tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6247511434373032362024-03-14T08:16:23.389-04:00CaitlinesqueAn informal gathering of my thoughts — from recent book reviews to published poetry to ancient, embarrassing, rambling blog entries.Caitlinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09112106153261421645noreply@blogger.comBlogger277125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-624751143437303236.post-62211248045568755162023-06-13T11:00:00.000-04:002023-06-13T11:00:35.086-04:00Make Camping More Memorable<p><span style="background-color: white; color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.9); font-family: -apple-system, system-ui, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Segoe UI", Roboto, "Helvetica Neue", "Fira Sans", Ubuntu, Oxygen, "Oxygen Sans", Cantarell, "Droid Sans", "Apple Color Emoji", "Segoe UI Emoji", "Segoe UI Emoji", "Segoe UI Symbol", "Lucida Grande", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: var(--font-size-large);"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgAWqq-VnQM0VSz3yUYk5PGSlxA70QEZLuyrtMzvrSGRagOPNRndk7wHyNxHIKTuESy47mFmMDhMMUOa3Pra5sxpR49zCuEabKpGlP20gq1IMyWp-VCIIjRuC4njT2IkInfbU4glJGrHVOh5IypSSj7--t8ufaSJ4bhG3r-eGaVAWDks8bow81y4iddpA/s4032/20220620_192530.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgAWqq-VnQM0VSz3yUYk5PGSlxA70QEZLuyrtMzvrSGRagOPNRndk7wHyNxHIKTuESy47mFmMDhMMUOa3Pra5sxpR49zCuEabKpGlP20gq1IMyWp-VCIIjRuC4njT2IkInfbU4glJGrHVOh5IypSSj7--t8ufaSJ4bhG3r-eGaVAWDks8bow81y4iddpA/w400-h300/20220620_192530.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><br />Summer is almost here, which means it's camping season. I've done some camping in my day, and, while I'm no camping expert, I can tell you one of the best parts about camping is the memories you make. <p></p><p class="reader-text-block__paragraph" style="--artdeco-reset-typography_getfontsize: 1.6rem; --artdeco-reset-typography_getlineheight: 1.5; background-color: white; border: var(--artdeco-reset-base-border-zero); box-sizing: inherit; color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.9); font-family: -apple-system, system-ui, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Segoe UI", Roboto, "Helvetica Neue", "Fira Sans", Ubuntu, Oxygen, "Oxygen Sans", Cantarell, "Droid Sans", "Apple Color Emoji", "Segoe UI Emoji", "Segoe UI Emoji", "Segoe UI Symbol", "Lucida Grande", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: var(--font-size-large); line-height: 1.75; margin: 1.6rem 0px; padding: var(--artdeco-reset-base-padding-zero); vertical-align: var(--artdeco-reset-base-vertical-align-baseline);">So, today, I have for you three surefire ways to make your next camping trip more memorable.</p><p class="reader-text-block__paragraph" style="--artdeco-reset-typography_getfontsize: 1.6rem; --artdeco-reset-typography_getlineheight: 1.5; background-color: white; border: var(--artdeco-reset-base-border-zero); box-sizing: inherit; color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.9); font-family: -apple-system, system-ui, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Segoe UI", Roboto, "Helvetica Neue", "Fira Sans", Ubuntu, Oxygen, "Oxygen Sans", Cantarell, "Droid Sans", "Apple Color Emoji", "Segoe UI Emoji", "Segoe UI Emoji", "Segoe UI Symbol", "Lucida Grande", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: var(--font-size-large); line-height: 1.75; margin: 1.6rem 0px; padding: var(--artdeco-reset-base-padding-zero); vertical-align: var(--artdeco-reset-base-vertical-align-baseline);">1. Prepare poorly. </p><p class="reader-text-block__paragraph" style="--artdeco-reset-typography_getfontsize: 1.6rem; --artdeco-reset-typography_getlineheight: 1.5; background-color: white; border: var(--artdeco-reset-base-border-zero); box-sizing: inherit; color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.9); font-family: -apple-system, system-ui, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Segoe UI", Roboto, "Helvetica Neue", "Fira Sans", Ubuntu, Oxygen, "Oxygen Sans", Cantarell, "Droid Sans", "Apple Color Emoji", "Segoe UI Emoji", "Segoe UI Emoji", "Segoe UI Symbol", "Lucida Grande", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: var(--font-size-large); line-height: 1.75; margin: 1.6rem 0px; padding: var(--artdeco-reset-base-padding-zero); vertical-align: var(--artdeco-reset-base-vertical-align-baseline);">Leave something essential behind. Don’t check the weather. Or DO check the weather and plan your packing list based on feeling instead of fact.</p><p class="reader-text-block__paragraph" style="--artdeco-reset-typography_getfontsize: 1.6rem; --artdeco-reset-typography_getlineheight: 1.5; background-color: white; border: var(--artdeco-reset-base-border-zero); box-sizing: inherit; color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.9); font-family: -apple-system, system-ui, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Segoe UI", Roboto, "Helvetica Neue", "Fira Sans", Ubuntu, Oxygen, "Oxygen Sans", Cantarell, "Droid Sans", "Apple Color Emoji", "Segoe UI Emoji", "Segoe UI Emoji", "Segoe UI Symbol", "Lucida Grande", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: var(--font-size-large); line-height: 1.75; margin: 1.6rem 0px; padding: var(--artdeco-reset-base-padding-zero); vertical-align: var(--artdeco-reset-base-vertical-align-baseline);">For example: I recall a weekend trip with my youngest sister. The goal was get there in the evening, get a good night’s rest, and get up early to complete a 9-mile hike with a suspension bridge over a waterfall in the middle — a hike I'd dreamed of doing for years.</p><div class="reader-image-block reader-image-block--full-width" style="background-color: white; border: var(--artdeco-reset-base-border-zero); box-sizing: inherit; clear: both; color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.9); font-family: -apple-system, system-ui, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Segoe UI", Roboto, "Helvetica Neue", "Fira Sans", Ubuntu, Oxygen, "Oxygen Sans", Cantarell, "Droid Sans", "Apple Color Emoji", "Segoe UI Emoji", "Segoe UI Emoji", "Segoe UI Symbol", "Lucida Grande", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; margin-bottom: var(--spacing-four-x); padding: var(--artdeco-reset-base-padding-zero); vertical-align: var(--artdeco-reset-base-vertical-align-baseline);"><figure class="reader-image-block__figure" style="background: var(--artdeco-reset-base-background-transparent); border: var(--artdeco-reset-base-border-zero); box-sizing: inherit; display: var(--artdeco-reset-base-display-block); font-size: var(--artdeco-reset-base-font-size-hundred-percent); margin: var(--artdeco-reset-base-margin-zero); padding: var(--artdeco-reset-base-padding-zero); vertical-align: var(--artdeco-reset-base-vertical-align-baseline);"><div class="ivm-image-view-model " style="background: var(--artdeco-reset-base-background-transparent); border: var(--artdeco-reset-base-border-zero); box-sizing: inherit; font-size: var(--artdeco-reset-base-font-size-hundred-percent); margin: var(--artdeco-reset-base-margin-zero); padding: var(--artdeco-reset-base-padding-zero); vertical-align: var(--artdeco-reset-base-vertical-align-baseline);"><div class="ivm-view-attr__img-wrapper ivm-view-attr__img-wrapper--use-img-tag display-flex
" style="background: var(--artdeco-reset-base-background-transparent); border: var(--artdeco-reset-base-border-zero); box-sizing: inherit; display: flex !important; font-size: var(--artdeco-reset-base-font-size-hundred-percent); margin: var(--artdeco-reset-base-margin-zero); padding: var(--artdeco-reset-base-padding-zero); vertical-align: var(--artdeco-reset-base-vertical-align-baseline);"><img alt="No alt text provided for this image" class="ivm-view-attr__img--centered reader-image-block__img evi-image lazy-image ember-view" id="ember3328" loading="lazy" src="https://media.licdn.com/dms/image/D5612AQHZ-q5D4q0FiA/article-inline_image-shrink_1500_2232/0/1686666374153?e=1692230400&v=beta&t=FHngDif19h2q83d288-SOc-YGlSaunhZ2aQD1zsQP-c" style="background-position: 50% center; background-size: cover; border-radius: 0px; border: var(--artdeco-reset-base-border-zero); box-sizing: inherit; color: var(--color-text); font-size: var(--artdeco-reset-base-font-size-hundred-percent); height: auto; margin: var(--artdeco-reset-base-margin-zero); max-width: 100%; object-fit: cover; object-position: center center; outline: var(--artdeco-reset-base-outline-zero); padding: var(--artdeco-reset-base-padding-zero); vertical-align: var(--artdeco-reset-base-vertical-align-baseline); width: 719.988px;" /></div></div><figcaption class="display-block mt2 full-width text-body-small-open t-sans text-align-center t-black--light" style="background: var(--artdeco-reset-base-background-transparent); border: var(--artdeco-reset-base-border-zero); box-sizing: inherit; color: var(--color-text-low-emphasis); display: var(--artdeco-reset-base-display-block); font-family: var(--artdeco-typography-sans); font-size: var(--font-size-small); font-weight: var(--font-weight-regular); line-height: var(--line-height-open); margin-top: 0.8rem !important; padding: var(--artdeco-reset-base-padding-zero); text-align: center !important; vertical-align: var(--artdeco-reset-base-vertical-align-baseline); width: 719.988px;">The long-awaited waterfall, circa several years after the original plan.</figcaption></figure></div><p class="reader-text-block__paragraph" style="--artdeco-reset-typography_getfontsize: 1.6rem; --artdeco-reset-typography_getlineheight: 1.5; background-color: white; border: var(--artdeco-reset-base-border-zero); box-sizing: inherit; color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.9); font-family: -apple-system, system-ui, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Segoe UI", Roboto, "Helvetica Neue", "Fira Sans", Ubuntu, Oxygen, "Oxygen Sans", Cantarell, "Droid Sans", "Apple Color Emoji", "Segoe UI Emoji", "Segoe UI Emoji", "Segoe UI Symbol", "Lucida Grande", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: var(--font-size-large); line-height: 1.75; margin: 1.6rem 0px; padding: var(--artdeco-reset-base-padding-zero); vertical-align: var(--artdeco-reset-base-vertical-align-baseline);">We arrived and set up camp just before the rain started. And it never. Stopped. And we had no bug repellent. No raincoats. No water-resistant footwear.</p><p class="reader-text-block__paragraph" style="--artdeco-reset-typography_getfontsize: 1.6rem; --artdeco-reset-typography_getlineheight: 1.5; background-color: white; border: var(--artdeco-reset-base-border-zero); box-sizing: inherit; color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.9); font-family: -apple-system, system-ui, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Segoe UI", Roboto, "Helvetica Neue", "Fira Sans", Ubuntu, Oxygen, "Oxygen Sans", Cantarell, "Droid Sans", "Apple Color Emoji", "Segoe UI Emoji", "Segoe UI Emoji", "Segoe UI Symbol", "Lucida Grande", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: var(--font-size-large); line-height: 1.75; margin: 1.6rem 0px; padding: var(--artdeco-reset-base-padding-zero); vertical-align: var(--artdeco-reset-base-vertical-align-baseline);">After spending an hour pouring lighter fluid on damp firewood, we ate cold hot dogs and went to bed in hammocks tied under a tarp (our only raingear). We did not, however go to sleep, thanks to the South Carolina Thunderstorm Symphony of thunder, rain tack-tack-tacking on our tarp, and the endless whine of mosquitos.</p><p class="reader-text-block__paragraph" style="--artdeco-reset-typography_getfontsize: 1.6rem; --artdeco-reset-typography_getlineheight: 1.5; background-color: white; border: var(--artdeco-reset-base-border-zero); box-sizing: inherit; color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.9); font-family: -apple-system, system-ui, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Segoe UI", Roboto, "Helvetica Neue", "Fira Sans", Ubuntu, Oxygen, "Oxygen Sans", Cantarell, "Droid Sans", "Apple Color Emoji", "Segoe UI Emoji", "Segoe UI Emoji", "Segoe UI Symbol", "Lucida Grande", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: var(--font-size-large); line-height: 1.75; margin: 1.6rem 0px; padding: var(--artdeco-reset-base-padding-zero); vertical-align: var(--artdeco-reset-base-vertical-align-baseline);">At first light, we cut our losses and cut our trip short and dragged everything back to the car, dripping, in our pajamas, shamefully passing well-equipped hikers in raingear and boots on our way.</p><p class="reader-text-block__paragraph" style="--artdeco-reset-typography_getfontsize: 1.6rem; --artdeco-reset-typography_getlineheight: 1.5; background-color: white; border: var(--artdeco-reset-base-border-zero); box-sizing: inherit; color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.9); font-family: -apple-system, system-ui, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Segoe UI", Roboto, "Helvetica Neue", "Fira Sans", Ubuntu, Oxygen, "Oxygen Sans", Cantarell, "Droid Sans", "Apple Color Emoji", "Segoe UI Emoji", "Segoe UI Emoji", "Segoe UI Symbol", "Lucida Grande", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: var(--font-size-large); line-height: 1.75; margin: 1.6rem 0px; padding: var(--artdeco-reset-base-padding-zero); vertical-align: var(--artdeco-reset-base-vertical-align-baseline);">For creating memories, this is a really solid strategy. I’ve tested it several times. Having everything you need doesn’t create indelible memories. Being miserable until you have to decide to go home early <span style="background: var(--artdeco-reset-base-background-transparent); border: var(--artdeco-reset-base-border-zero); box-sizing: inherit; font-size: var(--artdeco-reset-base-font-size-hundred-percent); font-style: var(--artdeco-reset-typography-font-style-italic); margin: var(--artdeco-reset-base-margin-zero); outline: var(--artdeco-reset-base-outline-zero); padding: var(--artdeco-reset-base-padding-zero); vertical-align: var(--artdeco-reset-base-vertical-align-baseline);">does</span>.