Life in the Cheese Drawer

here’s my sunday six.

1. remember when i tried out all those weather apps? i paid about $41 in all for testing, then an additional $20 for the wunderground subscription. i’m ok with the $20 subscription, and i was able to get a refund on a $12 subscription. but apple won’t refund any app purchases. “All transactions are final”  – so sayeth their terms and conditions. nate says the google app store will refund app purchases no problem. #thanksapple. so i’m out $29 for trying out all those stupid weather apps that i will never use again. #thanksapple. ugh i hate that their products are so easy to use, otherwise i’d switch to android or some weirdo OS.
2. i’ve been working on reducing my waste! here’s what i’ve gotten so far:
   1. who gives a crap toilet paper, which uses recycled paper and no plastic in its packaging. what would be even better is if it would just ship the rolls of toilet paper in a cardboard box, no individual wrapping of each roll separately in paper (although it does look pretty).
      
   2. i ordered a sampler pack of hair shampoo and conditioner bars that come in cardboard boxes. i’m working my way through all my bottled shampoo and conditioners first, so a review of that is yet to come.
   3. i got a deodorant bar that’s aluminum free. so far it works for everyday stuff (no complaints from anyone at work anyway), and i use it for running since i sweat like a horse anyway and keeping my pits free from sweat won’t do anything. the couple times i know i’ll be moving a lot at work i’ve used my anti-perspirant stuff, but so far the bar has been good. it came wrapped in paper and a cardboard box instead of a bulky, non-recyclable plastic thing.
   4. i sent a message to amazon that i wanted all my packages to come with paper packaging from now on, and they said that they were working toward using all paper unless specified by the manufacturer. of course, the next two packages i got were full of plastic filler (and no breakable stuff in the box). #thanksamazon
   5. i got dropps dishwasher pods, and so far they seem to be working out well.
3. WHO AM I GOING TO VOTE FOR IN THE PRIMARY???? UGH.
4. training for the half marathon is going! i’m up to 7 miles for the long run, and i ran outside for it. usually there are a couple days in february that are good for running, and yesterday was one of them. up and out the door for a slog through 7 miles. february runs are always so tough, mainly because i forget how to dress and i’m transitioning from treadmill to road. no matter which way the transition it, it’s tough. but i’ll be running 13 miles in april, so gotta do it!
5. speaking of activities, i went skiing with liz on friday, and woofda, my legs still hurt from the one blue run i went on. the older i get, the less i want to go fast and run into a tree. or even fall over because that would also hurt. i definitely used my brakes while heading down that run. then went on the easy slope for the rest of the time.
6. it’s getting lighter out! and the sun has been out more this month! so far, 2020 february is loads better than 2020 january. we’ll see what march brings. early spring?*

*LOL oh i was so optimistic. 

it recently came to my attention that my childhood camping expeditions were not instigated by my dad, as i assumed, but by my mom. (the long days in the van, on the other hand, were definitely instigated by my dad.)

that aside, let’s talk about the benefits of car camping. first, spending a week in your RV or pull-behind is not camping. that is glamping. you may be in a “campground” but there is nothing about the RV that says roughing it.

so you’ve got to have a tent and a sleeping bag at the very least. i don’t know anyone who doesn’t have some sort of sleeping pad. and there are some tenters who would argue that the only way to tent is by hiking it in. but i would disagree!

here’s what’s great about car camping.

