Out Of The Closet

On my to-do list for this weekend was the dreaded chore of cleaning out my closet.  I'm not one of the fortunate women with a closet big enough to hold my entire wardrobe (small that it is), so each summer and winter finds me sorting through clothes, and exchanging out warm items for cooler items.  This year, however, there were no bags and boxes of clothing in my attic to unpack for fall/winter.  When I packed up the winter duds at the beginning of summer, I took the boxes straight down to the local Goodwill store, and got rid of them forever.  Fat clothes. How come that is such a difficult thing to do?  For years and years, I have held on to favorite items, resolving to "one day wear this again".  Buried underneath five years of cramming stuff in my attic, I know there are boxes of tiny little jeans that have probably dry rotted by now.  Because it has been many, many years since anything about me was tiny.  At the beginning of this summer, I was a newly banded patient, full of hope and optimism about getting the weight off, and finally truly believed that it would happen.  My band gave me the confidence I needed to be brave and... get rid of those  clothes.  The summer clothing that I replaced them with were also of the larger size, and throughout the summer they became looser and looser on my shrinking body, until I finally had to break down and buy a few things to get me through.    What a shock to realize, now that it's time to once again drag out the winter clothes, that I have NOTHING TO WEAR!!!   I work from home, in my jammies) so business casual clothing isn't an issue for me.  Well, except for the rare time when I must go into the office, then I must adhere to a fairly rigid dress code, but thankfully that's not very often.  

I'm afraid I didn't get to check off every item on my to-do list for the weekend.  But I did get my closet cleaned out.  And now I have even more boxes for Goodwill.  My closet is looking very bare these days.  But even without my band in place, I still have the resolve that I won't be needing those clothes any more.  Yes, indeed.  It is time they come Out Of The Closet!!!

Home Sweet Home

Wow. What a fabulous week!  Autumn is my very favorite time of year to visit the beach, but each year usually finds me dodging hurricanes.  Fortunately, the tropics were calm this year, and there were no threats.  The weather was absolutely perfect.  Lazy was the word-of-the-week.  Mornings were spent sleeping in, watching morning tv, and drinking coffee with the parental units.  Afternoons were spent on the beach reading, napping and long, long walks along the shore.  Evenings were spent reading, watching tv, and working on my "homestead" on Facebook.  Another candle was added to my birthday cake while I was gone.  The big Five Two.  On the downside of half a century.  I don't feel old at all.  Well, not too terribly old anyhow. Debbie Jo and David were camping about ten miles south of us, and I spent the night with them on my birthday.  DJ and I did what we do best.... sit outside and talk until bedtime, and the next morning we enjoyed a few hours on the beach.  After that, they treated me to a birthday lunch at one of our favorite places, Jimmy Buffett's Margaritaville.  Can I just say... YummmMEEE!!  It was a perfect vacation, and I enjoyed spending time with Mom and Dad.  Sweet times indeed.  I did miss my precious grandbabies, though.  Whitney kept me updated with Leyland's cute little antics, and I talked to her on the phone a time or two.  I was so anxious to see them, and couldn't wait for some sweet munchkin hugs and kisses.  The little rascals.... when they got home they were all tuckered out from a big day at the Oconee Festival, and didn't pay much attention to Greemaw.  This morning was a different story.  Leyland was all about Greemaw! She crawled into bed with me for some special snuggle time.  She put her little arms around me and said "I love my Greemaw soooooo much."  Okay, I could just go on to Greemaw heaven now.  Nothing sweeter in the world. 

I'm thankful indeed for such a great week, spending special time with my parents and the best friends ever.

Go West, Young Man!

Well, okay.  So that quote belongs more in the pages of my book than on my blog.  Exactly the opposite true.  I should say... "Go East, Old Woman!"  Tis true. In just over 24 hours (but who's counting?), I'll be crawling in the back seat of my dad's car, and headed for the coast.  You have no idea how happy this makes me.  The past few months have been busier than usual, and I am soooooooo ready for a lazy week of doing nothing.  Nothing, I tell you.  I can dig in the sand with my toes... or not.  I can drink coffee and watch morning TV until the morning is gone.  I can sit on the beach until the sun sinks behind the high-rise condos... or I can sit there until dark.  Even if I have to wrap up in a blanket.  Can you tell I'm excited?

I'm also harboring probably the most selfish thought I've ever had in my life.  I'm seriously hoping that everyone left behind at home can stay well, out of the hospital, disaster-free, and that the only phone calls we'll be getting are the sweet voices of the grandchildren calling to say hi.  Last year the vacation was cut short because Corey was admitted to the hospital with swine flu... poor little pumpkin.  The kids have both been sick, and I have an aunt and an uncle with some health issues.  So... okay, everybody... take your vitamins and eat your Wheaties.  Stay well.  Stay safe.  Stay happy.  (Didn't I tell you that was the most selfish thing ever???  I mean, I truly want them to be safe, healthy, and happy.... ALL the time... but I especially wish it for the time that we are gone.)

DJ and David will be about 10 miles down the beach, so I'm looking forward to spending some beach time with them.  I'm not big on doing the touristy stuff, and would rather stay home and eat a banana sandwich than fight the crowds, or leave the beach early to get ready for dinner.  One place I do like to go is to Jimmy Buffett's Margaritaville out at Broadway.  DJ and I are looking forward to taking David out there.  For my mom and dad's 50th anniversary a few years ago, they gave them a *voucher* for a David Steak (THE absolute best steak ever in the history of the universe)  ... and for the past few years everything has just been so crazy that we never had the cookout.  David says he is going to cook the steaks next week.  How much better can it get than that?  A David steak... at the beach!!!  Oh yeah.  Seriously looking forward to that.

But before I can hit the road, I must get busy.  Four days' worth of stuff to be done in 24 hours.  Looks like it will be an all-nighter at The 409.  I'll be more than ready for a 6-hour backseat nap!

Daddy, Daddy, are we there yet?