Welcome 2012 with One Little Word: Shine

Happy New Year everyone! 

I’ve been busy catch up on several Big Picture classes that started today (One Little Word, Move More/Eat Well, and Twelve- yikes it’s a lot for one day!)  Cody is, of course, at the deer lease- last day of deer season.  I used to say it’s the last day of hunting season- yes, I was naive.  NOW, oh no, hunting season is year round.  But it does mean it’s time to start thinking about the next big season. . . TURKEY.  Can’t wait, but I have to- even longer this year.

Yesterday, I posted about One Little Word and how my word, Home, last year had such a great impact on our life.  I knew it was something I wanted to do again and I started thinking about what my word would be for 2012 a few months ago.  I thought about a few and then one day, while listening to an Eminem song (of all things) it hit me- and the word, after re-listening to the song, wasn’t even in the song. . .

Shiney

That will be my word for this year.  I want to shine in 2012- I want to shine by His grace.  My thoughts quickly turned to “This Little Light of Mine.”

Have you heard this version?  Loving it!  Also purchased another Live version of this on Itunes and have been listening to it alot.

(LOL- When I went to the video on my favorites, I listened to it while posting it here and then came the “dandy” fight  between the Sabres Cody McCormick and the Jets Tanner Glass from earlier this year.  How wrong is that!?!?)

I love music and have pretty diverse tastes.  But, it was fitting that the thoughts about what my One Little Word would be for the year came in snippets of songs.  The next song I thought about was Aaron Watson’s “Sonshine”.  I can’t find it online other than a sample for purchase but here are the lyrics.

Sonshine

 

When wilted and withered
And dyin’ of thirst
In need of forgiveness
When you’re at your worst
Let the rain fall upon you
Like sweet mornin’ dew
Wash away all your sorrows
And let the Son shine on you

CHORUS

Let the Son shine from heaven
Through the clouds in the sky
Come receive your salvation
From His sacrifice
And when you’re down and discouraged
And your heart’s torn in two
You turn your face to the Father
And let His Son shine on you

I’ve been there before
And I know your pain
Surrounded by darkness
All alone and ashamed
While you’re out on life’s highway
The wrong turn can leave you lost
So when you come to the crossroad
Take the road to the cross

CHORUS

And when you’re down and discouraged
And your heart’s torn in two
You turn your face to the Father
And let His Son shine on you

Turn your face to the Father
And let His Son shine on you

(Aaron Watson, Neal Lowry)

I really think those two songs tell the story of what I want this year- to let God’s love shine down on me and through me.  I want a stronger faith and I want to share the gifts God has given me with others.

As I’ve thought about my word and God’s Son and Faith, I’ve often thought back on that Aaron Watson song as the Benediction is read each week at church. As God would have it, today’s first lesson (Numbers 6: 22-27), the lesson for Jan 1, 2012, was the text from where we get our Benediction. I marveled out how cool that was this morning and still can’t believe that was our text today.

“The Lord bless you and keep you;
the Lord make his face to shine upon you and be gracious to you;
the Lord lift up his countenance upon you and give you peace.”
Numbers 6:24-26

 I’m once again taking One Little Word at Big Picture so that I can explore my Word for 2012 more.  You can certainly still sign up  and it’s not too late to choose a word for the year.  You can find out more here.

Yesterday I completed the title page for the year and today I worked with the January prompt.  I still need to take another picture of myself. . .  or get Cody to- but’s it’s deer season remember.

Here’s a look at my pages so far.

This page was printed out and placed in a nine pocket page protector.

 What do you want for 2012?  Will you be choosing a word?

2011 in One Little Word: Home

 You may recall that I chose a word for 2011.  Home.  You might even recall that I participated in Ali’s 2011 One Little Word class.  To be honest, while I participated, I didn’t keep up with the album this year.  And, I really didn’t blog about Home as much as I wanted to.  But, the one thing that stayed constant was a focus on Home.

