Weeks 38-39

Days  262 - 275

Surprise - surprise - I managed to skip a week again. This whole thing called a job and responsibilities are slowing me down this year. Or maybe the fact that I am inching closer to 50 might be the real reason. 

One thing I know for sure is that two of my 'loves' - coffee and Medora - still make me sooooo happy. I hiked the Pancratz trail in Medora and then completed the morning with a coffee from Hidden Springs Java. What I love about Medora is the slow-pace and relaxed attitude of the locals. When I stepped into the small coffee shop, there was one person ahead of me and an online order was being prepared as well. While I was waiting for my turn to order, two additional people walked in and started a conversation with the owner. She began to prepare their order without even asking because they must be frequent flyers. There is something to be said about the predictable nature of people and how familiarity brings us comfort.

I try to surround myself with people who help me become a better person while adding value to my life and hopefully, I can do much the same. I want to believe that everyone has good intentions that are ethically and morally sound. We all bring baggage to the table in terms of toxic interactions as we are human and make errors in judgment. My goal is to continue to reflect on my own words and actions as a means of 'checking myself.' 

A very quick trip to the cities to see a lifelong friend ended with a stop at a new coffee shop in Edina. As I post about coffee almost every week, I don't think I have ever posted a bad review. There is only one coffee shop in my life that I thought was awful and I never shared that experience. It literally tasted like gasoline. So, considering I frequent coffee shops regularly, one bad cup of coffee isn't so bad. 

Because it appears that pleated pants are back in style like we wore in the 80s, I thought I would remind everyone of some of my favorite items growing up (in literally the best era ever).

Who remembers typing class? 

I loved, loved, loved typing class. I was so competitive.... all I cared about what beating my previous WPM. I am so old, we didn't even have corrective tape that was built into the typewriter. We had to backspace over the incorrect letter, then place a flimsy white corrective sheet over the letter and type it again to cover it up. THEN.... we had to backspace again and type the correct letter. I can now see the importance of accuracy.

In hindsight, I'm not sure how our teacher, Mrs. Peters, managed to stay sane with that amount of noise all day every day. 

Oh, the good old days of using film and a flash bulb to take pictures. It seems so archaic with the technology we have available today. The rectangular one can be turned over and the cube-shaped one could be used up to 12 times. With the cost of buying film, flash bulbs, and the cost of processing and printing pictures, it is amazing we have any pictures from our childhood. My mom used to take a whole roll of film trying to capture the perfect Christmas photo to send to friends and family. With 5 children, it took an entire roll because someone was always looking away, closing their eyes, or not smiling to mom's standards. The ironic part of those horrific photo sessions with multiple sighs and eye-rolling is that I DO THE SAME EXACT THING. My kids and their significant others definitely know I will be asking for a photo and they mostly comply with my requests. 

I feel like every teenage girl had this on her dresser in the 1980s. I think we just liked the bottle shape rather than the actual smell of the perfume. 

And how can we forget about our smelly stickers, puffy stickers, or prism stickers? We used to collect them and put them in a sticker book and trade them with others. Life was just so simple.... we traded 1 cent stickers with each other and nowadays kids are making trades with electronic items worth hundreds of dollars. 

OH, THE JOY this catalog brought me every holiday season and not just the Sears catalog, but also the Montgomery Ward and the JCPenney catalog. I remember spending hours looking through the catalog. I looked through every section as well..... men's section, bra section, clock section, sports section, radio section, and even the old lady nightgown section. Considering I have four siblings, I do recall a fight or two when the catalog arrived in the mail and we each wanted our turn.  

In case you are a nerd like me, I found the jackpot of a website that houses complete PDFs of old catalogs from previous years and decades. 

In case you need to know, in 1980, there were 5 pages of nylons (that is what we used to call them, although in the catalog they call them pantyhose, stockings, or hoisery). Oh, how times have changed.

The site to view old catalogs

When I have free time, I may spend hours perusing the nostalgic pages of my childhood. 

As I type this, I need to remind myself that despite the difficulties I experience whether personally or professionally, I have made it.

I made it through a day with very little sleep

I made it through a day of knee pain as I went up and down stairs at work

I made it through a day of heartache for a situation I cannot improve

I made it through a day of not sitting down until 7:35 at night

I made it through a day of sadness that I cannot engage in physical activity 

I made it through a day of frustration as I work endlessly to seek solutions 

I made it through a day of jealousy for those who appear to have it all together

I made it through a day of anxiety-ridden thoughts due to an unknown outcome

I made it through a day of exhaustion and my perception of defeat

I made it through the day because I refuse to succumb to life's curveballs and quit. I have made it and will continue to make it.

CAMOUFLAGE - can you spy a little critter? It amazes me how living creatures are able to camouflage themselves from danger or predators. On a trail walk, I encountered this pile of empty eggs; however, there was one straggler. 

Hopefully, you are able to see the critter from this angle a bit better. I found this hole so interesting. I know that turtles bury their eggs to protect them, but I wonder why the hole was made right on the trail rather than the grassy area close by that would have even provided more coverage and protection. Perhaps the roots from the grasses make it hard to dig a hole? 

Anyway, this is the second set of turtle shells I have found on this trail in Jamestown in the last two weeks. Two weeks ago I encountered the turtle below which was over 50 feet from the hole and over 10 evacuated shells.

To end on a high note, I will include photos that depict the beauty of autumn. 

Happy October to you all!