Friday night grateful list

Oh lovely weekend, welcome. My arms have been wide open, waiting to welcome you, since at least Wednesday. Thanks for finally showing up!

It's been a wild and wooly week, as my mom used to say. Lots of unusual things popping up to be handled--nothing too unusual, but perhaps it was the volume? Buckets instead of cupfuls, or to have a happier metaphor: a giant rainbow cake of awesome "things that need to be handled." No cupcakes around here, oh no. Whopping layers of cake. Yum.

Meanwhile, the grateful. Such a glorious time of year around here. Long, long days, with lots of light to wake me early, and keep me awake on the other end too. Very grateful for the blinds we have in our bedroom that help keep the light out--this week it had to keep out that strawberry moon business too, from Monday night. Seth and I were out for a bit of exercise when the moon rose, and it was lovely to see it rise in that harvesty way that is mammoth and warm.

And early in the mornings too, when I'm out with the dogs and the chickens, I'm struck by how green and beautiful everything is. We haven't ramped back up the HOT weather yet, just lolling around in the low 80s. Very hammock weather. I walk past our hammock. That's about how hammocky my week was. (Insert wink emoji here.) (I really want to wake up one day in a post-emoji world, but then I think to myself, how on earth would I add an extra "touch" to my texts?! Amiright, Ma?!)

Having Seth home is such a gift. There's really no other word for it. Just knowing he's here, even when he's not in the room with us, makes me smile. He started his new job this week, as a WalMart cashier. I saw him in action tonight as I got a few supplies. He was intent on his scanning responsibilities, and I kept the proper Mom distance. There's a rule that family and friends have to avoid their relative worker, so I behaved, even though I was sort of tempted and if caught would have pulled out my ID--look, different last names, we're not related. You can see I thought through this a little bit. Such a silly mom. Such a silly, grateful mom.

Seth and I are on track to eat a record amount of watermelon this summer. If there isn't a watermelon currently cut up and being eaten, there are leftovers in the fridge, or another one on the counter ready to cut, or both. Of course it's a little early for truly local melons, but we have been enjoying some real gems who have taken a trip north to our bellies. The other food item we are quite ahead of the game on is pesto. The one thing I got planted early is basil, and it is beautiful, bushy and fragrant. I love keeping it trimmed of its blossoms, and having the lovely scent on my hands for awhile after. Happy summer days! So grateful for produce, especially the local farms.

For this week especially, my grateful list includes (but is not limited to!):

Sweet husband and his thoughtful ways.

Our haven of a home, where I can tuck away for a day of rest and come out the other side energized.

Friends who drive hours to come to town for lunch and a visit and a laugh. Who can cut through nonsense in zero time and get to the heart of whatever really needs discussing.

Our pups and their unconditional love. Nothing like the greeting those three give us all at the end of the day. Is it about food? Possibly--especially for General. But those border collies, boy do they embody the "love is love is love is love is love is love" philosophy.

Cold brew coffee. The perfect summer drink. Easy to make, oh-so-easy to drink.

Early morning energy.

Instagram.

Coworkers who put in extra when needed, without being asked. (It's the "without being asked" that's especially awesome.)

Berries. All. The. Berries.

Summer rain. The smell, the feel in the air, the lovely morning after.

Wishing you a joyful, restful weekend.

Peace.

Sept. 21: Changed forever by blogging?

Blogging challenge for today: Discuss the ways that blogging or social media have changed you.

I started blogging as a way to record a few things specific to me: recipes and gratitude. Back in the day (2008), the blog tagline reflected that: A little food, a little gratitude. Jen served as inspiration--she'd been blogging for nearly a decade by then. My brother has also blogged off and on over the past few years, and he helped me through some early technical snafus.

While I wouldn't call this blog an online journal--I would be more transparent there--I do share what's going on in my life. I'm very sensitive to husband's privacy, and Seth's too, to a lesser degree--he used to like being featured, now he's neither here nor there about it; Mom blogs? Whatevs.

What I am mostly conscious of, and pay the most attention to in my tone, is presenting a "la la" view of the world. I mean, hello?! The blog name is Sweet Tea & Sunshine. If I could tell you how many times in the past five years a girlfriend has sweetly but mockingly said, "Well, yeah, Sher, but you ARE Sweet Tea and Sunshine." I get that. In many ways, the blog name is a nod to an almost-45-year history of my sunny disposition. Thankfully, though, I long ago gave up thinking that I had to choose between being my sunny, optimistic self AND being a "serious thinker." Who knew? You can be both?! Awesome.

