Domesti- hahaha, good one.

I just want all you people out there who think I've been batchin' it for the past 5 months, living on Alphagetti and a bottle of ketchup, to be rest assured that I can actually take care of myself.

For example, this evening I steamed up some cauliflower, carrots, and potato, and cooked a couple pork chops to go with. While that was cooking, I actually made some muffins, from scratch no less: banana chocolate chip - because we all know that banana chocolate chip muffins are a perfectly acceptable breakfast food (a meal I've been missing on a regular basis lately). Currently, there is not a dirty plate in sight, and the clean ones, well, Jesus is drying them for me, but they'll be put away momentarily.

And to round out an evening of domesticated houseworkery, I went greeting card shopping for an hour. Oh the shear blissful joy of it all! Wedding, Mothers Day, Birthday, Baptism, Shower - all requiring a well thought out card. I was quite overwhelmed by the time I was done, as I do believe I have read every greeting card stocked by Hallmark.

Taking a little time out of the day for myself, I meandered over to the bookstore to peruse the bestseller rack. Books have not been a high priority for me as of late, but I thought I might splurge and delve into a classic. I must admit that I have never had an inkling to pick up a Jane Austen novel, but on this evening Pride & Prejudice caught my eye. I've heard that Mr Darcy is quite the romantic; I'll soon judge for myself. And if nothing else, the zombies should keep it interesting.

These boots were made for - well, you know...

If you go out in the woods today,
You're sure of a big surprise.

Well, you may have found me had you been wandering in the same section of woods I was. I was on a mission though: to cover as much ground as possible before it got dark, AND to break in my new boots. I covered close to 6km in about an hour and a half, and my new boots are finally starting to feel like they belong on my feet instead of on a store shelf. They still managed to leave the backs of my heals a little sore, but a couple more travels from Harrison Park to Inglis Falls over the next couple weeks should make them all ready for me to wear them on my very first overnight hiking adventure. 63km of the Bruce trail during the 3 days of the May long weekend. (And somehow, that's the warmup for our 78km, 8 day trip to Killarney in August - go figure.) If you're going to do something, you might as well do it hard-core, right? ...or die trying.

Anyway, getting out into the woods is great (even if it is an overly traveled, high-traffic path). ...I just wish I hadda remembered the steep climb straight up the escarpment just before reaching Inglis Falls. Oh well, all part of the fun. Heck, by the end of the summer I should be able to run this trail! (NOT)

Great night for a walk. The forest smelled of new tree growth, there's still a ton of runoff making the streams burst at their seams, chipmunks scurrying through the leaves, birds chirping in the trees, the creeping myrtle is all out in bloom making a carpet of green & purple, and the blackflies aren't out quite yet!

Evenings like this are great for appreciating God's great creation.

....yes, that really IS a purple heart spray painted on a tree. I'm sure that's someone's way of showing they really love nature!

Clip Clop?

I was in my kitchen this evening doing I don't know what (nothing kitchen-y that's for sure) and through the open window heard the distinct sound of horse hooves on pavement.

There are always Amish folk driving their buggies around out in the country - horse hooves are a pretty familiar sound to me. It took me a second, however, to realize that I don't often see Amish folk strolling around downtown. Country yes, city, not so much.

Away to the window I flew like a flash,
Tore open the shutters and threw up the sash.
The moon on the breast of the new-fallen snow
Gave the lustre of mid-day to objects below,
When, what to my wondering eyes should appear,

wait... wrong story.

I did go to the window though and saw, not the Amish buggy I was expecting, but a carriage pulled by 2 heavy horses complete with a driver in a top hat and coat tails, and loving couple hugging in the back.

Since when has this become a cheesy tourist town?!

40 Things...

This is one of those stupid facebook survey things. Usually I just read them and answer the questions in my head. But, this is one of the better ones I've seen (aside from the '25 random things' one that swept the nation and even made the news). Still not going to post it on facebook, but it might be entertaining to read on here, since only 6 people read this anyway.


40 Secrets about yourself.
Be honest no matter what.

1. Have you ever been asked out?
At least 4 times to my recollection. Oh, wait. 5.

2. Where do you live?
If I told you that, and then somehow my boss found out and suddenly appeared on my doorstep one day just to drop in for a drink, I would have to kill you. So its best you don't know.