In fact, so much of the focus was about Home- especially in the past 6 months that I haven’t even blogged much!) (How could it not?  We spent so much time thinking about it, putting plans into action, sold our house, and moved last month!)

We’ve taken a long hard look at what home means to us, what we need for a home, and what we want.  I think it had been on my mind for last few years but it became so much more prominent this year.   Not long after my appendix and I parted this year, I made a discovery that after some thought and discussion, has led to Cody and I to start on a new path.  And Home was the center of that start and that path.

“Our” home was on Alania Ave for almost 10 years. I realized that it’s almost the longest I’ve ever lived anywhere.  When we bought our Alania home, we were planning for a family. We thought we needed a three bedroom home and a yard.  Even then, I thought the 1600 or so square feet in our home was a little too big- but our home had great potential for raising a family.  I’ve always believed that love grows best in little houses.  I’ve never really understood the fascination for huge homes.   

Of course, the plans we made when buying our Alania house were the result of planning for dreams that turned into pipe dreams.  So, we were left with a house for the two of us that we planned for a much different life.  You know the saying about hindsight- we see clearer.  But, we simply didn’t bet on the life we would have just the two of us.  We’re getting used to that idea but our Alania house was one of the last relics of those bygone plans.  And, to be honest, not only was the house way too big for the two of us, but it’s a constant reminder of what wasn’t to be.  In fact, I could barely stand to be in the two spare bedrooms- too many fantasies about those rooms.

 ”Our” Alania home just didn’t feel like our own home.  It hadn’t for a long time.  I was going through some old pictures including gatherings with the student fellowship group at church we used to host.  I was reminded that there was a time that we felt we belonged in our home.  I haven’t felt that way in a long time but it was fun to see a reminder of when I did. 

I wrote about wanting to get things done around our house at the start of 2011- little did I know LOL!  I think the fact that our house didn’t feel like our home was part of the reason we just hadn’t gotten things done around the house.  And led to so many projects that we had to finish before we put our Alania home on the market.  that We hadn’t wanted to spend time working on a home which feels much less like a home than something dragging you down.  I think there was a great deal of avoidance.  Cody and I have talked about selling this house as if it would be someday- thinking that financially, we just could not afford to shed ourselves of this emotional burden.  So, this year, the procrastination stopped and we did so many things that needed to be done.  Sometimes we found our selves wondering why we waited but give ourselves a break- because we both know what this house has meant to us over time.  

As we looked at moving into an apartment where we wouldn’t be responsible for maintenance, I also spent a good time wondering if the reason we had let some things go at the Alania house was also that we just don’t want to have to maintain our home.

 How much stuff do we need?  How much do we have?  What really do we need?

These are some of things I’ve been wondering over time.  I knew I had too much in my kitchen.  I’ve been wanting to downsize my stuff for quite a while.  Honestly, I want to downsize my life and I’m sure I’ll be sharing more about that along this journey.

Moving into an apartment means that we have to downsize our stuff- or put it in storage which we’re unwilling to do.  There’s been a few hard choices- perhaps the hardest was for Cody as he decided to sell the Mustang (the only thing I was willing to put in storage).  We’ll have a storage unit for a few months and then we’ll put a storage building at the lease where Cody can keep the things he uses out there that we had at the house- like the push mower and weed eater.

 Honestly though, most of the choices haven’t been that hard.  Stuff is just stuff.  There are a few things I’ll keep- like ALL of our pictures and family documents- that perhaps I shouldn’t keep. (I actually hope to pare these down in the year or so to come- but for now I’m keeping them as I simply don’t have time to go through and extract genealogy clues, etc) But otherwise, I’ve really narrowed it down to the things I’ll use.

 It’s been a life changer- which I know is a term used all too often- but really it’s helped change or solidify many things for me.

See all this stuff?  It came from the kitchen and dining room alone.  And it’s not like my cooking or baking will be suffering- I’ve kept the things I need.  I still can’t believe I had this much stuff that I really can do without.  (Sure, there’s a few things in here that I replaced- like my crockpot).  

