How Do You Live?

I find the term 'Living Room' very ironic.  Most people who have a living room do very little actual living in it.  One will usually find the bustle and life of the house centered around the kitchen and the great room, family room or den (whichever term is native to your geographical origins).  In my family, the Living Room was the room that always stood empty, waiting for an Occasion to be graced with Company, while my brother and I were relegated to 'living' in our bedrooms and the downstairs great room/library/bar.

The same has held true since I've been in my condo.  All the living room and dining room furniture that I moved from Annapolis to Raleigh was huge in scale, overstuffed and impossible to even get up the stairs of my building, much less fit into the tiny condo; so I had to give everything away except one bookshelf and my chaise lounge.  I did purchase a Ballard Designs-esque media cabinet plus two bookshelves in a rubbed black and was forced to put the armoire from my bedroom set into the dining area because it would not fit in my bedroom--and that was all the furniture in my poor, sad living room. 

The rest of the room was filled with boxes of letters, diaries, photographs, china, silver and wedding gifts...some of them happy memories; most of them not.  Anything associated with my wedding and marriage I really wanted no part of so I rarely set foot in the living room.  In fact, I've managed to exist in my bedroom and bathroom with an occasional foray into the kitchen for 6 1/2 years.

I am most thankful that I am going to have a beautiful living room that I will be happy to come home to and LIVE in...to curl up on the chaise with a favorite book, or listen to some music; to sit on my new sofa and enjoy a DVD; to actually have friends over for a cocktail or glass of wine.

So, without further ado, a preview(ish) of the living room pieces.  I've already put up photos of the bookcases that are going to flank the triple window, one on each side:

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The media unit is a rubbed, distressed black and will be flanked by two bookshelves that I will probably use more as display for some of my decorative pieces (one will have to imagine these 3 pieces arranged in a horizontal row and adjacent to one another; I can't get them all on one line!):

This is the sleeper sofa.  I don't know that I care for the pillows all that much but I am in love with the soft slate grey color.  We will probably go with more black, grey and ivory/white pillows since there are other elements in the room in those colors:

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I love the look of brushed nickel, plus I feel that glass tables will open the room up a bit more and not appear so chunky and solid; an added plus is the replication of the "X" design element.  These are the coffee table and end table:

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I think I'll leave description of the rest of the room for Friday, especially since the final 3 pieces are going to be custom (re)upholstered...my chaise recovered from taupe to a black/charcoal stripe; the cushion on the Chinese Chippendale Art Deco chair my mother found in SC (for I won't say how much, but I doubt it would get two people into the movie theatre) and finally a custom tablecloth made for a round table (another Ballard homage!) that will tie the fabrics from the chaise and the Chippendale chair together.

Whew! Renovating and decorating is hard work!



The Wine Wall

Remember when I said you have to be creative in small spaces to find storage?  Well, there is this little 3' wall between my kitchen and laundry room closet that not a lot can be done with.  You can't really put a piece of furniture there because then it will partially block the kitchen door entrance.

Sooooo...remember the Pier One dining table which was a steal and I liked way better than the Crate and Barrel version because the wood was darker?  We also found on clearance the perfect-sized storage cabinet that matches the colors of the dining table!  So the plan is to set up a bar on my monogrammed tray on top of the cabinet and then build a vertical wine wall to store all my wine and wine/Champagne/martini glasses!

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You just have to imagine the glass and wine racks going vertically up the wall above the storage cabinet. It's only a few feet away from my dining table so it almost makes up for not having a formal/separate dining room.  Also, the table in the top photo is very much like my dining table although it is from Pottery Barn and not Pier One.

So there you have it, a small preview of what's to come...most of these items are already here and in place except for the Holman Wine and Wineglass Shelves.  Need to paint first!

Sneak peek at some of the living room pieces tomorrow?  Perhaps!





