One "WANT" down...

Barlow Girl was in concert at my church last night, so Katie and I went and jammed with HOLLY and two of her kids. So, one of my "I want to"'s got fullfilled; Holly and I got to see Barlow Girl in concert together. Rock on.

Silver and Gold

I've come back into contact with two friends of my youth; what a blessing from God. First there was John, a good friend from highschool, and just in the past couple of days I've found Ken, a friend from Cincinnati Bible College. I think Ken was one of the people I was most comfortable with.

Ken and I invented the "Blue Daruschnia", which he just reminded me of. I believe it is blueberry schnapps and orange juice. Which we were too young to be consuming. But we were rebelling against the too tight parental-like controls of our college. I made myself throw it up; I didn't like the feeling of being tipsy.

If I remember correctly, he does a mean Robert Plant.

Ken, I'm glad I found you!

The Single Mingle

Well, I guess I have my first official "date?" tomorrow afternoon. Just coffee. Just chatting. But it's a date, I think. I think.
And did I scream that I got A's for my midterm grades?
I LOVE graphic design. Sunday, I will go to a thing at school to determine my future. No big deal. :)

Happy Birthday to me....

and maaaaannnnny more....

My annual fall trip

I have to go every year. My bones cry out for a view of the River Road in full autumnal bloom. My legs itch to climb the hill towards the stone and wood guts of an old cabin. I did it, and it was beautiful. As it is every year. I LOVE this season.

The Kev Awards

On the way to school this morning, I heard Gloria Gayner's "I Will Survive." Which made me think of Kevin Kline's moving dance performance in "In & Out." Which made me think of the fact that Kevin Kline is one of my favorite actors, which then led me to think of other favorite actors of mine: Kevin Spacey and Kevin Pollack. Which made me go "huh."

stupid blogger wouldn't let me post 2 pics in one post!

Olie likes the Honda, too!

The wheels on my Honda go round and round...

...and round and round! The dying, transmission blown, can't go over 25 at times (sometimes can't even get up that high) ol' minivan is no more. At least, no more being driven. By me. Cause I got me a new (to me) Honda crv! It's so cute! And God worked, I mean, HE WORKED, in this transaction.

I saw what I thought to be a good car on Autotrader.com. 100,000 miles, Edmunds said for what they were asking it was a good deal. So, I asked a friend from church, Jim, to go out with me to look/get it. Jim is a really nice guy, but if he wants to he can be army scary, which is what I wanted to get the best price. As it would be, he was able to go in the middle of his work day that particular day (called him on the spot.)

When we got out there, guess what, oops, it's not 100,000 miles but 136, 000 miles! BIG difference. And, no, that "check engine" light doesn't mean anything, it just needs an oil change. RI-IIIIGHT. So, anyway, just to make sure, Jim calls up his best friend Steve who is a Honda mechanic and Steve says to run, run far away from that car. Jim says "Heh, aren't you selling a car?"

And there we are. Except one big thing: Steve's car was on sale for TWICE the money I had. See, Brad is taking his time, not paying my lawyer, saying he's not gotten the papers, etc, so my separation isn't legal yet. Which means I DON'T HAVE PROOF OF INCOME, so I can't get a loan on my own yet. So, I ONLY had the money from my student loan and couldn't get any more.

So, ends up, Steve had a co-worker of a relative ask to buy the Honda by making payments, and he said no. He bought it from the dealership (a trade-in for a newer Honda) and put all new everything in it for a friend's daughter going off to college, and then the friend's daughter changed her mind. So here he was, stuck.

And God moved. Because Steve agreed to take my money, and wait till January when I get my second half of my student loan for the rest of it.

Thank you God! Thank you Jim! Thank you Steve and Laura! I now have reliable transportation, more reliable than I could have afforded. God moves in the COOLEST ways!

Fall, Fall, Glorious Fall!

I can feel it in the air, in my hair, a whisper of a breeze puts the ache in my knees...

Ok, no poet am I, but my favorite season of all is approaching, is nearly here....AUTUMN!!!!!!!!
It's not just the leaves. People love the leaves, the "colors." Me too. But it's the wistfulness, the melancholic ACHE of fall that I love.

I always think back to a fall day when I was in seventh or eighth grade. I had just gotten some new clothes, and that beautiful fall feeling was in me, and in the air, and I went outside in my new jeans, my new burgundy corduroy blazer with a pink oxford underneath, and my matching new burgundy shoes. I found the wind, faced into it, and sang (I think, maybe it's just this song I think of when I remember the memory) "Never stopping with her head against the wind" from Flashdance's 'Maniac.'

Stop laughing. It was a meaningful moment for me.

And now, my first autumn in quite a while without Brad. I was, am, feeling great without Brad. And I wasn't/am not LOOKING for someone. I've got enough going on without that. But something about the cool air, the nip, the bite, the early darkfall....it makes me long for that shoulder, that strong arm. Fall is about highschool football games wrapped up in a blanket with someone warm, a blanket that you keep picking up because you keep leaping and cheering for a team - any team. Fall is about slow kisses on the living room floor, backs against a loveseat, a blazing fire warming your feet (with help from the kisses.) For those of you married, do you remember kisses that didn't lead to sex? No, not kisses that didn't lead to WANTING sex, those are some poor kisses, my friend. No, I mean the kisses that stretched for hours and left you aching, but whole, and wanting more but not going there. Those were GOOOOOOD kisses. Somehow, the abundance and availability of marital sex turned kisses into something more akin to fast food, rather than the tortuous gourmet delicacy they once were.

This fall, I'm missing the kissing.

Holly is about to call me in a fit. I love you Hols, for worrying about me. I just said I was MISSING it, Mom, ok?!!?

So.
1. I'm missing the kissing.
2. Helping Katie with karate at her class, I found I was a lot more flexible than I thought - and more so than many of the orange belt ladies in there! Touch my toes? HA! I can palm the floor, baby!
3. I can still do cartwheels!

As FFH sings, "It's a good day." It REALLY is.

Taking care of business

I used our weedeater today. I had thought it didn't work; that thought might have been put there by the ex, not sure, doesn't matter, cause it does work and I used it today. When the string broke, I called a friend and asked if I could run by his house and show it to him so he could SHOW ME how to get the lid thing off so I could change the string, which he did. I then proceeded to get the rest of that clingy stringy yellow greeny thingy which grows over the curb. The string broke a few times, and I fixed it everytime. My hands ache right now, but it's a GOOD ACHE, as I'm doing MORE than my husband wouldn't do! I"m taking care of this yard, while taking care of the kids, while going to school. I can do it. I'm enjoying it. Yeah, you might be thinking "just wait till you've had to use that weedeater a few more times, you won't be enjoying it." Maybe not. But I'll enjoy not enjoying it. Cause I'm doing it. Besides, I like mowing the lawn. Something about making the lines, it is satisfying. Probably the same reason why I like folding laundry (especially towels, I LOVE folding towels!) It brings about order. A sense of peace. Balance. Organization, ah, what it can do for the mind.

Ok, so I'm weird. You all knew that already.