A Million Grains of Sand

Carrying blankets, towels, and a cooler loaded with sandwiches, soda and water, we hiked down the steep switch backed hill to our treasured spot.  Almost there.

Huge steel colored boulders were the last obstacle for us to climb over.  Reaching our hands out for one another, we steadied each other.  Truthfully, more often than not, it was me reaching out for his steady hand as I worked my way from one boulder to the next.  Almost there.

Moving from firm footing onto a million tiny grains, each step sinking a bit before pushing off, we propelled ourselves forward.  Giddiness would start to spill over as we approached the wave churned, smooth as silk driftwood in our path.  So many shapes, so many possibilities could be seen in those twisted pieces of wood.  Almost there.

A million warm grains crunching under each step as we approached our spot.  Laying out a blanket, we sprawled across it, kicked off our shoes and plunged our toes into the sun baked granules.  The warmth slowly travelled up through our covered feet, through our bodies, bit by bit, until the sun’s rays could be felt on our faces.  It was as if we were melting;  melting into each other, melting into the sun, melting into the golden, glittering sand beneath us.

The ocean pounded its waves past the rocky cliffs, into our cove.  Its rhythmic washing of the shore swelled in our ears.  An occasional seagull pierced through.  We were there.  We were in our cove, on our spot, filling ourselves with a peace we found each time we went.

This week, The Red Dress Club, prompted us to write a memory of sand.  I instantly thought of the cove that my husband & I frequented when we were dating.  It was like a little piece of heaven.  It's a hike to get down to it and between that and the fact that there are strong rip tides there, we don't take the kidlets there and consequently, haven't been in quite awhile.  Thankfully though, the memories of it have not dimmed.




This post suffered from the Great Blogger Debacle 2011 and lost all of its lovely comments, which makes me sad.  But, I cannot think of a better way to happy up this post and myself than to link up with super sweet Bruna of Bees With Honey!  Let's Bee Friends! :>

And wouldn't you know it, but looks like Blogger has returned the comments a week later!  Happy to have the comments back and even happier to connect with some of Bruna's readers! Thanks for stopping in! :>

Mama Kat's Prompted a Confession

Prompt: 10 reasons why you could not be a real housewife from any county.

Okay, I know this is sooo not my usual kind of post.  Yes, I like to write along with Mama Kat, but I wouldn't usually choose this kind of prompt.....but, I had to.  Will ya roll with me?  Hope so!

Confession:  Yes, I watch the Real Housewives of insert city/county name on Bravo.  Yes, I admit it.  I watch.  And yes, I enjoy it too.  It's a total guilty pleasure.  I laugh out loud.  I gasp so many times at shocking behavior that my husband often just goes to bed because he's sick of seeing if something is wrong with me.  New York was my favorite, but oh how I miss Bethenny...thank goodness she has her own show on Bravo now, Bethenny Ever After.  Yup, guilty pleasures.

And while I'm technically a housewife (can't stand that word...just not a label I use for myself), I oh so could not be a 'Real' housewife of New York, New Jersey, or Orange County.  (I haven't seen Beverly Hills, Atlanta, or Miami.)

1)  I have not had any plastic surgery in the augmentation category (I have had surgeries by plastic surgeons on my face after the accident, but that was sewing me back together again and later, removing large dense hunks of scar tissue so my face would move!).

2)  I've never had work done on my face and then claimed it was a result of the product I'm hawking. (See the italics in #1).

3)  I do not have three nannies.  I do not have two nannies.  I do not have one nanny.  And other than my Mom taking the kidlets a handful of times, I've never even had a babysitter.

4)  My clothing budget is far closer to the bill for their lunch and I've never been into name brands for anything other than quality or a particular design.  I don't like things because somebody told me I should like it. (I'm an Aquarius, we like to champion underdogs.)

5)  I don't have a housekeeper, though I'm on a global search for Mary Poppins to come sing a song and whisk everything away to where it belongs!  If you see her, please do send her this way.  I'm nice and willing to share.

6)  I think bling is the metal studs on my daughter's Hello Kitty t-shirt and gems on a fabulous papercraft.

7)  I don't need or get a new car every season.  I drive a nice, not inexpensive car, it's ten years old, and that's okay with me.  I like Lizzy!

8)  I don't have a dog.  I have a cat.  She's old.  Her name is Bonnie.

9)  I don't live in a major city where a Real Housewives show would be filmed.  I can go visit those places though.  And all of that is just fine with me!

10)  I don't trash my friends.  Period.

Do you watch Real Housewives?  Do you have a guilty pleasure?  Oh come on, share....I promise I won't say a word!

Got Artichoke?

We do!  Wee girl & I picked up a 2 1/2" artichoke starter plant from a local organic farm (well, the plant was started at a local organic farm, which we bought at Whole Foods) last year and planted it in our veggie garden.  And apparently, that little arti plant really liked its new home!