</p><p class="reader-text-block__paragraph" style="--artdeco-reset-typography_getfontsize: 1.6rem; --artdeco-reset-typography_getlineheight: 1.5; background-color: white; border: var(--artdeco-reset-base-border-zero); box-sizing: inherit; color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.9); font-family: -apple-system, system-ui, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Segoe UI", Roboto, "Helvetica Neue", "Fira Sans", Ubuntu, Oxygen, "Oxygen Sans", Cantarell, "Droid Sans", "Apple Color Emoji", "Segoe UI Emoji", "Segoe UI Emoji", "Segoe UI Symbol", "Lucida Grande", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: var(--font-size-large); line-height: 1.75; margin: 1.6rem 0px; padding: var(--artdeco-reset-base-padding-zero); vertical-align: var(--artdeco-reset-base-vertical-align-baseline);">2. Pick a fight</p><p class="reader-text-block__paragraph" style="--artdeco-reset-typography_getfontsize: 1.6rem; --artdeco-reset-typography_getlineheight: 1.5; background-color: white; border: var(--artdeco-reset-base-border-zero); box-sizing: inherit; color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.9); font-family: -apple-system, system-ui, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Segoe UI", Roboto, "Helvetica Neue", "Fira Sans", Ubuntu, Oxygen, "Oxygen Sans", Cantarell, "Droid Sans", "Apple Color Emoji", "Segoe UI Emoji", "Segoe UI Emoji", "Segoe UI Symbol", "Lucida Grande", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: var(--font-size-large); line-height: 1.75; margin: 1.6rem 0px; padding: var(--artdeco-reset-base-padding-zero); vertical-align: var(--artdeco-reset-base-vertical-align-baseline);">I think this one is pretty self explanatory, but I’ll set the scene for you:</p><p class="reader-text-block__paragraph" style="--artdeco-reset-typography_getfontsize: 1.6rem; --artdeco-reset-typography_getlineheight: 1.5; background-color: white; border: var(--artdeco-reset-base-border-zero); box-sizing: inherit; color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.9); font-family: -apple-system, system-ui, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Segoe UI", Roboto, "Helvetica Neue", "Fira Sans", Ubuntu, Oxygen, "Oxygen Sans", Cantarell, "Droid Sans", "Apple Color Emoji", "Segoe UI Emoji", "Segoe UI Emoji", "Segoe UI Symbol", "Lucida Grande", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: var(--font-size-large); line-height: 1.75; margin: 1.6rem 0px; padding: var(--artdeco-reset-base-padding-zero); vertical-align: var(--artdeco-reset-base-vertical-align-baseline);">Picture it — you’re having a perfectly peaceful (and forgettable) day with your partner. The two of you decide to go for a swim. He swims <span style="background: var(--artdeco-reset-base-background-transparent); border: var(--artdeco-reset-base-border-zero); box-sizing: inherit; font-size: var(--artdeco-reset-base-font-size-hundred-percent); font-style: var(--artdeco-reset-typography-font-style-italic); margin: var(--artdeco-reset-base-margin-zero); outline: var(--artdeco-reset-base-outline-zero); padding: var(--artdeco-reset-base-padding-zero); vertical-align: var(--artdeco-reset-base-vertical-align-baseline);">too</span> far away <span style="background: var(--artdeco-reset-base-background-transparent); border: var(--artdeco-reset-base-border-zero); box-sizing: inherit; font-size: var(--artdeco-reset-base-font-size-hundred-percent); font-style: var(--artdeco-reset-typography-font-style-italic); margin: var(--artdeco-reset-base-margin-zero); outline: var(--artdeco-reset-base-outline-zero); padding: var(--artdeco-reset-base-padding-zero); vertical-align: var(--artdeco-reset-base-vertical-align-baseline);">too</span> fast and then <span style="background: var(--artdeco-reset-base-background-transparent); border: var(--artdeco-reset-base-border-zero); box-sizing: inherit; font-size: var(--artdeco-reset-base-font-size-hundred-percent); font-style: var(--artdeco-reset-typography-font-style-italic); margin: var(--artdeco-reset-base-margin-zero); outline: var(--artdeco-reset-base-outline-zero); padding: var(--artdeco-reset-base-padding-zero); vertical-align: var(--artdeco-reset-base-vertical-align-baseline);">can't even hear you</span> shouting, “Brian! Slow down! I can’t catch up!”</p><p class="reader-text-block__paragraph" style="--artdeco-reset-typography_getfontsize: 1.6rem; --artdeco-reset-typography_getlineheight: 1.5; background-color: white; border: var(--artdeco-reset-base-border-zero); box-sizing: inherit; color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.9); font-family: -apple-system, system-ui, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Segoe UI", Roboto, "Helvetica Neue", "Fira Sans", Ubuntu, Oxygen, "Oxygen Sans", Cantarell, "Droid Sans", "Apple Color Emoji", "Segoe UI Emoji", "Segoe UI Emoji", "Segoe UI Symbol", "Lucida Grande", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: var(--font-size-large); line-height: 1.75; margin: 1.6rem 0px; padding: var(--artdeco-reset-base-padding-zero); vertical-align: var(--artdeco-reset-base-vertical-align-baseline);">So, you get out, get a towel, and get nice and angry. And you wait. And when he finally shows up on dry land, you absolutely fall apart and cry and ruin the whole day for both of you!</p><div class="reader-image-block reader-image-block--full-width" style="background-color: white; border: var(--artdeco-reset-base-border-zero); box-sizing: inherit; clear: both; color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.9); font-family: -apple-system, system-ui, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Segoe UI", Roboto, "Helvetica Neue", "Fira Sans", Ubuntu, Oxygen, "Oxygen Sans", Cantarell, "Droid Sans", "Apple Color Emoji", "Segoe UI Emoji", "Segoe UI Emoji", "Segoe UI Symbol", "Lucida Grande", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; margin-bottom: var(--spacing-four-x); padding: var(--artdeco-reset-base-padding-zero); vertical-align: var(--artdeco-reset-base-vertical-align-baseline);"><figure class="reader-image-block__figure" style="background: var(--artdeco-reset-base-background-transparent); border: var(--artdeco-reset-base-border-zero); box-sizing: inherit; display: var(--artdeco-reset-base-display-block); font-size: var(--artdeco-reset-base-font-size-hundred-percent); margin: var(--artdeco-reset-base-margin-zero); padding: var(--artdeco-reset-base-padding-zero); vertical-align: var(--artdeco-reset-base-vertical-align-baseline);"><div class="ivm-image-view-model " style="background: var(--artdeco-reset-base-background-transparent); border: var(--artdeco-reset-base-border-zero); box-sizing: inherit; font-size: var(--artdeco-reset-base-font-size-hundred-percent); margin: var(--artdeco-reset-base-margin-zero); padding: var(--artdeco-reset-base-padding-zero); vertical-align: var(--artdeco-reset-base-vertical-align-baseline);"><div class="ivm-view-attr__img-wrapper ivm-view-attr__img-wrapper--use-img-tag display-flex
" style="background: var(--artdeco-reset-base-background-transparent); border: var(--artdeco-reset-base-border-zero); box-sizing: inherit; display: flex !important; font-size: var(--artdeco-reset-base-font-size-hundred-percent); margin: var(--artdeco-reset-base-margin-zero); padding: var(--artdeco-reset-base-padding-zero); vertical-align: var(--artdeco-reset-base-vertical-align-baseline);"><img alt="No alt text provided for this image" class="ivm-view-attr__img--centered reader-image-block__img evi-image lazy-image ember-view" id="ember3329" loading="lazy" src="https://media.licdn.com/dms/image/D5612AQHQiUkzr0A6KA/article-inline_image-shrink_1000_1488/0/1686666475388?e=1692230400&v=beta&t=1jAGUYh1is0yQQa0b18sa4QE0UWYeusNM03ovxCesQg" style="background-position: 50% center; background-size: cover; border-radius: 0px; border: var(--artdeco-reset-base-border-zero); box-sizing: inherit; color: var(--color-text); font-size: var(--artdeco-reset-base-font-size-hundred-percent); height: auto; margin: var(--artdeco-reset-base-margin-zero); max-width: 100%; object-fit: cover; object-position: center center; outline: var(--artdeco-reset-base-outline-zero); padding: var(--artdeco-reset-base-padding-zero); vertical-align: var(--artdeco-reset-base-vertical-align-baseline); width: 719.988px;" /></div></div><figcaption class="display-block mt2 full-width text-body-small-open t-sans text-align-center t-black--light" style="background: var(--artdeco-reset-base-background-transparent); border: var(--artdeco-reset-base-border-zero); box-sizing: inherit; color: var(--color-text-low-emphasis); display: var(--artdeco-reset-base-display-block); font-family: var(--artdeco-typography-sans); font-size: var(--font-size-small); font-weight: var(--font-weight-regular); line-height: var(--line-height-open); margin-top: 0.8rem !important; padding: var(--artdeco-reset-base-padding-zero); text-align: center !important; vertical-align: var(--artdeco-reset-base-vertical-align-baseline); width: 719.988px;">This is what a perfect summer lake day looks like.</figcaption></figure></div><p class="reader-text-block__paragraph" style="--artdeco-reset-typography_getfontsize: 1.6rem; --artdeco-reset-typography_getlineheight: 1.5; background-color: white; border: var(--artdeco-reset-base-border-zero); box-sizing: inherit; color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.9); font-family: -apple-system, system-ui, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Segoe UI", Roboto, "Helvetica Neue", "Fira Sans", Ubuntu, Oxygen, "Oxygen Sans", Cantarell, "Droid Sans", "Apple Color Emoji", "Segoe UI Emoji", "Segoe UI Emoji", "Segoe UI Symbol", "Lucida Grande", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: var(--font-size-large); line-height: 1.75; margin: 1.6rem 0px; padding: var(--artdeco-reset-base-padding-zero); vertical-align: var(--artdeco-reset-base-vertical-align-baseline);">This option is not only <span style="background: var(--artdeco-reset-base-background-transparent); border: var(--artdeco-reset-base-border-zero); box-sizing: inherit; font-size: var(--artdeco-reset-base-font-size-hundred-percent); font-style: var(--artdeco-reset-typography-font-style-italic); margin: var(--artdeco-reset-base-margin-zero); outline: var(--artdeco-reset-base-outline-zero); padding: var(--artdeco-reset-base-padding-zero); vertical-align: var(--artdeco-reset-base-vertical-align-baseline);">highly</span> effective for creating memories but it comes with a bonus: Now, you have a great story for your next therapy session. (You might even uncover something important like abandonment issues!) </p><p class="reader-text-block__paragraph" style="--artdeco-reset-typography_getfontsize: 1.6rem; --artdeco-reset-typography_getlineheight: 1.5; background-color: white; border: var(--artdeco-reset-base-border-zero); box-sizing: inherit; color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.9); font-family: -apple-system, system-ui, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Segoe UI", Roboto, "Helvetica Neue", "Fira Sans", Ubuntu, Oxygen, "Oxygen Sans", Cantarell, "Droid Sans", "Apple Color Emoji", "Segoe UI Emoji", "Segoe UI Emoji", "Segoe UI Symbol", "Lucida Grande", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: var(--font-size-large); line-height: 1.75; margin: 1.6rem 0px; padding: var(--artdeco-reset-base-padding-zero); vertical-align: var(--artdeco-reset-base-vertical-align-baseline);">And my last (and favorite) tip for making a camping trip memorable: </p><p class="reader-text-block__paragraph" style="--artdeco-reset-typography_getfontsize: 1.6rem; --artdeco-reset-typography_getlineheight: 1.5; background-color: white; border: var(--artdeco-reset-base-border-zero); box-sizing: inherit; color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.9); font-family: -apple-system, system-ui, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Segoe UI", Roboto, "Helvetica Neue", "Fira Sans", Ubuntu, Oxygen, "Oxygen Sans", Cantarell, "Droid Sans", "Apple Color Emoji", "Segoe UI Emoji", "Segoe UI Emoji", "Segoe UI Symbol", "Lucida Grande", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: var(--font-size-large); line-height: 1.75; margin: 1.6rem 0px; padding: var(--artdeco-reset-base-padding-zero); vertical-align: var(--artdeco-reset-base-vertical-align-baseline);">3. Injure yourself</p><p class="reader-text-block__paragraph" style="--artdeco-reset-typography_getfontsize: 1.6rem; --artdeco-reset-typography_getlineheight: 1.5; background-color: white; border: var(--artdeco-reset-base-border-zero); box-sizing: inherit; color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.9); font-family: -apple-system, system-ui, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Segoe UI", Roboto, "Helvetica Neue", "Fira Sans", Ubuntu, Oxygen, "Oxygen Sans", Cantarell, "Droid Sans", "Apple Color Emoji", "Segoe UI Emoji", "Segoe UI Emoji", "Segoe UI Symbol", "Lucida Grande", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: var(--font-size-large); line-height: 1.75; margin: 1.6rem 0px; padding: var(--artdeco-reset-base-padding-zero); vertical-align: var(--artdeco-reset-base-vertical-align-baseline);">My most vivid camping memory of all time is the time I busted my nose all alone in the wood. I set up a 4-person tent by myself. I set up the hammock. I set up the fire, and thought I'd just gather a little more firewood before relaxing.</p><div class="reader-image-block reader-image-block--full-width" style="background-color: white; border: var(--artdeco-reset-base-border-zero); box-sizing: inherit; clear: both; color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.9); font-family: -apple-system, system-ui, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Segoe UI", Roboto, "Helvetica Neue", "Fira Sans", Ubuntu, Oxygen, "Oxygen Sans", Cantarell, "Droid Sans", "Apple Color Emoji", "Segoe UI Emoji", "Segoe UI Emoji", "Segoe UI Symbol", "Lucida Grande", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; margin-bottom: var(--spacing-four-x); padding: var(--artdeco-reset-base-padding-zero); vertical-align: var(--artdeco-reset-base-vertical-align-baseline);"><figure class="reader-image-block__figure" style="background: var(--artdeco-reset-base-background-transparent); border: var(--artdeco-reset-base-border-zero); box-sizing: inherit; display: var(--artdeco-reset-base-display-block); font-size: var(--artdeco-reset-base-font-size-hundred-percent); margin: var(--artdeco-reset-base-margin-zero); padding: var(--artdeco-reset-base-padding-zero); vertical-align: var(--artdeco-reset-base-vertical-align-baseline);"><div class="ivm-image-view-model " style="background: var(--artdeco-reset-base-background-transparent); border: var(--artdeco-reset-base-border-zero); box-sizing: inherit; font-size: var(--artdeco-reset-base-font-size-hundred-percent); margin: var(--artdeco-reset-base-margin-zero); padding: var(--artdeco-reset-base-padding-zero); vertical-align: var(--artdeco-reset-base-vertical-align-baseline);"><div class="ivm-view-attr__img-wrapper ivm-view-attr__img-wrapper--use-img-tag display-flex
