That time of year~

Because I have been blessed with my Mother's genes,(yeah, I haven't always felt that way)
I have always been creative.
Now, don't get me wrong, that is not conceit. Trust me, coming from a french womans point of view, sometimes this can be very upsetting.
This is the time of year when anything and everything creative in my brain gives birth to a whirlwind of ideas.
And it doesn't stop until December 31st. Sometimes.
What the heck am I rambling about?
I make. I paint. I design. I cook. I get annoying. ( "get" you say?)
I see table napkins and immediately KNOW they would make great valances on the point over a curtain rod.
I see shapes of bottles and KNOW that , emptied, would be great filled with something other than the original purpose.
I see blank canvases and KNOW I can whip up a painting in about 45 minutes.
I see cool branches and KNOW I can hang them in my foyer from the ceiling with tiny white lights lit up in them.
I see some charms and buttons and KNOW it would make a great ring.
Getting the picture? Those who know me also know that this is the onset of such a season.
Right now.

Which is why I have booked a boutique booth at a holiday fair thing in Puyallup this November.
I have made necklaces ( not your normal, boring, blase' grandma stuff) and mass rings to sell.
I also have made cakeplates and cupcake plates galore. (THAT is a whole other story!)I see tacky plates and glorify them into a new existence as a cake plate.
I am sure they are eternally grateful when that cake sits on them.
I will post a reminder to those for you who want to come in October!
Initially, I was planning on putting it all on Etsy but as soon as I make them, I have sold them!
Time to get busy making some jewelry...and maybe some cake plates!

It's a Red Pepper Jelly day!

Ok, so life has been hectic for me the last month or so....uhm, maybe for longer than that.
I can just hear some of you saying to yourselves :" the last month? sheesh she's always busy".
I am not. Maybe I am. Just a little.
Maybe.
Is it so bad to want life to slow down just a little so I can soak in the days?
Wouldn't it be great if we had the ability to "slo-mo" certain moments down so we could step back, analyze, bask and go to sleep with a big fat smile from that video?
Like a Hogwarts picture! Take the picture to remember the occasion, then play it back so as to see what the occasion was all about! Yeah, that's it! I want that!
What's that you say? T'aint possible Colleen"?
Sigh....maybe one day....

I started out this week with an agenda every day. Today had another. But, it opened up for me and because I just can't sit and do nothing ( with the exception of a beach, of course), I decided it was and IS a red pepper jelly day.
That's right. You read correctly.
I am making my famous red pepper jelly.
Famous? Well, I think it is. So that makes it so.
(I gave some to a very picky french woman who went nuts for it, THAT was my affirmation)
If you've never had it, I beg for an open mind.
It has a sweet heat flavor that goes perfect with soft cheeses and crackers, as a marinade for chicken wings and the list goes on.
The pot is on the stove now, the red peppers are boiling down to nothing and the sweet smell is delicious. And for those of you who are faint at heart about "canning"...there is something on the market just for you!
I buy these Bell plastic jelly jars with the screw on lids..no boiling,no water seal, just pour and screw the lid on. Presto. Done. Fabulous.
One of my friends told me she just canned 70 jars of peaches and it made my back ache just thinking about it!
This is easy stuff folks. And so goood.
And so one of my "do nothing" days turned out to "do something."
But that's a good thing.
(I'm pretty sure Martha Stewart stole that line from me.)

Friendships....

This topic has the tendency to be a little deep, a little shallow and pass a lot of water under the bridge.
I am talking about friendships.
They can be based on personal~ childhood friends, neighbors, schoolmates ( does anyone even say that anymore?)
They can be based on professional~ work community, someone who knows you from 9-5.
Then they can be intellectual~ banter solely based on what your passion is~or isnt.
The tricky part is, as we grow, these constantly change.

A very wise friend once told me " who you are when you're twenty is not who you are when you're thirty, is not who you are when you're forty, " and so on and so on.
And how very wise she is.

I used to find myself morphing with whomever I was with.....school, church, work and home.
And once upon a very immature time, it used to bother me when friends would not respond to me as I wished. Friendship doesn't own another person. I took the long way around learning that one. I blame it on my french mother. Just saying.
You'll be pleased to know I left that phase behind about 20 years ago.
I can only imagine how I came off to my friends....I am apologizing now to those I tended to want to possess..and not in a creepy way, just in a school girl "you can only do things with me" kind of way.
Friendship is maleable. Did I spell that right? It constantly changes shape and flows with whatever you've got going on in your life.
I have friends I speak to about 4 times a year and yet, when it comes down to it, they know I have their back and I know they have mine. I don't need to be assured that I am in their thoughts. Pfft. The last thing I want to do is clutter someone else's mind, lol.

