Hurricane Harvey

So, last month was a bitch. Harvey made landfall about 200ish miles away from where I live, they warned us to expect the "dirty side". We prepared and discussed evacuating but since landfall was so far away and our city officials weren't asking us to, we decided to stay put. Once we realized just how massive and strong it was, we made another trip to the store to stock up on even more supplies. However, there was very, very little left. The night before the rain and wind started, our local Walmart had no flashlights, candles, canned goods, bread, eggs, or milk. Plenty of water and junk food though so we bought copious amounts of both.

When we woke up Friday, the rain and wind had already begun. We looked at the forecast and started packing to evacuate. By the time we had the stuff loaded and the three dogs ready, conditions were continuing to deteriorate. We slowly made it to my brother's house about 12 miles away and were welcomed to a break in the weather. We knew if we left the Houston area, we would not be able to get back in due to how easily the city and highways flood. None of us wanted to be stuck outside of the area. None of us left. M and I came back home and unloaded in torrential rain. Harvey was getting closer and closer but Friday night things were just like your typical storm. We even ventured out to a fast food joint around 9pm. We settled in bed with junk food and Netflix. Then our phones started going crazy with weather alerts. Thus began a very long night of tornado warnings, horrible thunder and lightning, and hiding in our closet with the dogs. Nobody slept much.

Saturday the rain was light. The bayou literally 16 feet away from our building was high but not scary. We attempted to run to the store and almost flooded our SUV so we knew home was the best bet. That night was when it all went to hell. The bayou rose so quickly once night fell that we were knocking on neighbors doors to warn them and to frantically move all our vehicles. The bayou was in the parking lot and the rain didn't stop. Sunday was bad, Monday was horrible. Our roof began leaking, sewers stopped working. We hardly slept. We could hear people yelling for help outside. My brother, SIL, nephew, and niece fled their house when it began quickly flooding. My sister, BIL, niece, and nephew were rescued via boat. My Grandma and aunt were as well.

The water outside was over my knees, luckily I'm on the second floor and the water began receding before it got into the bottom apartments. We had our downstairs neighbor's stuff in ours, just in case they flooded. Which they quickly took back when our roof began leaking!

Here we are a month later, the roof has been fixed, my brother's house is livable again, and my sister's is too. We all were so very fortunate. But seeing how many all around us have lost everything has been heartbreaking. Recovery has been very slow. But we all will recover and rebuild and continue living in this area built on bayou and swamp because we freaking love this city. It's awfully humid and hot nine months of the year, the mosquitoes are huge, and TX politics are enough to make anyone crazy, but Houston is special.

Please consider donating to anybody but the Red Cross, either to Harvey relief or Irma or Maria. Help TX, FL, and Puerto Rico. And please encourage your elected officials to believe in climate change.

SIlence is bliss?

You know that saying about the path to hell being paved with good intentions? Well, clearly it's true. Which is my way of explaining my long absence. Life got in the way and then I would forget or get busy again and then forget again. Oops! But I've missed getting my thoughts out and am going to try and recommit to this ol' thing. Does anyone even still blog? I feel like everyone has left and is on social media. Makes me sad.

Anyway, nothing has really changed. Still engaged, still chugging away with my slow ass Etsy shop and even slower photography. I've temporarily given up on job hunting because it's depressing as hell. I'm tired of being poor though and pray things pick up. Or I win the lottery, which I don't play, or that I get inheritance from a long lost relative...you know, anything that is totally logical and realistic!

M and I were in a car accident about a month ago. We were rear-ended by a school bus, a legit yellow school bus, which did have a couple of high school kids on it. None of them were hurt, thankfully. I ended up with a concussion and M with a hurt back. I've never had a concussion before and it's been a challenge, to say the least. The memory problems scare me, calling items by the wrong name is also concerning, and the headaches are a real downer.

It so happened that the accident occurred on our four year anniversary. Terrific timing, yes? We were running errands before coming home to cook a romantic dinner. Ended up in an ambulance and falling into bed late that night exhausted and sore and hurting like crazy instead. We are very fortunate that it wasn't much worse. My car has already been repaired and I'm thankful for that as well.

