weekend recap.

These past couple of days have been a little tricky in the ol' emo department. I think it's the holidays. Although it's supposed to be "the most wonderful time of the year," I've just been a little funky. Usually the best way for me to get out of any sort of rut is to exercise. I let that treadmill have it. Yesterday I totally did--I put in a hot little playlist my brother made me and ran like it was nobody's biz. Then I hit the weights, having no real agenda but legs. Well somewhere in between a workout high and watching the sweat hit the floor, I forgot to drink water. I've done smarter things. So after a quick sip of aguas and parking it on a bench for a few minutes, I was feeling much better.

Another mind over matter . . . or matter over mind, in this case . . . thing is to keep myself really busy. And truly, this is helpful for any type of thing. Over the weekend I did just that and gosh darnit! I'm proud of myself. :)

First, I spent some time on wedding things. Details details details. I love it. Mostly I perused flowers . . . one of my most favorite things. Miss Stella Bug was there to provide her valuable insight:



Next, I did some, um, mending? to the disastrous fence. In theory my idea was nothing short of golden, but in practice I think it could use a little help. I did, however, get kudos from my roommate. He was checking it out yesterday and said that even though it looks pretty dumb, it actually works. Of course it works, silly. But like I said, it looks kiiiiiiiinda dumb (there are also stakes on the back side to balance the weight):

And finally, I committed to some room improvements. A little over two months ago, we bought some paint for the bathroom and bedroom and while we painted the bathroom that very night, the bedroom went untouched . . . until Sunday. I finally busted out the Fire on the Mountain paint and let the wall have it. While it's pretty loud, it's actually quite lovely. This picture doesn't really do it justice:

And look at that, I'm already feeling better. (And I just realized I put the pillows on the bed upside down . . . did anyone else notice this!? I've never noticed the difference! Oops.) There's a lot to be thankful for in this world and my ability to complete projects like this definitely is one of them. (Insert sorority voice) Snaps for a busy weekend!

holy wind.

Oh my heavens. I just got back from one of the most ridiculous runs of my life. Maybe I'm being dramatic, but running into a 30 mph headwind isn't exactly my idea of a fun run. Amidst the wind, I was dodging tumble weeds and trying to run with my mouth closed so the dust wouldn't coat my teeth. Yummy. What I set out to be an 8+-miler ended up being barely 6. Booooo. Regardless, I'm still sitting here watching Neb play the Wolverines (currently losing . . . wake UP Huskers!!) and drinking my delicious banana chocolate protein smoothie to help my muscles recover. Mmm.

It's amazing the funny looks people give runners. It's this "ohhh myyy gaaaad!" and "what the devil does she think she's doing over there?" and "I secretly hope she falls on her face because it will make me feel better about sitting on my porch and watching her run by" kind of look. Lots and lots of rubber necks. I think anyone who runs understands what I mean. Either that, or it's the fact that I live in near-West Texas and the concept of exercise is hard-pressed for the majority of the inhabitants.

This is basically what I see when I'm out in New West Texico. This, tumble weeds and pickups. For the record, I'm not complaining. I love living in new places and figuring out all the quirks.

Confession: I have this undying urge to high five any other runner, walker or biker that I see when I'm out doing my thing. I just get really excited when I come across other outdoor/exercise enthusiasts and want to be both encouraging and, naturally, the best of friends (because friendships start with high fives?). Plus, how awesome are high fives from a really happy stranger? Not sure what anyone else thinks, but I love them! The only deterrant is that a lot of people won't look you in the eye or even, much to my disdain, will cross the street if they see someone coming their direction in order to avoid any social contact. That's just awkward, people. And unnecessary. I think I'll make it a new goal to give out high fives during my next run. Just because I can.

a good day becomes incredible.

Today I woke up to a major George snuggle-face and all I could think of is how much I didn't want to get out of bed and head into the office. Not only is my bed like sleeping in a giant, warm marshmallow (sans gooey-ness), but you throw in a Mr. George snug and I'm history. But one look at the clock was enough to get my buns rolling--no pun intended . . .

I had a lot on my plate this morning with one of my clients whose health has become one of my top priorities, so when I went to pick her up for our workout date and she told me she wasn't going, I was really disappointed. In my heart. Further, she had wanted to cancel another appointment I'd made with a nursing evaluation team who were, at that moment, making a three-hour drive to meet with us. Balls. Up until that very moment, I was convinced I'd been succeeding in my job and suddenly the walls were caving in. Within an hour, she miraculously had changed her mind and we were off on our next adventure which ended up going really well. (Insert sorority voice) Snaps for that!

On my drive home for lunch I had a call from a foreign number and it was none other than my Cap!! I know this is cheesy, but imma say it: Nothing has ever sounded so good.

So we chatted until I got home and found a special surprise on my front porch! What was it!? . . . a MIXER! I was so excited when I saw this sitting outside. And it was from none other than my main squeeze! He knows me well. I've been wanting one of these since about grade school and finally, finally I have one. Tonight I'm using it to make something for a benefit bake sale we're having at work tomorrow, so this couldn't have arrived at a more perfect time.

