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Sandy Beach, Grand Hotels, & The Pole Dancer

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Kelly

Lose Yourself

We are in the middle of a big snow storm and my beloved little Hen House is tucked deep inside a winter barn covered up in snow.  I'm in my room, filled with so many warm summer memories that keep playing over and over in my mind's projector.  The "Hen House" holds the key to my life redefined. 

I'm proud of myself.  There, I said it. 

I had a dream, I took the bull by the horns, and I did it.  In the process, I've met other women like myself who are not afraid to hitch up, tow, and go.   Let me tell you, when I am in my camper with my camera and my little dog, I am the happiest person on earth.

I have a beautiful family and a loving husband who support my craziness.

That helps.  I have a business that I can be away from

for up to two weeks at a time. That helps. 

  

Last year I turned 50 years old and I'm finding that

life is just beginning for me; that this is perhaps

the best time of my life.  I'm dangerous. 

Hello Kitty.  Do I need it?                                                                                                Me, 50? -- but wasn't it just yesterday America celebrated it's Bi-Centennial (1976) Remember the Quarter?

   

Daddy really hates my outfits.

Being present, to enjoy and photograph a day like this one makes me happy.

  

     I drive, she runs, I take cell picture.

At 20 -  Newlywed Photo, fishing on the    Michigamme Reservoir in Crystal Falls, MI

  

Now, I'm my own captain                                  and my own fish picture taker!

 

Dangerous because I'm free to examine what it is in life that I truly love to do, what makes me smile inside.                        I feel like a butterfly.

I'm giving myself permission to be a new me, not a wife, a mother, or an end product of other people's expectations. An original.

I keep coming back to doing things that I loved doing as a child, to reliving those memories my way, now.   So, off I go, the Hen House and me....fishing, camping and exploring with Remi, who rides shotgun.  I physically feel strong enough to dare and I'm  brave enough to not give a rip about convention. When I'm rolling down the road with the radio blasting some Miranda Lambert, seeing the dog's ears are flapping in the breeze, and sipping on a cold Diet Coke from the console, I'm dangerous.

My camera, my friend.

Thistle.  A weed?

I've been a good girl. I've done my time.  I don't regret any of it.  I raised my family which includes folding a stack of clothes to rival the height of the Sears Tower...I still call it that:  the Sears Tower. I sped through town in the mini van that overflowed with sports gear, forgotten food, and strange smells.  I volunteered at school, attended every parent-teacher event and ball game x three.  I've mastered the art of boo-boo kissing, story telling, and hamburger camouflage.  I miss it all. I can't have it back.

Fast forward to ebay.com

on another stormy winter's night

November, 2010, at 1 a.m.  

AIRSTREAM TRAILER 2008 DESIGN WITHIN REACH, Low Miles.  Did it matter that this trailer was situated in New York City, 700 miles from my home?  Nooooooo.    Did it matter that my husband had no idea what I was cooking up?  Noooooooo.  I was on a mission.  The lyrics to Eminem's Lose Yourself kept rolling in my head.                                                                                                        "Look, if you had one shot, or one opportunity

To seize everything you ever wanted in one moment
Would you capture it or just let it slip?
Yo"

Since that fateful night my life has changed. I have my husband to thank for it.  The man puts up with a lot (of shenannigans).

I've become my own entertainment system.  Just the other day I saw an ad for the International Colt Starting championships in Tennessee.  Why not?  I love cowboys and horses.  Then I read about a Baron Von Steuben's burial site in New York.  I love this man. Why not?   Now I've just got to remember to reload my Open Road Tolling thingie.

Peeping Tom

Last fall we hung a small trail camera in our woods.  John brought it in this morning and on it we have a few surprises like this little guy standing up on two legs.  I like surprises.  I like the magic of seeing animals do what animals do when we are not around.

We saw this nice little basket rack in October; he's still out there!

 

C O Y O T E

Here's another one that got away.

I like seeing all the deer, not just the bucks. 

 

These deer are right behind my house!

 

Last week we made an "emergency run" down to Cabelas (taking advantage of their employee discount days) for some better quality trail cameras.  The one we have is just okay and the ones we wanted will do a better job next year.  We will put them up in the spring and, hopefully, catch some does and fawns. 

