03 May 2010

things i learned this weekend...

i was right. {you'll rarely hear those words from me, so may i savor it a moment? oh, thank you.} these bad boys made me smile all weekend long.




uncle sugar does not like animals. he tends to scowl at most hairy things that crawl around on the floor, including hirsute babies. but he loves our new puppy.

also. uncle sugar is not a veterinarian. but he has diagnosed coco as deaf.

lillie and i simultaneously and optimistically suggested ear implants. one of us was kidding. but our shared instant brightness made uncle sugar smile for quite a while.




speaking of lill, she performed like a pro at her choir concert. looked like a little angel, and i never say that. afterwards, her teacher pulled me aside and thanked me for lillie's manners.

i was waiting for the however.

of course, i filled up the air with nonsense. said something about oh, thank you! i worry so much about these girlies...

her face made that are you crazy sort of a look, and she said the loveliest words i totally needed to hear. totally.

don't worry about lillie. she's quirky, but she's a good girl.

good AND quirky? excellent news.




our schedules are filling up like mad. and that also made me smile all weekend long.

i realize i'm still struggling to find my place here. it's strange. i say no to most invitations, i've not been interested enough to invest in new friendships, and i sometimes {gulp.} feel like i've put my charm on pause. because, in my mind, i'm not going to live here forever.

so. why. bother.

but i don't think that's a good way to live, do you? on pause. so i whole-heartedly decided, during this frantically entertaining and hella tiring and altogether comforting weekend to buy in. say yes more. maybe even get a land line.

how about you? did you have a brilliant weekend? are you committed to where you live? not to sound too prison, but are you locked in for life? are your animals, by any chance, ear donors? and do you like hairy babies?

{publish post? really, karey? ugh.}

i'm more than a little obsessed with zero & maria cornejo. i tried on the asymmetrical cade tunic, and have fallen hard. i really enjoy the geometry of it, don't you? when i tried to find a picture of it to share with you, i stumbled upon bird, which is where i gathered up the rest of the goodies. read their meet the staff section. i loved it. and as i was scrolling through their petite bios, i couldn't help but wonder how the girlies three will someday write their own. i do hope they're sufficiently sure with just the right amount of quirk.

14 comments:

Lou said...

Ahh good your got your 'quirky' quota ;-)

I am afraid we are locked in to where we live - it's been home since I was 5 and my husband was 10. My kids now tred in the footsteps that I did - literally, in fields and beaches that I went on as a child. I realise how lucky we are, and heaven forbid if I had to move I think I would be just like you - like it was a temporary measure where I 'exist' not 'live'. But then after a while, that's crazy isn't it? Got to live for now I guess! LB x

jules @ The Diversion Project said...

i find myself doing that too, expecting the worst and listening for the however.i put it down to it being about my fear that i don't do enough with my ferals, that i work too long, want quiet too much, and want them to understand now (rather than me having to explain everything). I wait for the however because my little guilt demon tells me to.

i'm trying to bust out of that habit. but then again it is always such a nice surprise to hear that they're good kids isn't it?!

prolly could spare you an ear from a border collie, this guy never uses them.

btw...

that bag....

should come and live with me :)

xxx

Melissa de la Fuente said...

ALWAYS push publish, your words cheer me SO! Um...that bag? Yowza. And yes, I am committed to where I live but, then that is how I roll...I am not a big mover & shaker. I love our town(just the right amount of quirk) :) My animals ARE ear donors! How did you know? And yes,I like hairy babies very much. I also understand the no interest in new friendships( I can barely keep up with the ones I have already)and I understand YOU feeling that way because you love to move. It is wonderful to hear how others see your girls isn't it and if I didn't love the three of them already, just the right amount of quirk makes me love them all the more! SO good by me..
xo
Melis

Natalie said...

I did have a brilliant weekend; thanks for asking! It was productive with just the right amount of laziness and I couldn't have asked for anything more.

I've had a love/hate relationship with Arizona since I moved here in 1997 and during most of those years I merely "existed"; refusing to ever believe it was home. Something changed about a year ago and now there is more an emphasis on love and less on hate. Of course, moving into a cute little townhouse in a man-made lake community (desert oasis!) made a world of difference. It's a rental, but it doesn't feel like one (there is something incredibly liberating about feeling like you are home).

That said, my heart still pines a little for the place I grew up, but I don't let it overwhelm me anymore.

I know what you are feeling all too well; I tend to get that feeling a few months before I know I have to move to another place. It's that feeling of being between here and there and not really knowing which place you belong. I was slightly disappointed that my landlord only wanted to do a year to year lease, because I would have signed a forever lease (and I will still probably press him for something longer than a year when lease time rolls around).

Jill said...

As someone who hasn't had any roots in 10+ years, I understand completely. Though I'm hoping to change that too in just a few weeks. I need a place to call home. And a few friends to call once I'm home.

Roots... what a novel idea?

Sue said...

We've lived here 7 years and I still don't feel as if I fit in. It is the first town we've lived in where I have felt that way and I just look at it as a stopover on the way to the next place in a few years. Thankfully, I have a few (few) good friends who carry me through:)

Sue

susan said so said...

love hairy babies if they have 4 legs.

locked in, i think, BUT - i lived a gypsy life for 20 years, while helping 2 little people grow into big people, and i learned early on that 1) it's ALL temporary, and since that's a fact, 2) it's more fun to pretend it's not. so every place was home, whether for 6 months or 6 years.

this place, moss hill? the plan is 'til death do us part (i don't plan to haunt it...)

dig in. see how far you can sink your roots with one eye on the horizon.

xox,
susan

Mrs.French said...

i can't think of anything more lovely than to have a quirky/good girly...could you please, please tell me how you raise one (or 3) of those?

as far as the friend thing...i completely understand where you are coming from...it took me 4 years to settle in and put an effort towards new friendships. how bout you just pack up and move out this way and i can help you with this...just saying...xo t

Anonymous said...

i've practically lived here my entire life, and i still feel like a waterless fish.
but when i look around at the tans and teeth and teeny tiny "hidden" scars, i'm ok with the stranger in a STRANGEland role.
love,
katie

Mary said...

Such an interesting question to ponder. I've been here for a while now, but I traveled for such a long time that it took a while to feel settled here. I have friends in lots of cities across the country - and beyond - but I'm still working hard to build a tighter community of friends here at home. I'm here for the long haul though, so I know it's worth the effort.

Simply Mel {Reverie} said...

i love hairy babies and quirky good girls!

Relyn Lawson said...

I love hairy babies and I am temporarily locked in to where I live. Some days it does feel prison-like, but not usually.

la la Lovely said...

I feel locked in to wear I live but I dream of being adventurous and living in some far off place. Right now I live in the home I grew up in. It is charming but I do dream of building something one day. I lived away once (a few states away) and I missed home. Maybe it was just my youngself, I don't know?
And the new friends thing. I'm not the best at that. I like making bloggy friends but real life ones, I need to be better at that.
And btw.... I think yes, that is the best compliment a girl can get....quirky good girl. Well done, you!!!!!
xx

Marnie said...

most people can only count really good friends on one hand - those friends are true and strong no matter where they are in your life/world. i think it is very hard to make a good friend...connections are easy these days but a good friend is often hard to find.