Bringing The Sun To Me

We are about to have our first day of at least 70 degrees here in the Northwest, since November 3, 2010.  (And by Thanksgiving it was snowing.)  That's right folks, it has been 198 days since we last felt a 70 degree day, and I would say that 70 is not even all that ambitious but I guess we take what we can get.  Oh, and did I mention that since we welcomed in 2011 there have only been 27 days without rain?!  The forecast is set for rain again by Sunday and today is the only day of 70 degrees and sunshine for the foreseeable future.

So anybody who wonders why I am so hellbent to get some sun, I think you probably get it now.  At any rate, I have decided that since the sun is playing shy with us out here I will do what I can to bring the sun, or at least the impression of it, to me.

Here is my latest attempt to pretend that I live somewhere other than I do.  I will be enjoying a little subtropical corner of life on my very own deck with some hearty banana plants, some lilies and Gerber daisies.

I really am usually pretty good at making the best of any day, no matter the weather.  I am usually not this much of a complainer about the weather.  Still, wouldn't you know that we would end up with a record-breaking year of lousy weather just after I have decided to move to a warm weather place? 

I hope the plants and I can survive the 'cool' and rainy summer that we are supposed to be getting.  Have a good one.  I am off to milk this day for all it's worth!

Finally, Some Vacation Pictures As Promised... and then I'm gonna' get all intropective or something up in here...

So first things first-  I needed some sun.  I got some sun.  My husband and I took a little jaunt to Palm Springs.  We had never been there before.  We were there for over a week during New Years and the temperature didn't get over 65.  People in town couldn't remember a New Years this cold in at least 10 years.  Most of the time it was only about 55.  I know, poor me.  But really, next time I put in a request for sun I'm going to be a little bit more specific.  Anyway, as you know already if you've read my stuff before, I enjoyed the sunshine and I drank in as much as I could.  So here's the proof:

Yes, Palm Springs is a desert.  It is surrounded by mountains and is full of beautiful golf courses.  No, we don't golf, but the views are nice.

This is the pool that I intended to spend a lot of time in.  This is the hot tub that I actually did get into.

After seeing this pet area, we really wished we had taken at least one of our dogs with us!

We visited a 'Cactarium'.  It was actually pretty cool.

Some of the cacti were just beautiful.

Some were scary lookin'!

Some were fodder for my husband and his weird photography humor...

(Palm Springs really did have some of the bluest skies I have seen in a long time.)

Speaking of weird humor-  Here is how one of the signs in

Joshua Tree National Park appears to most people:

Here is how my husband sees it:

Yeah, you're welcome...

More photos to come, if you can stand it!



So here's the deal.   Along with having a good time, which is what we truly did, this trip served to remind us of two very different and distinct things.  1.) that we are really fortunate to be able to get away and just kick it around and be forced to shop in cool boutiques and eat at yummy restaurants in town because it's too cold to swim.  Especially when others around us are struggling so mightily lately- our friends with the special new little lady have discovered that her diagnosis will require MUCH more treatment than doctors had initially thought before she was born.  For many people we know, this would be a dream trip of a lifetime.  Or they may never get to do something like this at all. 

So..... that makes the second thing we learned seem like small potatoes. 

Still, here goes 2.) that we really need to move to a warm weather place, ASAP.  The time has come and that's all there is to it.  We are happiest in the bright warm sunshine.  My husband and I want very badly to be in Texas.  We have visited many places and that is the one that feels most like home to us.  However, the current economy, housing market and job market are complicating our plans.  We have had many leads for jobs evaporate on us.  Employers end up deciding that they want a different type of position in the end, or none at all.  Worse, they want a person who is more local.  Hello, we'd be local, if you'd let us!  We don't even care if moving expenses are not paid for.  We just want to get there.  We can't sell our house without taking a huge loss, so we have made plans to rent it out using a management company.  Yes, we have heard the horror stories of what renters will do.  We're willing to live with that too. 

So it seems as if it all comes down to this-  What are we really willing to do to change things?  Staying here in the cold, long, rainy Northwest winter is yet another reminder that this is not what we want.  It seems it's time to go out on yet another limb of this here tree of life.  After much discussion, a decision has been reached.  My husband is going to greatly expand his job search to include many other warm weather type places!  Who says a stop along the way in some other city for a year or two would be a bad thing?!  After reading other blogs and seeing what many of you have done, by choice or not, I figure we need to give this more of a real try.  What do you think?  Are we nuts?

What I learned from a 'Sun Break'

Boy do I feel like I missed a bunch while I was away!  My friend had her baby, a month prematurely and now I need to get crackin' on that blanket I was planning to make.  (I'm really good with a project that only requires straight seams.)  The baby is well.  All the bloggers seem to be up to so much what with the New Year here and all.  It was worth it though, to be in sunny weather like I won't see here in the Northwest until at least May.  It wasn't quite summer weather, but I'll settle for warm spring-like temps. instead of the freezing cold we had here.  I will post some pictures from the trip as soon as I get them loaded up onto my computer. 
So I learned a few things from this little get away:
It turns out this was just the right time to step out of my 'real life' for a moment.  I missed out on some family holiday drama that ended up taking care of itself.  Seems I keep getting the message that sometimes it's best if I just leave things alone.  My worrying doesn't often change things, at least not for the better.  Maybe I can finally stop getting that message, if I will just heed it.
I also really experienced first hand that, at least for me, waking up to the sun shining makes a real difference.  I've never thought of myself as having Seasonal Affective Disorder, but I could be wrong.  All I know is that even though it was still a bit chilly that sunshine just made my heart sing.
Just a little indulgence and luxury really does do me some good. 
If you do a ton of walking (like at least 5 miles a day) you can eat out a whole bunch and come back a pound lighter than when you left!  That, my friends, is amazing.
Lastly, petsitters who leave my bathroom and kitchen trashed will NOT be hired again!  I always make sure the house is spotless before I leave for a vacation so I can relax upon my return, not needing to clean things up right away.  I am a bit of a domestic goddess and don't appreciate those who can't see that their mess does not belong in my domain.
Happy New Year, everybody!  Here's to a fabulous 2011 that I hope will find everyone just where they want to be, doing just what they want to do with those that they cherish!