Learning about unconditional love and acceptance
Growl at it, snarl at it.
Scare it off; let it know who’s in charge.
That was what I felt I needed to do when I first saw the raccoon.
But what exactly was it doing inside anyway?
And where exactly was I?
It didn’t seem to matter which room I went into, the raccoon found it.
So I growled and snarled.
We faced each other, I wasn’t backing down.
I growled again, louder.
Loud enough that I could feel it.
Loud enough to wake myself up.
And Craig.
Darn you sleep bandit.
Safely arrived to see what the future has in store for us.
Minnesota greeted us with warm 70’s weather.
For two days.
Followed today by weather in the 30’s with snow flurries.
Well now.
This Northeastern & Southern transplant is quite fond of her flip flops.
I’m not giving them up that easy,
Not only that, the convertible is supposed to be here in two days.
Don’t ya know. 🙂
Does anyone else ever wonder why some people follow their blogs?
I don’t think I’m that witty.
Well, okay, I can be sometimes.
I’m random. I’m a sporadic writer, at best at the present.
I think I do a pretty good job picking out those who just “like” a post or “follow” me for the sole purpose to build up their audience base.
But then there are those people who make me go hmmm.
What did I say that peaked their interest? They don’t seem to comment. So, hmm, I wonder.
Perhaps I am a character for an upcoming writing project.
I wonder if I’m the main character or just a walk on?
I better get busy providing more material, I mean I could be the main character!
Oh, the pressure of the thought! Ha!
Reality check time Denise….don’t you think you have enough on your plate now?
Time to do some more sorting and packing.
Denise – exit stage left.
I’m a character alright.
Now that the cat is out of the bag about us moving, I can tell you something funny that happened a few weeks ago.
To be honest, I didn’t find it so humorous on the day it happened.
Being that we are moving to a much colder climate than we have lived in for the last 19+ years I thought I would browse the internet for an acceptable coat to keep myself warm.
We have lived in colder climates before. We are from Pennsylvania. However, this move is going to kick up the cold to another notch. My skin and body temperature has also acclimated to the southern climate. There were times when we would take a trip to PA and someone would forget a coat because it would be warm here.
I do have a ski jacket. I guess I could walk around in my ski coat when I meet cold temperatures but quite frankly when I’ve usually worn my ski coat I’ve been wearing ski pants which keep the lower part of my anatomy warm. Need I say more?
With that in mind I started looking for a parka that had a removable hood (I’m expecting winds) tight cuffs to help keep the cold out and long enough to cover the butt. The parka also had to keep me warm in temperatures that I figured could reach 20-30 below depending on the wind chill, and it had to not break my piggy bank.
Since stores are highlighting their spring fashions and lighter clothing, they had some good deals on the internet. Not too many stores in the south selling a winter parka that fit what I was looking for. I found one online and ordered it.
My parka arrived an early winter day when we had temperatures that was a pleasing near 80 degrees. Yes, 80’s.
Seriously?
I didn’t try it on for a week or so later.
Something is the matter with the mirrors in my home.
I mean they are “reflecting” and all. It’s just there is something freaky going on.
What they are reflecting to me and apparently what everyone else sees are two different things.
How do I know this?
Well, I tried to take a picture by looking in our bathroom mirror on my phone.
Don’t ask me why.
Okay, inquiring minds are asking.
Fine, I’ll tell you.
Apparently it is the “thing” to do on Facebook, so I thought I would try it and send a sweet Valentine picture to my hubby’s phone.
The resulting picture looked nothing like what I was seeing in the mirror.
I saw a younger version of my Grandmother, or what I’d like to think my Mother would have looked like if she would have lived to be my age.
I’ve heard before that a camera will add ten pounds.
Isn’t that special?
I think camera phones add twenty pounds and twenty years. You know, they packed a lot of apps in that small packaging.
I come from a line of tall women.
I like being tall; however, with some things it does have its drawbacks.
What I’m thinking about in particular this morning is wearing and buying slacks.
Now, my past generation of tall family women for the most part wore dresses. They also made their own clothing.
I stopped wearing dresses and skirts for the most part when I stopped working full-time a few years ago, and I haven’t made me something to wear since the 80’s. I don’t currently have any plans to start making myself clothing. What I like and what I can produce are two entirely different things!
Buying women’s slacks, or as I say, pants can be a challenge. Most local stores do not carry tall selections. So you are left to either wear your own version of “petal pushers” or order online. Ordering online can be time-consuming and costly. First you don’t reap the benefits of trying on the item to make sure you like how it looks, so then if you order it and don’t like it you have the hassle and cost of returning what you waited to so patiently for. So when I find a store that has pants that I like, that fit, and I can order them online in tall, it is a win-win situation. Trouble is usually then, the cost or how quickly they sell out. Currently, then I am left with a few choices of pants to choose from when selecting my wardrobe in the morning.
Now, men seem to not have a problem with only a few items to choose from in their closet. They also have the ability to wear the same pair of pants over and over and don’t mind if anyone notices, nor do I think many people do. I stand in front of my pant choices and have them rotated so I remember which day I wore which one. I don’t think anyone else cares about this, and perhaps no one else even notices…you would have to be a detail person.
Have I mentioned before I’m a detail person?
So this morning deciding on which particular pair of pants that I was going to wear, I was also thinking that I have also shrunk over the years.
I used to be 5’-10”. Now, if I believe correctly, the last time I was measured at the doctor’s office I was around 5’-9”. What the heck?
I’ve always liked being tall. As a matter of fact, there were years (and years) that I wore very high heels. (Remember platforms?) Yeah, I wore them.
Now I think I would topple over because of my ankles and wobbly knees. I still have a few pairs of high heels (3”+), but for the most part a high heel today is anything over 1”. Now the thrill of unsure knees and swollen feet, a lovely side effect of rheumatoid arthritis are not very conducive to high heels. (Insert appropriate sarcasm.)
I digress. Anyway, back to the shrinking.
I think that inch re-distributed itself.
Like around my waist.
I didn’t know my waist was so lonely. It isn’t like my waist hadn’t picked up a few inches of friends over the years in my opinion and needed another inch. Guess “waist” needed more company for tea and muffins.
I like muffins, and in particular the tops of the muffins, but do not like “muffin top” on me. So, if I shrink anymore, I hope that any further re-distribution happens elsewhere.
I also hope I don’t keep shrinking until I get down into the petite section. That would be a whole other issue entirely. Ha! Like that would happen!
Like I said, I like being tall.
Excuse me while I stretch out my cotton sweater a little on the sides.
There, that’s better.
Maybe no one will notice I’m wearing the same tall pants, again. 🙂
Just As I Am 