 The first thoughts that came to mind where just how blessed I am- if I’m getting rid of this much stuff and still going to be fine in the kitchen, I’m one blessed person to have accumulated this much.  

 Another thought- why do we do this to ourselves?  

 I had probably 30 plus cookie cutters.  I make rolled cookies rarely.  The simple choice- to both downsize my stuff and simplify my life- get rid of them all!  I’ll use my biscuit cutters for the rare times I make sugar cookies- which means I don’t have decisions to make about what to use, I can get more out of one roll of the dough, and they’ll cook more evenly without corners etc.  

 And 20 glass tumblers in each size- why do we think we need to conform to a certain standard- I rarely use these glasses- everyday, we pull out the plastic ones.  So, you’d think I’d use them for company- no, when the family comes over, we pull out the disposable solo cups.  (Don’t get me started on how many of those I’ve got- I’ve told mom she’s not invited back if next time we gather she brings more cups or how many times I sang the song Red Solo Cup while packing, moving, unpacking, and trying to find space for them.)  And you know what, I’d rather use the solo cups- no worries about glasses being broken and far less clean-up- both of which mean I can enjoy my company more.

Away from the kitchen, well, we just found all kinds of things.  I know I had lots of things I either “thought I needed” or bought but “never finished the project.”  

Want to see more stuff? More Downsizing?  Look at all this!

Of course, some of the stuff was just sheer downsizing stuff- beds and dressers for example.

We had a garage sale to get rid of most of our stuff.  This in and of itself sparked many thoughts.  Like the price we pay for things vs their real worth.  I had things there that were marked well over 90% off what I paid for them.  Most were probably at least ¼ of the price we paid for them.  Then there were the people who bought them. . . . either really thrifty people who knew that things don’t hold as much value or people with far less than Cody and I.  What we haven’t sold, we’re donating to the Women’s Shelter thrift shop- there’s still some really great stuff we didn’t sell.  We also found ourselves donating stuff after we moved to friends and the thrift shop- still paring down our things and I’ll keep paring down.  I’ve still got a few things I need to sort out at the apartment . . . but I’ll figure it out or we’ll part with more stuff.  It’s just stuff.

It’s been an interesting experience just getting the amount of stuff we own down.  It has been very much about rating just what role our stuff should play in our lives and what importance various items have for us.  

When I shared with mom our ideas, the first thing she asked was if I was selling our home because of our finances.  Which, we didn’t.  Although finances, I think, always play a role when you’re looking at selling and buying a home.   

It’s not so much our finances before we sold the house that played a role- we were doing alright financially.  And of course, we had to meet with a realtor to ensure we could sell the house for what we felt was “enough”. Enought- enough for our home that we can be 100% debt free- seriously 100%- so that all we owe are the bills for the month- no car note, no loans, no credit cards, nothing but rent and utilities.

We’ve never been debt free in the time that we’ve known each other until this month.  So, this will be a big change.  It will allow us to save more money and start, hopefully, down a path that leads to a debt free life (or only short-term debt).  Can you imagine?  It’s a totally different world financially and one we’re ready to work at.

 (Of course, the entire time I mention debt free, I have to cross my fingers that our vehicles will hold out long enough for us to save up for the next one. . . please no more $5000 repairs.)

And of course, we’ll be saving money while living in town- the internet, electric bills, and our fuel costs- it’ll all be cheaper.

In today’s times, it’s much harder to be debt-free.  And this part of our path will hopefully work out.  I think this plus maintaining a down-sized life are really the experiment parts of our new path.  I’m really curious just what a debt-free life will lead us to. . . 

So, selling the house, downsizing our stuff, and bettering our finances leads me to “Freedom”.  

Certainly, renting an apartment means freedom for yard work and freedom from worrying about appliances going out and other maintenance.  It means freedom for Cody to sit and watch TV instead of taking care of things around the house.  It means freedom for me to scrapbook more and clean less.