The Look For Less

I will admit that although I am a very simple girl, plain, low-maintenance, etc...I do tend to have some Champagne taste on a mid-priced wine budget.  Luckily, my mother is fabulous at decorating and finding bargains.  I have little to no patience for shopping unless I get in a rare mood to go picking at TJ Maxx or Marshalls or HomeGoods, which might happen once a year.

It's a little hard to describe my taste...first of all, my condo is quite small so multi-functional pieces, especially with hidden storage are a plus.  I think I would describe my taste as Ballard Designs meets Pottery Barn with a dash of Art Deco, Mid-Century and French/Italian countryside.  Sounds like a hot mess, doesn't it? I promise, it's not. It's very eclectic and very me. It will probably going to take another 2-3 months for everything to be finished since this is a 90% do-it-yourself renovation, but I really think it's going to be beautiful when finished.

Just a few examples of my mother's thriftiness:

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The Ballard Designs bookcase? $699.  And I needed two.
The Home Decorators Collection bookcase? Was on sale for $69 + free shipping when she bought them, now up to $129!  The only real difference I see is the height of the crown moulding at the top and base, which my father could always add if I really wanted it.

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The Pottery Barn counter-height stool? $279.  Each.

The Target counter-height stools? Were on sale 2 for $119 + free shipping when she got them.

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The Crate and Barrel table? Still not my first choice, I wanted the Vintner Table  (but in black, obvi) but it was discontinued over a year ago and I have checked Craigslist in 3 states for a used one, to no avail.  This newish version is $499.

The Pier One table? Okay, it doesn't have a door or wine racks but I am using baskets on the shelves as storage for my linens, placemats, napkins, etc. and I have a fabulous plan in place for my wine wall.  My mother was able to get this one for $299 minus a $60 coupon!  And then earned a $40 coupon for purchasing it!

The moral of the decorating story? You can be a single girl on a budget and still get the look you want for less.  You just have to look a little and watch for sales!

Is This Thing On?

Back in "the day", I don't think I ever really had a big readership or following.  I tend to be too liberal, too controversial and too outspoken.  So I'm sort of struggling with topics right now, and I still don't know what I want the focus of this blog to be, or if I want to focus on anything at all.

So for now, let's just do another "Getting to Know You" meme.  Feel free to consider yourself tagged if you want to play along--let me know in a comment so I can read YOUR answers!