" style="background: var(--artdeco-reset-base-background-transparent); border: var(--artdeco-reset-base-border-zero); box-sizing: inherit; display: flex !important; font-size: var(--artdeco-reset-base-font-size-hundred-percent); margin: var(--artdeco-reset-base-margin-zero); padding: var(--artdeco-reset-base-padding-zero); vertical-align: var(--artdeco-reset-base-vertical-align-baseline);"><img alt="No alt text provided for this image" class="ivm-view-attr__img--centered reader-image-block__img evi-image lazy-image ember-view" id="ember3330" loading="lazy" src="https://media.licdn.com/dms/image/D5612AQE4jGVPT1e8gA/article-inline_image-shrink_1000_1488/0/1686666734796?e=1692230400&v=beta&t=yz2NXekCDTsOQQWVS4O6Y1Zh5rkyu1PzMjquf1hPsuE" style="background-position: 50% center; background-size: cover; border-radius: 0px; border: var(--artdeco-reset-base-border-zero); box-sizing: inherit; color: var(--color-text); font-size: var(--artdeco-reset-base-font-size-hundred-percent); height: auto; margin: var(--artdeco-reset-base-margin-zero); max-width: 100%; object-fit: cover; object-position: center center; outline: var(--artdeco-reset-base-outline-zero); padding: var(--artdeco-reset-base-padding-zero); vertical-align: var(--artdeco-reset-base-vertical-align-baseline); width: 719.988px;" /></div></div><figcaption class="display-block mt2 full-width text-body-small-open t-sans text-align-center t-black--light" style="background: var(--artdeco-reset-base-background-transparent); border: var(--artdeco-reset-base-border-zero); box-sizing: inherit; color: var(--color-text-low-emphasis); display: var(--artdeco-reset-base-display-block); font-family: var(--artdeco-typography-sans); font-size: var(--font-size-small); font-weight: var(--font-weight-regular); line-height: var(--line-height-open); margin-top: 0.8rem !important; padding: var(--artdeco-reset-base-padding-zero); text-align: center !important; vertical-align: var(--artdeco-reset-base-vertical-align-baseline); width: 719.988px;">Yes, this is the fated site on the fated day. Look how beautifully prepared.</figcaption></figure></div><p class="reader-text-block__paragraph" style="--artdeco-reset-typography_getfontsize: 1.6rem; --artdeco-reset-typography_getlineheight: 1.5; background-color: white; border: var(--artdeco-reset-base-border-zero); box-sizing: inherit; color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.9); font-family: -apple-system, system-ui, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Segoe UI", Roboto, "Helvetica Neue", "Fira Sans", Ubuntu, Oxygen, "Oxygen Sans", Cantarell, "Droid Sans", "Apple Color Emoji", "Segoe UI Emoji", "Segoe UI Emoji", "Segoe UI Symbol", "Lucida Grande", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: var(--font-size-large); line-height: 1.75; margin: 1.6rem 0px; padding: var(--artdeco-reset-base-padding-zero); vertical-align: var(--artdeco-reset-base-vertical-align-baseline);">I found an excellent piece of driftwood, and threw it at a rock in an ill-thought-out attempt to break it. At which point it ricocheted back into my face.</p><p class="reader-text-block__paragraph" style="--artdeco-reset-typography_getfontsize: 1.6rem; --artdeco-reset-typography_getlineheight: 1.5; background-color: white; border: var(--artdeco-reset-base-border-zero); box-sizing: inherit; color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.9); font-family: -apple-system, system-ui, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Segoe UI", Roboto, "Helvetica Neue", "Fira Sans", Ubuntu, Oxygen, "Oxygen Sans", Cantarell, "Droid Sans", "Apple Color Emoji", "Segoe UI Emoji", "Segoe UI Emoji", "Segoe UI Symbol", "Lucida Grande", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: var(--font-size-large); line-height: 1.75; margin: 1.6rem 0px; padding: var(--artdeco-reset-base-padding-zero); vertical-align: var(--artdeco-reset-base-vertical-align-baseline);">I imagine at this point you have some questions:</p><p class="reader-text-block__paragraph" style="--artdeco-reset-typography_getfontsize: 1.6rem; --artdeco-reset-typography_getlineheight: 1.5; background-color: white; border: var(--artdeco-reset-base-border-zero); box-sizing: inherit; color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.9); font-family: -apple-system, system-ui, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Segoe UI", Roboto, "Helvetica Neue", "Fira Sans", Ubuntu, Oxygen, "Oxygen Sans", Cantarell, "Droid Sans", "Apple Color Emoji", "Segoe UI Emoji", "Segoe UI Emoji", "Segoe UI Symbol", "Lucida Grande", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: var(--font-size-large); line-height: 1.75; margin: 1.6rem 0px; padding: var(--artdeco-reset-base-padding-zero); vertical-align: var(--artdeco-reset-base-vertical-align-baseline);"></p><p style="text-align: left;"></p><ul style="border: var(--artdeco-reset-base-border-zero); box-sizing: inherit; font-size: var(--font-size-large); line-height: 1.75; margin: var(--artdeco-reset-base-margin-zero); padding: var(--artdeco-reset-base-padding-zero); vertical-align: var(--artdeco-reset-base-vertical-align-baseline);"><li style="border: var(--artdeco-reset-base-border-zero); box-sizing: inherit; font-size: var(--artdeco-reset-base-font-size-hundred-percent); margin: 0.8rem 0px 0.8rem 3.2rem; padding-left: 0.8rem; vertical-align: var(--artdeco-reset-base-vertical-align-baseline);"><span style="color: #666666; font-family: arial;">Did my nose need stitches?</span></li></ul><ul style="border: var(--artdeco-reset-base-border-zero); box-sizing: inherit; font-size: var(--font-size-large); line-height: 1.75; margin: var(--artdeco-reset-base-margin-zero); padding: var(--artdeco-reset-base-padding-zero); vertical-align: var(--artdeco-reset-base-vertical-align-baseline);"><li style="border: var(--artdeco-reset-base-border-zero); box-sizing: inherit; font-size: var(--artdeco-reset-base-font-size-hundred-percent); margin: 0.8rem 0px 0.8rem 3.2rem; padding-left: 0.8rem; vertical-align: var(--artdeco-reset-base-vertical-align-baseline);"><span style="color: #666666; font-family: arial;">Have I ever had a good camping trip?</span></li></ul><p></p><p></p><p class="reader-text-block__paragraph" style="--artdeco-reset-typography_getfontsize: 1.6rem; --artdeco-reset-typography_getlineheight: 1.5; background-color: white; border: var(--artdeco-reset-base-border-zero); box-sizing: inherit; color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.9); font-family: -apple-system, system-ui, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Segoe UI", Roboto, "Helvetica Neue", "Fira Sans", Ubuntu, Oxygen, "Oxygen Sans", Cantarell, "Droid Sans", "Apple Color Emoji", "Segoe UI Emoji", "Segoe UI Emoji", "Segoe UI Symbol", "Lucida Grande", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: var(--font-size-large); line-height: 1.75; margin: 1.6rem 0px; padding: var(--artdeco-reset-base-padding-zero); vertical-align: var(--artdeco-reset-base-vertical-align-baseline);">First: Who knows? I bandaged it and rolled with it. It seems fine. </p><p class="reader-text-block__paragraph" style="--artdeco-reset-typography_getfontsize: 1.6rem; --artdeco-reset-typography_getlineheight: 1.5; background-color: white; border: var(--artdeco-reset-base-border-zero); box-sizing: inherit; color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.9); font-family: -apple-system, system-ui, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Segoe UI", Roboto, "Helvetica Neue", "Fira Sans", Ubuntu, Oxygen, "Oxygen Sans", Cantarell, "Droid Sans", "Apple Color Emoji", "Segoe UI Emoji", "Segoe UI Emoji", "Segoe UI Symbol", "Lucida Grande", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: var(--font-size-large); line-height: 1.75; margin: 1.6rem 0px; padding: var(--artdeco-reset-base-padding-zero); vertical-align: var(--artdeco-reset-base-vertical-align-baseline);">Second: Yes. In fact, the point I actually want to make is this:</p><div class="reader-image-block reader-image-block--resize" style="background-color: white; border: var(--artdeco-reset-base-border-zero); box-sizing: inherit; clear: both; color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.9); font-family: -apple-system, system-ui, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Segoe UI", Roboto, "Helvetica Neue", "Fira Sans", Ubuntu, Oxygen, "Oxygen Sans", Cantarell, "Droid Sans", "Apple Color Emoji", "Segoe UI Emoji", "Segoe UI Emoji", "Segoe UI Symbol", "Lucida Grande", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; margin-bottom: var(--spacing-four-x); padding: var(--artdeco-reset-base-padding-zero); vertical-align: var(--artdeco-reset-base-vertical-align-baseline);"><figure class="reader-image-block__figure" style="background: var(--artdeco-reset-base-background-transparent); border: var(--artdeco-reset-base-border-zero); box-sizing: inherit; display: var(--artdeco-reset-base-display-block); font-size: var(--artdeco-reset-base-font-size-hundred-percent); margin: var(--artdeco-reset-base-margin-zero); padding: var(--artdeco-reset-base-padding-zero); vertical-align: var(--artdeco-reset-base-vertical-align-baseline);"><div class="ivm-image-view-model " style="background: var(--artdeco-reset-base-background-transparent); border: var(--artdeco-reset-base-border-zero); box-sizing: inherit; font-size: var(--artdeco-reset-base-font-size-hundred-percent); margin: var(--artdeco-reset-base-margin-zero); padding: var(--artdeco-reset-base-padding-zero); vertical-align: var(--artdeco-reset-base-vertical-align-baseline);"><div class="ivm-view-attr__img-wrapper ivm-view-attr__img-wrapper--use-img-tag display-flex
" style="background: var(--artdeco-reset-base-background-transparent); border: var(--artdeco-reset-base-border-zero); box-sizing: inherit; display: flex !important; font-size: var(--artdeco-reset-base-font-size-hundred-percent); margin: var(--artdeco-reset-base-margin-zero); padding: var(--artdeco-reset-base-padding-zero); vertical-align: var(--artdeco-reset-base-vertical-align-baseline);"><img alt="No alt text provided for this image" class="ivm-view-attr__img--centered reader-image-block__img evi-image lazy-image ember-view" id="ember3331" loading="lazy" src="https://media.licdn.com/dms/image/D5612AQFsJWde_j_atA/article-inline_image-shrink_1000_1488/0/1686666915397?e=1692230400&v=beta&t=Gkhw2RgXwvs_BGADfHRjvExcZ9IvwxbP-RYBH6j9QgI" style="background-position: 50% center; background-size: cover; border-radius: 0px; border: var(--artdeco-reset-base-border-zero); box-sizing: inherit; color: var(--color-text); display: block; font-size: var(--artdeco-reset-base-font-size-hundred-percent); height: auto; margin: 0px auto; max-width: 432px; object-fit: cover; object-position: center center; outline: var(--artdeco-reset-base-outline-zero); padding: var(--artdeco-reset-base-padding-zero); vertical-align: var(--artdeco-reset-base-vertical-align-baseline);" /></div></div></figure></div><p class="reader-text-block__paragraph" style="--artdeco-reset-typography_getfontsize: 1.6rem; --artdeco-reset-typography_getlineheight: 1.5; background-color: white; border: var(--artdeco-reset-base-border-zero); box-sizing: inherit; color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.9); font-family: -apple-system, system-ui, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Segoe UI", Roboto, "Helvetica Neue", "Fira Sans", Ubuntu, Oxygen, "Oxygen Sans", Cantarell, "Droid Sans", "Apple Color Emoji", "Segoe UI Emoji", "Segoe UI Emoji", "Segoe UI Symbol", "Lucida Grande", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: var(--font-size-large); line-height: 1.75; margin: 1.6rem 0px; padding: var(--artdeco-reset-base-padding-zero); vertical-align: var(--artdeco-reset-base-vertical-align-baseline);">The trip with the busted nose was not only one of the most memorable, but also one of the most fun camping trips I ever had. We salvaged someone’s slightly broken pop up canopy on that trip. The water was high and we found a picnic table submerged in the lake, so we dragged it out a little further and drank beers sitting at a picnic table waist deep in the lake. It was amazing.</p><div class="reader-image-block reader-image-block--right-align" style="background-color: white; border: var(--artdeco-reset-base-border-zero); box-sizing: inherit; clear: both; color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.9); float: right; font-family: -apple-system, system-ui, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Segoe UI", Roboto, "Helvetica Neue", "Fira Sans", Ubuntu, Oxygen, "Oxygen Sans", Cantarell, "Droid Sans", "Apple Color Emoji", "Segoe UI Emoji", "Segoe UI Emoji", "Segoe UI Symbol", "Lucida Grande", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; margin-bottom: var(--spacing-four-x); margin-left: var(--spacing-four-x); padding: var(--artdeco-reset-base-padding-zero); vertical-align: var(--artdeco-reset-base-vertical-align-baseline);"><figure class="reader-image-block__figure" style="background: var(--artdeco-reset-base-background-transparent); border: var(--artdeco-reset-base-border-zero); box-sizing: inherit; display: var(--artdeco-reset-base-display-block); font-size: var(--artdeco-reset-base-font-size-hundred-percent); margin: var(--artdeco-reset-base-margin-zero); padding: var(--artdeco-reset-base-padding-zero); vertical-align: var(--artdeco-reset-base-vertical-align-baseline);"><div class="ivm-image-view-model " style="background: var(--artdeco-reset-base-background-transparent); border: var(--artdeco-reset-base-border-zero); box-sizing: inherit; font-size: var(--artdeco-reset-base-font-size-hundred-percent); margin: var(--artdeco-reset-base-margin-zero); padding: var(--artdeco-reset-base-padding-zero); vertical-align: var(--artdeco-reset-base-vertical-align-baseline);"><div class="ivm-view-attr__img-wrapper ivm-view-attr__img-wrapper--use-img-tag display-flex
