Thirteen Generic Phrases You Will Say Or Hear Today After Last Evening’s Presidential Debate

/ Ally Bean / 14 Comments

Isn’t it time we made politics fun again?  So today, as a way of mitigating the inevitable & incessant opining that happens after every presidential debate, I give you this list to distract & entertain you.  See how many of these phrases you can use or spot as the day wears on.  Bet it’ll be quite a few.

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1)  Well, everyone’s entitled to his or her own opinion, I guess.  [Extra Points – if said by an uptight church lady in a condescending tone of voice]

2)  I really don’t think that he gets it.

3)  He didn’t answer the question!  How could he do that?!!!

4)  Hmmm.  [Extra Points – if said by a practical middle-aged woman in a tired tone of voice]

5)  Why does he HATE ____________ so much???

6)  That’s not what he said!!!

7)  It’s all because of the media, you know?

8)  You gotta be shi%%ing me!  [Extra Points – if said by an older man in a befuddled tone of voice]

9)  What are you talking about??  Just last week he said ____________.

10)  NO WAY!

11)  I dunno what he said.  I fell asleep.

12)  That. Is. Not. True.

13)  We gotta get this guy____________.  [Extra Points – if said by a hyper-partisan person in a defiant tone of voice]

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Looking For Apples. Finding Pumpkins.

/ Ally Bean / 18 Comments

I wanted some local apples.  Considering that this is the part of the country where Johnny Appleseed did his thing you’d think that finding some local apples would be EZPZ.  But you’d be wrong.

There really aren’t very many local orchards any more, so it takes some driving way out into the countryside to find one.  Which is exactly what we did on Sunday.

However, once we got to the apple orchard we discovered that pumpkins were the raison d’être for this orchard’s existence.

It was the pumpkins’ orange-y cuteness that drew the customers into the barn market & adjoining fields.

First, a first sign told us what to do.

Nearby piles of [pre-picked] pumpkins showed us what we could expect to find if we chose to pick pumpkins.

Then, a second sign, explained to us what not to do.  I’m sure that Ralph Waldo Emerson upon seeing such a sign would scoff.  As you may remember, Mr. Emerson said: “I would rather sit on a pumpkin, and have it all to myself, than be crowded on a velvet cushion.”  But apparently the management at this particular apple orchard had other ideas.  [Please note: no velvet cushions were provided in lieu of pumpkins.]

Entertaining as it might have been, we decided not to pick pumpkins.  Instead, we went into the barn market and bought a bag of apples, a jar of zucchini relish & a jar of quince jelly.  Then we returned home to enjoy our local apples purchased from one of the last apple orchards in the area.  Yum.

Five Senses Friday

/ Ally Bean / 10 Comments

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Feeling:

exhausted.  i’ve really been putting my all into my blog lately.  writing.  commenting on other blogs.  updating my template/pages.  it takes focus & commitment to keep a blog going– and there are weeks when i wonder if it’s worth it.

Hearing:

the hum of my old computer, which i still use on occasion, that sits next to my current quiet computer.

Tasting:

dark chocolate “balanced with crunchy hazelnuts and dried currants.”

Seeing:

outside: a gray day.  inside: a gray wall behind the computer that needs some decoration.

Smelling: 

sandalwood spice, a “blend of orange blossoms, sandalwood, and kashmir vanilla,” from the candle in the next room over.

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{This wonderful idea is from abby try again.   If you wish, you may play along in the comments below or on your own blog.}

Autumn Sustains Me

/ Ally Bean / 22 Comments

“A change in the weather is sufficient to recreate the world and ourselves.

~ Proust

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I’ve never seen a season appear on cue quite as perfectly as Autumn did on Saturday.  In the morning during Summer’s last hours the weather was warm + humid around here.  I remarked to Z-D that our lawn looked so green that it seemed like Spring.  As the morning progressed, I wondered if I should have worn shorts instead of capris.  It was that warm.

And then, Summer exited stage left.  Enter Fall.

By mid afternoon the wind was gusting and the air had a chill to it.  The sky was blue + leaves were blowing all over creation.  Pulling into the Kroger parking lot we watched as the wind knocked a Mr. Coffee coffee maker off the bottom of a shopping cart as a woman pushed her shopping cart to her car.  It was that windy.

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For me, Autumn is the beginning of the year.  I find myself relaxed, joyful and mellow during this time of year.  I let go of striving and enjoy the results of what I’ve worked on throughout the winter – spring – summer.  I review what has succeeded, appreciate what I did, enjoy where I am & prepare for what is to come.

Grounded in the colorful reality that Fall is known for, I’m comfortable thinking about possibility now.  Much more so than in January.  There’s something about this time of year that helps me get it together and be happy for the chance to embrace change.

Autumn sustains me.  Does it do the same thing for you?

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