Archives for December 2011

Top Ten Posts of 2011

December 31, 2011

I first dipped my badly polished toes into blogging back on May 22 of this year. It was a tentative step, and my swims in these brackish waters have been intermittent compared to the swims of others, but one thing I have finally learned is to do less comparing and more living genuinely. So enough of THAT.

In these seven short months I have met lots of wonderful people from all over the United States, Europe, New Zealand, Australia, Canada, and South Africa. These acquaintances have just been electronic so far, though I do have crazy designs to meet some of you in 3-D eventually. I have learned a little bit more about other religions. My compassion for a myriad of other family configurations has bloomed. I have happily discovered several thriving communities for writers. And I have both unraveled and tightened my mind in ways that only writing can do.

Thanks to every single person who spends a few minutes reading these unpredictable posts now and then. Thanks even more for your comments, both here, on Facebook, and in private messages. I have deeply treasured the exchanges. Like, for real you guys.

Of the not quite 200 posts I have written between May and December, following are the top ten, based solely on number of times viewed.

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10. “Wonderfully Disheveled” This post was prompted by Write on Edge and ending up being about NOT cleaning up after a party. Or at least about how to do it memorably.

9. “Funny Reasons to Break Up With Someone” Just for kicks. Inspired by real life stories. Not all mine.

8. “Quick Post of Jubilation” We lead a very blessed life. Any pain or confusion that is ours is far outweighed by joy and wonder, a condition for which we are eternally grateful.

7. “Double Standards” This was my participation in a Women Living Well link up and had to do with the way our marriage might operate differently from others.

6. “We Had Them for Breakfast” Not about cannibalism. About Couch Surfers. Which I’m sure are delicious. Not that we would know.

5. “Sea Monkeys” Since writing this goofy little post, my book clubbers have graciously anted up very creative names for my herd of sea monkeys. In the coming months I hope to share a Pulitzer worthy series of stories about their antics. The Sea Monkeys, not necessarily the book clubbers. Although that could be interesting.

4. “Car Show Culture” Restoring, collecting, and showing cars is kind of a big deal in our life. Handsome and I are part of a groovy community of people who do the same, and this post introduced some of that. This winter he started on a brand new tear-down-build-up project for his ’68 Camaro, and I can’t wait to share that with you guys.

3. “Our Fave Chocolate Cake” The honest to gosh truth is that this post got tons of traffic because I linked it to a deservedly popular website, one of my personal faves in fact, but beyond that, this recipe does deserve lots of attention. It is DELISH and is fun to make too. Try it sometime! Maybe for Valentine’s Day, when rich chocolate desserts are almost a cultural requirement.

2. “Proverbs 31 Overview and Realization” Yikes. I started a 31 day series on one of the most beautiful chapters in the Bible and got derailed by family events. Then I couldn’t get my thoughts straight. Derailing happens, but this is a project worthy of attempting again. Maybe as part of Lent this year I can share some of this study.

1. “Fractals” I truly enjoyed the thinking through and the writing down of this heavily philosophical post, and I think this is the point where I made some of my most valued bloggy connections too. The ideas discovered around this time have been echoing in my life in the months since. And I am reminded to try and finish The Shack. Eventually.

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Man, oh man, oh man. We have had an incredible year at the dirt & hooves Lazy W. And I have had a blast creating and sharing the digital Lazy W too. Today, on the threshold between the old year and the new one, I have butterflies in my tummy. Anything is possible. Every day is worth savoring God is good. Life is beautiful.

Happy New Year to You and Yours!

xoxoxo

Most Repeated Lines of 2011

December 29, 2011

The Lazy W is graced and warmed with friends again this week. My ten-four good buddy M Half and her Hubs are visiting, helping us make a thousand happy memories to close the year. What a year it has been, by the way!

Two days ago I enjoyed the singular pleasure of sitting in my favorite chair while each of them read things aloud to me. It was divine. I had no idea I liked this sort of thing so much, but I could really get used to it you guys.

I mean, really.

One of Hubs’ narrated pieces had to do with the the most overused phrases of 2011. And let me tell you: It. Was. Hilarious. Read it for yourself, and just for kicks, try keeping track of how many of those overused phrases you are guilty of over using. M Half’s fave seemed to be the keyboard spitting humor one. Nice choice, lady.

Mine? Probably “Occupy.” I happen to see no real world value to this pseudo political movement and feel protective over Handsome who has had to endure its under-informed and disruptive appearance at his office. But that is almost a spicy little tangent. Basically I really like saying that I occupy the chicken coop and I occupy the pantry and I occupy a brilliant sense of humor, etc, etc.

Anyway, it occurred to me that for all its variety and surprise, life at the farm certainly has a way of repeating itself. We do lots of the same things over and over and over and over again. And we say lots of the same things over and over and over again. And again. Care to suffer through our monotony for a moment?

Here are the Top Eight Over Used Phrases at the Lazy W of 2011

Pacino, that is a NO NO. Shhh… Bobby Pacino, our macaw, is vocal. He is a talker. He is a screamer and a squawker and a shusher. He is a lover and a fighter and an early morning riser. When we’re alone Pacino tends to be fairly pleasant and loving, and when we have guests he is sometimes pleasant and loving, but often he chooses these times to throw caution to the wind The indoor wind, may I remind you. He belts out Amazonian operas born of pure joy and then sudden, screeching objections to anyone who is too near to me, his Momma. Or to anyone who is generally NOT doing his random, cryptic bidding. And so our parental scolding happens a lot. Pacino, that is a NO NO is easily the number one overused Lazy W phrase of this past year. No honest person who has ever visited the farm will disagree.