It means we’re free to try some new things without as many responsibilities.  It means too that we can take advantage of being just two.  It also means that we’re free to live whereever we want and to take some risks to change the rest of our lives as well.  (Someone I know will apply one more time trying to get into the academy and follow more closely in his father’s footsteps.)

We’re hoping to have opportunities to spend some of the money we’ll be saving will mean that we can go on more trips- investing in experiences rather than stuff.  We want to visit with our family more.  We want to visit different parts of the country.  And, of course, there’s conferences I’d like to attend and hunting trips Cody would like to take.  We won’t be able to do it all but we should be able to prioritize and do more of some of them.

So, in all of this, we’re finding a journey.  It’s a journey we can take with very few foreseeable consequences.  I often see it as a chance to go against the grain of this world- the one that says we should buy more things, defines luxury in terms of dollars, and sets the tone for less true peace.

 I don’t see us living in an apartment forever- but I could be wrong.  Renting a house is always and option too.  Who knows, we have a set of grandparents each that rented their entire lives- perhaps we’re just meant to follow in their footsteps- maybe they had something figured out that we haven’t seen just yet.  We know that we can save up and buy a house on our terms- not just because we think we need it at a particular time in our life.  So, we’ll see where we end up living and what we do.  We continue to talk about about buying a small acreage near a friend and moving an old house in or perhaps building a small place.  It was what we learned when we lived there before we moved to Alania Ave that has so greatly influenced us.  But, that’s years from now- at least for now.

If there’s one thing we’ve learned over the past 10 years, it’s that you never really know where life is taking you- only God knows.   This is just part of our journey.  

It’s fun to look back at what I wrote and think about the year in terms of Home- not everything has been so sweeping in our lives.

I’m still working on settling in to our new home but I feel more settled now- even with some things still in boxes and no artwork on the walls- than I’ve felt in a long time.  I wanted to decorate more- I’ve loved the trips to Ikea I’ve made and seeing my decorating style starting to show up in my own home.  Our smaller place means it’s easier to maintain and really urges me to keep it even more tidy and even more minimal.  I also wrote about how at home I feel in the Kitchen and I think I’ve really explored that more this year- finding solace in the kitchen and so much joy.  For me, it’s where home field advantage seems to start but in our new place, I really feel like I do have home field advantage.  Speaking of home field or even home plate- we saw the Jack’s go all the way to the conference championship game- I saw almost all the home games from home plate.  (I only missed a few home games for a family visit and my appendix)  Mom and I kicked the season off with a “triple” header- the tale end of a tied game from the night before along with the planned double header.  I took my Uncle to his last ball game- with his grandson and great grandson.  And Cody and I finished the season in San Marcos in a last minute decision- one on a financial wing and prayer that I think also had a huge impact that helped us move forward to making changes at home.

It’s really neat to see the influence that one little word has had on our lives.  As we move into 2012 I know that Home will remain very much on our minds. 

PS- Ali’s offering One Little Word again in 2012- I encourage you to pick a word for the year and perhaps even think about signing up for her class which totally works even if you’re not a scrapbooker.

My Scrapbook Albums

When my latest layouts arrived in the mail last week, I thought I’d share a look at my scrapbook albums.

It’s always fun to see your work in print.  I look forward to getting my new layouts and stalk the post man every time I place an order.  For years, I didn’t get my layouts printed.  When I first started scrapbooking, it wasn’t as easy or as cheap to get your layouts printed- at least full size 12 by 12 or 8.5 by 11.  Now, that’s not the case.

I get my layouts printed at Persnickety Prints.  (I get my pictures printed at Mpix but their 12 by 12′s are just too expensive.)  At Persnickety, I get their prepaid plans- it gives me a discount and makes it easier for me to get prints on a regular basis.  With the layouts already paid for, I just wait until I have enough layouts that warrant the flat rate $5 shipping.

Here’s my lastest order:

It took just two days to get them in.  Love that Persnickety is so fast!

Oh the joy!