25 favorites:
1. Political show - I really don't watch tv other than sports, but I like watching The Colbert Report while I'm on the treadmill at the gym. A friend of the Sedarises is a friend of mine. And yes, I know that he's playing a character.
2. Picnic food - Very simple. Bread, cheese, wine, salad with dijon vinaigrette and fresh fruit.
3. Mixed drink - mmmm...Hendrick's Gin and tonic with cucumber, Mount Gay Rum and tonic with lime, 4 Copas Blanco margarita with Grand Marnier or Cointreau...I could go on at length here!
4. U.S. President - Ever? Thomas Jefferson. Positively brilliant, multifaceted man.
5. Kind of student to teach - I'm not a teacher, but I have immense respect for my friends who teach. My teachers have been some of the most significant mentors throughout my life.
6. Hobby you do or wish you still did - Sailing, hands down. I'd like to live somewhere I could get back into racing. And one day I'd like to own a piano again.
7. Sports commentator - Does Jim Rome count? Because I've had a mad crush on him for years. Sports commentators that I personally know? Chuck Kaiton and Tripp Tracy, both with the Carolina Hurricanes. Genuine, fun, down to earth guys who give a lot back to our community.
8. Sport to watch on TV - Most sports are better live than on tv, particularly baseball, but I'm a huge sports fan and watch college football, NFL, college basketball, NHL, MLB, any lacrosse I can find and any yacht racing I can find.  And yes, I watch NASCAR too! <---Scandalous!
9. Animal to have as a pet - I love big dogs and little cats, but currently have no pets. My dog lived to 16 and my cat to 17 and five years later, I'm still not sure I'm ready to have another pet. I live in a small condo and work ridiculous hours so it's probably best that I don't have any additional responsibilities right now. I am terrified of birds and all farm animals except cows.
10. Halloween costume you have worn - I'm not much into Halloween, but when I had to dress up for work (big holiday in the bar business), my favorite costume was an authentic Turkish belly dancer costume with lots of coins and bells sewed on it that made a lot of noise as I ran around the pub.
11. Kind of dessert - I tend to like creamy desserts such as creme brulee, panna cotta, flan, etc. Or ice cream or gelato at home.
12. Comic strip - Old school ones that probably no one has ever heard of. The Angriest Dog in the World (David Lynch). Life in Hell (Matt Groening). Calvin and Hobbes (Bill Waterson). And anything Roz Chast does is positively brilliant.
13. Style or make of footwear - I'd happily wear Rainbows or Reefs every day if I could. For work, whatever I can find that's black, has a heel and fits my long, skinny foot that I can walk in without falling flat on my face. I also tend to favor tall black boots in the winter.
14. Ice cream flavor - If I have to pick one, Three Twins Lemon Cookie.  My old tried-and-true Haagen-Dazs Hawaiian Lehua Honey and Sweet Cream has been discontinued...but really, anything vanilla, honey, lemon, almond, cinnamon, coffee or pistachio.
15. College or university president - I think this meme was written for someone in education. Which I'm not...so I cant say that I could even name one.
16. Internet news source - BBC, NY Times, Washington Post.
17. Vacation spot - Realistic? British Virgin Islands. Fantasy? Bali.
18. Wine - My "everyday" red is Pillar Box Red, white is Oyster Bay Sauvignon Blanc.  But I am in loooove with Orin Swift's The Prisoner.
19. Way to waste time instead of working - Uh, I work upwards of 50 hours a week so I feel no guilt checking blogs or Facebook occasionally to give my brain a break.
20. Student excuse for late work - Again, I think this may have been a meme for teachers. I don't have students.
21. Reality show - Ugh. Shoot me.
22. Jewelry on a man - I'm not a fan of jewelry on men. A watch, possibly a wedding or signet ring.
23. Pizza topping - I love a classic Margherita with fresh basil, tomatoes and mozzarella; or spinach, portabellas, red onion and feta.
24. Children’s movie - Probably The Wizard of Oz (I still watch it every year), but I'm a huge Disney geek, particularly the classics.
25. Celebrity you wish would retire - Whichever one is currently the media's obsession, whether a darling or a scourge...I can't stand having someone crammed down my throat wherever I turn. Anyone with a substance abuse or violence issue, a child with a pretentious/ridiculous name or is pregnant and therefore on "b**y b**p" watch (that phrase makes me cringe) is a solid candidate.

Should I Stay or Should I Go?

I've lived in my little condo for 6 1/2 years now and have been saying for at least the last 4 that I either need to move or do some serious restoration/remodeling.  I think I have waffled back and forth because my condo--while in a very desirable and convenient to everything location--was built in the 1950's as an apartment, converted to condos at some point and seems to have been primarily a rental rather than owner-occupied.  It's not in very good condition and has never really been properly maintained.  The condos I have either seen in person or on Realtor.com that have been remodeled are gorgeous!  Built-in storage, fully remodeled  kitchens with dishwashers, granite countertops and so on.

So I have wrestled with this decision a long time...stay and make improvements or look for another place?  The problem is that my neighborhood is not inexpensive, and as a matter of principle, I will not pay more than 25% of my take-home pay (that's after 401k contribution, medical/dental/vision insurance payment and taxes) on rent/mortgage/HOA fees.  I don't want to live anywhere else in the city.  I definitely WILL NOT move outside the beltline.  There are a few surrounding condo neighborhoods that I would consider; actually LOVE to move to; but while I could afford them, I don't want to afford them.  I don't want to be house-poor and spend 40-50% of my pay on housing, I'm not (and not looking to be) married, and I am far too old for a roommate.

