Teuxsday Adventures: In the 'Boro

Tutoring was brutal, today. The entire time my focus should have been devoted to cracking the ACT or dragging these kids through Steinbeck and making them smile, all I could think about was, "I want to be outside. Someone please pull the fire alarm. If I bribe these kids with whatever they want from the vending machine, will they refrain from telling their parents I cut out early?" In the words of the one of my very favoritest children, I didn't "dip"; but it was a true struggle.

After escaping the confines of the library, I knew exactly what needed to be done on this beautiful day:

After I loaded my camera with shots of powerlines, geese, flowers, fences, and more geese, I headed home. It was still pretty light out, so I figured I'd check out the path behind my apartment that the Dane beast and I walked quite frequently last summer. On said walks in the evening, we always heard these weird low, honking noises. Libby, of course, freaked out and started business barking (You don't know what that is? Pssh, cat lover.)  and the noise would stop. I figured it was some kind of frog or the swamp thing. Low and behold,  at the conclusion of today's adventure, I cracked the case of the mysterious honker:

That's right, a huge, beautiful white swan lives in the pond behind my apartment! It wasn't easy taking her photo for a few reasons:

1) It was getting dark, so the light wasn't really optimal for a photo. Also, my manual photography skills are lacking, I need to up my game a bit.

2) I interrupted her dinner, she kept sticking her head under the water to eat.

3) She doesn't like me? I did call her huge...how rude.

By the end of the summer, Backyard Swan and I will be fast friends...or she'll take out a restraining order on me.

-L

Who's Your Mama?

"A mother is a person who seeing there are only four pieces of pie for five people, promptly announces she never did care for pie."

Betty's Mother's Day was spent amidst carrot cupcakes with cream cheese frosting, mimosas served by the GOAT, just-popped irises, and the family who loves her. One of these family members was dressed as Woody the cowboy from Toy Story for the entire afternoon, making our celebration of  Betty even better.

Who's my Mama?

When I was digging around in one of our boxes of family photographs for these pictures, this conversation ensued between Betty and I:

B: What are you doing? Can I help?

L: I'm looking for pictures for my blog.

B: In there? Oh no. Do I get to approve them before they go on?

L: I guess...

(Betty reviews photographs)

B: Okay, but crop out the beer behind me. That's tacky, and let me fix your belt, it's crooked.

(Betty proceeds to adjust the belt on my shorts like you would for a small child who cannot dress themselves)

L: I'm only letting you do this because it's Mother's Day, otherwise, I'd be yelling at you.

B: Oh, I know.

Happy Mother's Day, Betty! I love you and, no, I'm not cropping out your beer. 

-L

Thursdates with Iron Horse Teux

Iron Horse Teux, meet p&p.

p&p, meet Iron Horse Teux.

Consider yourself fast friends.

It's official, a lovely, in-working-order Iron Horse Teux has pedaled her way into my life. With the company of all-things-mechanical-that-I-don't-quite-understand-extraordinaire, Klark H., into Ewing we went to check out Boys & Girls Club Bike Exchange. It was hard to say no to the Schwinn Varsity, and a little harder to turn down the Caliente; but Iron Horse Teux in the form of a Green Briar Free Spirit stole my heart. That's right, I didn't stutter, Iron Horse Teux already came with a name that I didn't need to think of and it's the Free Spirit. I did a little research online and discovered that the store I am most likely to fall asleep in while the GOAT drags me along to get the lawnmower fixed, Sears, is responsible for the Free Spirit. Enough verbal love on Iron Horse Teux, check her out.

You probably want to know what Free Spirit and I ate and did on our Thursdate:

What we ate: TWIST Eurotart and Mango swirl frozen yogurt with a plethora of toppings I am embarrassed to put into type.  Let's just say peanut butter in various forms made a number of appearances on my frozen yogurt.

What we did: Rode around the 'boro's parking lot and got sad because it was already dark and we couldn't ride longer. To which I told Iron Horse Teux to stop crying because she's from Sears and she'll rust.

I hope that the friendship Iron Horse Teux and I forge in the future is close if not equivalent to the one Ryane G. has constructed with her Popple. I imagine we, too, will go rock climbing and belt out Lady Gaga on our adventures.

Is it 2:25 on Friday yet?  I'm ready to ride.

-L

P.S.

Look at this cute racer tank from my new favorite etsy shop, dressing on the side. Suns out, guns out.

Weird Clip Art Wednesday: Fair Lady on Horse

Saturday is Jenny B's Derby Party in the city. Oh, and that horse race that no one really cares about is taking place in KY, too. In spirit of equine and silly hat lovers everywhere, Weird Clip Art Wednesday brings to you: Fair Lady on Horse.

 The hat I will don on Saturday is going to make Fair Lady on Horse look like she's loping into Casual Friday. Did anyone notice the staggering resemblance of FLH's dane-beast to my noble steed?

 

No that's not John Lock from LOST, that's my dad, the GOAT. Does NYC  let giant dogs on the subway? What if she's saddled?

-L

Miami: A Photo Story

What a crazy couple of weeks! I blame my absence from blogland on the account of vacation withdrawal. I desperately wanted to be on the beach, drinking a spiked strawberry milkshake from Johnny Rockets, and making conversation with Miami's maniac homeless folk. Instead, I was in a classroom in central jersey trying to convince adolescents that Holden Caulfield isn't a whiner, he's just misunderstood. I know, I don't believe it, either.

But I'm back, and my brain is ready to blog!

Stay tuned for Weird Clipart Wednesday,
-L