I was lucky enough, in fact, to wind up with 2 that I actually like. While it’s nice to have choices, I actually prefer to have one obvious shot-of-the-day so that I can process it, upload it to flickr, and be done. I do not, I suppose, appreciate the hard decisions that I sometimes have to make.

And so, I am going to leave it up to you all to decide. Tell me in the comments, please, do you like:

Broad Shouldered Hawk in Pine Tree?

or

Broad Shouldered Hawk in Maple Tree?

I await your decision.

That would be my kid who is home from college. And not just temporarily this time. You see, she has transferred to the university in the next town over from us . . . and she doesn’t want to live on campus . . . so she’ll be living at home for the foreseeable future.

I’ll just give you a moment to let that sink in.

There are many reasons why this transfer is the right thing for Hannah. First and foremost, the school she was attending didn’t offer the program she wanted to study. Let me explain –  while she still wants to be a teacher (that hasn’t changed since she was 5 years old), she has decided that she wants to be a special needs teacher who works with children with several physical disabilities. This decision did not come as a surprise to me since she has spent the last two summers working as a teacher’s aide at a school that provides specialized programs for kids with all kinds of physical and medical problems and she has loved it. By making this decision she really then had no choice other than to change schools and it just so happens that one of the best schools in the state for this course of study is the one that’s only 10 minutes up the road.

The second reason, and the one that’s at least equally as important to Hannah, is that she just wasn’t happy at school. She hated living in the dorm, she constantly complained about the food in the cafeteria, and (according to her anyway) she just didn’t fit in. So she asked if she could live at home and commute to school and we said  . . . yes.

It will be a big adjustment for all of us – Dale and I have really enjoyed the freedom of being empty nesters and Hannah has equally enjoyed the freedom of coming and going as she pleased. But I’m proud of her for knowing what she wants and recognizing the best way to get there. It will be cheaper and more practical and I’m keeping an open mind and thinking that we can make it work.

Of course, the irony of how I felt in those first weeks when she left two years ago as compared to now isn’t lost on me.

Life sure is funny that way.

A weekend that includes a holiday and a lot of socializing doesn’t necessarily leave a lot of time for knitting
Nevertheless, gatherings of friends and family are worth the sacrifice of some knitting time
Especially when one of those gatherings is with a family member who lives in the next town over but that I haven’t seen in over 30 years
Catching up over dinner with our spouses was amazing
I learned stuff about our family history (my great grandmother was a full blooded Cherokee Indian) and shared great stories and ultimately can’t wait to see them again
In between all that socializing there was cooking, baking, and prepping for our annual Easter gathering
And recognizing that Easter Sunday marked the 29th anniversary of my brother’s death
Gathering our family under one roof for a holiday is an opportunity not to be squandered
Life is fragile and fleeting, connections are important

I had a very entertaining and social weekend
It started with Friday lunch with friends Kathy and Susan
Lots of laughter and catching up over a burrito at Whole Foods
Followed by maple butter walnut ice cream at J.P. Licks,
the weather so warm we could sit outside without jackets and enjoy ourselves
Friday evening found us heading to Boston,
First for drinks – bourbon and Dale’s Pale Ale – and then a show
Seats in the front row for Les Miserables
The music, the acting, the scenery,
the entire performance was new and fresh again
I’m so glad we splurged and did it
Saturday was errands and shopping for me,
wallpaper scraping and spackling for Dale,
we are finally tackling the living room re-do
The evening was spent with friends, seeing The Hunger Games,
eating popcorn and Junior Mints
And then Chinese food and drinks
The movie was exciting and true to the book,
I’m already anxious for the next one
Sunday was our Kiwanis Pancake Breakfast
greeting friends, frying and serving eggs, snacking on lots of bacon
and then home
To build a fire to take away the chill that has returned,
to watch old movies and do more spackling
I’m anxious for paint on the walls but the process is slow
Maybe by next weekend
And now the work week begins again

It’s not a particularly special photo and it’s really not blog worthy.

Except.

Except that I couldn’t help but noticing something all those books have in common. They are totally representative of my hobbies. They are all non-fiction, which is rather unusual for a pile of books in this house. The subjects:  photography, knitting, cooking, positive thinking, all covered in that little pile. While I wish I could say I have read all of these, I have not. I have, however, flipped through them all and begun to absorb them. The little tips, the encouraging words, the pictures and techniques and valuable information in these books will eventually become part of me, part of my thinking, part of the way I work to improve and enjoy my hobbies.

A pile of books is such a simple thing, really. But taking that pile of books and reading them can make a world of difference in the way you live your life.

P.S. Only 48 comments left until we reach 50,000 comments!

1. Sleep until you feel better.

So that’s what I’m doing. I will see you all tomorrow!

Her name is Ruby.

We took the plunge last week and bought a 2012 Subaru Outback. I haven’t had a new car since 1987 and I’m am now seriously in love with this one. I know my excise tax is going to be high and I know a slightly used car is probably a better value but damn it feels good to be the first owner of this car.

26+ miles to the gallon feels pretty good, too.

I didn’t commit to this project myself but so far I have been the lucky recipient of 2 letters, one from Kathy and one from Margene. I cannot tell you how happy it made me to receive these little notes in the mail. Such a simple thing, really, but it made me feel loved and cherished to know that my friends took the time to sit down, select a note card and pen, and write to me. It doesn’t provide instant communication the way an email or facebook message does but I think that’s part of the charm.

And of course I have written back to both of them.

Today let’s simply take a look back.
Where were you this day one year ago?
What did you capture in your lens that day?
Looking back can be fun.  You may be surprised by what you find.  I hope the look back brings with it a good memory.

That look back most definitely brought back a good memory. And the timing of this prompt could not have been better because it reminded me that yesterday was my 7 year blog anniversary and last year I hosted a gathering of knitters & spinners at my home to celebrate. Most of those women would not be in my life if it weren’t for the fact that I sat down at my computer on the morning of  January 29, 2005 and just started writing.

Those early posts were pretty dull, my knitting was uninspired and my photography in those days was downright awful but people started reading and commenting and here I am, 7 years letter, with 1675 posts and 49,151 comments. Holy crap.

So on this day, when I start the 8th year of my blog, I just want to say thanks. Thanks for being here, thanks for reading and commenting, thanks for your friendship, your support and encouragement,  and – most of all –  thanks for making time in your day to stop by and spend a little time with me.

Really. Thanks.