" style="background: var(--artdeco-reset-base-background-transparent); border: var(--artdeco-reset-base-border-zero); box-sizing: inherit; display: flex !important; font-size: var(--artdeco-reset-base-font-size-hundred-percent); margin: var(--artdeco-reset-base-margin-zero); padding: var(--artdeco-reset-base-padding-zero); vertical-align: var(--artdeco-reset-base-vertical-align-baseline);"><img alt="No alt text provided for this image" class="ivm-view-attr__img--centered reader-image-block__img evi-image lazy-image ember-view" id="ember3332" loading="lazy" src="https://media.licdn.com/dms/image/D5612AQFiFP0a2LZD8Q/article-inline_image-shrink_1000_1488/0/1686666838369?e=1692230400&v=beta&t=qDjhICpvBSvB9q-KylpYjlucGVmsmmxG3enoQlMBrxw" style="background-position: 50% center; background-size: cover; border-radius: 0px; border: var(--artdeco-reset-base-border-zero); box-sizing: inherit; color: var(--color-text); font-size: var(--artdeco-reset-base-font-size-hundred-percent); height: auto; margin: var(--artdeco-reset-base-margin-zero); max-width: 432px; object-fit: cover; object-position: center center; outline: var(--artdeco-reset-base-outline-zero); padding: var(--artdeco-reset-base-padding-zero); vertical-align: var(--artdeco-reset-base-vertical-align-baseline);" /></div></div><figcaption class="display-block mt2 full-width text-body-small-open t-sans text-align-center t-black--light" style="background: var(--artdeco-reset-base-background-transparent); border: var(--artdeco-reset-base-border-zero); box-sizing: inherit; color: var(--color-text-low-emphasis); display: var(--artdeco-reset-base-display-block); font-family: var(--artdeco-typography-sans); font-size: var(--font-size-small); font-weight: var(--font-weight-regular); line-height: var(--line-height-open); margin-top: 0.8rem !important; padding: var(--artdeco-reset-base-padding-zero); text-align: center !important; vertical-align: var(--artdeco-reset-base-vertical-align-baseline); width: 431.991px;">The show must go on! With bandages.</figcaption></figure></div><p class="reader-text-block__paragraph" style="--artdeco-reset-typography_getfontsize: 1.6rem; --artdeco-reset-typography_getlineheight: 1.5; background-color: white; border: var(--artdeco-reset-base-border-zero); box-sizing: inherit; color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.9); font-family: -apple-system, system-ui, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Segoe UI", Roboto, "Helvetica Neue", "Fira Sans", Ubuntu, Oxygen, "Oxygen Sans", Cantarell, "Droid Sans", "Apple Color Emoji", "Segoe UI Emoji", "Segoe UI Emoji", "Segoe UI Symbol", "Lucida Grande", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: var(--font-size-large); line-height: 1.75; margin: 1.6rem 0px; padding: var(--artdeco-reset-base-padding-zero); vertical-align: var(--artdeco-reset-base-vertical-align-baseline);">But would I have remembered it so well if my nose hadn’t been throbbing and oozing all weekend? Probably not.</p><p class="reader-text-block__paragraph" style="--artdeco-reset-typography_getfontsize: 1.6rem; --artdeco-reset-typography_getlineheight: 1.5; background-color: white; border: var(--artdeco-reset-base-border-zero); box-sizing: inherit; color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.9); font-family: -apple-system, system-ui, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Segoe UI", Roboto, "Helvetica Neue", "Fira Sans", Ubuntu, Oxygen, "Oxygen Sans", Cantarell, "Droid Sans", "Apple Color Emoji", "Segoe UI Emoji", "Segoe UI Emoji", "Segoe UI Symbol", "Lucida Grande", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: var(--font-size-large); line-height: 1.75; margin: 1.6rem 0px; padding: var(--artdeco-reset-base-padding-zero); vertical-align: var(--artdeco-reset-base-vertical-align-baseline);">In conclusion</p><p class="reader-text-block__paragraph" style="--artdeco-reset-typography_getfontsize: 1.6rem; --artdeco-reset-typography_getlineheight: 1.5; background-color: white; border: var(--artdeco-reset-base-border-zero); box-sizing: inherit; color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.9); font-family: -apple-system, system-ui, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Segoe UI", Roboto, "Helvetica Neue", "Fira Sans", Ubuntu, Oxygen, "Oxygen Sans", Cantarell, "Droid Sans", "Apple Color Emoji", "Segoe UI Emoji", "Segoe UI Emoji", "Segoe UI Symbol", "Lucida Grande", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: var(--font-size-large); line-height: 1.75; margin: 1.6rem 0px; padding: var(--artdeco-reset-base-padding-zero); vertical-align: var(--artdeco-reset-base-vertical-align-baseline);">What I’ve learned in my time camping, and in life in general, is this:</p><p class="reader-text-block__paragraph" style="--artdeco-reset-typography_getfontsize: 1.6rem; --artdeco-reset-typography_getlineheight: 1.5; background-color: white; border: var(--artdeco-reset-base-border-zero); box-sizing: inherit; color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.9); font-family: -apple-system, system-ui, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Segoe UI", Roboto, "Helvetica Neue", "Fira Sans", Ubuntu, Oxygen, "Oxygen Sans", Cantarell, "Droid Sans", "Apple Color Emoji", "Segoe UI Emoji", "Segoe UI Emoji", "Segoe UI Symbol", "Lucida Grande", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: var(--font-size-large); line-height: 1.75; margin: 1.6rem 0px; padding: var(--artdeco-reset-base-padding-zero); vertical-align: var(--artdeco-reset-base-vertical-align-baseline);">A little discomfort for contrast tends to make the nice moments even nicer. None of my picture-perfect camping trips stand out in my memory.</p><p class="reader-text-block__paragraph" style="--artdeco-reset-typography_getfontsize: 1.6rem; --artdeco-reset-typography_getlineheight: 1.5; background-color: white; border: var(--artdeco-reset-base-border-zero); box-sizing: inherit; color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.9); font-family: -apple-system, system-ui, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Segoe UI", Roboto, "Helvetica Neue", "Fira Sans", Ubuntu, Oxygen, "Oxygen Sans", Cantarell, "Droid Sans", "Apple Color Emoji", "Segoe UI Emoji", "Segoe UI Emoji", "Segoe UI Symbol", "Lucida Grande", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: var(--font-size-large); line-height: 1.75; margin: 1.6rem 0px; padding: var(--artdeco-reset-base-padding-zero); vertical-align: var(--artdeco-reset-base-vertical-align-baseline);">What I really want to communicate is this: You should never <span style="background: var(--artdeco-reset-base-background-transparent); border: var(--artdeco-reset-base-border-zero); box-sizing: inherit; font-size: var(--artdeco-reset-base-font-size-hundred-percent); font-style: var(--artdeco-reset-typography-font-style-italic); margin: var(--artdeco-reset-base-margin-zero); outline: var(--artdeco-reset-base-outline-zero); padding: var(--artdeco-reset-base-padding-zero); vertical-align: var(--artdeco-reset-base-vertical-align-baseline);">not</span> do something because it might not be perfect. Don’t avoid doing something just because it might not go as planned. I don't even remember any perfect camping trips. Or vacations. Or outings of any sort.</p><p class="reader-text-block__paragraph" style="--artdeco-reset-typography_getfontsize: 1.6rem; --artdeco-reset-typography_getlineheight: 1.5; background-color: white; border: var(--artdeco-reset-base-border-zero); box-sizing: inherit; color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.9); font-family: -apple-system, system-ui, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Segoe UI", Roboto, "Helvetica Neue", "Fira Sans", Ubuntu, Oxygen, "Oxygen Sans", Cantarell, "Droid Sans", "Apple Color Emoji", "Segoe UI Emoji", "Segoe UI Emoji", "Segoe UI Symbol", "Lucida Grande", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: var(--font-size-large); line-height: 1.75; margin: 1.6rem 0px; padding: var(--artdeco-reset-base-padding-zero); vertical-align: var(--artdeco-reset-base-vertical-align-baseline);">Forget the raincoats! Set up a paper-plate picnic in the wind! Call your children out from their dry tent into your leaky one during a thunderstorm! It doesn't matter.</p><p class="reader-text-block__paragraph" style="--artdeco-reset-typography_getfontsize: 1.6rem; --artdeco-reset-typography_getlineheight: 1.5; background-color: white; border: var(--artdeco-reset-base-border-zero); box-sizing: inherit; color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.9); font-family: -apple-system, system-ui, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Segoe UI", Roboto, "Helvetica Neue", "Fira Sans", Ubuntu, Oxygen, "Oxygen Sans", Cantarell, "Droid Sans", "Apple Color Emoji", "Segoe UI Emoji", "Segoe UI Emoji", "Segoe UI Symbol", "Lucida Grande", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: var(--font-size-large); line-height: 1.75; margin: 1.6rem 0px; padding: var(--artdeco-reset-base-padding-zero); vertical-align: var(--artdeco-reset-base-vertical-align-baseline);">Don’t go for perfect. Go for memorable.</p><div class="reader-image-block reader-image-block--full-width" style="background-color: white; border: var(--artdeco-reset-base-border-zero); box-sizing: inherit; clear: both; color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.9); font-family: -apple-system, system-ui, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Segoe UI", Roboto, "Helvetica Neue", "Fira Sans", Ubuntu, Oxygen, "Oxygen Sans", Cantarell, "Droid Sans", "Apple Color Emoji", "Segoe UI Emoji", "Segoe UI Emoji", "Segoe UI Symbol", "Lucida Grande", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; margin-bottom: var(--spacing-four-x); padding: var(--artdeco-reset-base-padding-zero); vertical-align: var(--artdeco-reset-base-vertical-align-baseline);"><figure class="reader-image-block__figure" style="background: var(--artdeco-reset-base-background-transparent); border: var(--artdeco-reset-base-border-zero); box-sizing: inherit; display: var(--artdeco-reset-base-display-block); font-size: var(--artdeco-reset-base-font-size-hundred-percent); margin: var(--artdeco-reset-base-margin-zero); padding: var(--artdeco-reset-base-padding-zero); vertical-align: var(--artdeco-reset-base-vertical-align-baseline);"><div class="ivm-image-view-model " style="background: var(--artdeco-reset-base-background-transparent); border: var(--artdeco-reset-base-border-zero); box-sizing: inherit; font-size: var(--artdeco-reset-base-font-size-hundred-percent); margin: var(--artdeco-reset-base-margin-zero); padding: var(--artdeco-reset-base-padding-zero); vertical-align: var(--artdeco-reset-base-vertical-align-baseline);"><div class="ivm-view-attr__img-wrapper ivm-view-attr__img-wrapper--use-img-tag display-flex
" style="background: var(--artdeco-reset-base-background-transparent); border: var(--artdeco-reset-base-border-zero); box-sizing: inherit; display: flex !important; font-size: var(--artdeco-reset-base-font-size-hundred-percent); margin: var(--artdeco-reset-base-margin-zero); padding: var(--artdeco-reset-base-padding-zero); vertical-align: var(--artdeco-reset-base-vertical-align-baseline);"><img alt="No alt text provided for this image" class="ivm-view-attr__img--centered reader-image-block__img evi-image lazy-image ember-view" id="ember3333" loading="lazy" src="https://media.licdn.com/dms/image/D5612AQFGigalyANniw/article-inline_image-shrink_1000_1488/0/1686666709476?e=1692230400&v=beta&t=_r7yt19UlWonAdN4lkjEetOeLpUW0DIgfLBQYqSRcMw" style="background-position: 50% center; background-size: cover; border-radius: 0px; border: var(--artdeco-reset-base-border-zero); box-sizing: inherit; color: var(--color-text); font-size: var(--artdeco-reset-base-font-size-hundred-percent); height: auto; margin: var(--artdeco-reset-base-margin-zero); max-width: 100%; object-fit: cover; object-position: center center; outline: var(--artdeco-reset-base-outline-zero); padding: var(--artdeco-reset-base-padding-zero); vertical-align: var(--artdeco-reset-base-vertical-align-baseline); width: 719.988px;" /></div></div></figure></div>Caitlinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09112106153261421645noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-624751143437303236.post-71814574946504483982023-05-30T16:36:00.001-04:002023-05-30T16:36:27.275-04:00Don't Make Your Bed<p><span style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-size: large;">T</span></span><span style="font-size: large; line-height: 107%;">hink back to this morning. You did the same thing you’ve done nearly every day for
most of your life: You got out of bed. <i>But what did you do after that?</i></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-size: medium;"></span></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjS131647dOWEEmOcN2hryPMc1MW12Rwar3y9YU3Py9OaGo8mOkqNCaF1LgJq6NO7mhURRACmFiT8nvg3vXMz706B8rdPDXPN9kPFlhDmkEIwF-ZDBqNw5iE41xkBefjeLiPTxVsMohrVEyLcBecRWQGIzZJmMGLh98LZjVNbsmK7FbLxWs2DJjK8stBQ/s4549/priscilla-du-preez-LpZMZXXpRcM-unsplash.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3033" data-original-width="4549" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjS131647dOWEEmOcN2hryPMc1MW12Rwar3y9YU3Py9OaGo8mOkqNCaF1LgJq6NO7mhURRACmFiT8nvg3vXMz706B8rdPDXPN9kPFlhDmkEIwF-ZDBqNw5iE41xkBefjeLiPTxVsMohrVEyLcBecRWQGIzZJmMGLh98LZjVNbsmK7FbLxWs2DJjK8stBQ/w400-h266/priscilla-du-preez-LpZMZXXpRcM-unsplash.jpg" width="400" /></a></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><span style="font-size: medium;">Quick question:</span><p></p><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="line-height: 107%;">Do you make your bed neatly, religiously, every day?<br /></span><span style="line-height: 107%;">Do make your bed most of the time?<br /></span><span style="line-height: 107%;">Or, do you make your bed almost
<i>never</i></span></span></div><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><b>That’s me.</b><o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-size: medium;">And it’s <i>not
</i>U.S. Navy Admiral William H. McRaven. In 2014 McRaven gave a <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pxBQLFLei70" target="_blank">now-famous commencement address at the university of Texas</a>. “If you want to change the
world, make your bed,” he said. Making your bed would, he said, set the tone
for the day, import a sense of pride and accomplishment, reinforce that small
tasks matter, and set yourself up for a strong start for tomorrow.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: medium;"><b><span style="line-height: 107%;">Throw all
of that away.</span></b><span style="line-height: 107%;"> </span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-size: medium;">I’m
here to tell you NOT to make your bed. And to give you three undeniable reasons
why.</span></span></p>
<h3 style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><b><span style="line-height: 107%;">Reason 1: </span></b><b><span style="line-height: 107%;">Making
your bed is gross.</span></b><span style="line-height: 107%;"> </span></span></h3><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-size: medium;">I
was appalled the day I learned that basically every bed is home to about <a href="https://www.sciencealert.com/making-your-bed-each-morning-makes-it-easier-for-dust-mites-to-breed-science-finds" target="_blank">1.5 million</a> microscopic dust mites. (I was more horrified the day I learned about
Demodex mites – which live <a href="https://www.uclahealth.org/news/eyelash-mites-are-normal-part-of-bodys-microbiome#:~:text=Dear%20Reader%3A%20Eyelash%20mites%2C%20also,the%20eyelashes%20and%20the%20eyebrows." target="_blank">IN YOUR EYELASHES</a> and are apparently NORMAL. But I
digress). <a href="https://www.livescience.com/33097-does-your-mattress-really-gain-weight-over-time-.html#:~:text=Ten%20percent%20of%20the%20weight,when%20someone%20is%20on%20it." target="_blank">TEN PERCENT</a> of the weight of a two-year old pillow can be composed of
dead mites and their waste products.</span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-size: medium;">And here’s
the kicker: Dust mites thrive on human dander and warm, moist conditions – like
the inside of your bed after a cozy night’s sleep. Making your bed traps your
residual warmth and moisture in, leaving the mites to happily feast on your
leftover skin flakes. They THRIVE in a made bed. So, leave those covers off and
let things cool off and dry up.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-size: medium;">(As an
aside, I’ll be totally honest with you – there doesn’t seem to be actual
research proving that an unmade bed makes a more hostile home for dust mites,
but do you <b>really</b> want to be tucking those guys in every
morning?)<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<h3 style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><b><span style="line-height: 107%;">Reason 2: </span></b><b><span style="line-height: 107%;">An unmade