I currently have four scrapbook albums in use.  The nice thing about digital is that you can get a lot of pages in one album.  I use the American Crafts D-Ring Cloth (Chestnut color) albums.  I have three for my regular layouts- all are 12 by 12.  Then, I have one that’s an 8.5 by 11 that holds my Week in the Life Projects for each year.

When I get my order in, it’s time to divide them up and figure out where they will go.  My albums are divided into: Me & Him/ Family & Friends, Stories, and Passions.  I have each of those sub-divided.  You can see the sections that I have and even the layout in them here.

There’s a number of reasons that having my albums divided like this works great for me.  I scrapbook what ever strikes my fancy.  It means that I definitely don’t scrapbook in any chronological order- in fact, I’ve never cared for the idea that I need to scrapbook this and then this.  I love to document the little moments and the ones that I feel like telling at the time that I want to scrapbook.  It might be in part because I don’t often scrapbook in terms of events.  I don’t know that I have any birthday layouts.  I have very few Christmas layouts- and the ones I do have are stories and moments that occurred on that day.  I love to do layouts that appreciate moments, our trips, the things we love to do, our relationship, Cody, myself, or bits about the people we love.  So, putting layouts in those categories works really well for me.  It also hides the gaps in terms of chronology or holidays (you don’t notice the sparseness of the Christmas layouts). 

So, when I get my new layouts arrive in the mail, I’ll lay the layouts out and decide where they’ll go.  There’s not always a clear choice- or often they’ll seem like they can fit in several places.  I just choose the best place and know I can move them later.  I know there are some stories too that over time will become more a part of who we are and that will get moved into my Legendary Stories section.

In this case, I also had a couple of 6 X 12 pages.  I print those on 12 by 12′s and then cut them down. 

That brings me to the other thing I wanted to add. . . I do layouts in various sizes- mostly 8.5 by 11, 6 X 12,.and 12 X 12.  I mix and match them in my albums.  It really doesn’t bother me that you get the sneak peaks of other layouts.

Here you can see a 12 by 12 and 8.5 by 11 on the left and a 6 X12 and 12 by 12 on the right (in this case, those match since they’re part of the same story- that’s normally not the case.)  I just slip the layouts in where I have a blank page protector or add them to the back of the section.

The other thing that I thought would bother me that doesn’t- the gap between layouts that are two pages created by the three ring binder- like the one you see here.

Every once in a while, I think about doing a section or new album for my Newest Layouts.  But, that’s more work- and if I’ve learned anything, it’s the value of not making more work for myself.  I also like that I get to reminisce whenever I put my layouts away. But if you want to see my newest layouts including the ones in this post, you can check them all out here.

It’s Deer Season

Well, it’s bow season at least.  Cody’s hunted one morning for the past two weekends.  He’s kinda hoping that he see’s this guy.

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But of course, you can’t eat the horns. 

Of course, for Cody. . . the socialite that he is. . . it means a chance to talk and hang out with every one on the lease.

And more of me waiting on him to quit talking. . .

and talking. . .

So we can get some work done.  We added a couple bags of corn to the feeders and checked the cards opening weekend.

The game camera captured this one.

We lvoe our game cameras- they capture so many things- like this little guy (or gal)

Cody was not feeling the camera thing- trust me, I didn’t even try to capture a shot of us kissing using the game cameras. . . (See this moment here when I busted him the last time.)

He wouldn’t give me a chance to get the sunglare figured out. . . Should have posted the one with the glare right over his nose that makes him look like Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer. . .

Of course, I’m not sure I can totally blame him. . . he did have a little bit of other work to do- but not too much.

Reflective Snapshots and Reflective Scrapbooking are now Ordinary Details

So, I’ve been working to merge things together and thinking about some things I’d like to do in the future.  Add to that some thoughts I’ve had about life today and you get: Ordinary Details! 

Reflective Snapshots and Reflective Scrapbooking will now be combined as Ordinary Details.  

Being online for me has always been about sharing personal expression.  I’ve seen several phases in my sharing and I think the overall contributer to that is change and growth.  It’s interesting, to me, to see how we all find our way in life- especially our way online. 

