (actual manual labor) was not tough -- it's not particularly challenging to use a power washer for pete's sake -- but two full days of it kicked my butt. Big time.

Standing there spraying, moving the nozzel back and forth, over and over and over. Hauling the hoze a few feet at a time. Not too challenging, right? My body would disagree. On Saturday night I began to stiffen up. I was asleep by 9 p.m., exhausted. When I got up during the night I could barely get out of bed, let alone walk to the facilities -- oh the pain (even my fingers were killing me). Getting up Sunday morning was even more challenging. Thank goodness Rico was offering french toast for breakfast, or I might not have gotten out of bed.

A few ibuprofen and we were back at it Sunday morning. Rico manned the power equipment for the first couple of hours, and Nate and I trimmed plants, scrubbed furniture, and lounged on the deck chairs in the sun (just for a few minutes, really). When the guys left for baseball practice it was my turn again. Power up!

Rico filled up the gas tank in the power washer before he left for practice, and my brother filled it up again when he stopped over a bit later, and I was hard at it for just over an hour and half. Thank goodness the gas finally ran out! Don't get the wrong idea here. I'm not incapable of filling the gas tank by myself, but I really hate the stink of gas, and let's face it, it was a good excuse to call it quits for the day.

The good news? I slept like a baby again on Sunday. Better news? The pool patio is looking great and will be open for the season soon. Ahhhhh. Summer. I can't wait.

The irony here? It's not even my pool deck, patio, plants, or furniture. Ha Ha! (Thank goodness for siblings who share their pool -- I'm a happy volunteer when we get to enjoy the pool all summer long.)

Crazier than a loon

Crazier than a loon, and I'm not talking about myself. Some days I could be. Easily. (And not just when PMS is a factor.) But yesterday it was Rico that was off-his-rocker crazy. In his defense his did have a migrane, and was medicated for that. But his normal migrane-med-induced loopyness was compounded by the fact that he'd taken a sleeping pill (or two).

OMGoodness was he freaky. And guess what? He has absolutely NO RECOLLECTION of what a freak-show last night was as a result. It's cracking me up. And he doesn't believe me.

Trust me, hon. I'm telling it true. You we're nuttier than a fruitcake. And girlier than I ever could be (can you tell which one of us is the romantic one in this relationship? Here's a clue: not me). Needy. Whiney. Clingy. Nearly in tears at one point.

AND HE DOESN'T REMEMBER IT. Too funny.

Some night I'm going to have to tape it when he's taken his migrane meds. While last night was a prime example of the nuttiness, other nights are just as much fun. It might be enlightening for him.

But for today we're repeating ALL of last nights' discussions, because he doesn't remember any of it. We watched the Masters -- and I know that Fred Couples was 6 under par at the end of yesterdays' play, a point Rico just clarified for me as we are watching Tom Watson chipping out of the bunker right now, and I'm like, DUH, I know that, we watched the end of it and the interview that followed yesterday (and I don't even like golf -- and I'm so tired of hearing about Tiger that I could spit nails). We had a long talk about our potential vacation to Mission Point Resort (no recollection). We talked about job stuff (still nothing). We talked about what show we were going to tape and which show we were going to watch (Mentalist v. Marriage Ref), and tonight he asks which one I want to watch first.

Seriously? He really doesn't remember that we watched all of Marriage Ref already? Nope. Nada. Well, I for one am not watching it again. It just wasn't that good. Sorry Rico, you're on your own with that one.

Happy weekend to all!

Barking dogs and taxes

This week I've heard my share of barking dogs (and a hissing cat) and have thought many times about our taxes. Doodle is staying with us this week while her family is in the panhandle enjoying the beach. She's got such a great personality, is super cute, and is peppy and bouncy (even when she had to wear "The Cone" to keep her from messin' with the dog bite she got last week). Love her tons, but boy this girls likes to use her voice. That's not something Killer does, so it's quite a shock to the system.

I don't know whether to laugh or cry when she barks at something in the middle of the night and both dogs go racing across the room to look out the window. Then they race across the room to the other window. Then back again. All the while Rico is yelling "Dogs, no barking! No barking!" (Which, by the way, is really, really effective. Not!).

The fun really gets going when my cat comes into the bedroom and hisses as she walks by --this gets Doodle all worked up and she starts chasing her. Then Killer starts chasing them both. Fun, fun, fun. Hissing and barking, running, hissing, barking. Rico yelling.

Tonight I think I'll take something to help me sleep. :) And maybe I should take something to help me stop thinking about the fact that our taxes aren't done yet.

This may not seems like a big deal to most people, but I'm pretty anal about getting stuff done on time. And we're talking about taxes from 2008. Yup, that's right, 2008. They're still not done, and I can't freakin' believe it. All I can say is that we had better not get a bill from the tax accountant for this cluster or I might lose it. We still don't have an idea if we're getting something back, or if we'll be paying. Considering Rico is not working right now, I'm really hoping it's the former. (please, please, please, please)

Then we can go back to doing the E-Z form for 2009 taxes -- because we won't have any business stuff to deal with anymore. Woo-hoo!