Then I have the friends who I want to be around me in the moment I am living in. These people can come from my past ( see above) or from the present. But these people are those who are naturally comfortable to be around, no effort required to entertain or amuse me. And vice versa.
I am not into people whom I have to work at finding what makes them happy.
Talk to me. Don't make me pull it out of you because if I have to do this, more than likely, you'll be gone.

I cherish all my friends but do I have a particular BFF, as they say now? I have a couple of go to's I always, well, go to, but my best friend is honestly, probably several people.
As I get older ( what?!) I find I tolerate less. But you know, I find this can be a good meter as well for the friendship gauge.
Don't play games with me, don't add to or tell me you don't like drama while your on the dang stage, don't play on my emotions and we will be friends for life.

To want a friend, you have to BE a friend.
If your important to someone, you will know it. If your not, don't sweat it. There are a million more people out there to get to know!

I thank all of my wonderful friends, some from the past, some right now in my present and those in the future that I am just getting to know for sharing yourselves with me.
Because, that is how I have come to understand friendships now.....
it is a privilege...
earned not owned.

I don't think it's just me that loves the ocean/sea/waves so much, is it?
What is it about all of the above that allows me to breathe? I could have every problem in the world ( just an analogy God, not a hint) and when I put my feet in the sand....I can breathe again.
I just spent 4 and a half days at a rental home in Seaside, Oregon for Labor day weekend and celebrated out 30th wedding anniversary.
I was with people I love to be with and in a place I love to be at. What more could I ask for?
Yeah, well, curb your comments because you all know me so well, I will not disappoint.
I admit it, I looked at homes for sale in that area. Just for kicks.
What a kick I got.
A three bedroom, two bath home with a seaview was a minimum of 890 thousand. The bad boys ON the beach were a hefty 1 1/2 million to 4 million.
Alright folks, if I HAD that kind of money,( insert hysterical laughing here)
why on earth would I buy a home in Seaside?!?!?
I mean, get real. I could buy a home on the water in the Caribbean for a scant 500 thousand! And save the remaining money for airfare twice a year! I watch House Hunters International, I am not vacation house ignorant!
No offense to anyone currently living in the Seaside/Gearhardt area, but I hope you inherited those homes or bought them 20 some odd years ago. There are some beautiful homes on the water there, but, alas, it looks as if I will merely be renting them in my future.
But that's ok too.....cause all it takes is for me to sink these toes into the sand, and all is good.

Okay, Maybe Interesting isn't the right word......

So....maybe I am interesting.
Only, I am beginning to think, not in a Good sort of way.
I mean, only I could blog about my mishaps twice within one week.
Let me begin.
I have lived in my home for almost 10 years now. And for some reason beyond my comprehension, I only just got a garage door opener. And in that vein, I still do not possess a house key.
I have no clue why. Maybe Michael is trying to tell me something.
If he is, I am obviously am a slow learner.
So I get home from all my errands today to find that Mitch has locked the kitchen door on his way out.
Not good.
I go to my bedroom doors. Also locked. Damn our efficiency.
So I go to the back patio doors. You guessed it.
Now, we live on a private road and I usually leave the kitchen door open.
(Well, I'm not gonna anymore since your reading this, but I should get myself a key)
I figure..private road, dog in the house, yadda yadda yadda.
I am locked out of my house. Great.
I call the lab, and of course, Breanne and Michael are a fount of informational help.
"Climb thru the bathroom window!" Righhhhhht. Get right on that.
IF I WAS A THIN PERSON!
I am left with no choice. There are two windows cracked open. The bathroom window and the kitchen window.
Wonderful choices. If I choose Michaels' bathroom, I will drop to the floor and or hit the toilet.
If I choose the kitchen, I will land in the sink.
I go for the kitchen window.
So I drag a chair over to the window and hoist myself up. Mind you, I have the window opened all the way up. Which is approx. 24 inches.
Yeah. I know what your thinking. Believe me, I am there.
So I maneuver myself into the opening. Did I mention that I am not thin?
Did I mention I might have a extra large chestal area? That's right, I said "chestal".
At this moment in time, I need to be refined.
Anyway, I wiggle myself into the window and to the point where "the girls" are clearly through the opening.
Now I am stuck.
Damn, I'm in a tight spot!
I try to push back to give myself some momentum but all that happens is the chair tips over and falls. AWAY FROM THE WINDOW.
Now I am hanging there from the kitchen window. "The girls" not entirely comfortable in this position. My legs dangling and absolutley no upper body strength to pull myself thru.
Wonderful.
In utter frustration, I muster up the ability to HEAVE myself the rest of the way thru the window, thinking ( all within 5 seconds of this happening) that I should land in the sink.
Wrong again.
Apparently, I am stronger than I give myself credit for, as I overshot the sink and went straight for the floor.
To find myself staring at Manny (cat) who is looking at me like " really? We Do have a door, y'know?"
And JJ( dog) is now auditioning for "Dancing with the stars" and could care less I have splatted like a bug on the floor, just let me out to go potty dog gone it!
When I realize yet again, that there are no injuries other than my pride, I pick myself up off the floor and let the animals out.
Sure, easy for them.
They have keys. Us.
I think it's time I get a house key.
I need a cupcake.

