I’m back!  Thank you Amy and Ashley for guest posting for me!

I had the most tranquil weekend I think I’ve had in my life.

Amazing because there were some hiccups.  But nothing seemed to get to me.  I literally was at 100% peace.  Even though,

Tawas Bay

• I had some flashbacks, nostalgia, visions of an alternate life
• We lost power the first night we were there after spending $80 at the grocery store (luckily it came back on before anything went bad)
• Scooby jumped off the boat at the pier and wanted to play with 5 mini yorkies that turned agressive on themselves and their owner was freaking out (this could have been WAY worse than it was)
• The van broke down as we were getting on I75 and we had to call a tow truck and wait at the dealership for a couple hours for them to fix the problem, thus incurring $400 we weren’t expecting to spend

I still can’t believe how easy everything seemed, even when things went bad.  I wondered for a second if these things were bad karma for me, because you know I deserve some bad karma, but I don’t really think so.  I kind of just coasted this weekend, let things come as they might and dealt with them.

waiting at the Chevy dealer for the van

I didn’t even feel a bit of irritation when we got on the freeway and promptly had to pull over when C knew we should have gotten it fixed in Tawas.

Liko’s insistent whining couldn’t even break the calm.  I’m not sure who that person was up there but I hope she sticks around.

I have a secret too.  Every single time I’m up there I don’t want to leave.  I just want to be.  I want a simple life.  One that allows me to take Nani out to the water on a whim to watch her eyes become excited when she sees the water.   It feels like home up there.    I don’t feel rushed and I don’t feel pulled in 100 different directions.  I just am.

I didn’t have internet withdrawals like I thought I might and we didn’t have a tv but I was perfectly content with reading a book and just relaxing.

Of all the places I’ve been this might have been the most relaxing vacation I’ve ever had.

I’m still in my zen-like state today, but I also don’t feel like talking with anyone.

*more pictures to come  

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Post tags: dogs, lake huron

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It’s no joke that I’m 2 things:

1. A nervous nelly
2. A worrywort

I do both pretty well.  Excellent in fact.  If being nervous and worrying were an Olympic sport I could compete in the next Olympics and have a true shot at the gold medal.

Before I go into detail about what this has to do with anything I want to thank you for all your comments on where the air is clear.  I decided to make the trip up north with my furry friends.  I booked the cabin on Monday.  Every night before I fall asleep I have some outrageous and some not so outrageous thoughts.

“Maybe I should get Scooby an orange vest so while we are in the woods some redneck idiot doesn’t mistake him as a deer and shoot him with a bow and arrow” (he tends to hop and prance around)

“My cell phone doesn’t work at the actual cabin what happens if I need help.  Like I’m suddenly in a scary movie and Michael comes looking for me” (there will be other people there and the owners have a phone outside the office for emergencies and I have internet access.  Also Scooby is pretty protective of me when C isn’t around)

“What if I hit a deer driving in the dark?” (I decided that I’m going to leave work early so I can get up there before dark)

“What if the dogs just decide to stop listening to me and they run amok” (seriously, I’m a certified dog trainer and the dogs are pretty well behaved)

“What if….”  (you see where this is going)

So you would think that C knows that I’m having these thoughts and what does he do?  Oh yeah…he calls me today to tell me about a story he read in the Free Press about wild 400lb pigs that are ravaging the state and “to be careful and alert so we don’t get attacked while in the trails.  Don’t forget your mace”.  Really?  Seriously?  You couldn’t have waited to share that story with me?  And is a little can of mace going to do shit against a feral 400lb hog?

AH!

Whatev.  I still plan on having a relaxing time when not thinking about Michael Myers and wild hogs (trying to picture Babe on steroids instead of the hogs in Hannibal).  C now lovely refers to them as ‘da pork chops’.  After reading the news article it seems they are doing most of their damage to farmers crops so I’ll be sure to stay away from the corn fields

I’m taking Nani swimming in Lake Huron and then using the chuck-it in the trails not far from the cabin.  I think I might make the drive to the dam where my dad used to take me fishing.  I haven’t been there in over 10 years.  It’s a little bit of a hike but what better is there to do when you have nothing but time on your hands.

Yes this trip will be a good experience for me.  I’m pretty independent most of the time but taking a trip by myself is a first.   I believe it will be liberating and maybe I’ll come back with more self confidence and less of a tendency to freak out over the small things.  We will see.  If nothing else at least I can say I did it

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Post tags: lake huron, northern michigan, oscoda

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little frieghter

Originally uploaded by rialeilani

© rialeilani for & that's the way life goes, 2008. | Permalink | 7 comments | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags: lake huron, memories

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Holy Hell!  I may be emerging from my funk.  It’s a miracle!  A miracle I say!  (It’s not really but it seems like a major moment right now)

I knew I’d snap out of it, it was only a matter of time.  I’m still crabby but at least I don’t feel like I’m walking in a haze and not really interacting with the world around me.  And the dropping of things.  I swear I haven’t been able to hold on to anything.  I guess I’m still dropping things, I dropped my keys and something else this morning, but I still think last night was a major break through.

I ate dinner for the first time since Thursday night.  This is not like me at all.  I LOVE to eat.  I eat when I’m happy, sad, stressed, even sick (usually).  But Friday brought on an event that took away my energy and twisted my stomach into knots.  Knots that didn’t start to ease until last night.  Maybe it’s because of the weather, it’s humid as the fucking Amazon Jungle out there.  (I’m guessing since I’ve never actually set foot in the Amazon)  Maybe it’s because I have some screws loose.  Or maybe…just maybe…IT’S BECAUSE OUR HOUSE FELL THROUGH!  Yeah…

Also, last night I went to tae kwon do for the first time in a week.  I didn’t get to go after Monday last week because of my trip.  It was nice to sweat and have an hour where I didn’t have to think about anything but kicking/punching the bag and the sweat dripping down my nose.  Yes very refreshing, not thinking.  It really is amazing how much more grounded I feel afterwards.

And the search begins again tonight.  We are looking at 3 more houses.  Ok enough of that, wouldn’t want to slide back into the funk.  Here are some more pics from our trip.

Literally walking down memory lane:

The path to the past:

Foote pond overlook, what happened to all the sand?

Morning walk on the beach:

Last morning

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Post tags: girl trip, lake huron, oscoda

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A friend is someone who knows all about you and still loves you”
— Elbert Hubbard

I don’t feel ready to write about the weekend. I don’t know if I have writer’s block or I’m just hung up on the reality I’m facing in my real life (ie we lost the house and now have to start over). I’m stressed, anxious and frustrated with the lack of control I’m having over things. So I won’t bore you with all of that. I will just give you some pictures to look at.

It was so foggy when we first got there, it was dreamlike

Relaxing, but why am I not looking out at the water?

Me and IC

Our cottage, Pink Shell Beach Resort

Out on our morning stroll along the beach

Doing silly girl things like singing ridiculously into a hairbrush

Iargo Springs

© rialeilani for & that's the way life goes, 2008. | Permalink | 7 comments | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags: girl trips, iargo springs, lake huron, oscoda

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