A BIT DIFFERENT

Things are going to be a little off here at the blog. Chris and I have had to make an emergency trip to Tulsa. My best friend's grandpa passed away on Sunday and the funeral is today. It may seem odd that we'd rush down for a friend's grandparent, but not when you consider that friend and her's to be family. When we were kids, I was always a little jealous of Steph's relationship with her grandparents. They were the cliched version of a grandparent, doting and ever present. And while I knew that my own grandparents loved me, they were not a present feature in my life. But Steph's grandparents took me in as one of theirs. Grandpa made sure that Steph and I never rode the school bus, made it to all our extracurricular stuff, and had Sonic every day.

So yeah, we rushed down to be there for Steph and her family today. Because that's what we do for each other.

Happy Love Thursday

LOVE THURSDAY

As Chris and I traveled down I-35 through Kansas, we went through acres and acres of range burning. One side of the highway was black and scorched while the other side was in the process of being burned. It was breathtaking to witness. I've never seen a control burn of this size before. As the sun set, the smoke twirled up and blended into the sky with an eerie beauty.

I know in Oklahoma (particularly right now) that the grass fires have always been terrifying. I remember being evacuated from my HS once because of a nearby grass fire. I remember, as a kid, jumping into the back of dad's pick-up truck and following the firetrucks to put out flames along Hwy 75. While exhilarating, it was also a bit frightening. But out here, in the rolling prairie hills, with no one in danger, it was stunning.

I love that I had the opportunity to experience the grass fires in a new way; of being able to appreciate the beauty in that moment of devastation. I love that I was able to be present in that moment.

Happy Love Thursday!

LOVE THURSDAY

Some times you can look at something for so long that it starts to look like something else. I've noticed it works in many directions. The problem comes when you're looking at something wrong and you look at it for so long that you finally decide it's right. Then there are times when you're just looking for too long and then you reach a point where you just don't care what it is any more. You become indifferent to the image.

I love those moments where you just see something. You see the light playing off it; you just see it for what it is. No judgment. No preconceived ideas. It's simply a table top with morning light playing off it. It's part of living in the moment. This is what I'm looking at right now in this moment. It starts with a simple thought, a simple picture that begins to manifest into something larger. This is what I'm doing in this moment right now. This what my life is in this moment right. No judgment. No preconceived ideas.

Happy Love Thursday!

LOVE THURSDAY

Love Thursday is back! With very few words.

Wait for it....

Wait for it...

Wait for it...

Here it is!

LOVETHURTHANKFRI

I've been a bit absent. It's something I tend to do under times of stress. I call it channeling my inner groundhog. But to be fair, we've had a lot to do like find a place to live, which we have done. We found a quaint little house with a garage and fenced in backyard and only about fifteen minutes from work. The only down side is that it's off a street that reminds us of the east end of 23rd. It's true that we only looked at this one house and that we didn't really spend a lot of time hunting around. I saw this place online, talked to the landlord through email, convinced him the dog was OK, and that was that. The next part is the hard part. Loading up everything and moving it in, changing all our stuff over to new address and new bank, all the random bits of moving that doesn't really hit you until later.

I am thankful for our new space (there's a basement!). I am thankful for the way everything has fallen into place. Happy Friday.

LOVE THURSDAY

I wrote this entry about a dozen times and erased it about a dozen times. I have nothing. So let's send the love else where, like to the people in New Zealand. Maybe even make a donation to the Red Cross or something.

Happy Love Thursday!

LOVE THURSDAY

It's a work in progress.

LOVE THURSDAY

The other day, I glanced out the window and saw these birds perched in this tree. As I opened the window to get the picture, I realized that there were hundreds of black birds perched in all of the surrounding trees. The noise was deafening. All of them chirping and cackling at once and in waves. But then suddenly it would all stop and a silence would fall over the neighborhood. A second or two later it would all pick up again. Loud, boisterous, noisy, messy and then switch back to quiet calm. That is our life. We've had calm and quiet. Happy Love Thursday!

LOVE THURSDAY

One of my coworkers set this little guy up on a lab bench. He said it looked like he was crying, but I thought it looked more like he was peeping through his little hands. Perspective.

Life is so much about perspective. I've come to realize that I am truly no slacker or afraid of a little hard work. Because the easy thing to do is see that little man as crying and sad. It's easy to see all the things that are ugly, all the wrong deeds, the bad side to things. The hard part is flipping it all around and seeing the good.

I've had to do a lot of flipping over the years. But hard work makes you strong and resilient.

Happy Love Thursday.

LOVE THURSDAY

Today, I am exactly the same age my mother was when she had me (odd). Perhaps it may seem a bit conceited to dedicate a Love Thursday Entry to myself, but I think it's better to celebrate my being a year older than bemoan it.