So...that brings me back to my condo.  Love the neighborhood and the fact that I can walk to everything (including work), dislike certain things about the condo.  Love my landlord, dislike my dirty next-door neighbor.  Love the rent, love the fact that if something breaks (like my washer/dryer or refrigerator) it is not my responsibility to fix it, dislike that I do not have a dishwasher or a separate dining room.  Love that I have an assigned parking space in the city, dislike that I have to share my front and rear balconies with aforementioned neighbor (I don't know what York or whoever built these condos was thinking?!)

Anyway, after much discussion and debate with my parents, I finally made the decision a few months ago to stay put and invest in remodeling/improving someone else's property.  I know that sounds like a bad decision, but my father and I have an excellent relationship with my landlord (who wouldn't want a long-term female tenant who is quiet, neat, clean, a working professional and not a student--I do live about a half mile from NCSU--and since these condos are all one-bedroom, it's not a neighborhood many students choose) and are choosing to invest in my home so it makes me happy in consideration for either rent reduction or a long-term, rent-controlled lease.

It's going to be a long-term project since we are doing most of the work ourselves (my father has a background in commercial architecture and construction and my mother loooooves to decorate and is very good at finding bargains that give me the look I want for less) and on a budget. My parents have been coming up for a week each month since Thanksgiving and helping me make decisions, budget, shop/hunt/source, etc. as well as actually doing most of the repairs, painting, replacing things like my garbage disposal and bathroom sink and sink cabinet...

Mid-February is going to be pretty exciting since that's when the friend/ex-coworker I sold most of my old furniture to is picking it up, then my parents arrive to paint hopefully 2 of the 4 rooms, then the remaining furniture that hasn't been purchased already/sitting in my living room under tarps is being delivered!  I am so excited!  There will still be quite a bit of work to do...my tub/shower and toilet need to be replaced; I can't afford a full kitchen remodel (which I covet--new cabinets and more of them, a smaller replacment stove so a dishwasher could be installed, more counterspace and granite countertops) but it is not to be; so my mother is going to strip the bazillion layers of old paint off the kitchen cabinets and repaint them, and my father is replacing the ugly linoleum floor with a gorgeous white-with-black French brasserie-style floor.

I'm very grateful for all the love and support--both moral and financial--that my parents are giving me through all this construction mess.  They have always sacrificed and put my brother and I ahead of themselves in order to give us opportunity and the best, and even now that I'm a 'big girl' (my parents actually call me Semi-Small Child, inside family joke) that love and support has not wavered.  We've had our moments, to be sure, as any family does--but I am quite fortunate to have the support of my spectacular and generous mother and father.

Tag!

For lack of anything interesting to say and still trying to get back in the groove of blogging, I found this tag on Beantown Prepster's blog and decided to play along since she asked lurkers to reveal themselves:

The rules:
1. Post the rules.
2. Write 11 fun facts about yourself.
3. Answer the questions the tagger set for you and then create 11 new quesitons to ask people you tag.
4. Tag 11 people and link them to your post.
5. Let them know you've tagged them!!

11 Facts About Myself:

1)  I was born in Washington, DC--so if you took an interest in all the McCain and Obama "who's a citizen?" debate/drama, this makes me an automatically naturalized citizen of the United States but not a natural-born citizen.  Crazy to have been born in the capital of the US but according to the strict interpretation of the 14th Amendment, ineligible to run for President because DC is not a state.

2)  I only drive about 3,000 miles a year and I can only drive a 5-speed/stick.  I live in a great little neighborhood in the city for walking to everything I need (2 grocery stores, library, post office, banks, dry cleaner, spa, ABC, etc.); and when I try to drive an automatic, my left foot looks for the clutch and instead hits the brakes, slamming all occupants of the car forward.

3)  I dislike color for the most part and both my condo and my wardrobe are mainly neutrals: black, grey, white, ivory, chocolate brown, silver, etc.  Exceptions are red (school color), navy (close enough to black) and brightly colored Lacoste/Polo shirts worn with khaki shorts in the summer.