I’ll be blogging about the ordinary details of our every day life, making my hobbies a part of the ordinary, and, of course, my own personal thoughts about life- the joy of ordinary life.  I’m hoping I’ll be sharing some scrapbooking freebies, tutorials, and more soon.  I’m also wanting to share more recipes and ideas. 

Now, if only I could finalize a design over here and get some pictures uploaded.  I’ve got stuff I want to record here on my blog.

A Week in the Life 2011

Late last month, I participated in documenting a week in my life. We were super busy finalizing a month and a half long project.  For me, that meant keeping it really simple.  I really love this project.  I loved seeing the differences from last year to this year.  I love getting to capture small tidbits that otherwise seem to get lost- like my love hate relationship with watching the X-games.  What can I say, I just love simply capturing every day life. 

Title/Intro Page for 2011

A lot of my pages captured all the things we checked off our to do list.  This one also captured soemthing I’d forgotten how much I used to enjoy- sitting on the back porch reading and resting.

Monday seemed like a fitting day to reminisencse on the polka dotted sidewalk in our yard.  (Many moons ago it seems, Billy, Cody, and I could do nothing but laugh as it was raining while we were pouring the concrete sometime after about 10 PM)

Oh Tuesday- this one was not our typical date night for sure.

Loved the Ryan Bingham album I downloaded on Wednesday.

Oh my gosh the fork incident.  I could have filed this under the weird things I wonder category. . . .

Women really are smarter than men.  Our locks were determined to show Cody that it seems.

I was so glad to get to Saturday.  Cody was super glad to see his freedom to go on ride-a-longs return.

Back Cover Page:

Want to see my pages from last year?  You can check them out here.

Flashback Friday: New Orleans

Here’s some more shots from 2004- this one is from November.  I happened upon this look for these shots and kinda liked it.

Dad used to go to New Orleans for work on a regular basis.  At first he brought home Beignet from Cafe Du Monde, and as time went on, he began bringing home the mix (which you can now buy in the stores).  We’d go to Florida on a regular basis to see family which meant we drove near New Orleans. . .. Mom, Jack, and I would beg dad to stop but he never would.  Coming back from a trip to Florida in 2004, things were different- Jack and I were adults, Cody was driving.  Mom, Jack, and I made the decision to stop by New Orleans on our way home.  We outnumbered Dad and could put our foot down.  So, Sunday morning, we stopped in New Orleans for Beignet and to see a little bit of the French Quarter.  It was rather anti-climatic but at least we can say we were there (and after Katrina, i was even more glad we’d stopped).

I really did enjoy the little architectural details though and all of us with our cameras did take quite a few shots.  Here’s just a few.

Beloved Waffle Iron of Mine

Have I ever told you about my waffle maker. It’s more precious to me that you might imagine. Ask me what I would take if I had 5 minutes to save stuff out of my house and my waffle maker would be #1 or 2 on the list. Seriously, I’m a bit crazy about it and the quilt that my Lisa’s granny made me.  I’ve been known to put it in the fire-proof safe at times

This waffle iron is unlike most any other waffle iron- you’d be hard pressed to find one like it that works today.

Here’s I’ll let the layout do the talking.

Journaling Reads:  This waffle iron is one of my two most prized physical possessions- seriously, It’€™s one of the first things I try to protect when a hurricane or wildfire comes our way and would be one of the first things I’d grab in a fire.  You see, it’€™s probably not replaceable.  It must be over 30 years old.  I got this waffle iron from Aunt Elta’€™s house- oh how I loved that house growing up.  I knew instantly I’€™d hit the jackpot when I found this waffle iron- it’€™s just like mom’€™s was.  I cringe at the thought of the day that will inevitably come. The day when it won’€™t work anymore, it’€™s given me a couple of scares and we’€™ve had to replace the cord several times.  I have so many memories wrapped up in this waffle iron.  Memories of mom making waffles and watching (and silently hoping for a disaster) when the batter would ooze over as a child.  Mom was good at that.  Her waffle iron gave up the ghost a long time ago but it was nowhere near as perfectly seasoned as this one.  It makes perfect waffles- all I have to do is whip up some homemade batter- never the powder mix.  Mom spoiled us that way and I’€™ve passed that down to my nephew who can whip up his own batter.  And of course, waffles always make a god dinner.  This waffle iron is so very precious to me.