Not that interesting folks!

Ok, so I have been getting a few complaints that I have not blogged in awhile.
True. I haven't. But I think it's time you all know the truth.
Ready?
Sitting down?
I am NOT that interesting!
Unless I go somewhere to relate my experiences, I am pretty much boring.
Yep, I said it.
I know, it sucks.
Trust me, I would rather be telling you a Vegas story or a funny thing happened on the way to the airport story!
But, I have not gone anywhere since Disneyland and I am just puttering thru the days.
Oh wait, I DID fall in the Safeway parking lot? Does that count?
There I was, leaving Safeway with my grocery cart , in a dress. (Bear with me, I am setting this up)
My receipt flew out of one of the bags and I half heartedly tried to catch it.
In doing so, I contorted in a way that if a carny was in the parking lot, they would have been proud.
The weeble in a dress falllllllls down to her knees. BaBAM!
Instantly, I pop back up. My knees are bleeding, my pride is suffering, and I quickly try to talk myself out of bursting into tears. Hey now, I never claimed to be a Warrior!
Pan with me to the left of the parking lot where a "gangsta" shouts: " DAMN! Yo a'ight?"
Behind me is a Ford pickup driving 2 miles an hour, gawking at the woman who just fell, saying" "did you just see that?" to his partner in the truck.
I felt like I was in a movie and I was playing ALL the roles, reliving them minute by minute.
But, I digress.
So I bounce up IMMEDIATELY and mentally talk myself into being brave, all the way to the car.
I get in the car, call Mitch and tell him to bring a wet washcloth to the driveway when I get home cause I just bit the dust.
I call Breanne and shout " MAMA DOWN! MAMA DOWN!"
I pride myself on not crying like a little girl. Not that I didn't want to, but I was being watched by every damn eye in that parking lot! I had no choice!
All in all, I end up with torn knees, twisted ankle ( felt broken) and wounded pride.
Set the table for a pity party. Colleen's home.
And you wonder why I haven't written anything.......

Becoming a distant Memory.....

It has been exactly two weeks since I went to Disneyland and I am ready to go back .
Now.
I want some sun, for one. And I want no responsibilities, for two.
Reality sucks sometimes.
I need to buy a lottery ticket so I can start planning several mini vacations a year.
Because living with this cold temperature in June and this rainy crap is REALLY bringing me down.

I realize that Disneyland is an icon, a tradition, a stable memory. But I gotta tell ya, I preferred California Adventure better.
Maybe because it was new to me and more exciting. I felt like Disneyland was passe.
Oh, don't you make that face at me! The one thing I thoroughly enjoyed tho, was having breakfast with Minnie and the gang. Not to mention the food was wonderful. I felt like royalty in that sectioned off patio of the restaurant. People would walk by and take pictures thru the hedges."hey, we paid for this, back off with your cameras thru the shrubbery!"
Then I would politely turn my back to them and block their shots.
What?!?
I paid for that priveledge!
It was a great time had by all.
No having to justify why we did when we did it ,to any of our men.
In fact, just today, I spoke with a man who was telling us that if a guy can just go to Disneyland without any of the preconceived notions that usual males have and just totally let go of being a man there, he can have a great time! I had to agree.
No second guessing decisions of which rides to go on first, no justifying that caramel apple, no snickering at why we choose to trade pins with staff and collect them ,( someone actually asked me what the point was of that, last week! Oh shame! Let that inner child out!!!) no rhyme, no reason. THAT is the way to enjoy the resort.
Which we did Splendidly!
I need more than 3 days of such luxury.
More like 2 weeks.
Even then, 2 weeks out of 52 doesn't sound like such an impossible request, now does it?