Bags

The Coronas are celebrating four birthdays this month. This year, every Corona has gotten a custom zippered bag. Oh yes, my pal Valerie, who taught me to sew a few months after I moved here, is also getting a bag (but she's getting the same fabric as Tessa, but hers has a purple zipper). Her birthday is Sunday. Plus, she taught me how to make these. 

When Krissy texted me Sunday, I told her I was busy working on her "super-secret" birthday present. Her response was, "Yay!!!!!" She knew she was getting a bag, but doesn't know Snoopy is on the outside of it. By the way, Snoopy fabric is not easy to find. 

(Front: Krissy's, Tessa's, Cindy's Back: Valerie's, Joan's)

 

Booyah!

Leon Was Here

Got home from yoga to find the remnants of the tissue box on the floor. Only one Overlord attacks tissue boxes in our house. 

When I started cleaning it up, that beast started attacking me for disposing of his kill. 

All tuckered out from today's shenanigans. 

A Snippet Into the Sunshine Household

Note: I'm not whining, just being present to how life is here on Arizona Avenue. For the most part, we are all in good spirits. In a small-ish Southern town I'm not following the, "life crisis rules" and I think that confuses some people.  

I've been radio silent for the past two weeks. Other than slipping outside for an occasional walk, I've gotten out twice by myself. Once to meet Val for about 30 minutes and once for a dinner party. Edits for the latest book have taken a good portion of my life. Plus, Marty is home. This is a tough season for him and I'm keeping him company--which means watching all sorts of boring intellectually stimulating youtube videos. Our savings has enough to get us by for a few months. However, we aren't spending extraneous money because, well, there's little trickling in. 

As an introvert, staying home hasn't been an issue. As someone who has managed to build a social network, this is a new experience. I remind myself at some point our lives will change and I'll be more social. However, local folks have noticed the radio silence. Yesterday, I got three texts from friends, asking for a proof of life. 

Deb did her, "I missed you at church," which isn't judgy--but her, "are you okay?" 

I was at church. Marty came with me, so we weren't sitting in the middle where everyone might see a new person (Marty) and decide they needed to swarm. Instead, we sat in the back corner, next to this guy who warbled out the hymns, off key, two stanzas ahead of everyone else, like we were singing a campfire round to Blessed Assurance. Given how proud this dude was of his voice, he wanted to make sure everyone around him heard his praise. Honestly, I'm pretty sure Marty was traumatized enough, he'll never be back. (I offered to go to the Catholic church where he could hear his daughter sing, and he said no). 

Deb seems to understand my life is a bit--er, tenuous--and didn't even chastise me about not saying hello before or after service. 

I also heard from Corona Krissy. She said she wished I'd gone to the corn maze last week with the girls. I wished I could have gone too. But, unemployment kind of takes the driver's seat in our lives right now. The corn maze is $30. It's in Shreveport. The gang had dinner prior. I know if I'd gone and passed on food, everyone would have insisted on chipping in for my meal. Nobody would have expected me to pay my cut for gas. I feel like I'd just be a charity case if I went. And honestly, if Marty were working and one of them were in this situation, I wouldn't have thought twice about contributing for their fun. However, I'm not ready to be that girl. 

About 9 last night, I heard from Corona Joan. She just texted to say hi. She also told me that she's crossing her fingers and praying that Marty finds a local job. She wrote, "Though I know I'm supposed to pray for what's best for you, the heck with it. I'm praying for what I want." And that's the text that broke me. 

And So It Begins

 

Roosevelt decided I didn't need to edit.
I needed to hold him for hours on end. At least this way
he wasn't zooming out the door, which he now does regularly. 
 

We got a new roof today. For the record, doggie downers do NOTHING to calm Luna. 

NOTHING!!! 

Because the house was already crowded, Luna was barking every three milliseconds while trying to jump through the window at the roofing crew, and not all of us are tied to a computer optimistically working on edits, I suggested Marty and Buckaroo take a casual jaunt to Little Rock. You know, just to go do something. And what do you know! I managed to remove extra beings to give me a bit of space to work. (Polly is house sitting. Again.)

While Marty was gone, he got his first "Hello Mr. Sunshine, when are you available for a phone call to discuss your qualifications?" communication. Not bad after looking for two and a half weeks.

This particular position is not in Texarkana. I'm not doing a deep dive into the company or area at this time. There are lots of reasons for this. First, my head hurts from the hammering above my head for the past 11 hours, mingled with Luna barks. Second, I don't want to become invested until there's a reason. Third, I'm still hoping one of the two jobs in Texarkana comes calling. 

The Fugitive

Roosevelt staring at a bird--which
is what he does when he isn't sleeping.
 

