Bethel

This is Bethel United Methodist Church in Onemo.

My new running route is a 6.6-mile loop that begins and ends in this parking lot.

So symmetrical.

No, the church isn't tilting.  The photographer may be though.

This reminds me of the freemason symbol, only because out of boredom I watched
one episode of Secrets of the Freemasons and am looking for hidden signs everywhere.

This weekend, in addition to running the Onemo loop that includes Bethel Church, 

I spent some quality time with Daughter and Friends.

Daughter turns 15 today.

I don't know where the time has gone, but I am grateful for every moment with her.

Happy birthday to the best daughter a mother could ask for.

Click here for my mother's 2011 tribute to CB Daughter. 

Public Landing

Have a wonderful weekend.

Three Things

Once again we find ourselves at the day of the week called Thursday (o jueves en espanol), which on this blog is the day dedicated to sharing three thoughts.  The randomer  more random the better, even if you spontaneously erupt into another language (como espanol).  However, if your three thoughts are related, nobody is going to fuss. This is a no fuss, no stress, no drama sort of blog.

Usually.

Since I can, I'll go first.

1.  Yesterday Mathews High School's boys and girls cross country teams beat Gloucester.  Mathews is a much smaller school than Gloucester, so this is quite an accomplishment.  Daughter ran her personal best, I believe she came in at 27:29 (give or take on the seconds).

2.  Speaking of running, I went for a six-mile jog near Bethel Beach yesterday.  There were no mad dashes from fiddler crabs coyotes, however I did almost run into a goat that had sprung free from his pen.

3.  Baby Sis and I are signed up for the Outer Banks Half Marathon in November.  If it is a fraction of the fun of last year's race, we'll have a blast. Yes, as strange as it sounds, it is possible to have fun jogging 13.1 miles--but only with the right people. Never underestimate the fun that accompanies an out-of-town adventure with Baby Sis.

4.  My three things seem to be related to running and aren't random enough for me.  Therefore I must toss in another thought for good measure. Remember that three is just a suggestion, one I rarely adhere to.

5.  The Guinea Jubilee is this weekend.  For reasons I can't explain, I've never been. It's not that I don't want to go; something always seems to prevent me from going.  Unfortunately (or fortunately, depending on your perspective) Daughter's birthday celebration is this weekend, and I feel confident that attending the Guinea Jubilee isn't going to be high on her list of ways to acknowledge turning 15. I'd like it noted for the record that in spite of thousands numerous inquiries as to how she does wish to celebrate, I do not have a solid answer yet.  Maybe if I threaten to take matters into my own hands and announce we're going to Guinea Jubilee, she'll come up with something.

That's it from me.

Now it's your turn to share three or more things. Whatever is on your mind.  Any language thing at all.

Signs

These were taken back when I used to jog a little over a year ago down Onemo, where I like to jog.  I've been so busy lately that jogging has taken a back seat, but it's going back on the priority list this week.

Another excuse reason why I've not been on any long runs down this way has to do with coyotes. The Gazette-Journal recently ran an article about some coyotes in Onemo casually tossing back cats as appetizers (paraphrasing is mine).  They're supposedly nocturnal, but based on what they did to a deer in my parents' yard last week, I'm not sure I'd want to run up onto a pack of them with nowhere to run except into dense woods or swampland--and I'm not usually the sort of person who is afraid of anything much.

Anyway.

There are coyotes in Mathews.
I need to get back into a regular running routine, coyotes or no coyotes.

The End.

Blog Fest 2013

This is where I slept all weekend.  My first time camping in several years.

This weekend a group of women I've met through this blog descended on little old Mathews to spend some time consuming wine and riding around the neighborhood on the Gator screaming and laughing laughing, relaxing and catching up.

Grandma J came all the way from Texas. 

Sheryl is from Arlington.  
True story:  She was on Jeopardy in 1992.
(Click here.)
She said something about a disagreement with Alex Trebek, but I forget the details.

Nora and my mother

Laurie is from California. 

Meg is from Maryland.
She lost her iPhone on one of the out-of-control Gator rides.
Thank goodness for the "I have no idea where my iPhone is" app that traced it
near a ditch in our neighborhood.  (As far as I'm concerned, there is only one speed on that Gator:  wide open.)

My father and Laurie.  He brought over a batch of his fabulous fried oysters.
In the background is the pink beach umbrella that caught on fire Saturday night.
Another true story involving one of my tiki torches.  I put it out with my bare hands.
Note to self:  Next time use something else.  

Angie and Meg

Although Meg found her phone, she also lost her glasses.
We still haven't found those yet. There is no app for that.

Deltaville Jamie brought this float and the hat.
Her son Ethan wore them in the hot tub.
I wore them on the Gator rides.
(Dear neighbors, I am so sorry.  We won't do this again for at least another year. Love, CBW.)

Jamie's son Ethan.

Angie and Dana.

Kay, in the green shirt, came all the way from Canada!

There was hugging until it hurt.

Nora's sister-in-law made us all bracelets.

Ethan and Jamie

There were several from our original group who couldn't make it, and they were definitely missed.

My throat is sore from laughing, my finger is burned from the minor fire, my neck muscles are strained from wild Gator rides through the neighborhood, but by golly that was the most fun I've had in a while.

This group of bloggers is like family to me, and I am grateful for the opportunity to spend so much wine time with them this weekend.

Weekend

The next few days will be filled with friends I've made through this blog.  

The forecast includes clear skies and lots and lots of laughter.

I'm very much looking forward to it.

Have a great weekend.

Three Things

Welcome to Three Thing Thursday, where I share three thoughts and encourage you to do the same.  Three is merely a suggestion, there are no hard and fast rules here.

I'll begin.

1. Yesterday, in preparation for Blog Fest 2013, I spent five solid hours dejunktifying my upstairs bedrooms (two of which belong to my teenagers, who evidently love living in squalor mountains of old school papers and half-empty water bottles).

2.  Do not consult your dictionaries, dear readers because dejunktify is so a word. I've been using it for years now, especially in To Do lists for my children. "1. Dejunktify your rooms. 2. See #1. 3. I said dejunktify, please."  Evidently they're unclear on the precise meaning of this word, because the amount of dejunktifying I did yesterday tells me they've not focused on it since they were born in a very long time.

3. I absolutely adore surprises, and yesterday after the marathon dejunktifying session and an away cross country meet (where daughter broke her own personal record!), I dragged up the front steps to find a package from a good friend I met through this blog.  It contained Kona coffee, a candle, wine, and cocktail napkins that will be perfect for this weekend's festivities. Have I mentioned how much I love surprises?

That's it from me.  Now it's your turn to share three thoughts.

Whatever is on your mind.

Anything at all.