Aww, look at how Chunk is running… Our sweet little buff has about a six part running menu, a delightful but admittedly limited slideshow for us to enjoy. And we do enjoy it every day. But you know those parents who like to highlight every adorable act of their offspring to friends and relatives? Well, Handsome and I may or may not have slipped into the questionable habit of bragging in sugary, cooing voices about every time Chunk runs and bounces or sits majestically, chewing his buffalo cud. The only assurance I have that we have not quite overstepped the bounds of reasonable pride is that at least three people liked yesterday’s photos of him running.

Have you shopped hay recently? Hay is expensive this year. Have you heard of the drought and heat wave of the Midwestern states? The extreme growing conditions of the past several months have given hay farmers dangerously limited harvests, driving up the prices even for out of state deliveries, making our regular hay stocking a game of chance and adventure. We have four big, hay loving creatures to feed, so the interval questions we ask each other about hay shopping have everything to do with how much we celebrate rain when it falls.

I miss the girls. Followed closely by his soft, strong words, I know, Babe. Hopefully the days are coming when we trade more happy stories than we do pain, but this past year has been a lonely, empty nest one. No doubt about it. We’ve fallen into daughter-less routines, sure, and we have had our time apart peppered with several incredibly happy days, but nothing is the same as having them with us, woven into the fabric of our daily life. Trusting God with this and resisting pure rage at Him for letting this happen for so long has been the single most difficult spiritual thing I have every attempted.

I need a vacation. My husband is the smartest, most talented, hardest working, most focused, most over accomplishing person I know. And I know some incredible people. Not only does he stay on task; he genuinely cares about every job he performs and every person with whom he shares those jobs. (To anyone at the Commish who might read this, he does care about you guys. Know that.) This year has been an exciting, challenging, surprising, and exhausting one for him, and time off, though available, has been unrealistic because he cares so much about what he’s leaving behind. So this man needs a vacation. Like, for real.

Do you have any receipts? I have a slightly ~~endearing~~ aggravating habit of shopping to my heart’s content and then moving on to other worthy activities before relaying the month’s expenses to my guy. Not to buy floor length minks or illegal substances, of course, but I do enjoy treasure hunting, feed store emptying, and excessive grocery hoarding. I like to cook, you guys. And my patient, good looking provider might occasionally grow weary of the surprises. I’ll try to do better in 2012.

What did you think of the new recipe? Speaking of surprises, as if the rising cost of food stuffs isn’t surprising enough, Handsome has endured more than a few edible experiments this past year. I try to sneak them in without seeming completely dishonest or manipulative, but the fact remains that “he” would rather that “we” did less experimenting and more sticking to the top ten or eleven recipes. He would also prefer that “we” stop reading “PW” for cooking inspiration. Not likely.

I love you. Okay, the truth is we can never say this too much. Those three little words cannot be overused or overly proved by our actions. We do say it a lot around the farm, though, so very much and in so many ways. And I am eternally grateful that we do.

Repeat the Best Stuff as Much as You Want and Remember to Laugh at Yourself.

xoxoxo

Buffalo Running

December 28, 2011

Our sweet little Chunk-Hi is happy doing lots of things in this world. He is just one of those ~~people~~ animals who is easily pleased, easily amused, and easily satisfied. But a few things in life really put him over the top. One of them is running free.

He always has free run of his own field, together with our horse of choice, and he employs that liberty with zeal. But when we release Chunk to roam the range, so to speak, he really kicks up his skinny little heels. Following are a few photos of our sweet buff enjoying a little elbow room.

We’re crazy about him. He likes us too, if only because we shower him with graham crackers and allow him running days like this.

Feel the Wind in Your Hair Today

xoxoxo

Stream of Consciousness Because That’s All She’s Got Cap’n

December 27, 2011

This is a 15-minute free-writing exercise meant to purge words,

not make a point, inspire, or glamorize anyone.

You have been warned.

What a wonderful holiday we’ve enjoyed. Weeks of scattered time with friends and family, including two sorely missed but deeply loved teenage daughters. Beloved guests at the farm (more to arrive tomorrow). Incredible parades of food. Fun, personal gifts both given and received. Only mild sickness this winter so far.

Apparently the winter solstice has passed now, meaning that the days are now gradually lengthening toward springtime, exactly the news we like to hear when the sun sets around 5:30 each evening and doesn’t rise until after 7:00 a.m. And since the birds are locked up we hear precious few rooster crows these days.

I am not complaining; the winter has been mild and comfortable so far, most days feeling more like springtime than they really should. But every year, some years with more intensity than others, once the Christmas presents have all been open my mind involuntarily shifts into gardening mode.

What shrubs are not leafless are mostly dormant, but if I look closely enough I do find plenty evidence of green still. The honeysuckle, the roses, the baby trumpet vine, the pansies of course…

We visited the Oklahoma City Zoo this afternoon and as usual I was as enamored by the landscaping there as most people (like Handsome) are smitten by the animal life. Our OKC Zoo, in case you didn’t know, has a national reputation for awesomeness.

In years past I tried getting my gardening hands on a byproduct they called, “Zoo Poo” for use in the gardens, but now I suppose we have plenty of my own.

We both loved the look and functionality of their raised vegetable beds there, and I have decided to take that plunge this spring. If the winter stays mild, I may be working on those raised beds well before March you guys. This is exciting. So very exciting.

I’ve been accumulating horse and chicken manure for many months, turning it only occasionally, so by the time I get out there for a solid day of work and examine the stuff I expect to find some nice, hot, fluffy lazy W zoo poo of my own.

We watched, on consecutive days this past weekend, both the Swedish and the American versions of the film The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo. Incredible. I had thoroughly enjoyed that book and the second in its trilogy (haven’t read the third quite yet), and the movies were both faithful and creative. Loved every minute, especially the opening credits of the American movie. The casting was perfection in that one.

I need to wash my hair.