Roosevelt, our adventurous Overlord, likes to to stare at the birds through the window, dreaming of the day Buckaroo agrees to allow him to frolic in the sunshine. That day will come when hungry coyotes, foxes, hawks, owls, or other potential varmints agree others have personal space. And yes, we have a back yard fence but I have yet to see that make a difference in keeping out any critters. 

Welcome to Texas.

Yesterday, while Marty and I were in the back yard picking tomatoes and an additional 587 pounds of (sigh) okra, Luna started barking her "critter bark."  Never a good sign, we rushed over, to find Luna, channeling an ancestral sheepdog, corralling an escaped Roosevelt. 

Our Yoga Cat, tuckered out after his shenanigans.
He really sleeps like that. 

We have no idea how Roosevelt managed to get past the storm door. He'd ventured past the edge of the patio and onto the grass before Luna caught up with him. To his credit, the cat appeared conciliatory. Instead of jumping the fence--because he could--and dashing off toward the woods, he acquiesced to Mama Luna's chastisement. 

Buckaroo immediately scooped up Roosevelt, scolding him for his escapades. I pointed out what Roosevelt heard was, "Hey! Blah blah blah, Roosevelt... blah blah." Buck swears Roosevelt got the message. Perhaps he did. But as I recall, when my son was roughly the same age, that wouldn't have stopped him from trying again.      

Branson with Bliz

Bliz and I met in Branson, MO a couple weekend's past, which is sort of half-way between us (Bliz lives four hours away, I'm about six hours). Branson is a hidden entertainment gem, nestled in the heart of the Ozarks. Given this blog has two readers, the greater Branson Chamber of Commerce isn't going to get any help promoting through me. This was my fourth trip to Branson in less than four years and my second trip with Bliz. 

But, back to this Branson trip. During our weekend, we took the "Top of the Rock" tour, which is a golf cart tour from the top of a mountain, through a cave--with a bar inside--across a bridge and back up the mountain.  

The one picture I took on our Top of the Rock tour.
That's Table Rock Lake. It doesn't look nearly as large as it truly is. 

 

For her birthday present, I'd bought us tickets to Six. Six is an a cappella group, comprised of six brothers (there are ten boys in the family--all from Phoenix). I'd heard them perform last spring and knew Bliz would love them. She did. We stuck around for the meet and greet afterward and had a friendly chat and took a few pictures. As a fun little happenstance, We discovered that I'd gone to high school with two of the brothers, both slightly older than me. I only went to that school one year and didn't know them at the time. Eventually I'll pull out my sophomore yearbook and and find the two boys and send the pictures to Bliz. She'll get a kick out of it. 

A hidden gem in the hidden gem city.

Though the trip was wonderful, because of life circumstances, both of us were in mild funks. I'd like to think I brought out the smiles in her as much as she did in me. The weekend got my mind off of Marty's unemployment and Mom's health issues. Bliz also had her own battles going on. I needed the laughs and the comfortable silence only a long-time friend can offer. I suspect she did too. Hopefully next time we meet up, our hearts will be lighter. 

The Unknown

Marty is searching for a job. I'm trying not to be emotionally invested. It would be significantly easier if he didn't bounce in every ten minutes and tell me about some opportunity in Aurora Wisconsin, Morgantown West Virginia, or Scottsbluff Nebraska. And yes, he's applied for whatever opportunities he's found in this corner of the world too. 

The other day, after Marty learned some out-of-state company looked at his resume several times and he received an e-mail from them asking if he was still interested in employment, I broke out my miner's cap and descended into the rabbit hole. After all, there's only so much this geography nerd can handle without doing a deep-dive into the areas in question.

If we move, it will most likely only be Marty and myself (a forced empty-nest and that's a whole 'nuther blast of emotions I'm not ready for). Our needs are minimal. Costco isn't necessary. Housing can be modest, including an over 55 community. Or not. Right now, I'm more interested in quality medical care than I am the location of the closest Hobby Lobby or Trader Joe's. 

In the event Marty finds work elsewhere, I doubt we will have the kind of community that I've grown to love here. However, my goal is to find something like that again. How? Master Gardener group? Garden clubs? Volunteering? Churches? A part-time job? I am not sure but I know that I will need to do something. That's the big lesson I learned my first year in Texarkana. I had nothing to do and the loneliness and grief from Dad's death took its toll. 

What I do know is right now we are in Texarkana. He's found a couple of job prospects here too. Hopefully one of them will pan out and we can stay a bit longer. It makes the most sense for me--but maybe not for Marty. The one big take-away I've learned from moving almost four years ago is if there is another relocation we will be okay--even in Effingham Illinois.