spent this past sunday afternoon with britni. enjoying a delicious outdoor brunch attoast in birmingham. perusing the sales at the local anthropologie. & sitting on a bench--chatting in the early summer warmth.
i came home and worked in the garden. harvesting gorgeous fresh veggies. & admiring my new anthro purchases as they swayed on the line in the evening breeze.
spending this beautiful winter afternoon strolling through the delightful streets of birmingham. indulging in amazing food and sipping on fresh coffee. wandering aimlessly through anthropologie. and listening to the magic that is her::
i make it no secret that i love anthropologie. a trip to that store is a dream. their catalog arriving in my mailbox is anticipated each month. so its only fitting that when i heard the company was launching a new website to showcase artists and their work--- i was flying through the world wide web, as fast as my little fingers would take me.
when i arrived at "the anthropologist", i was not at all surprised at how peaceful, beautiful and original the space was. each phrase and word on the page is linked to inspiring photos, letters, scribbles. the delicate attention given to each detail of the artistic process is lovely.
artists and art lovers, alike, will surely breathe in some fresh air after a visit to this new online treasure. so go ahead. click the link.
i find myself in this strange place each and every time i come off a stretch of consecutive work nights. i don't know if this dream-like state is caused by the mentality i have to establish at work, or the forsaken hours at which i am there. perhaps its both. but regardless, when i return home the morning after my last midnight shift of the week, i am void of any sense of time. i can almost feel the Earth's rotation. i can see the vibrant life occurring all around me. but i am on the outside. looking in. struggling to focus. i inevitability fall immediately to sleep and wake up in a complete state of utter disorientation. is it night or day? is it Wednesday or Thursday? should i eat breakfast or dinner? am i late for work or am i off? the middle place.
it takes a good solid 24 hours for me to snap out of it. to whip my body back around. to resurface my mind from the muddle. it's during this mental chaos that i always have the hardest time posting on this blog. what do i say? what am i feeling?
it frustrates me. everything in my mind is a bullet point. do this. remember that. call so-and-so. you're out such-and-such. nothing is fluid. no thoughts connect. and i hate that feeling. oh what a glorious day it will be when i can come home from my last midnight shift, fall asleep, wake up and be "normal" again forever. goodbye, middle place. its been a fabulous ride.
until then. here are the things sloshing around in the brain mud today::
1. only one mug of coffee, so far? be still my heart! must brew fresh pot.
2. anthropologie catalog arrived in the mail. (sigh) a few moments of inspiration.
it takes very little to make me genuinely excited. or to put a smile on my face. take for example, two days ago::: i was bustling out the door, rather annoyed, trying to juggle several bags, books and my car keys, when i notice a stack of mail on the table. i quickly readjust my things in order to be able to slide a few fingers over and swipe through the collection of various envelopes and magazines. i tossed aside bills and coupons and advertisements and magazines and reminders---and was about to give up hope that i had received anything of substance, when i saw it. the new anthropologie catalog. and just like that--- carrying seventeen bags and ninety books and key and shoes and sunglasses wasn't an inconvenience. having to go into work was a sheer pleasure! i simply couldn't wait to leaf through that magazine and bask in its beauty and inspiration.
&& while we're talking about it---what beauty and inspiration it holds indeed! i am seriously in utter and complete love with this months issue. it's actually making me excited for fall::: for cool breezes and long sweaters and smooth boots. the milky photographs and to-die-for outfits are so dreamy. i can't wait to hit the store in birmingham with my extra paycheck this month and do some serious fashion damage.
not sure what the rest of today will bring::: some yoga perhaps? before my 4 hour shift at the hospital? i am loving the possibility...
Ahh! Early morning on what is promised to be a busy day...
I have the pleasure of hanging out with my three best men (Graham 5, Reid 2, Dean 5mo.), while their mommy and daddy go work hard for that money! Every other Friday, I look forward to being able to spend time with them. As you can see from yesterday's post::: the little gentlemen have taught me quite a bit. The only thing about the experience that I would change is how unfathomably early I have to get up. I'm a midnights girl....no waking up early here! And while it might seem odd that being up at 5:30 working and actually GETTING up at 5:30 to go to work are so different for me---believe me- they ARE!! Once I'm up and in the groove and at my patients bedside, it's easy to forget I'm working (the 4 pots of coffee don't hurt either). But when you're curled up warm and cozy in bed, and you hear the God-awful sound of your alarm going off, signaling your time to get up---you almost feel like, with the proper tool, you could harm someone.
But I get up in spite of that. and I survive. even though at times I feel like I might not.
In other news::: I spent a little while perusing the Anthropologie website yesterday afternoon and came across this chair that I absolutely died over::: I was almost shaking with glee! I thought to myself::
"Wait---I just clicked on the SALE tab! Is this on sale?? Where is the price?? It must be mine!"
But just as quickly as I was catapulted to the heights of pure glee, I was brought crashing down. With a "sale" price of $700, this little number was sadly out of my reach... I couldn't completely let go, though. I caved and placed the item on my Anthro "wishlist", in the rare chance that they decide to clearance it out for $5.99.
Then, after my pouting and mourning was over, my friend Kellie and I packed up my Durango and headed out for the evening.
A guilty pleasure of both of ours is watching the TV show ::: Jon and Kate Plus 8. When we heard Kate Gosselin was coming to speak at a "mom's night out" conference nearby, we immediately purchased tickets---just assuming that the "mom" part was optional. In lieu of the recent scandalous media coverage surrounding the family (am I the only one sick of tabloids?), we were concerned she might cancel her appearance. But when we arrived, the event was business as usual.
Kate briefly addressed the news coverage before beginning, and handled herself with grace as she spoke. She gave a charming, informed speech about her experiences, her life, her faith and the lessons she's learned. She wrapped it all up with audience Q&A.
And I'm not gonna lie::: Kellie and I rather enjoyed the conference---and our "mom's" night out!
We rounded out the evening with a trip to Starbucks, and a couple of lattes. Which is, personally, my favorite way to wrap up any night!!
All in all, it was a glorious, sunny day in the Mitten:::
But now, a new day has dawned....here's to embracing all that it has to hold...
