Lazy W Marie

Carpeing all the diems in semi-rural Oklahoma...xoxo

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literary saturday: potpourri

Oh man, friends, we made it to Saturday! Oklahoma did not float away in the rain. We are not burning up under the sun. No winds are blowing down our roofs. Not yet, at least. Today is a serving up a pretty mild dose of autumn, and I like it.

I hope you and yours have a weekend of rest and recreation all cued up and ready to enjoy. Handsome and I certainly do. As we drink some perfect coffee and nibble on one or two things to wake ourselves up, let’s share what we’ve all been reading.

BOOKS:

My Life in France by Julia Child This is our current book club selection and it is delightful. Child describes Paris the way Hemingway did, and both remind me of my beloved New Orleans. Also, food! Her passion for food is so alive on every page. Really fun read. I will give you a full review soon.

Unmasked by Kane Hodder Handsome and I attended a costume/superhero/character event in Tulsa last spring and met this gentleman, the actor so many people know for his role as Jason Voorhees. Oh man, you guys. His memoir is a heart-breaker in the beginning. Reading it is really amping up the Halloween mood.

unmasked

 

ONLINE:

Indoor Herb Gardens: It’s late October and lots of us are putting our summer gardens to bed. But this is prime time to think about herbs, especially with the biggest cooking holidays of the year right around the corner. Herbs make all of that stuff better. House Beautiful offers some wonderful indoor herb-growing inspiration. Of course, since you’re smart you’ll also contact your local County Extension and favorite Master Gardener for technical help. : )

Yummy Fall Recipe: I am way too obsessed with apple fritters, and this recipe by Not Without Salt (I am also obsessed with her) could be my final undoing in the diet department. Apple Cider Fritters With Cider Glaze. Bless her, by the way, for posting food that is not pumpkin-based.

Ann Voskamp offers A Brave Way to Heal Our Relationships: Often I cannot bring myself to read her words because they cut too deep, too close to the nerve. Then I get brave suddenly and read them and remember that yes, they cut, but with truth. And truth has a way of also healing. Good stuff right here, friends. Good stuff indeed. In this post Ann is talking about the commonality of brokenness, the importance of listening, of setting our children gently into an unknown, and also social media. She challenges us to think about building each other up with bricks, not throwing them. This was refreshing in the best ways.

joc horse colorado
This young lady is doing so great on her big Colorado adventure. She makes us incredibly proud, and seeing her happy makes me happy. But this whole situation sure keeps me praying hard. Trust and faith. Faith and trust.

Gratitude. We know it is so powerful. My friend Kim shared an article at Live Happy online magazine called 8 Easy Practices to Enhance Gratitude. The post is a year old, haha! But that’s fine because this advice is timeless. My favorite is #6: Fall Asleep to Gratitude. I have a worried version of insomnia pretty often, and lying in a quiet room saying nothing but thank you for one specific thing after another is the sweetest way to drift off. A nice extra is waking up feeling peaceful and content, full of heart. Counting blessings instead of sheep is great advice, and so is the rest of this list.

Risk of Moderation: Again I’m reading about food and health and how to navigate it all and still be happy. This post over at The Greatist revisits the idea of “all things in moderation.” The timing could not be better for me, as I have spent these last few weeks, actually the past couple of months, making one weekend full of excuses after another, indulging socially over and over again, until suddenly my loose jeans are a bit snug. (yikes) No matter how much running I have been doing, I have not been not losing weight. And now? The cruel joke is that running is difficult again, even right after doing pretty well at that race recently. Food matters, friends. So the white lie about moderation is a solid attention getter for yours truly.

Hospitality or Entertaining? Sandy the Reluctant Entertainer nails it again with this post. She shares memories of her mom and dad, considers the meanings and implications of the words we use to describe opening our homes, and asks where is our focus, self or others? I love this, as I love so many of her posts. Bless not impress. I just love it so much. Please dwell in these words before you get all stressed out about the holidays. Sandy’s voice is so soft and strong.

circa 1977, just because...xoxo
circa 1977, just because…xoxo

Okay, happy weekending to you!

“Never trust anyone who has not brought a book with them.”
~Lemony Snicket
XOXOXOXO

 

 

mud monsters & pain management

In barely any time at all the middle field was slicked down, shiny wet and marshy. I looked down and saw the shattered concrete growing moss right before my eyes, chartreuse and emerald blooms and billows exaggerated in a time lapse that stunned me into fresh tears. The Signature of All Things echoing echoing echoing.

