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Sunday Happy

October 18, 2020 Colleen Stem

Just the other night the mr and I were having the conversations about doing the heater checks in all the apartments, what the plans are going to be for the holidays, and all the end of the year things that need to be done before, well the end of the year. It was a weird conversation because were did the year even go? 2020 flying on by through a shit storm and we are not slowing down.

Another great week that began with more fantastic hiking and camping. We were at one of my favorite places, Groton Forest, ans lucky not a whole heck of a lot of people were there. Our hikes were beyond gorgeous,the air was cool, it was quiet and calm, and the sky was clear. Just a solid A+ camp.

Then we slept, woke up, broke down camp and came home. Every week we come home is hard. The mr and I could live in the woods forever! Life goals.

The rest of the week went as usual. The mr off doing all the work he always is doing plus talking to plumbers, plaining wood with Judah, selling (and sold) Barbs car, and was getting in as much fall scootering as he could before the thing needs to be stored away for winter. Me, same same. Studio stuff. Did some glazing, made more things, trying to get super ready for the holiday season and have a good stock of stuff to sell.

Not much really in the way fo eventfulness maybe besides me and Miley made a cake for shits and giggles then had dinner with Barb. Or that the mr and I filled out our ballets and I went and dropped them off at city hall. We also took the boys for a bike/walk. I picked up my second to last farm share for the summer (winter share starts in November) Oh, and I broke my freaking favorite eating fork. I have been eaten almost all my meals with this fork for like 10 years and it was truly a fantastic fork, perfect weight, perfect angle, perfect sharp tines. So that shook me. But I’ll be ok.

Today the mr and I are heading out for our second to last camp. Already sad about it but I am trying to not think about it too much. I want to just enjoy all the trees ans colors and go for a good hike and sit by a nice fire and go to sleep on the ground. All the good things.

Internet to read if you are so inclined.

-The mr and I had this conversation a few months back. It is pretty interesting to heat and see what others think too We Asked Americans How They Feel About The U.S. Flag. It Got Interesting.

-This Kitchen.. 2 different stoves and a wood fireplace!

-I am going to be one with the cracked teeth, I have jaw problems as it is ans I don’t remember the last time I have’t clenched my jaw. Oh wait, I think it was sometime in 2016. Sleepless Nights, Hair Loss And Cracked Teeth: Pandemic Stress Takes Its Toll

-Why social media makes you feel so old. So so old.

-I never put my vintage pyrex into the oven because I am always afraid of it exploding (it has happened before and has stayed with me) What You Really Need to Know About Exploding Glass Bakeware

-How to Survive 5 Extreme Weather Scenarios. We have been caught in some pretty extreme weather. I guess we are lucky to be alive. HA!

-Ad ode to the fork. The Rise of the Fork

-What’s the Weirdest Place You’ve Taken a Call Lately?. If you haven’t talked on the phone while you are on the toilet, well then, where are yo talking from?

-Chairs. PLEASE, HAVE A SEAT.

-Kill Your Gas Stove. I have come to terms with the fact that that next time I need a new stove or am building a new kitchen, no more gas. Induction it will be.

Pictures from the week

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-C

In internet links, sunday happy Tags Sunday Happy, everyday life, internet links, Vermont, 2020, family, fall, life in pictures, pictures, photography, camping, Vt state parks, nature, great outdoors
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Sunday Happy

September 6, 2020 Colleen Stem

It is September friends. That is right. And I am not going to be like, wtf, what happened to summer or the past 6 months, or any of that.. No, I am going to be all like, heck yeah! I am excited for fall and looking forward to all the things that I love about this time of year. Apples, pumpkins, leaves, shorter days, hot drinks all the time, and sweaters. SWEATERS! Ooooh, just yes.