bed is more comfortable.</span></b><span style="line-height: 107%;"> </span></span></h3><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-size: medium;"></span></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjN9tm4Txheqqg01kf00yYEj_X1Z-047DcdDVFvU7qQKkoNgbxlRcV5no-ttQ_2r5sbiex3F39EtlS0mXKLHpaZbh32ePIxS8D6Vb6RoHH7UF51quCO6nhUfU4pMsSxyY4s4qmAqqGdjJkqC1Vr1nN8VDdBsOWGbCH1j2uMIszOThB2YVztu1Zas6uwmA/s7360/jurien-huggins-dEUYgSzEosc-unsplash.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="7360" data-original-width="4912" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjN9tm4Txheqqg01kf00yYEj_X1Z-047DcdDVFvU7qQKkoNgbxlRcV5no-ttQ_2r5sbiex3F39EtlS0mXKLHpaZbh32ePIxS8D6Vb6RoHH7UF51quCO6nhUfU4pMsSxyY4s4qmAqqGdjJkqC1Vr1nN8VDdBsOWGbCH1j2uMIszOThB2YVztu1Zas6uwmA/w268-h400/jurien-huggins-dEUYgSzEosc-unsplash.jpg" width="268" /></a></span></div><span style="font-size: medium;">It just is. I know this is getting into subjective territory, but getting into a freshly made, edges-tucked bed is like slipping
yourself into a crisp paper envelope. Rigid. Restricting.</span><p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-size: medium;">I don’t want the
sheets tucked in. I want my<i>self </i>tucked in. I want the fluid freedom of
rumpled, flowing sheets and blankets cascading around me and burrito-ing me close. the first thing I do at any hotel is kick-kick-kick out the bottom of the
sheets out so I can swaddle them around my feet.</span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="line-height: 107%;">Another
thing:</span><span style="line-height: 107%;"> let’s assume
you have a spare blanket for if you get chilly. A bed-making person (like my husband, for instance) will have
it neatly folded across the foot of the bed. But do you really want to fool
with reaching all the way down there and unfolding it when you’re cold and
asleep in the middle of the night? I don’t. Unmade? Reach down, yank up, sleep.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<h3 style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><b><span style="line-height: 107%;">Reason 3: </span></b><b><span style="line-height: 107%;">You have
better things to do.</span></b><span style="line-height: 107%;"> </span></span></h3><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Let’s be honest. Let’s say making a bed neatly takes 2 minutes. That’s 12 hours
per year spent making your bed. Over 60 years, you’ve spent a WHOLE MONTH—that's thirty twenty-four-hour days—making your bed. You could take that 2 minutes to meditate,
which has proven health benefits, unlike making your bed. You could pour
yourself a cup of coffee, which, in my opinion, is much more energizing
than making your bed.</span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-size: medium;">You could
even use that time to do<i> legitimate</i> chores: If you don’t wash your
dishes, your kitchen gets gross and you have to eat everything with your hands.
If you don’t do the laundry, you’ll stink and look unappealing, to say
the least. But <i>nothing bad happens if you don’t make your bed.</i></span></span></p>
<h3 style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="line-height: 107%;">Think
about it.</span><span style="line-height: 107%;"><b> </b></span></span></h3><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Does
making your bed matter in the grand scheme of life? Unless your name is Admiral
William McRaven, I doubt it’s going to come up on that fated day your family and
friends share fond memories at your funeral. <o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-size: medium;">It’s not
a popular message, but someone had to say it: </span><b><span style="font-size: medium;">Save time. Stay comfortable.
Starve the mites. Don’t make your bed.</span><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> <br /></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p><i>P.S. This piece was written and presented as a humorous speech in participation with my local <a href="https://619.toastmastersclubs.org/" target="_blank">Sunrise Toastmasters</a>' Speechcraft program. Thank you to all who humored me and laughed at my presentation.</i></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p><i>If you're interested in more content like this, I don't know what to tell you. Sometimes good stuff comes to me. Most of the time I'm a dry well. Also, you should know this is not up to my usual level of journalistic integrity. I did not bother to find and cite legitimate sources. However, unlike last week's listeners, you at least have the benefit of clickable links to sites of questionable authority.</i></o:p></p>Caitlinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09112106153261421645noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-624751143437303236.post-82585217449226966902023-05-01T17:47:00.001-04:002023-05-02T00:20:25.734-04:00Looking for a fresh read?<p>So, I gave myself the challenge of reading a book a week. Not since college days have I read at such a clip. It is turning out to be a little challenging, especially since I keep getting sucked into TV shows (<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yi4YnwFT7Gk">Vikings: Valhalla</a>, <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ESEUoa-mz2c">Dark</a>, and <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9zG9RuJb3QU">Sweet Tooth</a>, to name a few).<br /><br /></p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8URbAHOq2hXKPVJXYfAbSLfr-IfL5ELUPkWXnIWp0ihnttgkIogSfvAnqmU4EPFnKeHw5M1QszOD7Wmn7asyX9-XxwES1OPAYa1BAHJQQczsHi2RW0CeIbJltxKizEVRaYj3Kl78KPmRgTrsfTVJd5h9ahigPZxjWR337k0R2ljBdYPVETZB5_kbwSw/s697/jan-april%20books.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="595" data-original-width="697" height="341" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8URbAHOq2hXKPVJXYfAbSLfr-IfL5ELUPkWXnIWp0ihnttgkIogSfvAnqmU4EPFnKeHw5M1QszOD7Wmn7asyX9-XxwES1OPAYa1BAHJQQczsHi2RW0CeIbJltxKizEVRaYj3Kl78KPmRgTrsfTVJd5h9ahigPZxjWR337k0R2ljBdYPVETZB5_kbwSw/w400-h341/jan-april%20books.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>If you're interested, here are the 15 titles I've read so far this year. (I'm behind by two! Yikes!) <br /><br />There should be a dramatic genre shift in the next months, as I have a LOT of nonfiction on my shelves waiting to be read. Which is going to slow me down even more. Maybe I need to squeeze in a few novellas, or else start counting the children's books I've been nibbling on. <br /><br />Anyway, because I'm a big fan of sharing my unasked opinion (in a low-risk zone), here are my thoughts on my top two reads of the year so far plus scathing criticism for my two least favorites. Enjoy.<div><br /></div><h2 style="text-align: left;">My top favorite read so far...</h2><div>
<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/43575115-the-starless-sea" style="float: left; padding-right: 20px;"><img alt="The Starless Sea" border="0" src="https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1617715077l/43575115._SX98_.jpg" /></a><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/43575115-the-starless-sea">The Starless Sea</a> by <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/4370565.Erin_Morgenstern">Erin Morgenstern</a><br />
My rating: <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/5282257444">5 of 5 stars</a><br /><br />
MAGICAL. I don't know how to write a review that does this book justice. I suppose this is another novel we owe to David Mitchell for the groundbreaking form of Cloud Atlas, but dear lord, it's so much better than Cloud Atlas. Not that reviews need to pit books against each other, but... <br /><br />Reading this book is like being caught in a frantic, bewildering fever dream, but a cozy one that you never want to end. Just lean into the chaos. Embrace the labyrinthine journey. It's warm and candlelit and there are cocktails. Are they posioned? Maybe. But the experience is worth the risk.<br /><br />I'm sensing a trend. All my favorite novels are about the power of story and how story both drives us and makes us human. This one's about that, plus about how story is so many things to so many people and not necessarily the same thing to more than one person. <br /><br />Don't try to figure it all out. It will drive you mad. The symbolism and the yarn-on-the-wall connections... you can get a loose map of meaning, but you won't find the 1:1 key because it never existed. I know this review doesn't make a ton of sense. It's not my fault. I'm still lost in the Starless Sea. Read it.</div><div><br /></div><div><h2 style="text-align: left;">My absolute least favorite... </h2><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/7036191-island" style="float: left; padding-right: 20px;"><img alt="Island" border="0" src="https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1347618526l/7036191._SX98_.jpg" /></a><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/7036191-island">Island</a> by <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/3487.Aldous_Huxley">Aldous Huxley</a><br />
My rating: <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/5340598870">1 of 5 stars</a><br /><br />
It took me 3 weeks to read the first 200 pages of this book. I read the second half today, skimming, to get it over with. <br /><br />I can see how this book would be a valuable and intriguing introduction for some into asking some of the bigger questions and reconsidering some of the Western structures so often taken for granted as normal and good. <br /><br />But I did not enjoy it and I don't think it's fair that Huxley got to publish such a long and boring philosphical thesis under the thin guise of a novel. This is no novel. It is a sermon. And the novelish dressing on it is incredibly underwhelming. Sorry to Huxley and the friend who recommended this to me.
<br /><br />
<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/list/724043-caitlin-n"></a>
</div><div><h2>The only other book I rated 5 stars so far this year...</h2></div>
<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/832662.A_Tale_of_Two_Cities" style="float: left; padding-right: 20px;"><img alt="A Tale of Two Cities" border="0" src="https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1388341204l/832662._SX98_.jpg" /></a><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/832662.A_Tale_of_Two_Cities">A Tale of Two Cities</a> by <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/239579.Charles_Dickens">Charles Dickens</a><br />
My rating: <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/11782207">5 of 5 stars</a><br /><br />
I can't believe I read this at age 11. It's incredibly difficult after a long string of contemporary reads to readjust one's brain to the cadence and density of Dickens.<br /><br />But my lord. It's so good.<br /><br />Melodramatic. Charicaturized. Torturously winding. And all the freaking better for it. I love Dickens.<br /><br />I remember WEEPING when I read this as a child. I also remember being absolutely horrified by Madame Defarge. This time around, I only misted up a little, and was not nearly so affected by Madame Defarge - In fact, she struck me as brilliant when I was reintroduced to her. No less evil, of course, but more fascinating.<br /><br />Also: the comedic relief in this piece is SO GOOD. I had at least 3 lough out loud moments and several chuckles. Observations on Tellson's. Jerry Cruncher and his floppin' wife. The sturdy Miss Pross and her interactions with the steady Mr. Lorry. The cast of characters is incredibly broad, but each one fits so well. <br /><br />The strange thing about this novel is that its flat characters (most of them) are flat, flat, flat (could Lucie be a more boring heroine? She's less even of a heroine and more of the saintly thread that happens to join all these other characters) and round characters (Carton and only Carton as far as I'm aware) are more like double-sided cutouts - first one way, then another, and you hardly know why. But it works for me. Five stars. Again.<br /><br />---<br />I have an additional thought that I'm going to put here: as as is my wont, I'm reading Goodreads review after the fact, and many people have criticized Dickens/this novel for having uninteresting, unrelatable characters that are impossible to care about.<br /><br />And while I do agree that the characters are largely flat and unrelatable, I disagree that that's a problem.<br /><br />This is a A Tale of Two Cities, not A Tale of Lucie Manette and Charles Darnay and Sydney Carton. This is a tale of Paris and London, of Unrest versus Peace, of Vengeance and Sacrifice. The characters are human vehicles through which the principal themes play out. No one character is truly that important in this book - they're all just playing their part in the great drama of illustrating the cause, effect, defeat, victory, and passions of the French Revolution.<br /><br />It's also been criticized as dry and humorless in comparison to his other works. If you found no humor here, that's entirely your fault as a reader, because if you can't see the comedy in every single scene with Jerry Cruncher, or the references to the old workers at Tellson's bank, or the narrator's critical eye toward Mr. Stryver, you're clearly skipping whole passages! <br /><br />Sure, if Dickens isn't your taste, I get it. But don't accuse him of falling short when you didn't pay attention to the book!<div><br /><h2>The other book I hated...</h2>
<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/32049.Lady_Chatterley_s_Lover" style="float: left; padding-right: 20px;"><img alt="Lady Chatterley's Lover" border="0" src="https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1215571713l/32049._SY160_.jpg" /></a><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/32049.Lady_Chatterley_s_Lover">Lady Chatterley's Lover</a> by <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/17623.D_H_Lawrence">D.H. Lawrence</a><br />
My rating: <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/5242670457">1 of 5 stars</a><br /><br />
1) omg this was so boring.<br />2) what posessed D.H. Lawrence to write as if he understood everything there was to know about a woman's sexuality? That level of presumption may be bolder than the sex scenes themselves.<br /><br />IDK what I expected from this book, but pages on pages of rants outlining the decline of true human civilization, dialogue by imbelicic characters on the vast differences of the classes, antisemitism, and weird references to ancient races and womb-feelings was not it. This book was so weird that the p€n!$e$ were among the least of its problems for me. I read it out of sheer curiosity and now I have zero remaining curiosity for anything else Lawrence may have written. Sure, it was graphic and unabashed. But mostly it was philosophical in a wildly boring way.