After lunch, I mosied reluctantly back to the office and may or may not have stopped to get a Red Bull and Twizzlers on the way. Think about it . . . odds are?

When I returned, there was another little surprise waiting for me in the form of some lovely fall foliage. And I LOVE fall foliage!

Holy SNAZZ he sent me flowers too!

And this, my friends, is how a good day becomes incredible.

wednesday goodness.

I woke up this morning to the thought of, "OK, lady, how are you going to make this day great?" Love waking up like that. I knew I had to face a bulldog of a person today, so I chose the big girl pants in my closet and guess what? Today has been awesome so far.

I found this through one of my friends and just got done watching it. I cried. It's amazing to me how good people really are. http://www.flixxy.com/welcome-back-heathrow-airport-t-mobile.htm

That, and I constantly think about how great it's going to be when the Cap' comes home to me. I'm not sure I'll have the whole ensemble set up and ready to perform in Lubbock International, but a running hug and smooch combo should suffice.

You know life is worth the struggle when you look back on what you lost, and realize what you have now is way better than before. -Unknown

plant!z

I have a new thing (I think I always have a new thing--keeps life interesting) . . . and it's not really that new. It's kind of an old passion. Plants. I love them. My mom had (has?) this magical little aloe vera plant in the window above her kitchen sink and I would spend hours . . . OK, minutes . . . seconds . . . inspecting it and making the leaves ooze their fantastic healing goo.

Last spring I helped mi capitan and his parents plant a bunch of new life in our yard. Unfortunately the relentless New Mexican sun chose to spoil the fun and soaked up the goodness from the soil, leaving a good handful of our plants tired and thirsty. Sad. But I love yard work and planting/gardening/growing. I love the earth, the smell of freshly cut grass, the life in a new blossom. It's fantastic.

Soooo to keep this all going, I've started my own little garden inside. Check it outttt!

I think I need to re-pot my orchid, but isn't my little yellow rose so cute? I pretend it's my Yellow Rose of Texas since I'm basically a West Texan y'all . . .  I have Trader Joe's of Santa Fe to thank for both of these! This weekend I'm going to Lowe's to pick up supplies to make a ski rack (woohoo) soooo I'll probably buy a new pot and get to work on my mini garden.

OH and I'm going to a Shaman workshop on Saturday and you better BELIZE I'll be writing about it!

life in color photo.

I have a lot to be thankful for. One of those things is being a homeowner in Eastern New Mexico. Well, OK, let's be honest . . . I don't actually own the home, but the man I'm going to marry does . . . technique only.

I'm maintaining it to the best of my abilities and have been working on keeping it as clean as a two-cat household can be. With that said, I did recently take down the display of empty booze bottles that lined the kitchen cupboards, save a few that are "decorative" now AND the growlers, of which my fiance is very proud (and has every right to be). I may also have taken a slight lady liberty and replaced the bikini-girl pin-up with a calendar of my nieces. I meannnn, it's November so the other calendar was coming down soon anyway, right?

The following pictures sum up a lot about my past month as a solo bird in New Mexiland. While awaiting the return of my favorite capitan, I've managed to fill the time with an ample amount of weirdness. Enjoy.

First, I made an almost inapprpriate amount of salsa using the peppers I pulled from our garden.

Stella watched. Note the football game on the TV in the background. This has become my life. No complaints.

While driving to Denver for Halloween, my roommates and I tried to make lightning bolts to attach to my "lightning bug" costume . . . and this is what happened. Our three college educations apparently mean nothing in the world of lightning bolts.

I had an all-expense-paid trip to fabulous Roswell, NM.

. . . which was sufficiently weird.

I drove to Santa Fe and back twice to get these bad boys set up. Rawr. Also? I cleaned out the garage.

Aaaand today I asked my neighbor if he'd help me fix the fence. This is all thanks to the wonderful 50 mph gusts we get on a daily basis. The good news is George and Stella were out in full force to scope the scene. They were a huge help. Like I said . . . I'm maintaing it to the best of my abilities. I guess what Mother Nature had in mind was a little different.

I love the life of a busy bee.

training pants.

The only work training I can think of that I'd truly enjoy is one that involved baking cupcakes. Unfortunately the training I attended today involved nothing of the like. In fact, I had absolutely no idea what I was getting myself into when I was voluntold to go. No, instead of whipping up deliciousness, I was learning how to prevent crises from occurring in the workplace. By crises, I'm talking about people throwing things, choking people, biting, etc. And my job? Deflect. Deflect. Deflect. Granted, I'm sure it would have been much more engaging had I not been sitting there thinking about all of the awesome time I could have been spending with my mom, buuuttttt instead I was doing all I could not to allow my disdain to seep into my facial expressions or body language. Easier said than done.

Luckily we were provided workbooks, the perfect attention-grabber. Mine's now filled full with unimpressive doodles and semi-legible notes. There was ONE thing, however, that nabbed my undivided attention. It was this hot mess of a picture:

HOT pants! Considering how much I love a great pair of high pants, this picture really did the trick to fully engage me in the class. If not for this picture, I probably wouldn't know how to defend myself against an attacker now. Lucky me.