LOL on the mischief - I live for it <img src="/ubbt/images/graemlins/wink.gif" alt="" /> No offense taken whatsoever!
I did get your article - wow! I just haven't had a chance to comment on it yet... but I will. Today I need to catch up on a bunch of stuff.
I spent Monday out playing! B and I went geocaching fairly early, and I got home just after 8, when the kids returned home from XH's place. I had intended to be home before the kids, but there was a huge police checkpoint (DUI checkpoint) that took us about 20 minutes or so to get through. The kids called me to say they were home just as we were waiting for the local constabulary to wave us through.
We found about 15 or so geocaches - B took me to some he'd already found, I took him to some I'd already found, and we both found a bunch that neither of us had visited before. Some were easy, "no-brainers" and a few were quite strenuous hikes. He took me to a park where there's a "Deep Cut" - before the Civil War, a railroad had been run through a deep man-made gorge through a local mountain - very neat, the air in the 'cut' is about 20 degrees cooler than the temperature around it. Living where I do there's a ton of historical landmarks that revolved around Civil War battlefields and such, and I'm rapidly learning about all of that. While the war itself is not of particular interest to me, I do find it fascinating how the armies used the landscape to their advantage and such, and the local topography and geology is really interesting. We took photos, found caches... had a nice lunch to refuel... I'm not sure how far we walked, but I'm surprised I'm not 'feeling the burn' from all the uphill climbing, some of those hikes were pretty steep.
B has told me that he's really happy to have a lady friend to go on these hikes with. There are lots of women in this hobby - but perhaps not all go for the higher degree of difficulty hides? I don't know - but I used to hike and walk a lot as a kid, so it's coming back to me quite easily!
I feel the same, and I really enjoy his telling me about the local landmarks. He grew up around here, so he's much more versed in local history and such - so I'm gaining a lot more from the geocaching than just the thrill of the hunt, and the obvious exercise of getting out there and schlepping through the forest. A T-shirt I saw on another geocacher once sums it up best: "I use multi-billion dollar military satellites to find Tupperware hidden in the woods."
On one of our hikes B found Muscadines - I'd never heard of them, but they are a grape-like fruit that grows wild. He used to eat them as a child, and one of his family used to make wine from the fruit. We went all "Survivor-Man" (LOL!) and ate some! I'd never heard of this fruit, but it was tasty! Guess not every gal will hike into the bush and eat wild berries! Hey - when I was a kid I'd go searching for wild blackberries, blueberries and such - so this was no different!
I think I forgot to mention too, that on Saturday, it was quiet at the shop, and I asked XH if I could leave a bit early since there were 3 of us there... and he was willing to hold down the fort so I could go. That was nice. Between leaving a bit early on Saturday, and having Monday "off" (shop is always closed on Mondays but I didn't have to go in and do *any* work at all!) it was the closest thing to a vacation I've had in over 18 months. Very refreshing, and it was nicer still that I had someone fun to spend some time with!
We also cooked dinner together Saturday night. He bought the steaks, I bought the fixings for tortellini Alfredo. We worked in his kitchen without getting underfoot and we had a great meal together, then cleaned up afterward. We talked and talked long after that.
And I've laughed more in the last week or so, than I have in years. It seems that we have a very similar sense of humour, and once one of us makes a funny, we laugh and laugh til it hurts! Haven't done that in forever. He said he hasn't either.
It's so nice to just relax, be myself, and spend time with someone who appreciates me for who I am. I don't have to put on airs, I don't have to walk on eggshells, I don't have to try to impress.
It sounds kind of corny but I feel like a teenager again, but with about 22 years of life experience to make me a bit smarter! I'm laughing, being silly, doing things I used to do when I was a teenager (hiking and stuff) - yet doing so with the maturity factor that isn't there when you're 17 or 18. I'm loving it!
People are noticing too. Once again I got compliments from a customer on Sunday - a man and his family came in, they haven't been in in a while and at one point he asked me how I was doing, said I looked great! Said last time he was in I looked a bit worn down (ya think?) and tired, and that day I looked rested and rejuvenated. I thanked him and told him that things are going very well, and I was glad he'd noticed!
I guess it's showing that I'm finally relaxing and just having a good time!
Who'd have thunk? I mean - I've been taking better care of myself and losing weight for several months now - that's not 'new' and I've been receiving compliments for some time now as people notice my positive changes. However since B asked me out on a date, things have changed quite a bit for me, and now I have something to look forward to, rather than pining away for something that may never happen, while going through the motions of moving on.
I think at this point I can really say I'm really and truly moving on - and it's FUN!
JinGA
