his gold

I read this quote by Oscar Wilde, 

"I think it's very healthy to spend time alone. You need to know how to be alone. You need to know how to be alone and not be defined by another person."

Tru dat. 

I cherish my time with Gustavo, and he cherishes his time with me. I am about as introvert as they come, and I adore my time alone. I run, read and nap - to be alone in my own head. 

There are a few things in our apartment that our his. The thing's Gus loves. I know not to get between this man and his ...

the newspaper and morning coffee. 

He has a Bose iPod dock, which I thought was more than sufficient for our 500 square foot apartment.   He got four of these babies for only "$30" off Craig's List. I don't know if they really cost $30 for 4 sets of speakers, they were hiding in our neighbors house after he picked them up - before he mustered the courage to tell me he bought them ... But I don't get between this man and his Technics.

The Bose dock was my gift to Gustavo our first Christmas together. I bought them in Portland, Oregon and was oh, so proud.

I believe he bought record player #1 at Wonder Records in Harrisonburg. I do not touch.

Record player #2 from Wonder Records, so one can take over when the other needs a rest. 

Gold.

More gold - from The Record Exchange in Frederick, Maryland.

And, more gold.

Love.

Answer me this: 

Don't stay between you and your ______.

xoxo. Happy Hump Day.

J 

bonnie's country kitchen

Gustavo bought a 1993 Jeep Cherokee. He may love it just as much as he loves me. When you buy a 20-year old vehicle, there's a good chance it won't pass inspection. It did not. So, this morning I drove into Brunswick, MD, crossed the bridge over the Potomac and took it to our trusty mechanic in Lovettsville, VA - who put $350 worth of work into it.

It took about 2 hours, so I walked into "downtown" Lovettsville. I write that because it's hardly a downtown. There's a traffic circle with a 7-Eleven and a trailer which houses Bonnie's Country Kitchen - with the best breakfast in town.

a peruvian picnic

Church and fried yuca and plantains in the park.

things that are lovely

I spent all summer reading Ernest Hemingway novels. It was a bit of an obsession. I may have even had a slight crush on the man. This may be weird considering he had 4 wives, all of whom he was unfaithful with and shot himself.

Joy.

An old farm table and fresh flowers.

Some of my home-grown flowers and Gustavo's favorite Portland brew.

itchy feet

The weeks between summer and fall, it's only appropriate to mention 'transition.' I have to check The Weather Channel every morning to know if I should wear flip flops or boots, a sweater and scarf or a cami, will there be a heat wave or a monsoon? I'm preparing for our wedding in less than 5 months, settling in a new town, I somehow developed Celiac Disease, midterm exams are looming - and I find my head spinning. For those of you who know me, I have a hard time settling. I don't like to stay in one place for too long, I feel restless and discontent if I don't leave the state every month. I don't know why I'm like this, I grew up in a very happy suburb outside of DC - in the same school, with the same friends. In college, my housemates empathesized. We were constantly planning a trip - to the cabin in Pennsylvania or driving to Florida or a music festival in West Virginia or they were helping me find roommates in Oregon. I lived in Harrisonburg last year and moved to Frederick only 3 months ago, and I'm already feeling the itch. I like it here. I really do. There are tons of shops and bars and concerts and cafes and hipsters; but I crave newness. This is something I need to work on. Gustavo did grow up in a military family. He moved all around Argentina, Texas, Cyprus, Pennsylvania, Israel - with his 4 siblings as his constants. He likes the idea of moving somewhere, staying, and calling it 'home.' He sweetly tries to satisfy my urge to move by planning weekend trips. It's not fair to say, "I'm bored." Part of it may be hormonal, God bless Gus for dealing with me. Does anyone else have this problem? Any wanderlusters or rubber tramps who get itchy feet? I'm self-treating this character flaw, first by exposing it on the blogosphere. Then by listing all the reasons I'm blessed to stay where I am, and be happy:

- We live exactly half way between my parents and Gustavo's sister. 
- We can drive to Northern Virginia for dinner on a Saturday night and stay Sunday for church and a nap. 
- We can drive to Shepherdstowon on a Saturday morning to watch Agustin's soccer game, or I can casually meet Veronica in Frederick and chat with her through the isles of Costco.
- From here, I can meet my old friends for Jacqueline's birthday dinner or watch Shayna plan her wedding.
- I have a good job + I am a student. 
- I love driving over the Potomac River from Maryland into Virginia, then over Harpers Ferry from Virginia to West Virginia on my way to class every Tuesday and Thursday.
- Baker Park is the sweetest place to run on a weekday morning. It's a 2-mile loop that filled with playgrounds and babies and children riding bicycles.
- As a Celiac, I can't drink beer and finding restaurants with gluten-free options is almost hopeless. We eat lots of arepas and tortilla chips and Panda Puffs cereal.
- I have a teeny vegetable garden that needs my attention.
* I'm getting married to a man I adore. 

