March 4, 2011

words to ponder.....

"our kinship with earth must be maintained; otherwise, we find ourselves trapped in the center of our own paved-over souls with no way out."
terry tempest williams
~
thanks to ann marie. her blog is where i found this quote.
~
i ran into a friend today on my side of town. the side of town he laughs at and is light years away from where he lives even though we both call madison home. it honestly took me seconds to register him in my mind as he was so unexpected.
along with school and work he's on call in our city as an interpreter.
spanish is his first language but he speaks 5 different languages.
impressive. right.
today he had patients at the eye doctor that needed his help.
~
after somewhat gutting my closets. the dining room looked like a garbage dump. i had 6 black force flex garbage bags filled to capacity and a few loose items in miscellaneous bags screaming to be set free. so off to the food pantry i went.
to say they were excited to see me
would be an understatement.
~
my son is working in construction. it's a job he has had off and on all through high school and right now it's pretty much full time. he is always dirty. always covered in something. usually it's mud. lots of mud. yesterday it was mud and tar. yep tar. black dried on tar after working on a foundation. it was on his boots. jeans. face and arms. i gave him a loaf of freshly baked corn bread and wished him good luck while his dad gave him a bottle of mineral spirits.
thank god he can do his laundry at his apartment.
but
that's only after he goes to the car wash
where they have the hand held wands where he can hose himself off first. boys.
~
today i bought him new work clothes at good-will
*
happy weekend
everybody
~
OH
and
on monday. a big fun give-away
and
yes it has something to do with the sweater lady


21 comments:

  1. It brings shiver to me timbers to think of washing off in the car wash! You live in Wisconsin, right?
    The quote is so sad I want to wrap myself up in the cocoon of my blanky and nest.

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  2. Oh that "Simplify" is setting in nicely (at least in your closet!) :) And I bet your son loves his work. Sounds like good honest, hard, messy work. :)

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  3. Picturing him hosing off at the car wash made me laugh.. I'll bet it doesn't make him laugh too much though.

    Oooh the sweater lady.. looking forward to it.

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  4. Tease !!!

    Thanks for the bits of life. Sweet/and not so sweet things that make up the days.

    Have a great weekend, Beth !

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  5. productive is good - it is a happy feeling

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  6. love this quote. and your son! i love him - love him getting dirty, love him hosing off in the car wash. at 19, he can do this, and people just smile, maybe remembering (like me) boys they knew who did the same thing after tearing apart old WWII airplanes all day. in 30 years, people will look at him like he's crazy.

    xoxo

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  7. I have been waiting with bated breath for the sweater lady giveaway.

    And I did that with the closet recently, too. It felt so good.

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  8. Hahah...yep- boys!
    They aren't happy unless they're dirty...mine anyway:)
    Happy weekend to you!

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  9. Oh you big tease! Making us wait two WHOLE days :D

    xx
    z

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  10. Glad he has his own place to clean up at. hugs my friend.

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  11. Gooey, sticky tar....yuk!! He definitely has his work cut out for him. I'd say the cornbread was a good deal for sure.
    And yes...you are a tease...making me wait like this. Sigh!!
    Hugs
    SueAnn

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  12. Sounds like your son is working hard ( it' so good that he has a job in this difficult time fo so many ). Dirty wrk is better than no work at all, right.

    Have a joyful weekend!

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  13. ...laughing at the image of your son standing at the carwash, wand in hand, rinsing off the mud..lol.. hey, it works!

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  14. Boys.....I love them! Even when they're all grown up they are still little boys in their mom's heart.

    Giveaway? Awwwwww......

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  15. Yes, our kinship with the Earth and People must be maintained. That is a haunting photo, Beth. My sons also worked construction - in fact, the one who is an architect still does. They stripped in the garage when they lived with me. Do you mean the Sweater Lady who makes the new old sweaters? WOW!

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  16. If it involves the sweater lady I am in for sure.

    I liked visiting your normal day.

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  17. the spring cleaning bug hasn't hit me yet, I think i need more sunshine. boys. they are goofballs, but we love them anyway.
    Love the quote and the photo...
    Have a great weekend!

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  18. Those car washes are sooo handy.

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  19. OK, ya had me at that quote...it is a wonderful one. I remember the days of raising 3 teenage boys, I can almost smell that laundry. YAY for your lighter closets...isn't it such a great feeling?

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  20. I love these slices of life. Six bags full? Oh, dear -- you motivate me!

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  21. I love Ann Maries blog! ...and this slice of life post:)

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**I love reading the comments you leave, as they make me feel like we're sitting in my kitchen, having a cup of tea, discussing life and wondering where all the time has gone ...beth