retriever reunion

get out your kleenex. 

golden retriever squeals with joy at seeing her mom for the first time in a year. 

her mom was in afghanistan.

hello to you hushpuppies

luella's bbq

vet expansion

the dogs' vet is undergoing a massive expansion. doubling in size. it was already nicer than my own doctor in there. 

on one hand i think it's great the dogs can get top notch care right around the corner. 

on the other hand, i think those fuckers must be overcharging.

feathery fireworks

not sure why i didn't post this in july, but here it is 6 months later.

new print available - napa valley

this image just absolutely blows me away. 

if you or somebody you know has been to napa valley and had a good time, you might need to hang this image on your wall. i think this print is incredibly beautiful and dynamic. click on it to enlarge. and get lost inside.

via Jay Archibald:

it is from Oakville appellation in the Napa Valley, specifically it is on Oakville Cross Road, facing Howell Mountain to the east and Mt. St. Helena to the north. The vineyards in the photo, I believe, belong to Plumpjack, Groth, and Miner. It is comprised of 28 images.

print available for extremely reasonable price. makes an unbelievable present. contact me or jay directly for more info. 

on top of the world

on top of table rock mountain. 

noon 1/1/12. 

360 views.

almost 60 degrees. 

rotisserie chicken and dogfish head beer. 

glorious way to start 2012!

peace on earth

happiest new year to all! 

catch ya in 2012!

biscuits

i have heard rumors for years that if the unc tar heels basketball team scores 100 points or more, bojangle's gives out free biscuits the next day.

last night the heels scored 100 against elon.

i googled 'free biscuits bojangles unc' etc. and couldn't find anything official or specific, but we headed down there anyway this morning.

the deal is: carolina scores 100 or more, you get 2 sausage biscuits for $1. not too shabby!

we didn't end up getting the sausage biscuit deal, but we did enjoy scarfing down a country ham and egg biscuit from the comfort of a lovely solarium with a downtown view for less than $3. 

score! 

solstice!

it's finally here! the shortest day of the year! they're only getting longer, friends. 

phew! we made it.

catch the feeling! (shoulder thrust)

i am in love with this skyland auto girl. if i saw her on the street i would be completely starstruck and ask for her autograph.

she's been doing these car commercials for the past couple of years at least. she matches her outfits to whatever major holiday is going on. she ends almost every one with "catch the feeling!" and does a jaunty little shoulder thrust.

it's amazing.

local commercials are unbelievable around here. almost as good as flea market montgomery.

it's just like, it's just like, a mini-mall! hey hey!

ray of light

primary

last week kevin & i celebrated the 3rd anniversary of our first date.

december 10, 2008. wednesday night. i was living in asheville, he was living in charlotte. we met at a bar that neither of us had ever been to in hickory, about halfway between.

we hadn't seen each other for more than 10 years. we were friends in college in chapel hill in the late '90s. 'friends' might be pushing it - the truth is he was friends with my boyfriend, and i was living with his girlfriend. the 4 of us hung out together throughout that year, and i always liked him.

we reconnected through the magic of facebook in november and then decided to meet up for a drink. we ordered hawaiian pizza and didn't touch it. we had beer and eye contact and laughs and sparks and made plans to see each other asap. i drove to charlotte two days later with holden and nacho and stayed for 3 days at his fantastic house on a lake and the rest is history.

i can't say it's luck or destiny or hard work or familiarity or timing or what. we like to do a lot of the same things. our energy levels are about even. he is smart and funny and kind and honest and responsible.  he is curious and adventurous and makes his own health and mental health a relative priority.  i love his hair. i love his smile. i love making him smile. his family is funny and generous and eerily similar to my own, and he has excellent taste in friends.

i don't write about him or love or relationships too much here, maybe thinking sharing will dilute it, or maybe jinx it, or maybe because i know the anonymity of the web has evaporated in the past year or two and i am not comfortable with who is reading. i don't want it to seem like bragging, or sillyfluffy, or gag-inducing. i'm not very social and i'm not very open to the public, and i am glad for this blog to be a creative outlet, but if you're looking for deeply personal stuff, and you're not one of the 2-3 close friends i am able to maintain at any given time, you should probably watch some reality tv instead!

i put the picture of the tee box markers on top since there have been 3 years, which is by far the longest relationship i've been in.

there's been a lot of golden moments, and some blue, and some red. but mainly when i look back, they have been gold.