I haven't been embracing the cold weather recently...until last night. Sitting next to a raging fire it practically felt like summertime again. I visited a farm with two of my outdoorsmen friends, they cooked a meal of meat, potatoes, beans, and onions (again). It was delicious! There is nothing like good conversation, good food, and mother nature. I am addicted to it. I also tried to hug my arms around the biggest tree I have ever seen (so far) in my life.

I found my friends camera in a jacket pocket and we had a photo-shoot. This is one of my favorites...

"I always feel like I'm missing out on something,

that someone is having more fun than I am,

so I take measures to make sure that is impossible."

Well I'm back in the moment where I belong...

My first flying experience went rather well. Nothing major happened and my luggage wasn't lost on the way. The wedding I attended was perfect. Both families were wonderful and the friends that attended were all very kind. It was such a joyful celebration! After the rehearsal dinner the wedding party and some family and friends went to go see Where The Wild Things Are. It was such a great film, go see it if you haven't yet! Mississippi was the perfect location for an ol' fashion wedding. I had a good first visit. It seemed like everyone I talked to at the wedding encouraged me to move to Nashville, or they told me that I looked like I was from Nashville. It was rather funny. I would love to move, but the money is tight and the confidence isn't there yet. My stay was too short, but the time spent was lovely. I could get used to calling that place home. One of these days...

>>>Charlotte, NC - Nashville, TN.

Rehearsal Dinner. (before the belly dancer showed up)

>>>>Drive. Mississippi - Tennessee

"So it's time for wakin' up

It almost hurts too much

It's not really been enough

When the sun rises I know it's time

to say goodbye to glorious night

I never wanted a moments peace

I never asked for your memory

I just want to be lost in this dream

So now is the time for good morning and goodbye

I'll miss your bold and starry eyes"

Tomorrow I will be catching my first flight ever. I am rather calm about it. But who knows how I will feel when I get to the airport and realize I will be taking this trip alone. Plenty of people have done it, so I am sure I will be fine. Hopefully my nerves will stay at ease for the trip. I have been doing laundry and packing today. I have drank a whole pot of coffee. The Lovelys are practicing tonight, it will be a good send off for me. Mississippi will be the 23rd state I have been to this year. May not sound exciting for some of you, but it's quite a triumph for me. I will be flying into Nashville and driving to Mississippi for a wedding. Wish me luck :)

This weekend was absolutely fantastic! The weather was perfect and staying up all night made the days seem longer again. Yesterday Lucas and the Lovelys practiced in my garage. It had been a couple of months since we last played together, but it sounded great. Then last night we all went out for a night of frolicking in fields, woods, and a huge crowd of people. Slept in a tent, and it felt fine. Morning arrived too soon and I ate an amazing breakfast with two of my wonderful friends. Sometimes I enjoy where I live... probably because my friends are boss.

"IT DOESN'T INTEREST ME WHAT YOU DO FOR A LIVING.
I want to know what you ache for, and if you dare to dream
of meeting your heart's longing.
It doesn't interest me how old you are. I want to
know if you will risk looking like a fool for love, for your
dream, for the adventure of being alive.
It doesn't interest me what planets are squaring your
moon. I want to know if you have touched the center of your
own sorrow, if you have been opened by life's betrayals or have
become shriveled and closed from fear of further pain. I want
to know if you can sit with pain, mine or your own, without
moving to hide it or fade it or fix it.
I want to know if you can be with joy, mine or your
own, if you can dance with wildness and let the ecstasy fill
you to the tips of your fingers and toes without cautioning us
to be careful, to be realistic, to remember the limitations of
being human.
It doesn't interest me if the story you are telling me is
true. I want to know if you can disappoint another to be true
to yourself; if you can bear the accusation of betrayal and not
betray your own soul; if you can be faithless and therefore
trustworthy.
I want to know if you can see beauty, even when it's
not pretty, every day, and if you can source your own life from
its presence.
I want to know if you can live with failure, yours
and mine, and still stand on the edge of the lake and shout to
the silver of the moon, "Yes!"
It doesn't interest me to know where you live or how
much money you have. I want to know if you can get up, after
the night of grief and despair, weary and bruised to the bone,
and do what needs to be done to feed the children.
It doesn't interest me who you know or how you came
to be here. I want to know if you will stand in the center of
the fire with me and not shrink back.
It doesn't interest me where or what or with whom
you have studied. I want to know what sustains you, from the
inside, when all else falls away.
I want to know if you can be alone with yourself and
if you truly like the company you keep in the empty moments."
-ORIAH MOUNTAIN DREAMER

Time

Last night I spent the night at a friend's house and ended up burning large amounts of brush and wood. We burned a dead tree down. Ate a marvelous meal of beef, potatoes, onions, and beans cooked over the hot coals. At one point I think there were four giant fires blazing at once. I slept on a trampoline under the stars, got a little chilly but I made it through. Beautiful, beautiful, beautiful.
Today my Granddad tried on his old Air Force things. It made me think about how fast time is moving. I wonder if I'm wasting it...