<br /><br /><i><b>In conclusion: </b>Most of my reviews land somewhere in the middle, and I would recommend 13 of the 15 with caveats, so if you just can't get enough of my opinion, you know what to do: </i><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/list/724043-caitlin-n">View all my reviews</a></div>Caitlinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09112106153261421645noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-624751143437303236.post-16815808498499107662023-04-21T18:40:00.003-04:002023-04-21T20:32:46.158-04:00On remembering<p></p><p class="MsoNormal"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div>This is a story about what's been true for me. Maybe it's not the same for everyone, but here's what I've found, really, in just the last couple of years.<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEiB7rwPUD6uJhNLim5w1k13BdOLd4jIF00G1jV-8Rti117ipy-olsbaDNYdHVHz0xLp2rURyO0yg_TTX78N5ozshr-KgwqmYJ05zJlGkRNqnqVeJcDs7-U5ChqedSdDnGvu-hPDGq--i1GIdCRlLGsVOvWfO_34LPvvRsn04S8a4_JaxjtFYE2RgQwPrg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="297" data-original-width="417" height="228" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEiB7rwPUD6uJhNLim5w1k13BdOLd4jIF00G1jV-8Rti117ipy-olsbaDNYdHVHz0xLp2rURyO0yg_TTX78N5ozshr-KgwqmYJ05zJlGkRNqnqVeJcDs7-U5ChqedSdDnGvu-hPDGq--i1GIdCRlLGsVOvWfO_34LPvvRsn04S8a4_JaxjtFYE2RgQwPrg" width="320" /></a></div><p></p><p class="MsoNormal">Unaddressed hurt covers your eyes with big, cold hands. </p><p class="MsoNormal">But when you address it? When you name it? When you have the courage to pull the hands away and see what they're made of? They lose their strength. </p><p>Your life, your self, appear with so much more color. And the most magical part, for me, is the way the beautiful things, so long out of sight, come creeping back.</p><p><i>Indulge me in a flight of poetic illustration:</i></p><p><i><br /></i></p><p><b>In sleep, I looked back and saw a mist.</b></p><p>A flash of memory here and there, but little clarity. Flares of harmful words, and sparks of sweetness.</p><p><b>In awakening, I looked back and saw darkness — and myself inside it.</b></p><p>A sister too much a mother.</p><p>A daughter looking for nurture and connection, receiving criticism and distance. </p><p>A girl looking for safety and understanding, receiving fear and abandonment.</p><p>A child navigating hurt, loneliness, threat, and injustice in a world with no place for sadness, fear, anger.</p><p>"But it wasn't all bad," was my mantra. I felt something like shame, putting a name to the hurt I spent years ignoring. No, it wasn't all bad. But it was all stained with the darkness I finally named.</p><p>And I'm still working on healing the wounds left from that hurt. But now I'm self-aware, self-actualizing, self-integrating, self-confident.</p><p><b>In awareness, I look back with clarity.</b></p><p>In clarity, I see <i>both and.</i> I see a fuller truth.</p><p>I see a man choking down his own demons for years, fighting to give his kids a better life than he had.</p><p>I see a woman contending with her own mental health, committing to raising kids in intellectual independence.</p><p class="MsoNormal"><i><b></b></i></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><i><b><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjuQ9l5XFH5X1ejcncOXfMmOcLbNXEPtBgcVUg3BLuc6RRBp7ncxwkoNR2QqBA_O0jwFyRnOfs_7bPfWTfaNBzRq8KvPt8OSYgpNTkH_ZM2uRsxBHj7xE4l2JGoAN186uZvavq0y3PmayVXnN8Y73-j7Zp_VuJl6SuRX5LoHHzZWfUddvZSs4apIn1AUg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="431" data-original-width="331" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjuQ9l5XFH5X1ejcncOXfMmOcLbNXEPtBgcVUg3BLuc6RRBp7ncxwkoNR2QqBA_O0jwFyRnOfs_7bPfWTfaNBzRq8KvPt8OSYgpNTkH_ZM2uRsxBHj7xE4l2JGoAN186uZvavq0y3PmayVXnN8Y73-j7Zp_VuJl6SuRX5LoHHzZWfUddvZSs4apIn1AUg=w245-h320" width="245" /></a></b></i></div><i><b><br /></b></i><p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><i>I remember more. </i></p><p class="MsoNormal">Now that I've named the suffering, the sweet comes back. More specifically:</p><p>I see my dad, strong, sweating, clearing out what seems like miles of go-kart track with a machete. I hear the rumbling motor, smell the exhaust, and I'm back in the woods, pealing around a curve, hitting a root, throwing up a cloud of red dust I can still taste.</p><p>I see my mom gently stirring a pot of chicken and dumplings while I stand on a stepstool, glasses fogging, softly dropping in one dumpling at time. Mama open up a space for me in between the floating drops of dough, and the hot steam dampens my hands and I'm warm with the deep satisfaction of wordless teamwork.</p><p><br /></p><p>Now that I've given a voice to the pain, cried over it, sat with it for a while, treated it with respect, I can look back and see an astounding mix of bitter and sweet. Neither negates the other. I don't know how it works, but honoring my pain and healing the wounds has freed my brain to find the forgotten good.</p><p>Mama stirring food coloring into salty homemade play-dough on the stove.</p><p>Daddy bringing home plums in his little Coleman cooler in the summer.</p><p>Mama sitting in the rocker, reading aloud from Charlotte's Web and Stuart Little.</p><p>Daddy reading aloud from the Bible, too early in the morning. At bedtime. On Christmas.</p><p>The family crowding around the computer to see what's next in the Netflix DVD queue. </p><p>Us crowding around the piano to sing an old hymn like Southern Von Trapps.</p><p>Mama making the babies laugh with "ONE BIG EYEBALL."</p><p><br /></p><p>That last one came to me just now! I don't think I've ever, since the last time it happened to a sibling, given a single thought to the way my mom would bring the baby to her face, forehead to forehead, nose to nose, eye to eye, and say ONE. BIG. EYEBALL! prompting that infant belly laugh that brings you both to tears.</p><p>And that's what I'm talking about. I have a regular old bad memory, but for so long, I seemed to have nothing. And then a lot of ugly. </p><p>But now, every so often, a fresh, soft, warm and sweet memory uncovers itself, and I am so grateful.</p><p><br /></p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /><br /><p></p><p><br /></p>Caitlinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09112106153261421645noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-624751143437303236.post-81029325320499969722023-04-10T19:12:00.003-04:002023-04-11T02:30:28.670-04:00Who I am now...<p>I began this blog in 2007, cross-posting with my Xanga account. (Remember Xanga? It died in 2013. Which is roughly the last time I blogged here with any consistency.)</p><p>Mostly hosting the minutia of my daily life and angsty, philosophical ramblings from my late teens and early twenties, this blog has been home to amusing little personal tales, promotions and giveaways for my long-defunct Etsy shop, favorite recipes, and scores of selfies and other photos.</p><p>Now, I'm not sure what it will be. I'm not even sure it should still exist, but I'm loathe to let it go after all these years! I'm sure I should be cultivating a "professional" online presence (and thusly disappearing my online past) if I want to be A Serious Writer, but hey. I am still me, after all.</p><p>Now, in 2023, ten years from my last public ponderings, I am thirty-three. I am a professional marketing copywriter and strategist with a degree in English. I know some stuff about SEO, B2B marketing, content marketing strategies, and #agencylife.</p><p>I am married with no pets, no children. I moved to Colorado from the South in 2020. I have a children's book in processes, and I try to keep the creative juices flowing with other minor creative endeavors. </p><p>I hike, run, read, climb, write, and drink craft beer — all as an enthusiastic novice. </p><p>And, perhaps most notably, I no longer decry decaf coffee. Anxiety has made a convert of me.</p><p>For now, I intend to keep the blog alive with an infusion of Goodreads book reviews. My Goodreads use is maybe the only part of my online presence that has stayed consistent since 2007! I tried Litsy, but I kind of hated it.</p><p>So. Until I figure out what's next, here's this! </p><p>-Caitlin</p>Caitlinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09112106153261421645noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-624751143437303236.post-62511756232038537432023-04-10T17:48:00.001-04:002023-04-10T17:48:07.814-04:00Review: Wide Sargasso Sea
<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/25622780" style="float: left; padding-right: 20px"><img src="https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1453021061l/25622780._SX98_.jpg" border="0" alt="Wide Sargasso Sea" /></a>
<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/25622780">Wide Sargasso Sea</a> by <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/25022">Jean Rhys</a><br/>
My rating: <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2170487971">3 of 5 stars</a>
<br /><br />
Ach! So annoyed! I read this in 2021, but when I went to update for this year's read-through, my review and dates from 2021 disappeared.<br /><br />I think in 2021, I had written something to the effect of "enchanting, devastating, beautiful." Probably a few more words than that. I remember really loving it and being impressed and rating it 4 stars.<br /><br />I feel like I have a LOT more questions this time around, especially after reading other people's reviews - and I'm bumping down to 3 stars. <br />1. Why are Rochester's sections LESS coherent than Antoinette's, if she's the one suffering from "madness?" I get that there's a point to be made about both people being flawed/unreliable narrators, but from a logical standpoint, the way this was executed just doesn't work for me. Rochester talks like he's in a fever dream, even after he's supposedly recovered from "the fever." I also just don't know that, for a story that's supposed to be liberating "the woman in the attic," it was fair to give Rochester such a significant first-person portion of the book.<br /><br />2. Why do so many other readers seem to come away with the opinion that her "madness" was caused by "not being loved well enough by rochester" - She clearly had a tumultuous (dare I say it: traumatic) upbringing, and in the present day, we have enough scientific evidence to show that behaviors and states of mind classified as "insanity" are often linked to past trauma - she's a clear case of dissociation. <br /><br />3. Some come away from reading this questioning whether Antionette was "mad" at all - rather, perhaps it was her freedom of self expression and her non-Englishness that made her *seem* mad to Rochester, et al (A case of The Yellow Wallpaper, if you will). But come on, guys. There's evidence in the stories of her extended family - are we really supposed to believe literally *everyone else* in the book made up and perpetuated a false family history? <br /><br />There are other questions, but I can't articulate them right now. Her braid being cut off because she was sick? That feels symbolic. But also why would that need to be done? Her relationship with Sandi? Could we not have explored that a little more? Rochester's F-ed up decision to sleep with Amelie?! What was that. "He's not a bad man." Or is he? Other symbolisms I'd like to explore: The frangipane/its overpowering sweetness/how it was crushed; the parrot on fire (I mean, obvious, but still); IDK if the constant rum-drinking counts as symbolism, or just setting...; the general state of Coulibri (decay, rejuvenation, total destruction); her relationship with Tia (like looking in a mirror)... etc.<br /><br />The writing was poetic, yes. The intent to give Antoinette her own story, brilliant. (But also: Why did Rochester land on Bertha for a substitute name? Like, I get the idea of "renaming" her, but BERTHA? really?) IDK. On my first read, I thought this was brilliant. On my second read, I still appreciate the concept, and the atmosphere, and the creative execution that mirrors the state of mind of both central figures, but I do think it could have been executed in a stronger way. I'm no expert, though. I'm just a girl, standing in a front of a book, asking it to make a little more sense.