3. Middle name?
Same as 90% of the girls born between 1975-1985. I'll give you 3 guesses, you probably only need one.

4. Current relationship status?
Pathetically Single.

5. Does your crush like you back?
Crushes never like you back. That's why they're called 'crushes', cause they crush you.

6. Current mood?
I'm not sure there's a word for it.

7. What color of underwear are you wearing?
I don't remember

8. What color shirt are you wearing?
That would require me looking down. That seems like a lot of work.

9. Are you missing anything?
yeah, my Dignity. (see last post if that makes no sense to you)

10 If you could go back in time and change anything, what would it be?
I'd probably try not to misplace my dignity.

11. If you had to be an animal, which would you choose?
The one that would let me fly higher than an eagle. Or, maybe just an eagle. Although, I don't love the idea of eating raw meat.

12. Ever had a near death experience?
Hmm... Well, there was that time when I was like 7 and my friend told me that the road was clear so I came tearing down a hill and across the road, and a car totally had to hit his breaks for me. I, uh, didn't put a lot of trust into that friend again. The car didn't really even come close to hitting me, but had my father found out - THAT would have been the near death experience!

13. An activity you do a lot?
Blog?

14. Name a song stuck in your head.
The last person who filled this out had "Little Bitty- Alan Jackson" written in here. So... guess what song is going through my head now?

15. An embarrassing song you like?
ooh... this is so bad I don't even want to write it: Forever and Always by .... ugh... Shania Twain... (barf)

16. If you could be anywhere, where would you be right now?
In my bed

17. Last time you cried?
You don't want to know

18. Have you ever sung in front of a large audience?
Does singing as part of a choir during a public school concert count? ...I didn't think so.

19. If you could have one super power what would it be?
As a child I frequently had dreams that I could fly. Like, frequently to the point that I thought it must actually be possible (not that I actually tried it - I'm not stupid). But its easy really, you just have to jump into the air, and then its a lot like swimming. Apparently, these are dreams I have inherited from my mother. *sigh*

20. First thing you notice about the opposite sex?
Height. Are you taller than me? You need to be taller than me.

21. What do you usually order from starbucks?
A big cup o' nothin'. I don't even like to walk into starbucks. The smell of the coffee is almost enough to make me want to throw up.

22. What's your biggest secret?
(I can fly - shhh... don't tell anyone)

23. Favorite color?
Blue

24. Do you still watch kiddie shows or tv shows?
yes? Poorly worded question.

25. What's on your walls?
I have a really nice beige paint theme happening.

26. What are you?
What am I? Old. Boring. A Gemini. Right handed. Caucasian. A Secret Spy. Addicted to facebook.

27. Do you speak any other language?
My pa tells me I mumble.

28. What's your favorite smell?
Spring

29. Describe your life in one word?
Confusing.

30. Favorite tv show?
You mean, only tv show that even matters? Grey's.

31. Like running?
Only if I'm beating someone

32. What are you thinking about right now?
How tired I am, and how fun these questions are, and wondering if those two things are related and how maybe the people who read this might think I'm actually on crack.

33. What should you be doing?
Sleeping

34. Who was the last person that made you upset/angry?
Groan. We're not actually gonna answer that one. If you think its you, and you wanna talk about it... you know how to reach me. Otherwise, ignore this.

35. How often do you talk to God?
About as often as I talk to a lot of my friends - not nearly enough.

36. do you like homework?
Nobody in their right mind likes homework.

37. If you could have any last name in the world, what would it be?
Jingleheimer-Schmidt

38. Do you act differently around the person you like?
I'm done with liking people. I expect my pastor to arrange a marriage for me any day now.

39. who/what made you cry last?
What? Come on. Why don't these things ask 'what was the last thing that made you laugh so hard milk came out your nose?' Wouldn't that be more entertaining? And you wanna know what my answer is? Well, about a year ago, I went on this road trip to a magical place called Nashville. While driving, I would frequently just think about thinking about a certain tv comercial and I would completely lose it and start laughing uncontrolably for like 10 minutes. You know... the kraft commercial where Geri Hall says 'jalapeno' wrong? yeah... Its still funny.

40. Who do you plan to tag in this?
Well... Since this isn't facebook, probably no one. Lucky you.