It has taken me 35 years to truly be comfortable in my own skin, to really like what I see reflected in the mirror. Sure, there are days where I sigh heavily at the dark circles under my eyes or the additional gray hairs. Who doesn't? For the most part, though, I can look back at my own reflection and say "you're OK kid". But it's not all about the outward package.

I love that I get to work with a microscope during the day and teach yoga in between all of that. I love that I ride a Vespa and shop at the Farmer's Market. I love that I collect elephants and the occasional Barbie and that I have a tendency to knit. But most importantly, I love that I have chosen to spend my life with a man who makes me laugh everyday and that I've chosen to surround myself with beautiful, smart, funny, and talented friends.

Happy Love Thursday!

LOVE THURSDAY

This is the first shirt I ever purchased from Threadless. This shirt led to a bit of an addiction so that now I have a drawer full of Threadless T-shirts, but this one still remains to be my favorite. I can't help but smile every time I look down at that little toothy grin.

It's also a reminder that I am unique. Lately, I haven't really felt my best. I'd gained a few pounds (not much, but enough to make me panic...apparently I just needed to poop). I've been a bit sluggish and nothing I wear or do to myself made feel all that nice. We all have those days. But, then I remember this shirt and I smack myself of the forehead. I am just fine. I may not be a super model. I may not have the ability to balance in bakasana. But I'm healthy, well, and doing OK.

I am unique. Happy love Thursday!

LOVE THURSDAY

Right about now, people are making their New Year's resolutions. They're preparing for the big party to ring in the New Year and giving the boot to 2010. And I know this has been a very trying year for some of my friends, but really? I hate to say goodbye to 2010. I don't think Chris and I have had this good of year since....ever. No, that's not true. But it was a pretty dang good year, despite the loss of Chris's scooter. I'll take Chris being alive to tell the tale over the scooter any day. I've put together a slide show of some of my favorite pictures and things we did over the year and, wowza!, we've been busy. The slide show is a little long and I could have just put in the whole month of August and made the thing into a feature length film. I'm not ready to let go of 2010 just yet and it's my Love Thursday entry today because I have just loved this year. Look at all those smiles, all that love. It's too much for one year to hold, so I'm going to let some of it spill into 2011.

Happy Love Thursday!

LOVE THURSDAY

Some times you get a fortune in your fortune cookie at just the right time, when you need it. I got this fortune on Monday when my lab went out for Christmas lunch. The funny thing was that one of the other post-docs also got that fortune. He promptly started making fun of it. I quietly tucked mine away and said nothing about it.

I've always been good at saying the first thing to enter my brain. It took some time, but I finally learned that it isn't always a good idea to voice those thoughts out loud. I was told once that about 90% of your thoughts are not your own. They filter in from the people around you, the things you listen to and the stuff you watch. You don't own those thoughts until you actually speak them.

It's easy to speak your mind, but so much harder to speak your heart. I think I'll make it a goal for next year to speak more through my heart than from my head.

Happy Love Thursday!

LOVE THURSDAY

It's on the Life List to buy and refurbish an old camper. I put it on the list because it's not only something I want to do, but it's also something Chris really wants to do. We are constantly on the look out for an old beat up camper and planning what we'd do with it and where we would go.

Part of the fun is the hunt for the camper. It's like our own version of I Spy. Every time one of us points one out in some junk lot or backyard, we get all excited. Then we debate about it. Is it too big? Could we pull the camper with the car? What if we got a small SUV to match? What color would we paint it? What so you think it looks like on the inside?

The camper is a dreaming tool. When we're tired of planning the rebuild, we move on to all the places we would go. I guess you could say that little camper is our version of Paradise Falls. And part of the adventure is the dream of getting there.

Happy Love Thursday!

LOVE THURSDAY

The Abominable Snowman was one of those things I thought we hadn't replaced, but as we dragged out our (much smaller) Christmas bin, I could see him still in the box. I got so excited, I started hopping from foot to foot and yelling at Chris to hurry up and dig that box out! The Abominable Snowman has always loomed in the back of our Nativity scene, protecting the baby Jesus. We haven't replaced our Nativity Scene yet, but we're working on it.

The main reason for having the Abominable Snowman is because he makes me laugh. Every time I look at that silly cross-eyed face of his, I laugh out loud. And I'm a firm believer in surrounding yourself with things and especially people who make you laugh. Chris makes me laugh every day and so does our dog. My friends and the blogs I read all have the ability to make me laugh. All the old sayings are true you know. Laughter is the best medicine. Laughter does keep us young.

Just hearing someone else laugh makes me want to laugh. I love the sound of laughter. Laugh.