<br/><br/>
<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2170487971">View all my reviews</a>
Caitlinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09112106153261421645noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-624751143437303236.post-18077241804988748732021-03-25T12:21:00.002-04:002021-03-25T12:21:43.997-04:00It's been years<p> I'm honestly just posting because I don't know how this works anymore, and I'm afraid my old blogger account will disappear if I don't do something with it at some point. lol</p>Caitlinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09112106153261421645noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-624751143437303236.post-6202586514866972572013-04-06T12:40:00.001-04:002013-04-07T00:42:53.919-04:00blurt!<br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: x-small;"> It's been a really good semester. I'm supposed to be writing a paper. Instead I've been taking pictures of my new hair.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: x-small;">Don't worry, I didn't cut it again.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: x-small;">I went way lighter. Love it.</span>Caitlinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09112106153261421645noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-624751143437303236.post-62328799852913686962013-02-06T14:59:00.002-05:002013-02-06T14:59:37.292-05:00real lifeMonday was Monday.<br />Tuesday was Tuesday.<br />Today is Wednesday, everything-at-once-day, ignore-it-and-it-will-not-come day.<br /><br />It's not a bad day.<br />But I would like to be an ostrich sometimes.<br /><br />Summer's not that far off. Zoom in and it's frighteningly close. Zoom out and it's okay, except you have to plan. How can you plan when you don't have plans? Hard to prepare when you don't know what to prepare for. And then there's money. Time and money. Isn't it always time and money?<br />
<br />
Here's what happens:<br />
I hold on to the rope, and even though I can't see very far, my footing is stable.<br />
My footing is stable, so I feel confident.<br />
I feel confident, so I loosen my grip. Trailing my fingers along, then letting my hand fall to my side.<br /><br />And then my feet feel heavy, and my legs feel clumsy, and the confidence is quaking, dissolving, and the surrounding unknown becomes oppressive and dark. And so I stop. So, now I'm standing there, just standing there, with my hands at my side, and I know the rope is still there and I can take hold again, but something perverse in me wants to pretend I can't find it, or wants me to fight forward in the chaotic void on my own. I don't know why. Why?<br />
<br />
WHY do I not just keep holding on?!<br />
This is real life, folks.Caitlinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09112106153261421645noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-624751143437303236.post-74282043653106006432013-01-11T00:10:00.002-05:002013-01-11T00:10:44.822-05:00honest momentI just read this: <span style="font-family: inherit;">"Ladies, p<span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; line-height: 15.454545021057129px;">ut your heart into the hands of God, & He will put it into the hands of a man who deserves it."</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; line-height: 15.454545021057129px;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; line-height: 15.454545021057129px;">A lot of my friends find that encouraging. Like I said, I have trust issues. So, to be completely honest, my response is, "Oh yeah? Who says. First of all, He never promised all girls who want to get married will get good husbands, so there's that. Secondly, what if He just wants to take my heart and keep it closed in the dark between his two hands? or put it on a shelf or something?" </span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; line-height: 15.454545021057129px;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="color: #333333;"><span style="line-height: 15.44444465637207px;">I dunno if it's disrespectful to think/say stuff like that... all I know is, I'm not perfect. I don't have perfect trust. I have doubts and selfish fears. I know God's word is true and His plan is perfect. But knowing doesn't just translate to living in an effortless snap.</span></span><br />
<span style="color: #333333;"><span style="line-height: 15.44444465637207px;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="color: #333333;"><span style="line-height: 15.44444465637207px;">so... yeah. that was personal. *awkward*</span></span>Caitlinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09112106153261421645noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-624751143437303236.post-65259360020292915572013-01-01T13:25:00.000-05:002013-01-02T12:26:30.189-05:00Things I'm Proud of from 2012<br />
<ul>
<li>I started school!</li>
<li>I read 30 books, and while that's nowhere near last year's 72, I'm still proud of it. My selections were pretty diverse.</li>
<li>Maybe it doesn't "count" since it was all school assignments, but I wrote stuff. It feels so good to write.</li>
<li>I can't really take credit for it, but I started a great job.</li>
<li>I made new friends. I didn't hold back. This time last year I was reading Beth Moore's <i>So Long Insecurity</i>, and while I haven't really thought about it much in the previous year, I realized that in the process of finding my place here in Aiken, I haven't been afraid. I mean, I'm always a little nervous about new stuff, but I didn't shy away in corners. I didn't hide and wait to be noticed. I want people to like me, sure, but I haven't really spent any of my energy this year worrying that someone didn't, either.</li>
<li>I started running! Something I never thought I'd do. And while I didn't do all 5 I signed up for, I even did a couple of 5ks. Granted, I've gotten off course the last couple of months, but I'm gearing up to get back at it.</li>
<li>I did a <i>lot</i> of crafty stuff.</li>
<li>I went to see my favorite band on a whim.</li>
<li>I drank a heck of a lot of coffee.</li>
</ul>
<br />
<br />Caitlinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09112106153261421645noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-624751143437303236.post-87263802856956860032012-12-31T02:03:00.001-05:002012-12-31T02:03:18.457-05:00no more 2012So, it's the last day of 2012 and I'm not sure what to think.<br />
<br />
This whole getting older thing is weird; it really doesn't feel like a whole year has gone by.<br />
<br />
Part of me wants to hold on to 2012, saying "wait! I'm not finished yet! I'm not ready to keep moving on yet!" Part of me sees the amazing ways God has worked in my life over the past year and is excited for what he'll do next year. Part of me is still afraid he won't do what I <i>want</i> him to do. I have trust issues.<br />
<br />
My brother and sister are leaving early in the morning. I'm at work tonight, so I had to hug them goodbye before I left the house. Nick wouldn't let me go. There's nothing like a man-hug. I miss him. Laura and I don't really do a lot together, but we do a lot of nothing together, and there's something so sweet about just having a friend to do nothing with you. I miss her. I'm so glad they got to be here for two weeks, but it was such a short two weeks. And every time we're all together, I marvel and think, "It won't be this way much longer."<br />
<br />
I only read 30 books this year.<br />
<br />
I heard a kid screaming in the store the other day and it sounded like one of the special needs kids on the bus I used to work on. Who knew a screaming kid could bring on a bout of nostalgia? That wasn't a bad job. I was doing that this time last year, with no idea I would be living in a different state less than 4 months later.<br />
<br />
I love Aiken. I love my new friends. I love my school.<br />
I had planned to go to PCC, you know, because it just seemed so logical. I prayed and journaled and prayed and talked and figured it must be the right thing to do. It really seemed right. But when it came down to the wire, plans fell through. Now I'm at USCA, and I love it.<br />I didn't even have money. Or a job. Or a car.<br />After I applied at USCA, I got this amazing job babysitting for this great family. It just pays my bills.<br />I still didn't get a car, but somehow I always made it to class.<br /><br />This semester I will have a car. Some friends decided to sell their old one, and thought of offering it to me, knowing I would need one. Just in time - my dad will be driving his truck again (that I was borrowing for a little bit), and my friend (who I caught a ride with sometimes) has a different schedule from mine this Spring. Again, I registered having no clue how I would actually make it to class. Don't even tell me God doesn't provide.<br /><br />
I miss my old friends. People are getting married. And I live so far away. Not across the country, of course, but sometimes it seems it may as well be.<br /><br />My family is intact. You probably don't know how amazing that is, but it is. The fact that we are facing a new year together with all members physically, mentally, and spiritually well and accounted for is nothing short of an act of the grace of God.<br /><br />You know what else is really neat? I love our church. It took years to feel like I had a real place in our church before. I felt welcome there, don't get me wrong, but it took a long time to feel like I really, truly belonged. There's nothing like knowing you belong. I feel like I belong here. I'm not waiting to find somewhere to fit in. I think I already fit. I've even gotten past thinking how weird "Breezy Hill Baptist Church" sounds. lol<br /><br />It would have been ok with me had the Mayans been right. Maybe too ok? I should probably be a little more excited about what God still has for me here! But Heaven is going to be bliss, and bliss can come any day. :)<br /><br />Christmas was nice. Uneventful. Relaxing. We weren't able to join our grandparents for Christmas like we have most years before, so that was a little bit sad, but we still had a nice day, and we all shared pictures on facebook. I even got to see Erin! Her family stopped by on their way to North Carolina. We used to spend like 5 of 7 days together. A week in which we saw each other twice was a rarity. We've seen each other for probably a grand total of 6 hours or so this year, it seems. So, just two hours on a gray afternoon was nice.<br /><br />This post is a mess. Like me. <3 br="br"><br /></3>Caitlinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09112106153261421645noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-624751143437303236.post-3882725240203257812012-12-06T08:30:00.003-05:002012-12-06T08:30:59.161-05:00Almost ThereEnglish class only took 15 minutes today. I turned in my portfolio and did a short quiz. That was it. It's over. The professor just walked past with a colorful stack of portfolios. There they go! The powerpoint today says "You'll get your grade when I'm done grading. No sooner, no later." So... I wonder when that will be. But I feel pretty good about it.<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
I loved that class. So much. I'm sad it's over. I hope next semester's English class is as good, but I doubt it will live up. </div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
So, I've only got 3 finals left til the end of the semester! Tuesday is my physics exam (ewww...), and Wednesday is Math and Philosophy. That's it. Wednesday will be my last day of school! </div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
A whole semester. Over already. And here's the cool thing. I began with no car and no money, and somehow made it to every class and made every payment. Because God is awesome.</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
I love school.</div>
Caitlinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09112106153261421645noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-624751143437303236.post-12001348896010754742012-12-02T12:53:00.001-05:002012-12-02T12:53:24.001-05:00There are Three of YouDear Three Mysterious People who read my blog almost without fail (There is one post with only a single view,<br />
<br />
I appreciate you. If you're reading this, you should comment and tell me who you are. Even my unpopular posts usually have 4 views, which means 3 people beside me have looked at them.<br />
<br />
So, thanks. This blog is weird, and I like you.Caitlinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09112106153261421645noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-624751143437303236.post-19307598068207154052012-12-01T18:52:00.001-05:002012-12-01T20:13:23.897-05:00I just wanna talk about myself.I'm twenty three.<br />
<br />
Yesterday, I held a little Frank Sinatra concert for one in the shower. Belted out the classics. I really should have been a jazz singer or something. A thought hit me when I got out, though.<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
"Hey, Emmie... Could you hear me singing in the shower?"</div>
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"Yeah."</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
"All of it?"</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
"Yeah." </div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
"... Oh. I always thought nobody could hear me."</div>
<br />
All this time. All those concerts. I mean, sometimes I get on a roll and sing like 6 songs. All the way through. Sometimes I really like a song and sing it twice. Oh well. haha.<br />
<br />
What's with those girls who are like, "I'm not single! I'm in a long-standing relationship with freedom and adventure!" I mean, hey, I like freedom and adventure as much as the next girl, but I'd rather be free and adventurous with a guy around... Anyway...<br />
<br />
I signed up for that series of 5ks. It cost 70 dollars. I only did 2 of them. At least the money went to a good cause. It didn't work to make me work out more, cuz I've only jogged my 3 miles about 5 times this semester. Icky. I bought some new Nikes last week, though, so maybe that will help?<br />
<br />
I miss having a bird.<br />
<br />
I don't think you understand how much I love coffee.<br />
<br />
I don't understand why our own brains work against us sometimes.<br />
<br />
My hair is blonde. I promise it is. It's like mediumish ash blonde. But it's not brown. Stop calling it brown. I know it doesn't matter, but for some reason I like being blonde, and it makes me feel like part of my identity is being questioned if you call my hair brown. I know it's silly, just go with it.<br />
<br />
I'm really excited about Christmas break because I hope to do some recreational reading. However, I am scared to look at my to-read list and actually pick something to read. My list is like ... a hundred books long. How will I ever pick just one or two?! Oh. That reminds me. I'm on the library's blacklist. I can't log in or borrow books digitally because my fine is like a million dollars or something.<br />
<br />
I enjoy exaggerating. I also enjoy wearing socks.<br />
<br />Caitlinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09112106153261421645noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-624751143437303236.post-72647319571550547442012-11-30T10:46:00.004-05:002012-11-30T10:46:57.214-05:00oinkI'm an attention hog.<br />
I just want people to love me.<br />
They do, actually. A lot of people love me.<br />
So why am I always looking for more affirmation instead of resting happy, knowing that lots of people like me and think I'm great?Caitlinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09112106153261421645noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-624751143437303236.post-71522589269971624012012-11-29T00:41:00.001-05:002012-11-29T00:41:11.108-05:00This is Madness<div style="text-align: center;">
Apparently, I shouldn't be left alone in a room with scissors and a mirror. </div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
Crazy things happen. </div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
Like, my hair goes missing. I did not have bangs earlier today. Everyone at church can tell you.</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
I straightened my hair, and I had no bangs. </div>
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The hair at the front of my head was as long as the rest of it.</div>
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Then I got home. </div>
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I dunno what happened after that, but this is what I look like now:</div>
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Crazy, right?</div>
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It all started with just barely trimming the rough ends off. Some of those ends were like 6 months old and getting icky. But... that little snip, snip is addicting, and I thought "I'll just trim up these front bits a little more so the edges will be a little nicer." And then I thought "I'll just shape this up a little so it'll be more like swoopy bangs." And then I thought "I wonder what I would look like with legit bangs?" </div>