4)  I wear a headband almost every day.  I do not blow dry, flat iron or curl my hair.  My hair routine is wash, condition, comb and pull my hair back in a headband.  I'm hopeless with hair and have had the same basic hairstyle since college, sometimes shorter, sometimes longer but generally all one shoulder-blade length.  Luckily I'm blessed with lots of fine, shiny, straight, chocolate-brown hair that doesn't require a lot of maintenance.

5)  I rowed women's lightweight for 2 semesters and then was a men's 8 and men's 4 coxswain in college.  I also sail and have my Basic Keelboat and Basic Cruising certifications.  I also attempt to golf--I'm a good driver but stink at chipping and putting.  That is the entire scope of my athletic skills...generally if it involves balls flying at one's head, it's best suited that I remain a spectator!

6)  I am a voracious reader and read an average of 2-3 books a week. My dream is to have a library one day with books on all 4 walls up to the ceiling, a rolling ladder system, all the fiction categorized alphabetically and then by date of publication, and all the non-fiction categorized by the Dewey Decimal system.  Nerd.

7)  I collect wine corks and matchbooks from all over the world.  That's all I ever want for a souvenir from anyone's travels--a matchbook!

8)  I am very happily single and do not have or plan to have children.  I would love to be an aunt, though!  And while I do enjoy the company of gentlemen, I prefer that it be on a part-time basis and that they do not expect me to make them breakfast! ;)  I've lived alone too long and do not wish to be asked or told where/when to go, who to go with, who I'm talking to/texting, etc.  I thoroughly enjoy answering to and being repsonsible for no one but myself.

9)  I prefer dresses or skirts to pants and you will rarely see me in a pair of trousers or jeans.

10)  I do not like shopping except for grocery shopping (I could spend hours in specialty, gourmet or high-end markets just gazing and fantasizing about what's on offer).  I do most of my shopping via internet and when I find something I like/that fits, I generally buy it in multiples and/or multiple colors.  I have numerous duplicates in my wardrobe because I am terrified of something I love being discontinued, as is the nature of fashion.

11)  I am the nerd who prefers ballet, symphony, foreign/independent film and opera to drunken clubbing, mainstream blockbusters or the latest hot spot.  

Beantown Prepster's questions are:

1) If you could have a theme song to play when you walk down the street what would it be? I already have a theme song: "Volcano Girls" by Veruca Salt.  It's been my and my best friend's theme song since 1997.  Although often, I think Dierks Bentley's "What Was I Thinkin'?" is the perfect theme song for my younger, wilder days.

2) If you could only watch one TV Show for the rest of your life, what would you pick? Believe it or not, I have not had cable or satellite television for 4+ years.  I don't miss it at all.  I go to sports bars or friends' houses to watch sports and anything else I watch on Netflix or my laptop.  I'm really much more of a reader--it's how my family has always been--but for the sake of saying something, I will say old Seinfeld reruns.  I'd love to have the boxed DVD set of that entire series.

3) French fries: Skinny and crispy or big and mushy?  Thrasher's or 'Boardwalk' style, which for anyone not from MD or DE means fresh-cut, skin-on, fried in peanut oil and drenched in cider vinegar with perhaps a little Old Bay if I'm feeling spicy.  AND NO KETCHUP! (I do not dislike ketchup, but it does not belong on fries).

4) What is your guilty pleasure outfit?  I take off my clothes as soon as I get home, hang them up/fold them/put into washer/put into dry cleaning bag as appropriate and immediately change into yoga or pajama pants and a tee, a robe or something of that nature and never sit around in my good clothes.  In public, my guilty pleasure outfit has got to be black leggings, a tunic, tall boots and my beloved black cashmere wrap/shawl with silver kilt pin.