It's been a hard Summer, y'all. A real ass kicker. I hope like crazy things turn around soon because I feel like I'm about to lose my ever-loving mind.

Thanksgiving Eve

So, things have been easier, I'm finally out of my funk and loving life again. Don't get me wrong, I dealt with more ugly drama in late October but it's past me now,. And it's Thanksgiving eve, so I thought now would be the perfect time to remind myself of all the good in my life with a good ol' fashioned grateful list!

This Thanksgiving I am grateful for:

* M, who I swear is the best cuddler in the world
* my family, they are annoyingly opinionated but I adore them
* my BFF, I hate that she's in AR and I'm here but she really gets me through it all
* good books and magazines
* Netflix, finally binged Gilmore Girls and OMG, it was annoyingly great
* me time, it's essential to my mental health
* my dogs, they may ruin every rug I buy but I adore their furry butts
* boozy lunches with a longtime friend, perfect for girl talk and laughing



November has been not great. The election bothered me and I've dealt with a couple of racist moments since. Both were unsettling but only one was truly upsetting. I sincerely hope this isn't the new normal.

Hope you all have a fabulous Thanksgiving, filled with great food and loved ones!

People still suck

I feel like I blinked and now it's October. This year has just flown by, particularly the last couple of months. It feels like Summer just started and now it's over and Fall has arrived. Time really goes by faster the older you get. I'm actually relieved though because it's been a hard year for me and I'm just so over it. I'm such a hopeful, grab life by the balls and carpe diem the shit out of it person, so it sucks when I'm counting down the days for a new start.

If I've learned anything in the last few years, it's that life is hard. And dammit if I'm not sick and tired of it being so damn hard. I'm ready for simplicity and easy sailing on smooth seas. But it seems that isn't part of the plan for me, at least not yet. And yes, I know things could be worse, I know that better than most. But that doesn't mean I can't complain. There is no pain olympics or threshold to be met before a person can bitch and moan.

It's been a hard time lately with XH, with FI, with well meaning friends and family who butt their noses into my life on the regular. It seems everyone has an opinion about my life and how I should be living it. It's tiring and frustrating and maddening. Can I just live? Where were all these opinions when I was severely depressed and a raging bitch? Why didn't any of these people point out what I couldn't see about myself? Especially XH, well, mainly him. Nobody was closer to me and he didn't even throw me a lifeline. Nobody in my life tried to help me when I was desperately drowning and literally couldn't see how that was affecting me.

But now? Oh now they all rush in to point out my "failings" and where I should improve my life. So many opinions. And eventually, after hearing from multiple people, it starts to mess with your head. And you start to wonder if they are right. Because your trust in your own judgment isn't 100% since you were so obviously wrong about your marriage and husband. It's hard to trust yourself now because it went so catastrophically bad.

I need a vacation. Far, far away from all these well meaning people. Where I can sleep late, read, watch too much tv, and stare at beautiful starry skies. And ignore all these people who think they know me better than I know myself.

Busy Summer

It's been a busy summer and it feels so good now that things are settling down! I spent much of the last few weeks getting my oldest nephew ready for college because he was offered a baseball scholarship! I am so proud of him! I went with my brother and SIL to help move him into his dorm recently and it was such an emotional experience. He's now happily settled in Kansas, over ten hours away from us, and that is challenging for my close-knit family! But we are insanely proud and can't wait for his first visit back home for Fall break.

My dad's birthday recently passed too. It was an emotional day, of course, but I was also busy preparing to leave for Kansas so that distraction was nice. The pain was quieter this year than previous years. Which surprised me, especially since Father's Day sucked like it usually does and I expected the same for his birthday. I had trouble sleeping the night before his birthday, I just didn't want to lay in the dark reliving his last moments over and over. So I ended up awake and surfing the Internet until I was too exhausted to think and passed out. I wish he was still here and could see my nephew in college to play baseball. My Dad loved the game, coached my brother from little league until he stopped playing in high school, and played on a softball league until his stroke. He never missed either of my nephews' games and even attended two of their games while on hospice.