But, as is often the case, the sunny comes out first and is much more marketable--does anyone really want to know when I'm feeling down or crabby or had an argument with my son or husband, or what I'm pondering about gun control or health care or...? It is certainly not my first inclination to share that line of thought in this venue--or anywhere, really. So I'm cognizant of that--that I'm sharing mostly the pretty and yummy. I know bloggers who do a great job with relaying their trials and tribulations, their highs and lows, their bitchy days as well as their happy days. Whenever I have tiptoed out there, it just feels inauthentic. It may be a muscle I flex at some other time, in some other setting, but for right now blogging about what inspires me is what makes the most sense, to me.

One of the best parts of blogging, and social media in general, are the connections. I have "met" bloggers that I would never meet otherwise--Janet and Chel both come quickly to mind, and Lisa has become an IRL friend too, having met initially through our blogs.

As for Facebook, there are countless examples of people who have come back into my life that make me smile (and Jen is one of them). Just when I think I couldn't possibly dig up a past connection, another one finds me, and I'm blessed for that. (Famous last words, I know. Knock on wood.) And for those who I see regularly, Facebook still provides a keep-in-touch aspect to our busy lives, little windows into what's happening even just three pastures over, or across town as kids grow up and people change jobs.

I am occasionally annoyed by Facebook, by the changes that don't allow me to see updates from those that I really want to see, or by posts that irritate me. But I remind myself that I can easily just turn it off, and having a busy work life certainly keeps it to a lower level of interaction than it used to be when I was home during the day and more easily distracted.

Twitter is Twitter. I like it well enough, but am not ambitious enough to actually USE it to an end. I continue to see it as a wave to be ridden, coasting along on top of a massive swell of information. Dipping into it on occasion has worked well for me, and I understand that some people really appreciate the pithy microblogging platform. For me, it's a side dish, hardly the main entree. (Let's see how many different metaphors I can stuff into a paragraph, eh?)

Pinterest is a joy, pure and simple. It's social enough, with existing friends, but not a place to meet people (in my experience). I will follow anyone who shares my interests, but striking up a conversation is a whole other ballgame. I just pin, and am content with that.

Instagram is my newest joy, and I've really enjoyed playing around there the past year or so. I have met people there in a way that Pinterest doesn't facilitate--commenting on someone's picture is a much more common experience than with Pinterest, and getting followed back is natural, and conversation just comes from that. There are amazing photographers on Instagram, of which I am not one. I just love to document various aspects of life, and then share the images elsewhere--Facebook, Twitter and the blog. (And I love to see what my niece Maizy is up to too!)

What am I missing? Foursquare? No thanks. Snapchat? Not for my generation. Vine? Not for my attention span. What else? Who knows. I'm sure something new is being invented even as I type.

Connections. Sharing. Being shared with. It's (generally) all good.

Or, we can hear what Louis C.K. has to say about things in this vein... which is worth a listen. (It's mostly about texting, but you know that half of the people he's talking about texting and driving are really Facebooking and driving. Or tweeting and driving. Or Instagramming... You get it.)


How do you feel about social media/blogging? Any changes to your life because of it?

Jen and I (and now my mom and Lisa too!) are blog challenging throughout September. You can catch her blog over at Stuff Jen Says. If you want to write along with us, give me a shout and I'll send you the blog prompts.

Monday morning inspiration on a Tuesday

OK, so it's Tuesday morning by the time I post this, but still... post I must. It has taken me an inordinately long time to figure out a new blogging app, Blogsy, and I'm not sure I get it, even now. I'm in New Orleans at a work conference, and hearing news all around of Oklahoma and the devastating tornados, I can't help but think of the families impacted there and off a prayer of support and comfort. Such loss.

I have been having a lot of fun with Over lately. Enough so that I thought, over the weekend, "I could really get into this. Can putting text over photos be my day job?" Ha. Wishes me, and every other silly app addict on the face of the earth. I've heard tell of people dreaming of making a living with Instagram... I'd love to know if they could ever achieve that. Theoretically there are people pulling in cash from Pinterest, but I've been too busy to actually sit down and try and figure that out. Seems slippery.

Meanwhile, Over. Take a pic, put text on top, fiddle with it, post it if you like. If you have an iPhone, you really should check it out. It makes me very happy.

A few favorites from other Over users:

Everyone makes a mess in the kitchen, a fail, even an Epic Fail, on occasion. Take a look at some pretty bad kitchen outcomes. And live to cook another day!