Happy Saturday.



Giggles. A Wednesday evening in the Costco parking lot.

the ocean knows her name

Since I was a wee lil' thing my family has vacationed in the Outer Banks. We went down with a whole bunch of people, over a hundred some years! Cousins, grandparents, aunts, uncles, friends, cousins of friends, grandparents of friends, aunts and uncles of friends ... you get the picture. We would go down in the morning and claim ourselves a good 50-yards, or so - and mark our territory with umbrellas, beach chairs, volleyball court, inner tubes, coolers of beer and pouches of CapriSun. We'd stay down there all day, eating peanut butter sandwiches and hotdogs and Cheez-Its that our mamas brought down for us. We'd pee in the ocean and post-up under an umbrella during a thunderstorm before we ever dared to leave the beach before the sun set. We even had a group t-shirt made each year. These are some of the sweetest memories from my childhood. 

After my Sophomore year of college, I got to spend a summer in the Outer Banks working for Grog's Watersports. And what.a.summer. I lived in a house with 6 beautiful people ... I wonder how they are all doing? We took people on jet ski and kayak tours for 8+ hours a day. I would hardly call it a job. I remember warming up the jet skis at 9am each morning. Taking it out, before anyone had touched the ocean - when it was still and looked like an   endless sheet of glass. I remember never wearing shoes and sleeping in my bathing suit. I remember swimming under a jet ski to pull out all the sea weed that it sucked up. I remember swimming in the bay during a thunderstorm and cooking the crabs we caught for dinner. I remember gaining 20-pounds from eating out and spending every dollar I made. That was and will always be one of my all-time favorite summers.

 

This past weekend, I turned 24 and Gus and I went down to NC. We drove down Friday after work and pulled into Jarvisburg, NC at about 2am. I knew we'd only be in the motel for about 5 hours, so I didn't want to spend too much money. I didn't tell Gus because I knew he'd ask how many "stars" the hotel had ... he's deathly afraid of bed bugs because, well ... he's had them. He's woken up in the middle of the night with those lil' buggers crawling all over him and his white sheets. I booked the hotel anyways because it was $70 a night and it was the best deal I could find. He woke up as soon as I pulled into the dodgy parking lot of the motel. I was hoping he'd be too tired to care by the time we got there. No. He made me put all our luggage in the bathroom and he tore apart the sheets and the mattress and the headboard and the box spring. No bugs! We drove to Nags Head in the morning and ordered some eggs, sausage, toast and coffee at Grits 'n Grill. After 4 hours at the beach we left with a terrible sunburn and went for lunch at Tommy's Market in Duck, popped open a few Corona Lights while we watched the storm brew over the ocean and then headed to Mama Kwan's for some Mahi Mahi tacos and ice cream. We drove over the bridge for a coffee date in Manteo and then to Austin's Fish Market for some crab sandwiches and macaroni and cheese which we feasted on at Jockey's Ridge. It was a divine 48-hours.

Two things

    

Goodbye: Harrisonburg, Virginia. Fill up the growler at the Chop House for 8 bucks a pop. Farmer's Market. Run through Eastern Mennonite's 'Hillside.' Aimlessly walk through Wonder Records while he looks through the same box over, and over, and over. Tomato-Mozarella salad. Laying on the dock of Lake Phillipa, asking each other to confirm that that star just might be a UFO. There is a goodbye pending, and I may even feel a little sad.   

Passing through: Purcellville, Virginia. En route to Frederick, Maryland. I can imagine what this place might look like when it's not raining. I imagine the grass is much greener and the sky to be much bluer. This farm will be growing and feeding all of our loved ones at our wedding reception. If the food is as good as the people - we will be pleased.