New Leaves

I'm about to be 40. Is that too old to learn a new trick? Too set in my ways to turn over a new leaf? I'm hoping not. I've been spending some time thinking about some things, and it's time to make some changes. (I'm starting by not obsessing about the fact that I just used the word "some" three times in the last sentence.)
I am who I am and I like who I am. I need for there to be some semblance of order and structure and planning to feel at peace in my life, that is okay. What isn't okay is for me to miss out on what's happening because I'm too busy trying to plan the next thing, organize the now, or complete some task or schedule I have put on myself.
I'm going to stop (read: make an honest to goodness, sincere effort to stop) feeling like I have to blog about everything that happens. I like to blog. I like to look back and see where I've been, what I've done, who I've done it with. (not IT, you know what I mean!) But it's not fun for me to pull up the blog, note the date, and then get mad at myself because it's been a week, a month, or longer. I'm letting go of that. I'll blog when I blog and scrapbook when I scrapbook and stop making it a chore instead of a fun hobby.
I made this resolution at the beginning of this year: 8. Only buy, keep and do things that are beautiful, useful, or bring me joy.
With that, I'm also letting go of thinking that if I am within 150 miles of anyone I know I must see them. This is going to be a little tougher because it DOES bring me joy to see people. I like people. I'm accused of being friends with everyone, and I'm not even going to try to deny it. I like catching up with people and knowing what's up with them. But it can't be at the expense of my sanity. And some of this is me being worried someone will be hurt, but when I really think about it, I realize that I just want to see everyone and there aren't enough hours in the day and days in the weeks of vacations to do it. I'll just have to start making some choices and visiting who I can, when I realistically can.
and then maybe I'll have more time/inclination to blog about it! :)

Meet in the Middle

So, I was going to post all about my 4 day weekend with my b/f/fs, but then I saw that one of them already did it!

I don't think I can improve upon her post, so go there, read all about it! :)

What I will add, is that I bawled for about 30 minutes driving home. It's not as though I'll never see them again, or even that I have to fly back across the ocean to another time zone not knowing when I'll see them. I'm a 10-12 hr drive (half if you meet in the middle!), a few hours by plane, and always in the same time zone now.

I was sad, though. Sad that they got to drive together and I had to go it alone. and sad that they were going back to my beloved Texas and I had to go to the Wheat State (eye roll).

But of the things I know for sure (borrowing from Oprah), I know that these two that I was a child with, a teenager, a young person, and now a close-to-middle-aged person with, will always be in my life. Always, always, always. So I dried it up and drove back to stupid Kansas.