Happy Yes-cember!

 

Greetings, all! I made it through the month of NO-vember, and here's my update.

• I'm pretty good at determining whether I should say no to spending money;
• I'm less good at determining whether I should say no to spending calories;
• I'm even worse at determining whether I should say no to spending time.

That's not a surprise to me, because time management is my continual challenge. I read a term the other day that sums up part of my problem: time confetti. Coined by author Brigid Schulte, it refers to what happens when time is broken up into unproductive, often unsatisfying, bits. It's not just about multi-tasking, though that's part of it. It's also about how we've all been trained to respond to every stimulus in real time. Every text, email, push, or social media alert tears off a little piece of time that I have devoted to something else and scatters it to the wind.

But now that 2021 is winding down, I'm going to shelve my time management issues. (Fear not, they will be waiting for me when I return.) As the holidays kick into full swing, I'm embracing a Yes-cember attitude, where I will say yes to fun things as often as possible.

I hope you're staying well and safe and finding joy in the simple things.

 

August Good Things

Hi, everyone! It's the last day of August, which always feels like the end of summer. I haven't blogged much lately, for a variety of reasons. But all is well, and I'll share a few things I've enjoyed this month:

Seeing live baseball for the first time in two years!

This beautiful rainbow, which was even more beautiful in person.

My sister was here for two weeks, and we had a few adventures.

More sister fun...using homegrown and farmer's market veggies for this delicious (but rather labor intensive) ratatouille.

Participating in a local tradition with my younger son. Colorado State University used to be Colorado A & M, and the A on the hill has been painted annually for nearly 100 years. Here are the photos before and after the first shift. Go Rams!

A private party/concert with The Motones, a Motown tribute band. Fantastic music and a great time.

I'm so grateful to have had these outdoor experiences this summer. Our Covid numbers are climbing steadily, and I'm afraid we will soon be facing increased restrictions even for fully vaccinated folks like me. 

I hope you are happy and well and ready for September!

July Good Things

Welcome to the second half of 2021! Here are some things I'm enjoying these days:

A visit to the local butterfly house

My new crane birdbath and copper cattails
(the birds don't use it, though--probably because it's metal,
and the water gets really hot!)

Golden zucchini blossoms

Kayaking through quiet coves at Horsetooth Reservoir

Ferret Cam: 

Native black-footed ferrets were thought to be extinct by the 1950s, but were rediscovered in Wyoming in 1981. Since then, conservation efforts have increased the population and continue to support this species. Our local Discovery Museum has a live ferret cam. A lot of the time, nothing happens, but it's exciting when the little guy pops out of that hole! Here's more info about black-footed ferret history:

What good things are happening for you mid-year?