Toward the willow tree rainwater ran downhill, washing away all the day’s good intentions but also a hefty measure of regret. Fair exchange.

trough c

Then the curtain of rain pulled away and revealed filmy, wavering images of my girls splashing in the mud and wearing both t-shirts and sundresses, galoshes and ball caps, my husband’s green soccer jersey from his own childhood. My little Mud Monsters, shrieking and giggling at the sky, braiding their skinny arms together, knowing their mother was watching but not knowing then that she’d never forget that moment. They clawed at the air with their pink and olive Mud Monster hands and bared their pearly white baby teeth and smiled at me then disappeared with that same wavering, filmy trick.

The wind was weirdly absent during this rain and I needed it to sweep my thoughts away. Desperately needed it to comb through my troubled brain. I craved a storm instead of such a terrible, gentle shower and walked to the barn hoping for some tin-roof white noise. It  smelled like horses and hay and ozone. The cats twirled my blue jean-covered legs. One reluctant clap of thunder.

********************

Sometimes people tell us to count our blessings, it could always be worse. True enough. Other people say, pain is pain, no one has a right to measure one pain against another. Also true.

Sending lots of love to all my friends who are hurting tonight, for any reason. The sun will shine bright and true again, in its own time. Rain has its place. Let it fall. Let it nourish you.

XOXOXOXO

 

 

what a wonderful world, senses inventory

A little Senses Inventory to tiptoe into this spectacular, leisurely Sunday. Lots of texture to experience. And let’s add cravings to the mix, okay? As always you are warmly invited to add your own inventory in comments… xoxo

See: Feathery, scrappy hula-hoop dream catcher accepting all the sun and maybe some dreams too. Wedding chandelier, also made from scraps and a hula hoop, like a cotton jelly fish in the breeze. It’s hanging from a red bud tree which is on her last leg and covered in blue-green scales. Still beautiful. A grove of Oak trees making willing trades of their waxy green for crispy browns and orange. Yellow wildflowers growing in the shade, where the sand is being slowly overtaken by grass. Thank goodness. Garden gate dressed in skimpy, sexy morning glory vines. Nature’s lingerie. Rusted milk cans bursting with bouquets of garden tools. So many rakes, spades, and poles. Where did they all come from? Sun streaming in with vibrating energy from behind us, pink and gold and fierce this morning. Floods of it washing over the pasture to our right, setting that miniature prairie on fire. Cold fire pit below the deck where we’re sitting. Cedar benches circling it like a little Stonehenge. Unlit strings of lights above us. Fruit trees to our left, thinner now and bronzing. Feathery willow tree downhill, keeping watch over the pond. Almost yellow.

"I hope that all your dreams come true; just remember that nightmares are dreams too."
“I hope that all your dreams come true; just remember that nightmares are dreams too.”

Hear: Chorus of angry crows above the forest. Blue jay squawking, other birds warbling gently, a single woodpecker. Interstate noise in the distance, once again easy to imagine it’s the ocean. Klaus scampering loud and clumsy across the wooden deck, giving chase to Natasha. Twigs cracking. Acorns pinging on the smokehouse’s tin roof.

Smell: Coffee, less sweet today, finally.  Faintest bit of chlorine. My own lotion and deodorant. Not much else. There’s an unusual cleanness to the air today, crisp but empty of even wood smoke. Weird. Nice though.

Taste: Only my coffee. The chewiness of the cream reminds me of New Orleans.

Touch: Cool breeze, gentle like breath on my skin. Especially nice on my neck and bare shoulders. Warm coffee mug in my left hand, skinny ink pen in my right. Mesh lawn chair beneath me, paper thin rubber flip flops riddled with craters and sticker scars. Now a wash of warmth on the back of my neck.

Think: If instead of living here I were to just visit this place, maybe stay for the weekend with a stack of books and empty spirals, a pair of running shoes and yoga mat, I would see it as a perfect retreat. I would wonder how this place exists and never want to leave, would want to absorb every detail at every time of day and never step inside. If I were a visitor my eyes might not see work undone or projects to schedule, manure to scoop, gardens to clean. My eyes might see it as beautifully and lovingly as I do at this moment. How much time am I wasting in life? Since autumn is historically when our life tends to change in big ways, October is more of a New Year marker than January. So I sit here thinking how different life is now compared to last October. And how will things have changed by October 2016? What dreams will have been pursued, what miracles will we have in the bank? What burdens will be lifted, or traded for new ones, because we will be stronger then?

Feel: Settled. Feeling settled and energized both physically and emotionally. Optimistic way beyond the outer affirmations kind of optimism. Feeling truly excited for the challenges and opportunities right around the corner. Trembling with happiness for my people.

