One person's trash is another one's treasure...

In prep for our move back east, we're getting rid of a lot of the stuff that we shouldn't have brought with us in the first place...A friend of mine told me to check this out, and I'm so glad I did. We've been able to unload lots of our stuff!

If you've never heard of freecycle, I would definitely recommend looking there before you buy something new. You can get some good things for free.

Happy. And a little scared.

One of the many things I learned when I went through my divorce several years ago was not to judge people. And, I don't. Everyone has a right to happiness and to live the life that they choose, who am I to say what's good for anyone, but myself?

But, I've spent a lot of the last few days worrying about what people are going to say about me and my situation when I tell them that we're packing up and moving back east. Silly, really. I know. And, a little self-centered. So, I'm not going to worry anymore.

The past few months have had many ups and downs. Admittedly, more downs than ups. But, I don't have any regrets about my decision to come out west. It sure has been an experience and I'm really glad that I came along for the ride. And, I don't have to think about any 'what-ifs' down the road.

Not really sure what the future is going to bring and part of me is freaking out slightly. But, I'm happy that we landed on this decision - it's been a struggle reaching it. Adam is transferring to a school in Connecticut. We're going to be a little smarter this time - he's going by himself and I will follow if/when he knows it's the right sitch.

As for me, I'm looking forward to taking a deep breath, sitting on the deck at the lake, to going for bike rides with Marc on his new-found trails in Maine, to walking the dogs with Scott, Lon, and Jack, strolling Portsmouth, lunching with old friends, and figuring out what my next steps will be.

It's all good. This is what life is all about, finding your way. See you on the east coast.

Random Friday News, Cause It's a Slow Day at Work

1. I just did something monumental (for me). I ingested a dairy product past the 'sell by' date on the container. I have a problem with throwing - most likely - good food away, because I'm certain it can no longer be good - because the container said so. But, this morning I needed half and half for my coffee, the sell by date on mine was yesterday - I smelled it and then just went for it. And guess what? I'm still alive!

2. We're supposed to get snow tomorrow. Go ahead all you New Englander's let me have it.

3. I had a 'celebrity' sighting yesterday. The "Little People" from the TLC show, live in my town and I passed one of them on the road yesterday. I promptly called Loni to report this, as it's her mom's favorite show.

Most importantly...

4. Adam is taking his stage check test on Tuesday, he should be soloing by the end of next week. A big, big deal.

I hope that you all have a fun weekend. Wish you were here having that fun with me!

An Elder Statesman

Such a good ole boy. Taken this weekend on the Columbia river up in Woodland, Washington.

"12:30, I'll miss Letterman's top ten, but I'll make it home in time for my meds." Said the crazy guy standing next to us as we waited for the train to take us home from our big night out in the city. "That's good," I replied. Thinking I wish I had some "meds" at that point. Crazy Guy continued to talk our ears off until the train finally (thank God!) came. He was harmless though. And I did learn some interesting facts from him.

All in all, it was a fun night out. The best part was catching up with Brita. Love that girl!

I hope you enjoy this song from Scott Avett. They haven't recorded it yet, the first time I heard it was when I caught them at the Stone Church and it gave me chills. If you make it to the end, you won't regret it.

"It costs nothing to be honest, loyal, and true."

As I said in an earlier post, if I could quit my life - it would be to follow these boys around. Whoo hoo - they're here tonight and we're venturing into the city to see them.

As an extra added bonus Brita is in town and she'll be joining us tonight for the show. It's been a long time since I've had the chance to spend a couple of hours with her, and I'm really looking forward to seeing a friendly, familiar face.

Happy Day!

Designer Dogs

We've been toying with the idea, for awhile now, of adding another pup to our family. Ultimately, the decision for now is not to. We're going to wait until we're "settled" - who the heck knows when that will be. If it was up to me, I'd have a couple of dogs. The thing that has prevented me from doing so, is the rental situation. So far, I've had no problem finding a place with one, mellow golden retriever, but two big dogs would probably be a lot harder. And, also...because my +1 isn't crazy about the idea.

Adam is allergic to dogs. And cats. And basically any type of plant, tree, dust, mold, etc. For some reason, Kobe doesn't bother his allergies. Lab hair though, that's entirely different - he's crazy allergic to labs. It's weird. So, when the time comes that we do add a dog to the family, we have to be really careful. In the search for our potential new pup, I stumbled upon this whole "Designer Dog" movement.

You know the one, where breeders cross two different purebred dogs and come up with a new "breed". But here's the thing: they're mutts. And, these people are charging a disgusting amount of money for them. And, they're getting it. I found one breeder in Oregon who is charging $2,200-$2,500 dollars. $2,000-$2,500 DOLLARS. For a "Goldendoodle" (a Golden Retriever crossed with a Poodle). Does anyone else see something wrong with this?

I'm all about these dogs, would love to have one. They'd be perfect for us, because many end up being hypoallergenic (not a guarantee) - plus they're still a cool dog. I don't know, with so many dogs in shelters - especially here - it seems insane to spend that kind of money on a mutt. Because, if you do a little research, you can probably find that "designer puppy" in a shelter - get what you want and save a life. I hope this is a trend that is just that, and ends soon.

The new hood

Since I gave you a tour of the surroundings at the old place, I decided to take you along on our walk this afternoon...

This is a picture of our street, Kobe has finally figured out that, no, he can't pee on all of the well-manicured lawns...



Our destination on our walk is this field...the only place we've been able to find within walking distance that Kobes can go off-leash and run around...



Which is right across from the airport, where Adam goes to school...



Here's our view on the walk back from the field...





This path connects the main road to our road...We like to pretend we're in the wilderness...



Here's our backyard...



Which contains the coolest birdfeeder in the world...

To be fair

The company which we do not speak of in this house anymore, did the right thing. Read about it here.

We're still not shopping there. But, good for them.