It started so small and now, it's almost up to the top of the fence with a half dozen artichokes growing on it.  The initial plant was $2.50 and with the price of artichokes today (saw some on sale at Safeway for $3 each the other day), if we even get one good one off of it (though it looks like we'll have many more than that), it will have paid for itself in full.

Pretty cool, huh?!  We think so.  We're also nurturing our boy's strawberry plant, in hopes it produces more yummy fruit for the third year in a row now.  And our graphed apple tree blossomed for the first time this year and already has little mini apples growing on it.  All of this and we haven't even planted any new vegetables yet.  Yup, pretty cool.

What's growing in your garden right now?  Anything new you plan to get into the ground or a pot this month?

Time

Walking past the glass store front, my eyes caught hold of my new Louboutin shoes. Shoes: better than a martini, better than chocolate, and most definitely better than Steve and his election.

I quickly slid my shopping bags under my desk, all except one. Pulling out the tissue wrapped box, I opened it to see my new Michael Kors watch. It’s classic and simply beautiful. I was smiling when I looked up and saw Suzanne staring at me.

“Isn’t this perfect?”

“What? A watch? That’s what you left for? That’s why I had to cancel my date tonight? A watch? So, is that to remind you what time you are supposed to be back here for a lunch you were never supposed to take today?”

“Suz, I never promised I’d cover for you. I think I would remember that. I had a date myself today. It was going to be divine. Except…” There was no way I was going to admit Steve cancelled on me.

“Except what, Liz? Except that you did promise to cover for me today. Except that I only asked you a week ago and reminded you yesterday. Except that it’s my anniversary tonight and now I have to go stand in line to vote instead.” Suzanne’s face was changing colors again.

And then suddenly, it wasn’t. She was reading something on her computer. Well, whatever it is, at least she’s distracted. I wrapped my new watch around my left wrist and settled in to finish today’s work so I could get out of here.

Martinis with the girls tonight sounds about right. Maybe we’ll hit that new restaurant everyone’s raving about.

Suzanne brusquely pushed back her chair and walked to Dianne’s office. She can’t really be that pissed at me. What is this, the third grade and she’s off to tell on me?

I kept trying to focus on my work. I couldn’t help but look up and see Suz, through the glass walls of our boss’s office. She was smiling, a lot. Someone really ought to tell her she looks like a horse, showing that many teeth. Maybe I’ll do her a favor and let her know later.

It wasn't long before Suz returned to her desk looking like she had swallowed that proverbial canary. She didn’t say a word.

I was curious. “Suz, do you wanna come out with me and the girls tonight?”

She rolled her eyes.

Ugh. What now?!

“No, I have a date tonight…and we’re celebrating.”

“Thought you said you had to cancel that?” Though why anyone would cancel a date to stand in a long line and vote is beyond me.

“Well, I did when you bailed, but Dianne just told me I could wrap things up and get out of here early. So, I’m off to vote and then to celebrate with Jeff.”

“Okay."  I still didn’t understand. Dianne rarely let us take off early, unless she was out of town and didn’t know any better.  "Happy Anniversary!”

“Thanks, Liz. I’ll see you in the morning!”

I went back to work when Dianne stopped by my desk and quickly explained Suz’s cat grin. She gave the promotion that we were both up for to Suzanne. And just to make this day even worse, I realized I would be reporting to her.

I glanced down at my watch, hoping the day was over already. It was still beautiful, but apparently lacked the ability to alter time. And there was no cab waiting to whisk me off.


In case you haven't already read it, the first part of this story, Lunch Date, was written for another Red Writing Hood prompt about a person who drives you crazy.

I was kind of surprised to write more about these fictional characters, especially from Liz's perspective.  But, when I saw the prompt to write about an argument, it just seemed natural to pick up where Liz and Suzanne left off.  Liz is the kind of gal who would drive me up the wall, but she seems to have gotten in my head a bit.

Even the Easter Bunny Gets Creative

Last year, the Easter Bunny hid an Easter egg under a kidlet's Bionicle. And this year, they remembered that and zipped out to the living room with some toys for that ol' Bunny to get his tricks on in the wee hours of Easter morning.

And get his tricks on, that Bunny certainly did!  Hero City William Furno heaved the egg high.

And Preston Stormer wasn't about to let this egg get away!

Those Hero City dudes from Lego weren't the only toys to get in on the Great Easter Bunny Act.  And no wonder the truck drove up on the pink egg, what with no driver at the wheel?!

Oh no!  The Thunderbird's windshield and hard top didn't survive.  Into the body shop, that car will have to go.

That ol' Easter Bunny sure did have fun hiding eggs this year...to the kidlets' absolute delight!

If you celebrated Easter last weekend, were you able to hunt those eggs outside or did someone get creative hiding eggs indoors?