{Not} Living Vicariously

40 by 40 Update

I have this list I created about 6 months ago . . . and I decided it was time to take a good look at it. Here are some results (blue is done, green is changed):

1. Find geocaches in the eight states that border TN. We've already accomplished Alabama, Arkansas, Georgia, Mississippi, Missouri, North Carolina and Kentucky. That just leaves Virginia . . .
2. Eat meatless 1+ times a week (preferably 2+ times regularly).
3. Take a ride in a hot air balloon.
4. Learn to make Granny's divinity.
5. Take a train trip somewhere.
6. Make my own cheese.
7. Hike one hundred miles.
8. Eat from my garden.
9. Camp out at least overnight. (Camping out was done in an RV - still would like to try tent camping before my deadline.)
10. Find a church home.
11. Organize garage.
12. Refresh the blog(s).
13. Find a cooking software I like.
14. Build a bigger back deck.
15. Find a place to swim again.
16. Go berry picking.
17. Add flex and strength to my cardio.
18. Get a new camera.
19. Plant wildflowers.
20. Put up a bat house.
21. Take Aaron to Clingman’s Dome.
22. Visit Fall Creek Falls.
23. Take Lindy to the ocean.
24. Take a class in something. (Class was work related - would still like to find something fun to take.)
25. Try five new foods.
26. Take a random road trip with no destination in mind.
27. Discover a new restaurant.
28. Make a margherita pizza from homemade dough, with homemade cheese and homemade sauce, and use fresh basil from our garden.
29. Climb a tree.
30. Visit the Nashville Zoo.
31. Go canoeing.
32. Plant a weeping willow. This will not be a weeping willow after much research on how they can affect water lines - it is now a smoke tree.
33. Make gelato. (While recipe claimed to be gelato - I found it to be more sorbet tasting - still looking for one to try at home.)
34. Get a hot stone massage.
35. De-clutter the office.
36. Get a craft corner set up.
37. Learn to use my miter saw.
38. Weed my book boxes.
39. Start a joint travel map.
40. See Rock City.

In some ways, it seems like I haven't accomplished much on the list. However, several of the remaining are in progress (hiking the 100 miles, de-cluttering the office) so my fingers are crossed that I'll have good reports going forward.

For rent - unofficial

Officially . . . the house has not sold. So . . . we have just finished a refinance on the loan in order to legally turn it into a rental. Not what we wanted, not what we hoped for, however, maybe what we needed to do. We shall see what happens next.

The Cross at Sewanee

While my parents were here, we spent some time sight-seeing throughout TN. Last Saturday we loaded up in their conversion van rv (I'll blog more about that later) and headed East on 24. I can't even count all the towns we went through: Altamont, Coalmont, Tracy City, Jasper, Dunlap, Kimball, Decherd, Winchester, and the list goes on. However, one stop we did make was at Sewanee: The University of the South. I have heard many times how beautiful the campus is and that I need to visit the Cross. So we tracked it down.

 
Dedicated to those locals who have served in various wars, this stunning work sits atop a hill. Turning around 180 degrees, you have a view of quite some distance which is amazing. I can only imagine how inspiring it must be to spend some time up here. However, on the day we visited, it was a bit hot so we quickly continued on our journey.

I'd like to go back and do some of the perimeter walks one day.

Words of Wisdom - Albert Einstein

"A person who never made a mistake never tried anything new." -- Albert Einstein

So, if this is true, I must be trying new things every day. Because it sure feels like I make mistakes every day. And scary as it is, I'm actually having some fun and learning new skills. Somehow I got elected to learn SharePoint, QuickBase, and PowerPoint all in the past several weeks. And in the case of QuickBase and PowerPoint, there are no teachers - this is fumble around in the dark sorts of things. With the case of SharePoint, I am being taught - however this will probably be like my SQL lessons in that the instructor teaches me how to fly a jet and my employer insists I only get to taxi down the runway. In any case, I do see a difference in my attitude as a result of saying "yes" when being asked to try new things.

So my advice here? Go out and try something new. If you scared of making a mistake, start with something small. And know that I'm over here . . . rooting for you!

Viewing Stats

For those of you who actually blog . . . do you pay attention to "who" views your site? Where they come from? What brought them there? I don't actually pay for any of the indepth analysis, however I do enjoy checking out my typical users on the days I log in (I only get the last 24 hours without paying). It amazes me how often a viewer comes via one of the image search engines and from all over the world. Sometimes I can't even tell what language it is they searched in and found my little corner of the internet. Typically they are looking at pictures that came from my series of Tuesday Tours in which I showed the changes we made after we bought this house. It looks like they are looking for inspiration ideas and I hope some of what I've provided stirs them in the right direction - now that right direction might be what NOT to do or it could be they like the colors I've chosen.

We have made some minor changes in the past few months as well and I look forward to sharing some of those with you in new "room reveals" but not yet. They aren't ready yet! Now if I can just get my husband to slow down on the garden and finish up some of the interiors. You'd think he'd be glad to in all this heat but I'm sharing him with peas and okra and tomatoes and all sorts of goodies I can't wait to eat. I guess I shouldn't complain.

Back to blogging . . .

While I enjoyed my month (plus) off, I have missed you. So I've come back. It may be sporadic for a while, there is still a lot going on which keeps me from too much quiet time. We'll see what happens.

