Happy Birthday, Marin

Love, Zia

Wake up call - yikes!

A 60 Second Guide to Learning

the Awful Truth About Yourself

By David Wong

This won't take but a minute, and I promise this won't be a waste of your time. It's three steps ...

Step 1: Get out a pen and paper. You don't need much, an old receipt or something. Write down, in just a few words, what you did yesterday. Leave out the sleeping, eating, pooping, etc. And be totally honest, nobody is going to see it but you. So maybe it's something like:  8am - 5pm: working, 
5pm - 7pm: browsing the Internet, catching up with everybody on facebook, 
8pm - 9pm: talking on phone with a friend
, 9pm - midnight: playing an iPhone game, scrolling through Netflix menus.  Perfect, you're half done. If you want to stop and take a break, go ahead.

Feel refreshed? Good.

Step 2: On a separate piece of paper, write down in just a few words the five things that are most important in life. Roughly in order. Like, right now if I look out my window I can see a dude in the parking lot about to climb into his pickup truck. If I ran out and forced him to do this, he might come up with:

1. Serving the Lord


2. Raising my family


3. Being loyal to my friends


4. Growing my business


5. Preserving freedom

Our readership tends to be a little younger and more liberal, so for a lot of you, your list of life priorities will look something like:

1. Being loyal to my friends & family


2. Advancing my career (or education)


3. Finding my soulmate


4. Making the world better for the future (ending pollution, racism, etc.)


5. Learning to play guitar

Both are perfectly fine lists, I'm no one to judge. Now, if you write above the list, "I believe in ..." then that is in effect your Philosophy of Life. If somebody asked you what your philosophy of life was, like if you were the finalist in a beauty pageant or something, you could read that off. "I believe in being loyal to my friends, advancing my education ..." and it'd sound pretty good. Now ...

Step 3: Go back to your log of things you did yesterday, and re-arrange it in order of time spent, from most to least. So for our hypothetical person it'd be working, then playing the iPhone game, then browsing the internet, then talking to the friend.

Write "I believe in ..." at the top.

That is your real philosophy of life.

Take the other piece of paper and throw it away. It's meaningless.

"Bullshit!" you might say. "You can't judge me based on yesterday! I was really tired when I got home from work, and just wanted to chill!" Hey, I'm not judging you! I once lost an entire Wednesday afternoon trying to get a hat to stay on a rabbit. But if you think yesterday was an outlier, then go ahead and tally up the last month. If you're like me and every single person I know, your two lists -- the things you said were important and the things you actually spend time and energy on -- bear no resemblance to one another.

The pickup truck guy up there who ranked it Religion, Family, Friends, Career, and Freedom? Log his time and you'll find his waking hours are 70 percent working at the car dealership, 20 percent Chicago sports fandom, and 10 percent avoiding conversation with his family. His service to The Lord consists of tolerating one hour of church a week and hating gay people; his dedication to freedom involves spending five minutes a day posting anti-Obama image macros on Facebook and voting once every other decade.

And just to be clear -- the good-sounding life philosophy list he posted earlier wasn't intended to make himself sound good to other people. It's what he tells himself. That guy you saw at Whole Foods really does think in his own mind that "saving the environment" is right at the top of his list. But his total time and energy spent on the cause adds up to occasionally spending an extra dollar on the brand with the picture of leaves on the label.

So there you go. If you want to know where you'll be five years from now, you don't need a crystal ball. Just look at your philosophy of life -- your real one, the one based on actual time spent. That's who you are, and that's who you'll be five years from now, or 10, or 20. You are what you spend time doing. And nothing else.

I took myself up to Augusta on Friday for Maine Quilts, the State's annual quilt show. I hadn't been for a few years and was pleasantly surprised. Good vendors and some really great quilts. Here are just a few:

Photo on fabric. The seaweed was thread. Awesome.

My fave. Beautiful beading and bling
on this quilt that photo doesn't show.

The well-deserved winner. Gorgeous piecing and quilting

I think from a photo and hand painted, then quilted. Love it!

I love Saturdays now that I have Fridays off. Because Friday feels like Saturday and then when Saturday comes, I think it's Sunday and then I realize Hey hold the phone! It's actually Saturday again! Love that. Anyhoo, Carole and Bob came for lunch and Bob (fingers crossed) fixed my leaky windows. Finally after all these years!! Still have to do the bedroom windows but a trip to Home Depot :( for paintable caulk is in order first.