5) Soda: Fountain, bottle or can?  I really do not drink soda, I prefer seltzer or sparkling water.  Any of the LaCroix flavors are good (and make FABULOUS no-cal mixers for cocktails! Ask me about my 60-calorie coconut mojito cocktail!)  I also like The Fresh Market's Italian sparkling waters. I do drink an occasional Diet Coke (20 oz bottle) if I am somewhere pizza is being ordered in.  (And bless you for calling it 'soda' and not 'Coke' or 'pop').

6) Favorite thing to do at the gym?  Ergometer (rowing machine for those who have no idea what an erg is).

7) If you could live anywhere, where would it be and why?  Back 'home' in Annapolis (though my parents have retired and moved to Bluffton/Hilton Head and my brother is in Biddeford, ME so there's only my friends left) for obvious reasons...I spent decades of my life (not ready to say how many yet unless you already know me and know how old I am) there; I miss living on the water; I miss sailing; I think it is one of the most beautiful and historically well-preserved cities in the country.  I also regret not moving to NYC when I had the opportunity; I think it is the city that is most compatible with my personality, love of food/wine and the arts and being ALIVE 24/7.  Oh, and my black and grey wardrobe ;)

8) What was your first animal and do you remember its name?  My first animal was a beagle that did not work out for my family and I do not remember its name.  After that came a cat named Misty.

9) What is one thing that you carry in your purse that you absolutely cannot live without?  My eleventy-three tubes of Burt's Bees, eos lip balm and Carmex (old coxing habit).

10) What is your most embarrassing habit?  I have diagnosed anxiety and OCD; I get irritated at work if someone moves something on my (very neat) desk and seriously flip out if someone takes my pen out of my hand, picks it up off my desk or otherwise asks to use it.  We are adults at work, the office supply cabinet is over there, now be prepared and have YOUR OWN PEN!

11) If you could meet and be BFFs in real life with a blogger that you follow, who would it be and why?  I don't know about BFF's, I'm pretty fond of the one I've had for many years, but I'd love a casual crab feast or clambake/lobsterbake on the beach with Libby (formerly of A Study of Schoolbooks and Shoes), Auburn Kat, Adrienne of Bouquets of Sharpened Pencils (formerly A Work in Progress/DC Diaries), Kate of Barefoot in the Park, EAS of Let the Tide Pull Your Dreams Ashore and of course Lisagh of Grosgrain Garage.  Why?  They are people whom I find interesting, of substance and that I could have both intelligent conversation and fun with even though some of them are in retirement or on hiatus (if I didn't link to you that means I can't find a current blog for you--please update me if you'd like to get back in touch!)

I'm supposed to tag 11 bloggers, but since I sincerely doubt I have 11 readers, let's have ANY bloggers that perhaps read my blog or used to read the old 'An Annapolitan in Raleigh' play! I would to meet more bloggers or get reacquainted with old bloggers who used to read! If you are a lurker who blogs, leave a comment linking back to your blog so I can come read! Don't be shy people, COMMENT!

My 11 questions for you:

1) If you could only have one meal 3x/day for the rest of your life, what would it be?

2) If you had to abandon ship and only had time to grab one book to take to the desert island you're about to be stranded on, what book would you grab?

3) Omnivore, pescetarian, vegetarian (any variation, ovo, lacto, etc.), vegan or raw foodie and why?

4) What is your guilty pleasure movie?

5) Favorite nail polish color (hands and feet if different)?

6) Where is your favorite vacation spot and why (somewhere you have been, not somewhere you want to go)?

7) What's the best-kept secret or little known spot in your town/city you hope the bourgeois never discover so you can keep it to yourself?

8) What was your favorite toy or game to play as a child? (Can be real or make-believe).

9) Did you go to your high school prom?  If so, describe what you wore.

10) Do you watch "reality" TV?  What shows and what do you find fascinating about them?

11) What college/professional sports teams or players do you root for?

Get On Your Boots

"Get On Your Boots" is definitely one of my favorite U2 songs and I definitely am known for my boot collection.  I actually have a whole Facebook album dedicated to pictures of me with my feet up on my desk at work, showing off my various boot and tights combinations.