I know he's watching now, I just wish I could see his reaction to it all. How thrilled he'd be, the advice he'd be yelling out to him on the field, the snark he'd lever towards the coaches and umpires, the pure awe he would surely feel to see his grandson doing what we all dreamed, hoped, and prayed for when he was a little four year old playing for the YMCA.

My nephew received a lot of advice in the weeks before he left from everyone. I even sat him down to talk about safe sex and consent, which I've lectured him about since he was fourteen, but I wanted to really drive it home. I told him that his Grandpa is and always will be watching over him with pride. That my dad always said being their Grandpa was his life's greatest treasure. I told him with love like that watching over you from Heaven, how can you ever fail? Try everything with gusto and enjoyment because how can you fail? Spread those wings and soar, because how can you fail?

And even if you do fall on your face, if you stand back up and keep going, how did you fail? Redefine failure as not trying, not getting back up, as not daring to live like failure doesn't exist.

Lord, I hope he listens and takes it to heart. I hope he seizes the day and squeezes every last drop of greatness out. And when it doesn't work, or he has a bad day, I hope he looks up into the sky and feels all that love so he can try again tomorrow.

Three Years

Summer is usually such a fun time for me, but this one has been very different from my usual experience. No pool time and we've only been to the beach once! Total first world problems, I know! It's just been disgustingly hot and humid, the sultry nights offer no relief either. I fear our light bill every month because the ac is just running and running. Ugh. And it's barely the beginning of July, we still have two months before it'll cool off enough to even attempt to venture outside before 7pm.

M and I recently celebrated three years of us. We did a low-key date night and laughed at how quickly three years has gone by. It's crazy that it all started with an online dating site and a date to the zoo that went on long after the zoo closed. We just couldn't stop talking and not much has changed. We still talk each others ears off! I never imagined I could be loved like this, that someone would understand me without me having to explain myself, or that there was someone out there who has so much in common with me. It's a nice change of pace to be with someone like him.

Still no firm wedding plans, I really think we will just turn to each other some random day with that look and run off to elope. Something very low-key and very us. So, lots of music, some good beer, and nobody but us. There really isn't anyone else I want there, other than my family, but if we invite mine, then we'd have to include his too. And his family is a bunch of Trump lovin' crazies, so I'm not keen on that idea. My liberal, Mexican family would eat them alive.

But, then again, I'm in no rush. Marriage just doesn't hold the dream it use to! We really are quite happy with things as they are, we forget we aren't legally married. It's just other people pressuring us and bugging us with wedding talk!

Cutting people out

It's been an interesting summer so far. We are settled into our new place and spending a lot of time with family, which is so nice. We really enjoy our new town, which is small and quaint. It reminds me so much of the small central Arkansas town I lived in. Which is nice for my homesickness! I do randomly get struck with pangs of longing for Arkansas, but they pass because I am extremely happy to be back home. I miss my best friend something fierce but I have a visit planned for later this month, I am so excited to see her!

Father's day was rough. Really rough. I was in a bad mood the whole week leading up to it and couldn't figure out why until that Friday. I was picking fights on FB like crazy, taking all my anger out in the comments of posts about guns, LBGT rights, and Drumpf. It was great fun to troll crazies but it also led to me deleting 12 family and friends, which made me really sad. It still is making me sad that I had so many people in my life who support Drumpf and refuse to see logic about anything going on in the world today. Stupidity makes my heart hurt.

The one person who is upsetting me the most is a friend I've known since high school. He's truly not a good person but I guess I stayed friends with him for nostalgia. Our friendship cooled while I was married because he was messy but we picked it back up after my divorce. Where he continued to cross lines and be disrespectful. He finally crossed my last line, which is surprising because I usually forgive everything and let it go.

But I don't want to be that way anymore. I have to have boundaries, otherwise people walk all over me and take advantage. They just assume I'll let it go eventually. But I've come to realize that shitty people aren't worth keeping in my life. They just stress me out and cause problems. So, I've cut a lot of people out. It's such a weird feeling but I know it's necessary, for my own health and sanity.

But it still sucks.