I have such a hard time letting others do for me and I am immensely grateful that Carole and Bob make it so easy for me to say yes. I am lucky to have such good friends.

Canada's wild fires are evident here in the smoke that is drifting above us, creating some hazy days. Makes it look hot and humid but in reality we are in the 50's over night and the 70's during the day. Perfect. Perfectly perfect.

My sister and I LOVED Rockford Files. Had huge crushes on Jim Garner. What a hunk! Such a loss.

Never a dull moment on Miss Barbie Dreamboat!

Well first of all, I wanted to show you what I see when I let the dogs out each morning and what a nice way to start the day. My garden is at full strength and I love to see LaToya out there, and my little studio.

So yesterday my friends Carole and Bob came over for a boat ride and a swim and we soon set off. Here is Sophie - newly shorn btw - waiting patiently by the dock for us to get going. 

naked little back

Bob took the wheel, which is nice because Carole and I can sit in the bow and catch up.

 
We actually managed to get a bit lost but were enjoying being out on the water when this boat came up behind us and then flagged us down.

Watch out for this boat if you're out on the Lake

Well well well, if it wasn't Sargeant Joe LeFabvre of Fish and Wildlife pulling us over and can I just say that I couldn't sleep last night for thinking of that smug look on his face, but I digress. He wanted to see lifejackets and we had them and then said I needed a new registration, which I knew but have not had the time to go to the town office and yes I know that is not a good reason for not having it yet but seriously, I have only had Barbie Dreamboat in the water for a short time which I told him and he could have cut me a break but NOOOOOO. Not snarky little Sargeant Joe LeFabvre and here he is ducking behind his windshield afraid to face my ire.

Well, ok actually he was back there writing me a ticket but still. He even told Bob he was getting a verbal warning. Officious little worm. So am I guilty? Well, yes but that's not the point. He should have given me a warning and moved on to more important offenders, like speeders and reckless jetskiiers, etc. It's going to cost me big bucks. So, enough about that little Sargeant Weasel, I had a lovely time with Bob and Carole as always and we had a short swim - chilly with the sun behind the clouds - before they took off.

I felt the need for comfort food and made the best dinner last night. I mixed up some tzatziki using greek yogurt, lemon, cucumbers, garlic and loads of dill. Here it is:

and then I marinated some lamb kebobs in just olive oil and fresh rosemary. Got them from Whole Foods last week,

George Foreman grilled them and I put one over a greek salad made with feta, kalamata olives, red onion and lettuce from my friend Anne's garden. Doh! I had given all the ripe tomatoes to Carole and Bob before they left. Anyhoo, it was so yummy and I completely forgot about the tzatziki in the fridge so I'll have it with the other one tonight. 

yum

This, combined with a viewing of Justified and oh I love that show with Timothy Oliphant, made for a lovely evening and I was able to forget about The Incident on the water today. 

Wonder what's next?

A poem by Gloria, based on a true story

Lake Lesson

the sound of ker - plop

was the sign I had dropped

my iphone into the lake

I tore off my shirt

plunged in, felt wet dirt

with my toes til i found it

packed it in rice

per sage advice

still I can not wake it

soon I must take it

to the apple store

where I will have to pay more

I'll swear not to drop it 

but keep it in pocket

not on a boat in my bra 

* * * 

This happenstance was partly my fault as Gloria was being an awesome First Mate when it happened and was only trying to fend Barbie Dreamboat off the dock and tie up. Earlier in the evening, I went to retrieve Barbie Dreamboat and the clip slipped off her bow and she started drifting away. In I went in my dress, snagged her line and towed her to the dock. That should have been a good indicator for not going out on that fateful sunset cruise!  Pretty dam funny in retrospect though.  

Update

It is pretty quiet around my house with all guests gone. I took Gloria to the airport on Tuesday and Sophie has been moping around the house ever since. It was great for the girls to have someone to play with while I was at work.

But I'm getting ahead of myself.  On Monday, Gloria and I took a ride up to Rockland so I could replenish my strawberry balsamic vinegar at Fiore. Shout out! We had lunch on the harbor on another gorgeous Maine day. I got this picture off the web because if I  published the picture I took of Gloria at the harbor, she would hunt me down and kill me.