Happy Love Thursday!

LOVE THURSDAY

Dogs are the best examples of how to do nothing. At least my dog is any way. Hooper doesn't rest well when we stay at my parents. There's just too much going on what with the possibility of catching Mom's cat or running off after a rabbit. Too much. So when we get home, he spends the next day recovering. Sunday, Chris and I watched Hooper sleep, get up and stretch, move to a new spot, sleep some more, rinse and repeat. All day of rest.

I don't usually rest well when we stay at my parents either. I don't care too much about catching Mom's cat or chasing after rabbits, but we do stay pretty busy. Then there's the long drive home and the unpacking and all the things that need to be taken care of before work rolls around on Monday. Usually when we get home, I hit the ground running even though I'm just so tired. This time though, I took a lesson from the dog. Chris and I were able to watch Hooper's sleep antics only because we really didn't move much from the couch. It was nice.

We think that we teach them, but really? I think I've learned more from my dog than he'll ever learn from me. He is the ultimate Zen Master.

Happy Love Thursday!

LOVE THURSDAY

Today's entry is about loss and moving on. Many of you remember what happened to our Christmas ornaments a few years ago, but the story is here if you are new to the scene. I think my reaction to the whole destruction was due to a number of things. I had just lost and given up so much that the loss of all of our Christmas ornaments was the straw. It was easier to morn and weep over the loss of the ornaments than it was to morn all the loss and disappointment leading up to that moment in time.

But there comes a time where you have to move forward. You have to pick up the pieces and rebuild or some times you just have to start over. Sometimes I wonder what would have happened if I had been more adamant and forceful in my refusal to move in with Chris's mom. Would we still be living at the old place? What would we be like today? Would it change anything? I know now that the answers to those questions don't even matter; that I don't even care.

Chris and I have been collecting new Christmas ornaments over the last couple of years. Last week, we are able to find a replacement for an ornament that had been lost. And this year there is talk of actually setting up a tree. It may end up looking a little sparse, but that just means there's more room for a little more love.

Happy Love Thursday!

LOVE THURSDAYS

One time, Chris and I were standing in the checkout line at the grocery store, a basket full of groceries, when a woman stepped into line behind us. I noticed that she had a hand basket with only two or three items. Chris and I insisted that she go ahead of us. She protested and seemed really shocked that we would give up our place in line. Of course, Chris and I won out and she went ahead of us, but I couldn't help being a bit perplexed at her reaction.

We see the same thing every time we give a Sonic carhop a tip. They always react as if we've given them a million dollars. Afterward, Chris and I always have the conversation of "poor carhop, no one ever tips them". The truth is, those carhops probably rarely see a tip. It's so simple, being nice and it's an easy thing to do, for the most part. I really started thinking about this when I went to this site tweeted by Chookooloonks. Wouldn't it be so much easier to be nice to people if they were wearing a sign like one of those?

And then it dawned on me. It's easy to be nice, but some times, it's hard to accept kindness. This is something I tend to struggle with, particularly when the kindness is coming from someone I don't trust. So, today for Love Thursday, I offer you a challenge. It's a challenge to not only be nice, but to accept kindness from others.

Happy Love Thursday!

LOVE THURSDAYS

The busy season is upon us. Chris will be swamped at work until after the New Year. I will just be swamped with work until...forever. So we decided that this was the week to take a little time for ourselves. We are using this time to clean up, clean out, and re-organize, but it hasn't been all work and no play around here.

Sunday night Chris and I stayed in the Lincoln Motel on Route 66 which was no Hilton, but was clean and quaint and we had a lovely time. We've eaten at new places like the New Kaiser's American Bistro (great vegg selection) and Beatnix Cafe (not so new, but new to us). And last night? We dined at Ludivine. There are no words. Ludivine was fabulous.

OK, so we didn't run off for a week in Paris or frolic on white sand beaches in Mexico. But we did the kinds of things that we would normally do on vacations. We tried new places. We rested. We relaxed. And we're still relishing every last moment.

Happy Love Thursday!

LOVE THURSDAY

I've always been an early bird. I usually have no problem being up and ready at 7 AM. I know; it's disgusting. But I'm usually crashing around 9 in the evening, so late night things are a bit of a struggle. But there's something about the mornings that are so fresh and hopeful. It's a new day, a chance to do it better than the last. I've been hearing a lot about change, growing older and thoughts on identity. Someone in the 365 day pool had taken a birthday picture ho-humming growing older. I say that any year you survive, is a year worth celebrating. Change happens. We all grow older. We are who we are. I will always be the Early Bird and Chris will always be the Night Owl. And we are FABULOUS! Each and every one.

Enjoy the new day and Happy Love Thursday.