 

Full moon that night!

Turkeys by day

 Some seasons ago, we hung a trail camera out for weeks and when retrieved, the darn thing said we only had ONE picture on it.  This is the ONE.

He has a place of honor on our shelf.   No one ever saw this buck in real life and hopefully he is still out there stomping around and getting fat on my soybeans.

My hypothalamus needs to die.

"In addition to hot flashes, the heightened activity of the hypothalamus can cause mood swings, fatigue, feelings of being cold, and inappropriate responses to other stressors.  As the name suggests, hot flashes are sudden, warm sensations on your face, neck, or chest. They can vary in duration from less than 1 minute to more than 6 minutes. They may come every hour or only occasionally. Often—but not always—they cause you to sweat. Some women may also feel irritated, annoyed, or frustrated during a hot flash."

That is the sugar coated version.

 Just pluck my hypothalamus out of my brain,

roll it up, stomp on it for good measure,

and send it back to the hinges of hell where it came from.

Just sayin'

I think Walt Disney used to be a woman.  

The man knew.

Apparently, all I need is a book.

Hot Flash buddies Faye, Alice, Marilyn, Shirley and newcomer Polly beat the postmenopausal blues by chattering, complaining, shopping, eating and laughing their way together through the series' third installment. Their would-be picture-perfect holiday season starts out at Shirley's Haven, a thriving spa serving mature New England women. Snowflakes fall and Christmas carols play as the friends decorate the tree. Then sweet-tempered Polly goes home to cook for her vegetarian daughter-in-law and nearly burns down the house; artistic Faye breaks her ankle rushing to pick her granddaughter up at the airport; practical businesswoman Alice finds her family expanding in spite of her misgivings; paleobiologist Marilyn struggles with caring for her elderly mother; and Shirley gives her young boyfriend money to self-publish his novel in the erroneous belief that he'll reciprocate with an engagement ring.   More holiday fiascoes follow, from New Year's through Thanksgiving to another Christmas. Thayer creates sympathetic sexagenarians with adoring (if sometimes impotent) lovers, untapped talents and visions of future happiness. Cholesterol-laden binges make for sluggish prose, hot flash jokes pall and contrived scenes spill over with sentiment- yet who could fail to root for the five as they face aging with honesty, determination and a lot of help from their friends?

Are you kidding me?

Stadium Pretzels

Use the K.I.S.S. Method when working with bread.  (Keep it simple, silly) but always start out with the finest flour.

To big bowl add:

• 3/4 cup warm water
• 1 pkg. active dry yeast
• 1-1/2 tsp. sugar
• 2 Tbl. melted butter
• 1 tsp. salt
• 2-1/4 cups all purpose flour

Mix it into a softball. Let it take a nap under a blanket for 20 minutes. Pinch off a glob and shape each glob into a pretzel.  Let it sit 20 minutes more. 

Brush top with beaten egg white and course salt.  Bake at 425 degrees on greased pan (PAM Spray) for 10 to 12 minutes or until golden brown.

The work horse in my kitchen is my Kitchen-Aid Mix Master.  Honestly, I know I wouldn't be making all the breads, noodles, and goodies I do if I had to use a portable mixer.  I probably wouldn't be able to find the little beater bars half of the time.

 During those 20 minutes

when my pretzels are rising,

I mess around

in the iclouds

with my iphone's pictures.

Here's what I made today!

 

  I like to have my breads, rolls and pretzels

look home made so I don't overthink it.

It is what it is. 

And what it is tastes just fine. 

And if you don't like it, don't look.

To make honey-mustard pretzels, just add the following to  the egg whites before you brush them on:

• stone ground dijon mustard
• Michigan honey

Use however much you like.  After brushing, sprinkle on your course salt or table salt.

Voila!  Honey Mustard Stadium Pretzels.

Here's the finished pretzels
and Martha Who? can stick it.  

 Final thought...


Just started drinking this and love it!  It comes like a drink box with a straw.  90 calories of liquid heaven.  Great on plain cereal. It is low fat and has more calcium than milk...I sure don't want to break a hip in 2012! (wink)

HAPPY NEW YEAR EVERYBODY