Crave: I crave a fragrant, slow burning bonfire, deep laughter, and meaningful conversation. Lingering affection. Easy, soaking-into-your-bones kind of stuff. Craving blocks of time to write. More than blogging. Really writing. Craving soup and watermelon too.

Okay friends, thank you so much for joining me today.

Have yourself a really wonderful Sunday.

“They’re really saying I love you…”
XOXOXOXO

 

 

 

 

spirit of survival half recap, handsome wants to run, and let’s be positive ok?

Hey friends! Happy Monday Tuesday to you! Sorry, I am a whole day late with this. For a little motivation this week, I just want to share a cool experience I had this past weekend. It provided me tons of inspiration, and I hope it does you too.

Over the weekend Handsome and I spent about 15 hours in Lawton, Oklahoma, mostly so I could run the Spirit of Survival half marathon. It was such fun! Just as a running event, it was wonderful. Incredible scenery and perfect weather, a decent workout, felt happy about my overall performance, and came home healthy and injury-free. All great stuff. But much more importantly I was, once again, deeply inspired by other people. That’s what I want to share with you.

I love it when this happens, especially when I am a little unprepared for the spiritual jackpot. When life gives me the chance to meet either strangers, average but amazing citizens, or people I have been watching from a distance and then they blow me away with their generosity of spirit and genuine niceness. This happens pretty frequently. I’m very lucky.

This time the headline connection was with Bart Yasso, world renowned runner and coach, actually dubbed the “World Mayor of Running” and also the “Chief Running Officer” for Runners World magazine. My first exposure to his writings was months ago when I started researching how to gain speed. He has developed a method of interval training called Yasso 800s that is supposed to almost guarantee you a certain marathon time. Exciting!

Okay. I met Bart (Mr. Yassow?) briefly Saturday night, just before his hilarious and deeply moving presentation, and he autographed his book for me. “Marie- Never limit where running can take you. ~Bart” Very cool. Then the presentation was a solid hour of belly laughter and teary eyed listening to the most incredible stories from his life and running career. My biggest takeaways: NO SELF PITY. And, You don’t know when you will be crossing your last finish line, so always be grateful and happy.

SOS book

That alone would have been enough to inspire me. Then early Sunday morning, totally by fluke, Handsome and I were walking in the dark down the sidewalk, making our way to the start line about half a mile from the hotel, and Bart walked right up to us! Good morning and all that, so friendly. We all three walked the entire way together, just chatting, and I tried hard not to skip and do cartwheels because I had gobs of extra energy. Bart shared even more encouragement, lots more positive vibes, and agreed that here in Oklahoma we have some of the loveliest sunrises and sunsets as anywhere in the world. He resides in Pennsylvania but has travelled the globe for running events. This compliment to my home state made my heart swell. As we walked and chatted, the purple sky to our right was just beginning to crack open, all pink and glowy as it so often does.

SOS w bart yasso

So, certainly, meeting this gentleman and gleaning a personal slice of his wisdom made the weekend extra special. I cannot wait to finish reading his book and share more with you guys.

Okay.

Handsome and I arrived at the starting corral early and enjoyed the view of the American flag, the happy people everywhere, just all the love that was there. Really, truly a lot of love. Why am I always surprised when a running event is about more than just running? We said goodbye to each other and kissed, and soon everyone sang the anthem along with Miss America 2009. Somewhere in the half marathoners’ corral, my new friend Corey found me and we had fun giggling and scoping everyone’s shoes, because we share a love for Brooks.

SOS start line w flag
I never know what to do with my hands. Or legs. Or face. But dang my shoes are awesome! And I like that buffalo on my shirt.

I forgot to tell you about Corey!

Much earlier Sunday morning, about two hours before start time, Handsome and I were eating a delicious breakfast in the hotel lobby when I saw a girl I wanted to meet. She was dressed in sweats and eating a bagel and banana like me, so… I sort of blurted out a weird greeting in her general direction, no matter that she was four tables away. The subtext was, “Hi! You’re a runner, I’m a runner, obviously we are gonna be friends, right?” It started like that, basically. Then she mentioned she’s from Austin, Texas, and I was like, “Oh my gosh we have friends who live there, do you know Jon and Margi?” That is why I shouldn’t eat breakfast in public. I could literally hear Handsome’s eyes rolling.