Some highlights over the past several weeks (in no particular order):

 
~the cicadas arrived~

 
~we lost a tree in a bad storm~

 
~we picked our first peas~

 
~we ate at The Varsity~

 
~we visited Fall Creek Falls~

and we celebrated our second wedding anniversary with a trip to Ikea in Atlanta. Just wait until you see my new bookshelves. I'm still drooling over the thought of unpacking some of my boxes that have been in storage!

Forty to accomplish before I'm forty - Part 4

And I'm done now . . . at least with choosing my forty.

33. Make gelato.
34. Get a hot stone massage.
35. De-clutter the office.
36. Get a craft corner set up.
37. Learn to use my miter saw.
38. Weed my book boxes.
39. Start a joint travel map.
40. See Rock City.

Now to remind you of the complete list . . .

1. Find geocaches in the eight states that border TN. We've already accomplished Alabama, Arkansas, Georgia, Mississippi, and Kentucky. That just leaves Missouri, North Carolina, and Virginia . . .
2. Eat meatless 1+ times a week (preferably 2+ times regularly).
3. Take a ride in a hot air balloon.
4. Learn to make Granny's divinity.
5. Take a train trip somewhere.
6. Make my own cheese.
7. Hike one hundred miles.
8. Eat from my garden.
9. Camp out at least overnight.
10. Find a church home.
11. Organize garage.
12. Refresh the blog(s).
13. Find a cooking software I like.
14. Build a bigger back deck.
15. Find a place to swim again.
16. Go berry picking.
17. Add flex and strength to my cardio.
18. Get a new camera.
19. Plant wildflowers.
20. Put up a bat house.
21. Take Aaron to Clingman’s Dome.
22. Visit Fall Creek Falls.
23. Take Lindy to the ocean.
24. Take a class in something.
25. Try five new foods.
26. Take a random road trip with no destination in mind.
27. Discover a new restaurant.
28. Make a margherita pizza from homemade dough, with homemade cheese and homemade sauce, and use fresh basil from our garden.
29. Climb a tree.
30. Visit the Nashville Zoo.
31. Go canoeing.
32. Plant a weeping willow.
33. Make gelato.
34. Get a hot stone massage.
35. De-clutter the office.
36. Get a craft corner set up.
37. Learn to use my miter saw.
38. Weed my book boxes.
39. Start a joint travel map.
40. See Rock City.

Forty to accomplish before I'm forty - Part 3

I've been busy thinking this past week.

10. Find a church home.
11. Organize garage.
12. Refresh the blog(s).
13. Find a cooking software I like.
14. Build a bigger back deck.
15. Find a place to swim again.
16. Go berry picking.
17. Add flex and strength to my cardio.
18. Get a new camera.
19. Plant wildflowers.
20. Put up a bat house.
21. Take Aaron to Clingman’s Dome.
22. Visit Fall Creek Falls.
23. Take Lindy to the ocean.
24. Take a class in something.
25. Try five new foods.
26. Take a random road trip with no destination in mind.
27. Discover a new restaurant.
28. Make a margherita pizza from homemade dough, with homemade cheese and homemade sauce, and use fresh basil from our garden.
29. Climb a tree.
30. Visit the Nashville Zoo.
31. Go canoeing.
32. Plant a weeping willow.
33. See Rock City.

And to refresh your memory from previous entries . . .

1. Find geocaches in the eight states that border TN. We've already accomplished Alabama, Arkansas, Georgia, Mississippi, and Kentucky. That just leaves Missouri, North Carolina, and Virginia . . .
2. Eat meatless 1+ times a week (preferably 2+ times regularly).
3. Take a ride in a hot air balloon.
4. Learn to make Granny's divinity.
5. Take a train trip somewhere.
6. Make my own cheese.
7. Hike one hundred miles.
8. Eat from my garden.
9. Camp out at least overnight.

To be continued . . .

Forty to accomplish before I'm forty - Part 2

I don't have a lot to add, but I've come up with a few more:

6. Make my own cheese.

7. Hike one hundred miles.

8. Eat from my garden.

9. Camp out at least overnight.

and to refresh your memory of the first 5 . . .

1. Find geocaches in the eight states that border TN. We've already accomplished Alabama, Arkansas, Georgia, Mississippi, and Kentucky. That just leaves Missouri, North Carolina, and Virginia . . .

2. Eat meatless 1+ times a week (preferably 2+ times regularly).

3. Take a ride in a hot air balloon.

4. Learn to make Granny's divinity.

5. Take a train trip somewhere.

To be continued . . .

Forty to accomplish before I'm forty - Part 1

I've been toying around with the (oh so common now) idea of a list of things I want to do before I turn forty. Since I now have 365 days left to accomplish this, it is time to get serious. However, I don't have a complete list yet so this will be a work in progress!

1. Find geocaches in the eight states that border TN. We've already accomplished Alabama, Arkansas, Georgia, Mississippi, and Kentucky. That just leaves Missouri, North Carolina, and Virginia . . .

2. Eat meatless 1+ times a week (preferably 2+ times regularly).

3. Take a ride in a hot air balloon.

4. Learn to make Granny's divinity.

5. Take a train trip somewhere.

To be continued . . .

PS - Happy Birthday to me, now go do something fun and festive for yourself (if it isn't your birthday, celebrate your Un-Birthday, I give you permission).