We started the past week with 2 car loads full of camping stuff. It was the mr and I, Barb, and the two older littles. We took them camping for their first state park experience. There was fishing, biking, rock skipping, s’mores, fire starting, people (Miley) trying to burn everything, and all the eating. We were all grubby and stinky and happy as could be. Sure the little guy might have had eaten one to many hot dogs and marshmallows and preceded to boot chunks all over the place, but he railed and was all good, maybe even better for it. After we all crawled into our tents (the boys shared and us ladies shared) we all passed out, all woke up at some point to the mr’s load as hell snoring, but had a pretty good night sleep. I woke up hours before everyone else and walked around in the dark for a while then the the mr, Barb, and I went and watched the sun rise while the two littles slept. After the monsters woke up we made a breakfast fit for champions, meandered, packed, and found another river spot to hang and fish at. After a long day, we dropped them off, went home, went to moms for dinner, and I then crashed. So much fun but sometime so much fun really just tuckers this here lady out.

The rest of the week went with no big biggies. Lots of studio work (Lots of mugs and I am making ghosts and they make me smile), harvesting all the goodies from the garden, doing a massive purge of shit that I don’t want, and reading as much as I can outside on the front porch. The weather had been of the upmost fantastic this week and I am sucking it all in. Other then that, not a whole heck of a lot.

The mr and I are out come 10am. We plan on a good long hike with a picnic lunch on a mountain, some kayaking, land looking, and camping. We are not staying at a state park due to that fact that there is not an empty site at any of them, but better off for us cause we are just going up to Belvedere and pitching the old tent with not a person around. And I get to wear a sweater all day long. That is probably one of the things I am most excited about. HA!

How I internet this week.

-Don’t be a dumb ass, for everyones sake. Coronavirus updates: Labor Day could fuel another rise in infections if people aren’t cautious, experts say

-ARe you a little nervous about apple picking this year? I know I am not going during peak times, thats for dang sure. Pick Your Poison.Fall activities like apple picking and leaf peeping are generally considered safe, but with record crowds and a COVID surge expected to collide this fall, locals are worried

-Kevin Costner’s New App for Road Trips Tells You About the Places You Travel Through. Although I am not an app person, I might just download this (someday). Kevin Costner is dreamy and I love me some history when traveling.

-But is is magic? David Blaine: Daredevil takes flight with helium-filled balloons

-My computer has been making some noises of late. It freaks me out What is it is about to explode, or worse yet, it just stops working? What various weird computer noises mean for your machine

-Walking Is Increasingly Deadly, and Not Because People Are on Their Phones. Seriously. I hear about people getting hit all the time. It is actually a fear of mine.

-London Artist Sophie Sellu’s Functional Wood Sculptures. I really really like.

-Would you live in a neighborhood like this? This sustainable neighborhood of the future is designed to manage both climate change and pandemics

-I mean, we all thought this would happen. If it works now, then way bother going back. Generation Work-From-Home May Never Recover

-I am dreaming of vacations and road trips. Landed on this. What is a Dude Ranch?

Pictures from the week

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In summer, sunday happy Tags everyday life, photography, pictures from the week, Sunday Happy, camping, Outdoors, nature, Vt Vermont state park, summer
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Sunday Happy

August 16, 2020 Colleen Stem
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Hello there friends! How is everyone holding up? Are we good? We are good. Good good good. Good. Haha!

The mr are back at it for the rest of the summer and into the fall. We will be camping and kayaking just about every weekend from here on out. Back to Belvedere because it is just the best. The weather was great, world was quiet, and we were just happy as clams. And then we came home. Which is nice yes, but really, I should just live in a tent, or like a cabin in the woods. I think it makes me a better, happier person. It’s gonna happen, one way or another. Life goals we are working on.

So home and the rest of the week went as usual. Busy. The mr and I seemed to be running around doing all the stuff and working all the workings. Nothing big happened, it just seemed like there was always something going on that needed immediate attention. Oh, we did have a freak storm that knocked out the power for hours and knocked over a bunch of big ass trees so that happened. And we did have the littles and Barb over for dinner, ice cream,and camping trip planning. Miley brought her new cell phone over with her and preceded to show everyone she could the text I sent her when she got it. I might have said something on the lines of “I am so excited that you got a cell phone!”. She screened shotted and is now using it against me. What can you do?