And my favorite words for today:

"Someone who takes the time to understand their relationship with source, who actively seeks alignment with their broader perspective, who deliberately seeks and finds alignment with who-they-really-are, is more charismatic, more attractive, more effective, and more powerful than a group of millions who have not achieved this alignment. Nobody else knows your reason for being. You do. Your bliss guides you to it. When you follow your bliss, when you follow your path to joy, your conversation is of joy, your feelings are of joy--you're right on the path of that which you intended when you came forth into this physical body."

-Esther Hicks

I hope your week is off to an awesome start.

 

Thursday 13: So cold. So so cold

keep my scarf on, in the house. I grocery shop with my mittens on. The car never warms up enough on the drive to and from work. Yesterday was foggy all day, with these teensie little snowflakes... or was that freezing fog? I'm grumpy.

Yes, it's January. Well and truly past the holidays, but spring feels so so far away. Time to dream of tropical vacations, short sleeves, skirts without tights, open-toe shoes. At the very least, have lunch with a friend who just returned from a tropical vacation and (not) think stabby jealous thoughts the whole time you're with her. I may be grumpy, but I'm evolved. Evolved grumpy.

I am also needing, desperately, to break my blogging slump. I'm feeling caught in these busy weeks with the only must-write posts being the Friday gratefulness moments. Somehow I have a deal with myself regarding those. Must. Happen. Seriously. I don't want to overstate it, but if you don't see a post when you wake up Saturday morning (because I know you, you look, yes you do, thank you very much dear reader), give husband a call. Order flowers. Come visit the hospital. Well, check visiting hours first, but do order the flowers.

So here's my stab at a not-Friday-night post, whooo! Thirteen things that help cut my winter chill.

1. Seed catalogs! The promise of spring, and sprouting little plants and warm earth makes me very happy. I don't think about August and the weeds, just the happy spring planting times!

2. Looking at my Instagram feed from summer months. Color and warmth.

3. Pinterest. Run a search for "sunshine" or "yellow" or "babies." You will smile with the results.

4. Laughter. Just a big old gut bust. Get it where you can. Tonight for me there was a line from Modern Family: "Please don't turn my marrying my daughter into something ugly." Hilarious. (I know, you need context. Trust me.)

5. Music. The Christmas music is long gone; I'm usually done with that by the day of Christmas, easily. Now is the time to get on the upbeat new music, and luckily my dear music friend Jen has provided a lovely sampling for the new year, which I'm able to listen to as I come and go in the car. Happy music is a great way to cut the fog.

6. Pomegranates and grapefruit (not necessarily together, but that can work too). Two winter fruits that I only get to enjoy for a short season, so I REALLY enjoy them. As in, most days I will have one or the other. And my favorite method for hacking a pom? Check it out:

7. Lights. OK, here's where I confess that the Christmas tree is still up. (Husband is embarrassed, a bit, by this turn of events, but I just haven't been very motivated to take it down. I have a feeling this coming weekend will be the golden moment...) Aside from Christmas lights, I'm a big fan of all lights (more or less--flourescent, well, they're not on anyone's love list, are they?)--candles, SAD lights, a little strand of twinkle lights to cut the cold...

8. My Uggy boots. Soft and white and I always warm up when I'm wearing them.

9. Hot chocolate. I have not made nearly enough hot chocolate so far this winter... must work on this!

10. Read recipe books with summer recipes, and fantasize about summer cooking. I can't wait to make summer salads and cobblers and fresh vegetables sautes, straight from the garden.

11. Hot baths. There are times when only a hot bath will warm me all the way up. Glorious!

12. My house uniform... I guess the Uggs could fall under this, but they are truly their own separate warmth generator. For me, coming home and getting into my comfy pants, long-sleeved T shirt and '70s-style tie-wrap sweater is just so rejuvenating at the end of the day. I know, odd to use the word rejuvenating when talking about the end of the day, and relaxing, but it really does give me a second wind to change my clothes and make the transition into the evening. On those rare occasions where I hop right into making dinner and don't take the time to change, my whole evening is less relaxing.

13. Color. Anywhere, anytime. Wandering a fabric store, popping into the flower shop, even browsing spring clothing--though that can be somewhat depressing if I then have to go back and warm my car up to get home... maybe that one should be online only!

What helps you break the winter chill? Tell me. I'm always up for new ideas!

For more Thursday 13s, go here!