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And <i>then</i> I thought "That's just crazy talk. Don't even think about it. Do not cut bangs."</div>
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<br /></div>
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I didn't do it all at once. I did it like an eighth of an inch at a time. It took over an hour, because I went so slow. </div>
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I told you, folks. It's madness.</div>
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And the worst part about it is, it's going to look absolutely ridiculous after I wash my hair and all those little bangs curl up. </div>
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P.S. I do think it's pretty cool to be a grown up because I can cut my own hair and not get in trouble for it. lol</div>
Caitlinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09112106153261421645noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-624751143437303236.post-42670294480056228932012-11-25T00:16:00.003-05:002012-11-25T00:16:53.879-05:00School UpdateI know y'all wanna know what's going on. I didn't want y'all worrying about me.<br />
( ... okay, sort of. I really do like it when people worry about me sometimes. It makes me feel like they care about me. And who doesn't want to be cared about, really?)<br />
<br />
Anyway. If I can just make it past Tuesday afternoon, I'll be all right. The rest of the semester is only two weeks long after that, and it will just be finals, which I'm not really worried about. I've made good grades so far, so I'll just study up and be all right. Pretty sure it'll be like coasting after this past week.<br />
<br />
I've spent the entire week stressing about the beginning of the upcoming week.<br />
<br />
Monday, I have a group presentation due. I have not met with my group. I just now put together a slideshow. It'll take about a minute to flip through. It's supposed to be a 20 minute presentation. I'm kind of at a loss. Maybe I should email my group members and ask them to please present a small essay for each point on the slide. I don't even know. Ach.<br />
<br />
Tuesday my "big" English paper is due. It's not that big, but it's the first actual research paper I've ever had to do. (Thanks for not making me do one in HS, mom. -no, that's not sarcasm...) So, I've spent 4 weeks complaining about it and 1 week actually working on it. So, that's what I did for Thanksgiving. (well, I did other stuff too.) ANYWAY. I still have to write a conclusion, source evaluations, and touch up my citations. Which doesn't sound like much, but it kind of still is.<br />
<br />
And in case you're not aware, it's midnight, Sunday morning. Which means I have 36 hours til my presentation is due, and 56 til my paper is due, with church and work and classes between. You would not believe how short those hours are going to feel.<br />
<br />
And I think if I don't go to bed right now (I'll get 8 hours of sleep...) those hours are gonna feel even longer since I'd be tired. Let's hope I don't have nightmares about my research paper and children being eaten by a pack of grinning, evil white lions again. (yes, really.)<br />
<br />
P.S. I am so thankful for all of my new friends from Breezy Hill. I feel accepted. Which is nice. I'm used to having to fight to feel that way, and I didn't have to. <3 p="p"><br />
P.P.S. I am so thankful that I am not sick. So many people are so sick right now, and I can't imagine trying to finish out the semester on a flu or stomach flu!<br />
<br />
P.P.P.S. I am so thankful ... now I don't remember what I was going to say. But I really am <i>so</i> thankful for so much.</3>Caitlinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09112106153261421645noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-624751143437303236.post-70171791039290909772012-11-20T23:20:00.003-05:002012-11-20T23:20:16.395-05:00<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnrm7e9fQUgIKrfKozGH3b6nvW0oXhp_3aiyGMNEM5Xlx4AUmuTWUxuVPiM-BbiLLbw27c4x_ojV5r6Xb2jYjoTHoA-GnK3RXQYEHwu8HqN4g_cuxI5DrsTL99YcRhzvoZ54-t8h74wcX5/s1600/259838_4525371024495_578893276_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="297" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnrm7e9fQUgIKrfKozGH3b6nvW0oXhp_3aiyGMNEM5Xlx4AUmuTWUxuVPiM-BbiLLbw27c4x_ojV5r6Xb2jYjoTHoA-GnK3RXQYEHwu8HqN4g_cuxI5DrsTL99YcRhzvoZ54-t8h74wcX5/s400/259838_4525371024495_578893276_n.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
Today I spent the afternoon crafting with one of my "grown-up friends." I am so thankful for her.Caitlinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09112106153261421645noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-624751143437303236.post-44664282119526616182012-11-18T13:43:00.002-05:002012-11-18T13:43:13.683-05:00Sometimes I'm Vain<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
Here are a few of my favorite outfits from lately. </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjr4vVI5srIalWB9IoV11UvK-qauIU57CYLqWUa84_X-vJkI4pCmpKDEaVnq1muesVW0LzbphNTpSWsv659-_KbSpvYXMk6XAmdmR-VbbPGDtHLZBq0domX02ZqY4YISA2dEg-9ieufAWsf/s1600/DSC05301.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjr4vVI5srIalWB9IoV11UvK-qauIU57CYLqWUa84_X-vJkI4pCmpKDEaVnq1muesVW0LzbphNTpSWsv659-_KbSpvYXMk6XAmdmR-VbbPGDtHLZBq0domX02ZqY4YISA2dEg-9ieufAWsf/s320/DSC05301.JPG" width="166" /></a></div>
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This is my official hipster uniform. Plus my favorite woolly man-socks.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDtuUOQfReihxnE8Zp8Yb_5bxMp2nsnafrKn-_GOChWmB6hfdChrA9hH2oC339np4iVX2uLFxNdLhLjP9utpZ__Z8c2hpG0xrZPOs5xEFv4xdq0lmy_1CPtQazKThk8DbwNCib7XCaW0FZ/s1600/DSC05189.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDtuUOQfReihxnE8Zp8Yb_5bxMp2nsnafrKn-_GOChWmB6hfdChrA9hH2oC339np4iVX2uLFxNdLhLjP9utpZ__Z8c2hpG0xrZPOs5xEFv4xdq0lmy_1CPtQazKThk8DbwNCib7XCaW0FZ/s320/DSC05189.JPG" width="240" /></a></div>
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This jacket has been a wardrobe staple for like 5 years running. Everything in this picture was free, on clearance, or thrifted.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqM4znfSoLK-TJUsSZY_GA1y1sYStAP0yuya8C8FH3MGZNJ1jVRClcssUUhsxc4iidfPgIqSzZ6kvT1h9oWEM4ImSzRAVnjSbTy7tuvKJ6cRwQwNHWUEp5aZ9fX7HBunASVVwwkSYhQYSt/s1600/DSC05072.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqM4znfSoLK-TJUsSZY_GA1y1sYStAP0yuya8C8FH3MGZNJ1jVRClcssUUhsxc4iidfPgIqSzZ6kvT1h9oWEM4ImSzRAVnjSbTy7tuvKJ6cRwQwNHWUEp5aZ9fX7HBunASVVwwkSYhQYSt/s320/DSC05072.JPG" width="128" /></a></div>
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I should post a close up of my vintage silk scarf from this outfit. It's way cool.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi7ePAZY7yuP9wpmWhQOZesJrtoYZYxplkgIbqAtfsAYztMzTtpL0zOczRa11YUI853yUUeZaakCPEedV67b4coKK_Yf1655tAeR85K99NKi1WsNRyLxUhmGQwqQM1VTI57z4XW5GUXxdt3/s1600/DSC04418.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi7ePAZY7yuP9wpmWhQOZesJrtoYZYxplkgIbqAtfsAYztMzTtpL0zOczRa11YUI853yUUeZaakCPEedV67b4coKK_Yf1655tAeR85K99NKi1WsNRyLxUhmGQwqQM1VTI57z4XW5GUXxdt3/s320/DSC04418.JPG" width="224" /></a></div>
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Day trip to the mountains outfit.</div>
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My outfit from church was really cute this morning. Too bad I didn't take a picture.</div>
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Also: Please note that my hair is up. That is today. It's finally "long" enough for a tiny baby ponytail. lol </div>
Caitlinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09112106153261421645noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-624751143437303236.post-76873348774553262242012-11-06T21:01:00.003-05:002012-11-06T21:01:49.651-05:00I'm not a GA voter anymore...<div style="text-align: center;">
Today, I exercised my right to vote.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRAEkOuBRzY8-J7QwsPMKInYUdeH_wvZKfL2IfF4rXBwGWlF6QLppPFaQ50ajiPYz-VOMiX6Uo23FPpYL1QpEi5NVWHcxHb5AJX6ScVqpgwLK3cgSChj5TeDd4nFZCts2QCcpzoyXFEJk8/s1600/DSC05050.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRAEkOuBRzY8-J7QwsPMKInYUdeH_wvZKfL2IfF4rXBwGWlF6QLppPFaQ50ajiPYz-VOMiX6Uo23FPpYL1QpEi5NVWHcxHb5AJX6ScVqpgwLK3cgSChj5TeDd4nFZCts2QCcpzoyXFEJk8/s640/DSC05050.JPG" width="480" /></a></div>
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Also, I dressed well.</div>
Caitlinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09112106153261421645noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-624751143437303236.post-59472791436206989652012-10-30T22:39:00.003-04:002012-11-01T11:57:13.248-04:00Artemis<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjrh_OFfOd0pfQO0QcBCjrghSbQRVRKAoMT-5yceN5nTnNCOeBu6a_bGZK9lIqloLSJAX6xFxkprQFSwGrkX1_U5WKVJ8wbyBHFRlempahdjSVpzut99t3qCEVjkmC-K6_5nVSK2E8Q4mNy/s1600/DSC04728edit.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjrh_OFfOd0pfQO0QcBCjrghSbQRVRKAoMT-5yceN5nTnNCOeBu6a_bGZK9lIqloLSJAX6xFxkprQFSwGrkX1_U5WKVJ8wbyBHFRlempahdjSVpzut99t3qCEVjkmC-K6_5nVSK2E8Q4mNy/s640/DSC04728edit.JPG" width="480" /></a></div>
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So, for Halloween this year, I decided I wanted to be a Greek goddess. Not just any old Greek goddess, but Artemis: Hunter-Goddess of the forests and moon. Super cool, right? I think the whole Hunger Games bow-and-arrow thing might have influenced me a little bit, too, actually. Also, I'd be happy to be a woodland fairy every year, so goddess of the mountains and woods was a good similar-yet-different alternative.</div>
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My little brother is a whiz with all things woodsman, so he crafted me a giant bow and arrow set from some trees in our yard. No big deal, right? </div>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgcqmMdzJz2WhvUAj4oiuHvH9ukIAe-SNwLBo62Rr4u96HXPnvFrt-rbq2hHiF7fAknfft8kShFDQxWbLGLn9NZACyrhegnCvmdc9DvbsBUYraq9b4r4PXtd5TuT-lWirltBElx2PZLD8Y_/s1600/DSC04698edit.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgcqmMdzJz2WhvUAj4oiuHvH9ukIAe-SNwLBo62Rr4u96HXPnvFrt-rbq2hHiF7fAknfft8kShFDQxWbLGLn9NZACyrhegnCvmdc9DvbsBUYraq9b4r4PXtd5TuT-lWirltBElx2PZLD8Y_/s640/DSC04698edit.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">got ma concentrating face on. also got no idea what I'm doing. </td></tr>
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Little bro did a great job. That bow was almost as big as me, and I spent the entire evening trying not to hit people with my arrows. My necklace is a super cool piece of antler (which little bro is also responsible for. I told you, he's quite the woodsman).</div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgsQsFUvUsnpFXtCWTDpFeKqc9i2m20L-sgf_qf6Pl0qSxXuNNasr2v0VjYpopWPsSMStGSrh_P58-F54Knyu3_svbdQRmdFF5NWpep7qZRAR9_fBKrSFWumKQKqbsGt5xFDSARImlCglqH/s1600/DSC04694.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgsQsFUvUsnpFXtCWTDpFeKqc9i2m20L-sgf_qf6Pl0qSxXuNNasr2v0VjYpopWPsSMStGSrh_P58-F54Knyu3_svbdQRmdFF5NWpep7qZRAR9_fBKrSFWumKQKqbsGt5xFDSARImlCglqH/s400/DSC04694.JPG" width="300" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Me and my other goddess girlfriend, Aphrodite.</td></tr>
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I made my boots out of an old coat. Ha! I love them. I might wear them like super-cool slippers all winter. My entire costume was made of things from around my house, except for a 50 cent visor I bought and spray painted gold for my moon-crown, and I was SO happy with it. I wasn't the only one happy with it - I won first place in the costume contest!</div>
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Yay! </div>
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The End.</div>
Caitlinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09112106153261421645noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-624751143437303236.post-38438487676692027932012-10-29T16:25:00.000-04:002012-10-29T16:25:04.762-04:00clearing outDon't worry, I don't mean clearing out as in leaving.<br />
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I'm just tired of having a rubbermaid container full of cute things that never sold on Etsy.<br />
Poor little cute crocheted things. :(<br />
So, I'm auctioning them off on eBay. If they even sell, I'm sure it will be for less than I would have charged for them, but at least I'll have a little bit of money instead of a lot of wasted yarn and space. I'd really like to get back into the business, but... eh.<br />
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Anyway, maybe <a href="http://www.ebay.com/sch/caiti.jo/m.html?item=281012902651&ViewItem=&ssPageName=ADME%3AL%3ALCA%3AUS%3A1123&rt=nc&_trksid=p2047675.l2562">take a look</a> and see if you want to make a bid. Or just wish me luck. ;-)Caitlinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09112106153261421645noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-624751143437303236.post-27890033618838193502012-10-23T11:27:00.004-04:002012-10-23T11:27:59.355-04:00refocusI missed English class this morning because I don't have a car.<br />
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<i>Bless the Lord, O my soul.</i></div>
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I'm unhappy with the assignment I turned in, and concerned for my grade.<br />
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<i>And all that is within me, bless His holy name.</i></div>
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I bombed my Physics quiz today.<br />
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<i>Bless the Lord, O my soul.</i></div>
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I need more income. And a car.<br />
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<i>And forget not all His benefits.</i></div>
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I am so impatient right now.<br />
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<i>Who forgives all your iniquities.</i></div>
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I'm getting sick. My throat is raw and my neck is aching.<br />
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<i>Who heals all your diseases.</i></div>
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I still don't have a long term plan. Or a short term plan, really.<br />
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<i>Who redeems your life from destruction.</i></div>
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And I'm still lonely.<br />
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<i>Who crowns you with lovingkindness and tender mercies.</i></div>
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I am not content, and apparently my faith is weak.<br />
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<i>Who satisfies your mouth with good things.</i></div>
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Bless the Lord, O my soul.</div>
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<br />Caitlinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09112106153261421645noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-624751143437303236.post-45826963777918625352012-10-21T22:30:00.001-04:002012-10-21T22:30:04.828-04:00struggleThis is one of those moments where I kind of want to write a blog post about how sad/annoyed I am with some stuff. Not a lot of stuff. Only a little bit of stuff. It's not a big deal, but feelings will be feelings.<div>
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There's really only one friend who gets to know all my stuff. Like, every little detail of my thoughts and wishes and frustrations and craziness. I don't like to be dramatic and put it all out there for the whole world. Tonight I actually thought about doing that. Skipping homework and just venting on my blog. But this vague, annoying ramble is as close as I'm going to come to really venting. I don't want people to think I'm crazy. Or desperate. Or be all like "aw, Caitlin, is everything okay? Don't be lonely! don't feel sad!" </div>
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(I am skipping my homework, though. Whatever.)</div>
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I miss being surrounded by people who know me. Family is more than just the people you're related to. I miss my family. My life needs more hugs in it. More hugs and more camping. I do love Jesus, but I still don't want to be single forever.</div>
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It's okay if this post is awful, because nobody really reads this unless I post my updates on facebook. I get an average of 5 pageviews on posts I don't promote. I wonder if I have 5 loyal readers, or if they're random internet hits.</div>
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I need to go on an adventure.</div>
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I'm okay. I'm just a normal person who's not all sunshine all the time. :)</div>
Caitlinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09112106153261421645noreply@blogger.com1