I also fired and unload a bisque kiln of mostly all my pieces this week and that was a treat for sure. I have never had a kiln (mostly) all to myself and I got to tell, it was pretty freaking fantastic. I can’t wait to have my own kiln.

Toward the end of the week Judah come over for a sleep over where we tried to tear a stump (unsuccessfully) out of the yard, ate so many cucumbers, and watched Ace Venture. I made the normal pancakes for breakfast followed up by bean and flower picking at the farm and then whatever else he and the mr were up to when they go out and do stuff. I came home to clean up their mess and place pretty flower arrangements all over the house. And eat beans of course.

So it’s Sunday which means we will be tossing the tent and kayaks into the truck and heading out into the woods for another camping adventure. It’s crazy how much camping we do and how I still get so very excited about it. Again, I should be living in the woods. 🏕

Stuff the internet had on it this week

-What the heck is happening with the Postal Service? Not good stuff.

-The mr was on the news! Little Free Pantries pop up around Burlington

-2020 Is the Year of the Freezer. The mr has been bitching at me for years about my freezer game. He can’t ever again.

-Underground gyms. I had a feeling this was going to be a thing. Secret Gyms And The Economics Of Prohibition

-Have We Been Thinking About Pain All Wrong? We should be grateful for pain? Kinda yeah.

-I completely agree.Don’t Be Shy—Paint Your Ceilings. We have painted out bedroom ceiling gold. It was 100% best choice ever.

-This L.A. Ceramicist Embraces the Strange. She has a treehouse for all of her ceramics. I should do that too.

-Say no to the undies!. This Gynecologist Wants You to Go Commando During Workouts — Here's Why

-The Escapist Land Of 'Cottagecore,' From Marie Antoinette To Taylor Swift. I guess when you don’t live in Vermont, well then you need the pictures. Ha

-I have a pie dough waiting to be filled. Everything You Need to Know About Par-Baking.

Pictures from the week

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In sunday happy Tags Sunday Happy, Everyday life, Vermont, Vermonitng, internet links, nature, there great outdoors, kayaking, the mr, the littles, pictures from the week, photography, summer
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Sunday Happy

August 9, 2020 Colleen Stem

My counter is covered with tomatoes, melons, pears, and zucchini. I have a long sleeve shirt draped over the chair by the front door to throw on when I leave the house in the morning, the camping stuff is now in our weekly rotation, and all the sunflowers have bloomed and are big and mighty… This is the best part of summer, wouldn’t you agree?

What a good week. The mr and I started off with a camping adventure up in Belvidere. A great day. We went for a hike, made a nice soup dinner, relaxed and enjoyed the solitude before crawling into the tent to ass out. But I think I only just fell asleep when the lightning started. Then the thunder, and then the torrential downpours. It was crazy. I have never seen so much lightning or heard thunder as loud and as long as I did that night. I was laying awake for what felt like hours just watching the tent light up and thinking that the thunder was actually the world falling in on itself. But then it stopped, I fell asleep for a little while, and then we woke up before the dawn, picked up our sopping wet tent, and came on home. So sure, we were a wee bit wet and exhausted but I was also feeling more normal and happy then I have in a while. I guess all I need is to pitch a tent in the woods and I am good. So good in fact. Even if it we are camping during a tornado warning. (I guess we missed that one.😳)

The rest of the week consisted of a few more hikes, a kayak adventure where we both ended up getting sunburnt, lots of tomatoes from the farm, and a neighbor basically throwing all the pears at me that I could possible take from him pear tree. We did dinner with Mom, had lunch Barb, and played with Gigi. And all the usual this and that. The mr finished anther free pantry (this one is gonna have a fridge too), I made all the phone calls and would be happy if I never talk on the phone again. I weeded the garden (probably for the last time), and we both voted by mail. Productive as alway.

Today the mr and I are heading out early early. Gonna toss the tent and kayaks into the truck and head on out into the mountains once again for a night away. Just let the day be however its gonna be out in the woods. Very much looking forward to it. VERY MUCH!

Stuff I read on the internet.

-Jumping for Justice Chris Facey’s photographs recall summer in the ’90s.. I am obsessed with this photos.