My best boot purchase of the season (from Rue La La, mind you...for...well, it's declasse to discuss price but we all know that Rue La La = serious bargains) has been my Charles David 'Roust' riding boots.  I seriously love tall boots (even though I'm 5'2", I thankfully have long legs) and the red zipper trim up the back just makes the boot, in my opinion.

*image via Charles David

So, anytime you've got a case of the mean reds, do what I do and get on your boots!

"You don't know how beautiful

  You don't know how beautiful you are
  You don't know and you don't get it, do you
  No, you don't know how beautiful
  You don't know
  You don't know how beautiful you are... "

*U2 Music and Lyrics published by Blue Mountain Music Ltd (for the UK)/Mother Music Ltd (For the Republic Of Ireland)/PolyGram International Music

Publishing BV (For The Rest Of The World) U2 Recordings owned by Universal International Music B.V. exclusively licensed to Island Records (ROW) and Interscope Records (USA)

Happy Birthday to My Best Friend!

Happy Birthday to my best friend in the world, TML (or TLD, depending on whether she's using her maiden or her married name)!  We first met when she was 16 and she came to work for me in Baltimore back in the heyday of my retail career, so she is definitely one of my oldest and dearest friends!



This was taken at one of our favorite watering holes, Acme Bar & Grill on Main Street in my hometown of Annapolis, back when I lived in the 21403, aka The Maritime Republic of Eastport, best known for such events as the annual Burning of the Socks each spring, the annual Slaughter Across the Water tug o' war contest and the "least challenging athletic event ever conceived", the .05k Run Across the Eastport/Spa Creek Bridge (complete with water stop at the midpoint!)

Alas, we have grown up and moved on--I'm in Raleigh and she's in Hunterdon County, NJ--but we are still BFFs and still call ourselves 'fraternal twins born 10 years apart'.  Happiest of birthdays to you, my love, TML!

Christmas in the Lowcountry

"Once you have traveled, the voyage never ends, but is played out over and over again in the quietest chambers, that the mind can never break off from the journey."
-Pat Conroy, The Prince of Tides

Annapolis-Avalon-Raleigh-Pawley's Island-Wilmington-Bluffton

My parents have spent the last 30 years migrating up and down the east coast and have settled--so they say--in Bluffton, SC. I usually just say they live in Hilton Head because no one ever knows where Bluffton is. Its in Beaufort County, on the mainland just across the ICWW from Hilton Head, 30 minutes SSW of Beaufort and 30 minutes NNE of Savannah.

I fell in love with the Lowcountry when I first visited them there in  December 2007. It is completely different from where I grew up, but breathtakingly beautiful nonetheless. It is old-growth live oaks, tidal marshes, Spanish moss hanging low over the tree-lined drives to gated plantations, the rich organic smell of pluff mud, dolphins strand feeding, blue herons and snowy egrets, oysters, shrimp boats, rivers and islands and beaches and sea.

Sometimes I get very melancholy and homesick for Annapolis and have a hard time accepting that my parents no longer live in the two houses on the Severn River and on Saltworks Creek I grew up in. But Ive come to realize that wherever my family is will always be home to me.  I am fortunate to be able to spend 10 days at Christmas with them there every year and I truly believe it is one of the most beautiful places in the world.

*These pictures are from the Palmetto Bluff website. The building pictured is the Inn at Palmetto Bluff in the background with the ruins of the Wilson mansion in the foreground. The Palmetto Bluff website has some breathtaking video and photography and is definitely worth checking out!

Opening lines

"A story has no beginning or end; arbitrarily one chooses that moment of experience from which to look back or from which to look ahead."
-Graham Greene, The End of the Affair

This is the moment where I begin to tell the stories of my present, my past, and my future.

This is a reprint of my first blog post ever from January 2, 2008.  I haven't blogged in several years, but I've missed it and now I'm back. I do have my old blog posts and comments archived, but am keeping them private for now.

I hope you'll want to read my story.  Welcome back!