And it has been pouring rain since Tuesday but supposed to clear today and become beautiful again through the weekend. How lucky we are! Just in from a walk with the girls and a look around my garden. Look at my beautiful hydrangeas! 

day lilies with "invincible spirit" hydrangea in background

hanging cherry tomato is loaded

Well, I have just been having way too much fun. Lu and Tom showed up for a few days of fun in the sun and the Lake and evenings with Barbie Dreamboat and the Best Game in the World. We spent sunset to pitch dark on Barbie Dreamboat the last two days, singing our lungs out and laughing uproariously (Idon't think I've ever typed that word before-had to look it up to make sure I had it right. I did.) and the neighbors are probably heartily sick of us.

 Look at the beautiful moon over my cottage.

 Lobstah dinnah last night.

Gloria and Sophie pick their favorite spots.

And Tom even helped me clean out my gutters.  Bless

Here's my beloved Miss Barbie Dreamboat this morning - another perfect summer day in Maine and I've got the day off! I found her a pink mooring ball and tie-wrapped a  mermaid barbie for her "bowsprit" which you see below between Sophie and Lu. What could be more perfect?

Two fabulous occurrences this week. Barbie Dreamboat is in the water!!! And even better, Gloria is here!!!! Woohoo! Here she is driving Miss Barbie Dreamboat on a beautiful Maine evening.  More later, after I get her cleaned up (Barbie, not Gloria).

My little Lulu, the boat dog

And, I was reading Martha Beck this morning. She reminded me that we all have the same freedom to find and focus on the meaningful parts of our own misfortunes. That every one of us encounters random events but that we possess a universal ability to create meaning out of suffering. She says we can turn a curse into a blessing, tragedy into heroism, loss into gain. Lucky us.

So proud of this lovely girl and so happy to be a small part of her life. Smart and funny, she is a wonderful mother and a fabulous niece, loving and giving and a beautiful person inside and out. Happy Birthday, Annie!

The Day After

The humidity fled and it was a beautiful breezy day and here is my dock one day post Arthur. Pretty great little system where the aluminum frame stays put and the decking pops out.

 My neighbor wasn't so lucky. While my dock is just barely above the waterline, his is complely underwater.

This is one of five loads of towels blowing in the breeze after soaking up all the water that came in my house.

Look what Arthur brought me!

Well, this is a first. Hurricane Arthur arrived in Maine with a vengeance at about 3:00 this morning and crazy wild wind and rain became the order of the day. The creek is roaring by my house but it is not dislodging the speedboat that blew in. No idea who it belongs to.  Oh, and this is the day of my yard sale.  hahahahaha

The waves are breaking over my dock and popped up some of the decking so I'm going to have to go out there and pull it off. Guess I won't need a shower later. All of my windows are leaking and here's another first. My roof is now leaking. Should have stayed in bed.

The heat and humidity have been unrelenting and is is a pleasure to wake up this morning to 70 degrees and fog and the promise of rain although the temperature is supposed to soar again. Today will be easier than the last three because tomorrow is forcast to be back to Maine: The Way Life Should Be as far as the weather goes. Today is the fourth of July and my affirmation from Louise Hay says, "I am free of the past. I declare my independence to be me!" If only.

The town is crammed full of tourists and it is impossible to make a quick trip into the grocery store now. The locals are complaining but soon it will be taken in stride and we'll get used to the waiting on line and slow traffic, lack of parking spaces. Afterall, the town couldn't survive without them. Three months is a small window to make enough to live out the year here. The 4th is a drinking holiday so I'll be laying low, avoiding all the craziness of the partyers in town and drunks on the road.

Today's a day off but I'll be working at de-cluttering my house and my storage unit, having a little tag sale tomorrow so come on out if you're in the area, and buy some of my stuff. I let go of a little more each year and it is bittersweet. Sweet to release those things that are attached to memories of a past life. But sad for the same reason.

Off for a walk with the girls before the rain comes. Here's a little personal gratitude this morning:

1.     Ceiling fans!
2.     MPBN and Erwin Gratz. Bless.
3.     Bumbleberry smoothies from Swallowtail Farm,
and more than anything else in the whole world,
4.     My sweet girls

That's all I got. 

What's going on in your world?

Sending love and light to my BFF Stacy, and her family today.

You never know how strong you are until being strong is the only choice you have.

The beauteous Miss Sophie at sunset