(And yes, mom, I overflowed it just to capture that memory of something you almost always did!)

Baseball, Opening Day?

I started this post on opening day of the the MLB Season. . . . but we quickly ran out of signal on our phones on our way to hunt for a certain turkey (that flirted with me and didn’t live to tell about it. . . .)

“MLB starts it’s season today. In fact, the Royals are playing today. So, why am I greeting the start of the season with so little fan fair? In fact, I could be watching the game instead if here posting.”

Cody and I talked about it most of the way out to the lease.  Even today, I’m just not that interested (especially given the albeit expected backsliding recently)

I can think of a few possible reasons:
1) The Royals team on the field is not the same as a few years ago- in fact it, with DeJesus gone, there are no Royals remaining from their best year in over a decade.  It’s hard to watch guys you want to see, learn so much about, and/or that are really good leave year after year.  Then there’s the affinity for aquiring outfielders when we already have them.  We’re the farm team for good players and seem to get some really lazy ones.  I was telling a scout the other day that I didn’t really mind losing Grienke- it was going to happen- but at least he took Betancourt. . . .

2) They’re not going to do anything. . . . the Royals.  It’s inevitable and it’s just not something I want to dedicate as much time to right now.

3) Hockey’s in full swing. . . And at least until this week, the Sabres were fun to watch.  It’s playoff time and while I’m not sure who I’m going to root for now, I know I’ll find it more interesting than MLB.

4) I’m enjoying watching SFA play. . . . I think this is the big heart of the matter.  For several reasons. . . . 1) it’s a purer game.  2) the team’s been really great this year and fun to watch.  3) I’m watching the games live.  I’m having so much fun going to the games.  I’ve missed it the past few weeks and I’m so glad they’re back at home.  Baseball is just more fun to watch when you can see the whole game.  Then there’s the fun of taking mom to a “triple header”  (extra innings from the night before plus a double header) or my uncle, his grandson, and great grandson to a game.  And, truth be told, I enjoy talking to and watching the scouts. . . I enjoy seeing the speed of pitches. . . . I enjoy watching them go to work when they see something that interests them. . . (Or when their assessments are the same as mine and they become less interested). . . . I enjoy sharing stats with them- aka who pitched when, how many pitches, etc as I keep score at the games.  While I root for the Jacks more than the away team, I honestly just want to see a well played game- these are “kids” not “pros”.

I don’t guess I’ve watched a full MLB game yet. . . I watched part of a Royals game but really haven’t watched one.  Things haven’t changed much since opening day. . . Except that the Sabres season is over. . . Yet my love for baseball hasn’t diminished one bit. . . In fact, it’s very much on my mind as my weekend plans consist of watching the SFA ball games.   Go ‘Jacks!

At this very moment

- I’m pedaling away at the Rec center (and feeling it.) Please forgive me if I’m not succinct.

- I’m listening to the Field of Dreams soundtrack while some college “kids” play softball- the intramural fields are far from a field of dreams though.

- in other views, I can see the ag building where Cody and I spent so much time in school.

- I can also see the arboretum. I’m reminded of the summer it seemed I spent out there. If only work could be like that. The summer I took 19 hours, I spent my afternoons waiting fir Cody to get off studying out there. Fond memories.

- the other thing I see marks the time and stands the test of time. In the window I can see the reflection of legs- mine and Cody’s as we pedal away. It’s always nice just to gave him by my side- even when we’re doing our own thing. I love his companionship.

- Only 36 mote minutes of this torture, then we get to test that companionship at Wally-world.

Typing and riding are not easy to do at the same time so that’s all I’ll share now. What so u see at this very moment?