1. you can throw everything in one vehicle, head out without something on a hitch, and not worry about hauling stuff around on your back. (if you’re specifically planning a hike or canoe trip, that’s a different matter.)
2. you’ve got your car with you – you can set up camp and then drive to various places to explore.
3. in case of emergency or severe weather in the night, you can wait it out and see what happens.
4. you don’t have to super duper rough it. just moderately rough it. because you’re hauling in your car, you can sleep on an air mattress or cot and not have to worry about weight you have to carry around.
5. you can go either way: set up in a campground right next to the loud, obnoxious RVs or do a cart in site or carry-in site (generally all tents there, and your car is right down the lane in a parking spot).
6. it’s a pretty inexpensive way to travel if you want it to be. getting a middle of the road tent is just fine (no keltys for me – i’m fine with coleman hahaha), and it’ll last you a while. sure, there’s some up front cost with the gear – cot, sleeping bag, stove, etc., but it’s a much less expensive up-front cost than an RV or staying in a hotel for 6 nights.
7. people are impressed when you tell them that camping is tenting for you. and you don’t know why, because you think everyone should be tenting when they go camping. (like i said, RVs are glamping, not camping.)
8. it’s probably much better for the environment. (gotta do the research.)
9. it builds character. nothing builds character like having to pop a squat behind your tent because the bathrooms are half a mile away. also, brushing your teeth outdoors is liberating.
10. it’s fun. just do it!

i was going to write a long blog post the day before my birthday about the decades flying by, but i was too busy… (how ironic).

so 40 came and went a couple weeks ago. it was a good week: jenee and john came to visit me and have lunch and brought presents, i got a masterclass subscription from my sisters, went to itasca directly after the birthday, and overall had a decent time. much better than turning 30, though i couldn’t tell you why i wasn’t feeling turning 30. overall, i’d have to give my 30s a high five for the effort that i went though!

1. i started running at 32. i was tired of being uncomfortable, and i felt a bit of a challenge with the running. i’m actually really impressed with myself for doing it continuously for 8 years! sure, there were a couple times when i was out for 2 weeks due to injury, but overall i have been a running maniac.
2. oh man, i owned 3 houses in my 30s!! what a time to be alive.
3. decided to a chance on a job in rochester and moved down there for that.
4. decided the job was good, but the heart wants what the heart wants, and apparently it wants lakes. so back to central mn!
5. said goodbye to chasey cat 🙁 but acquired 3 others in the past decade!
6. i have so many tattoos now.
7. somewhere along the line, i became a traveling fool. i’ve been on a plane more in the past 5 years than i had in all the years previous to then. hope that continues!
8. somewhere along the line, i think i became more comfortable with myself and what life is. i’ve become more certain about things and able to see something in myself and just let it be. now, granted, most days i still feel like i’m 8 years old and i wonder why on earth people think i know what i’m doing. but i’m getting better at that.
9. i still use a ps3 for watching everything. i think that’s slightly weird. my technology has stayed the same for the past 11 years. (i’m like, half luddite at this point. my phone is small, my laptops are old, i refuse to get an ereader, my TV is a plasma. hmmm.)
10. let’s round this out with 10 to make it equal a decade. i’ve become a more active practitioner of yoga in the past 10 years (i dabbled in it before then), and maybe that’s contributing to #8. but it’s helped me relax and become less anxious about things. that a definite plus.

OK 40 LET’S DO THIS! it can only go uphill from here, right??? plans for 40: travel more. run more. yoga more. just be.

oh, hello. long time no see. life in list form:

1. current house is good to go and has a closing date of sept. 8. the only thing the buyer wanted fixed was the window latch in the bedroom, which i totally forgot about but knew needed to be fixed. i went to the andersen window website and bought a replacement latch for $20, and it’s now good as new. not so good that i’m going to not move, but good enough for the new guy. i’ve been trying to pack, but my ambition has been pretty nil lately. sept. 8 will close in quickly, so i’d better get some ambition pretty quick.
2. future house (!!!) has just had the inspection contingency taken off; the only thing we wanted fixed was the screen door out to the patio (it’s all scratched up due to their dog). other than that, it’ll be good to go. i’m excited to live on that property and in that log home plan feel living room with the fireplace. (yes! fireplace!) so, that means i have to find more ambition to pack because i need to move all my stuff over there. ugh. ambition, why you gotta be so elusive. 
3. my garden is so sad looking. i have tomatoes up the wazoo, and the cucumbers are sort of trying to grow something, i think. my gourds are going nuts, and that’s only because i just let them go. otherwise, it’s pretty weedy and gross and i’m sad it got to this point. i’m guessing i’ll be able to make one batch of pickles and some tomato sauce. maybe there will be one pumpkin for halloween, and i hope there will be some pie pumpkins. we’ll see what happens i guess. booo. BUT. there’s always next year, when i will till up a chunk of my yard and make a giant veggie garden. it’ll be staring me in my face so there’ll be no way to ignore it.
4. charlie’s party is in two weeks!! 😮 time flies! next week he and i will have to go to the meat market and pick up the pork for the party, and i’m hoping liz and jane can still make it the friday before to help cook food. better start thinking about a menu, i guess!
5. OLYMPICS. i love the olympics. bob costas. gymnastics. community. all those good-feels. 

when i took this job, i knew that i would be leaving something i really would miss. i was leaving a job i truly enjoyed, people i really enjoyed working with, and a place i could probably have worked at for a long time. that pesky sense of place though.
so here’s what i know i miss:

1. my coworkers. aahh i miss how irreverent we were and how the banter could just happen without worrying if we were going to offend anyone. boo. for an inkling of how we worked together, a common saying was “yes, i’m 12.”
2. knowing everyone. it takes a long time for me to feel comfortable enough and get to know everyone at a workplace. i just keep telling myself, “yes, i’ll get there. just give me time. i’ll get to know everyone.”
3. the coffee. we had coffee every morning. brewed a pot, poured in half a cup of creamer, and called it good. i need to talk with the foundation director and see if she wants to start doing that (she’s the closest permanent employee who likes coffee.)
4. knowing what i’m doing. ok, granted, this job was a MUCH easier transition than any of my other jobs. it is almost the same job in the same kind of institution. it was a smooth transition. but there are little differences and processes that are different that make me do a double take.
5. my coworkers. can i say this again? 🙁
6. baked goods! i have yet to bring in baked goods for the few people near me, but i hope they go over well.

ok, i’ve got to stop writing this list or else i’m going to get depressed.

and so i enter my 38th summer. what are my summer vacation plans? 

1. despite the upheaval, i want to be able to relax. i feel like i’ve been running around to no real end for the past month, and i’d like to have a moment to just be a normal weekend person for a bit. (my weeks will pretty much be upheaval; i realize that much). after my deck is finished, i’m hoping that this will be able just be a thing. i want a little peace.
2. despite the upheaval, i want my garden to be a thing. so far, so good. my tomatoes are in, the peppers are in, cucumbers, dill, basil, and cilantro planted. this weekend i’m renting a tiller, and charlie and i are finishing up the back forty with sunflowers, and i’ve got to get the green beans in the ground. then some zinnias here and there. i still want to see things grow.
3. despite the upheaval, i am going to my family reunion! i’m not going to let this be the summer that i don’t go (i have a 100% attendance record to maintain, after all). BIG LAKE. SUN. RELAXATION STATION. << especially that, haha
4. despite the upheaval, i still love summer. i will take advantage of the warmth and the daylight and the greenery and the flowers and the growth and the frogs croaking and the birds chirping away. not the junebugs though. those things can die in a fire.
5. despite the upheaval, i want MORE upheaval and someone to buy my house down south so i can commence the living like normal up northerly. it will be work, but it will be worth it. 

let’s go, summer!

1. it’s quiet (when charlie isn’t marble running)
2. you can go out at night and not be afraid of dying
3. you can see the stars
4. the lack of every resource at your fingertips makes you…resourceful
5. golf carts and gators everywhere (is that a positive? i don’t know)
6. your neighbor’s sex den isn’t two inches from your sex den
7. the employees in the stores know you
8. small-town bars
9. fewer emergency vehicles
10. it’s quiet (still)