Fortunately this running girl from Austin was endlessly friendly and also seemed chill for some early morning random conversation with strangers, so we spent about half an hour getting acquainted while downing last minute carbs for the run. Now? It’s possible we really are going to be friends. She is both a Half Fanatic and a Marathon Maniac. If you think those are arbitrary, purely descriptive phrases for people who just really like to run, let me assure you that it actually means you have to do a lot of work and run some seriously challenging consecutive races to qualify for membership in either of these very real clubs. Corey has earned both stripes. AND she is a brain cancer survivor. AND she and her husband are thinking of starting a family soon. I mean, you guys, she is the real deal; but somehow she put me at ease instead of making me feel like an imposter runner all over again. She was so nice. We saw each other later that morning at a turn-around near mile 8, and I almost hugged her but was tangled up in earbud cords.

The weekend was full of different people, each offering a unique dose of inspiration.

There was the lady who sling-shotted ahead of me then fell behind then sling-shotted, again and again throughout the race. She was running alone and dressed from head to toe in survivor decorations and affirming words. Toward the end of the race, maybe mile 12, I heard her cheering to the open air. “You can do it! You got this! Keep going!” She was aiming the wonderful messages at any and all passersby, but also I think at herself, and it was the sweetest thing. Her singular energy drummed up spontaneous applause and cheering from everyone.

Local running celeb and world record keeper Camille Herron was there. Wow. Just a class act in every way. After breezing past the crowd and winning the women’s half, she returned back down the course to encourage runners. With zeal! I though I had extra energy. This lady blew my mind. I couldn’t stop giggling with happiness, and I cried a tiny bit when I saw her running and clapping low and strong for people. I might have introduced myself and begged for a photo but literally could never catch up to her. “Speedy” does not cover it.

And there was the married couple from Saturday night who welcomed me to sit at their dinner table during Bart Yassow’s amazing presentation. Their names were Robert and Laura. They were completely forthcoming with their own running and life stories, and they even posed with Tiny T for me like it was no biggie. Didn’t even flinch. On Sunday, Laura found me on the course once and we cheered for each other, then I found her at the finish line, all smiles! We hope to see each other at the OKC Memorial next April.

SOS robert laura T

 

 

This event is all about breast cancer awareness and survival, and the proceeds fun local efforts. How cool, then, that the first leg of the race was toward one of our classic pink Oklahoma sunrises!
This event is all about breast cancer awareness and survival, and the proceeds fund local early detection efforts. How cool, then, that the first leg of the race was toward one of our classic pink Oklahoma sunrises! Just beautiful.

One more big, juicy, heartfelt thank you to husband, also basically my running sponsor, haha! He is the one who texted me that day early this summer, “Check your email woman.” And in my inbox sat registration confirmation to this race. Then he insisted I get new shoes. Then he downloaded all this amazing music, per my request. Then he drove me to an event in which he personally would have had zero interest without mine. He endured not-homemade Italian food so I could be fueled up. He did everything, even took pictures and tried hard to pay attention when I relayed my excitement and did a poor job repeating other people’s stories. He is a truly wonderful spectator-spouse. But you know what’s even better?

The best thing my husband has done is to say that I inspired him to run!! This is huge. He actually ordered a pair of running shoes and intendeds to try the treadmill. Bam. Tiny T and I think things are just now getting good.

SOS t shoudler

Once again… Surround yourself with positive people, okay? Simmer in passion of all kinds. It matters. Whatever you’re doing, whatever you’re pursuing, seek out the leaders and trail blazers in that field and learn from them. Dive in. Try stuff. Try harder, do better, stop worrying about being embarrassed or looking fluffy in yoga pants. Just smile at the thought and get started.

Positive vibes are powerful. Accept them, internalize them, emit them.

Over and out.

“Never limit where running can take you.”
~Bart Yassow
XOXOXO

 

 

lovelier than perfection

To me, this is maybe the only time a morning glory vine looks prettier than in early summer.

old vines

Remember June? When these leaves were perfectly shaped, deep green, and smooth? Velvety in their youth? Remember when the blooms were fresh and jewel toned, so vibrant they shimmered? Those were the exiting first days of summer. The first weeks of heat and freedom, sex and new life in the garden.

But these days, the beginning of our calm descent into autumn, they bear a different kind of beauty. I love how these same vines are washed out now, tattered by the wind but still smiling at every sunrise. Theses blooms are fading now and soft like very old, very comforting cotton bed sheets.

It’s a quieter loveliness. Something more confident than the brazenness of early June. And speaking of sex in the garden, just look at all those seed pods nodding demurely at the ground. Next summer’s arena.

“He is outside of everything, and alien everywhere.
He is an aesthetic solitary.
His beautiful, light imagination is the wing
that on the autumn evening
just brushes the dusky window.”
-Henry James  
XOXOXOXO