-Love my local flour company! The Riotous Success of King Arthur Baking Company

-Golden Girls’ Wallpaper Exists—And It’s Not Hard to Picture It in Your Place. Not sure if I think its creepy or I love it….. Think I love it.

-You can really see when people really care about quality of their products.How One Company Has Been Making Tofu by Hand Since 1911

-'Columbusing': The Art Of Discovering Something That Is Not New.

-It’s watermelon season! Why You Should Be Eating Watermelon Seeds, Instead Of Spitting Them Out

-It is also eggplant season! What Is an Eggplant, I Beg of You?

-DIY Drying Rack. On my list of things to do!

-Not to sound like a downer or anything but if you think socializing now is hard, The Winter Will Be Worse. It is sick that I am actually really excited for winter and not having to see ANYONE?

-Not Flying This Summer? Many Americans Are Hitting The Road — In RVs. I have talked to a lot of people RVng this year. Just wait until next summer. I bet there are going to be a shit load of people trying to get rid of those RVs they just bought.

Pictures from the week

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-C

In sunday happy, summer Tags camping, vermont, Vermont, summer, great outdoors, internet links, everyday life, pictures, photography, happy
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Sunday Happy

July 5, 2020 Colleen Stem
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July. My least favorite month of the year. Why? Basically because it is hot. All the time. And I hate it. I am already dreading the week ahead for the mere fact that we are suppose to have another nasty heat wave. I can’t. I just really can’t. I already know I am going to be miserable and unproductive and physically sick. So I am planning on just spending most of my time in the basement. Hmpf, I am going to be such a crank ass next week. Preemptive sorry if you end up having to talk to me. Your best bet would just to wait until August. I’ll be better then.

The week was good. Lots of stuff all over. I worked in the studio a good bunch, went to dinner at moms, did a bike ride with barb and a couple of hikes with the mr. We had the little over for dinner and basically just talked about how cool I am. (the coolest!) And I looked on while the mr and Barb did their thing with spray paint, the side of our building, and a message to the world. I also weeded the garden in vain, picked up farm share, and ate 3 zucchini a day. That is one of the few redeeming things about July. All the food. But otherwise, I still hate it.

Today the mr and I are going on a little afternoon date. I saw a new outdoor sculpture park that I want to check out so we are packing lunch and heading there (hope no one else is!) After that we are going to do a little creative research on natural playgrounds and how to incroporate weather shelters so we going to scout out some playgrounds. Then we might even do the thing that we have been saying we are going to do for a few months now….buy new phones. Meh. But probably not because I really really just don’t want to deal with it. I can handle not being able to hear people talking or having random texts appearing days after they are sent. It is the mr. He kinda really needs a working phone. So maybe.

Internet links from the week.

-I have heard the joke a million times about corona babies but it sounds like it might actually be the other way around. Women Are Delaying Having Kids Because of the Pandemic

-Why Answering A Text Message Feels So Exhausting Right Now, According To Experts. Right now yes, but I think I have always had a hard time responding to well, anyone. My brain is not made to interact with others.

-VT plastic bag ban and composting law is now in effect!!! Need help understanding? Check this. Department of Environmental Conservation.

-I want to be as cool as Oumi Janta. I could watch her skate all day. And now I think I need to get me some roller-skates.

-The tragic legacy behind the famous ‘Into the Wild’ bus.

-These are pretty cool. LEGO’s New Art Kits Are Meant to Hang On Your Wall.

-How knitting became cool. Um, it has always been cool but if more people are doing it now, well heck yeah.

-I don’t think I blend my spices enough so this is great advice. Blend the Hell Out of Your Spices

-Kanye West Announces 2020 Presidential Run. Well why the fuck not?

-I just asked the mr this a couple weeks ago. I feel validated. It's Not Just You, There Actually Are A Lot More Chipmunks Out There

Pictures from the week

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-C

In sunday happy Tags Summer, Sunday Happy, blm, Black Lives Matter, Internet links, pictures form the week, Vemronting, Vermont, the great outdoors, Nature, family, the littles, summer, photography
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