to all the T's i've worn before

the clock is ticking on my summer,

so i'm finally getting some projects

underway...

this one was my mother's; she passed it along when i was in college

we have a great house

with TOO MUCH storage space

no degrees from here (tho' my mother has one)

every possible available space

that isn't a living area

is captured as storage

another from my mother

how fabulous!

said we

this one was mine; tenth grade in Cambridge, England

& promptly

filled it UP

very very fond memories of going to the first few Eno River Festivals back in the 1980's

so, one by one,

i am going through

these spaces

legitimately mine x two

no more what ifs

or maybes

or just in cases

one of many from college (though not all kept)

but....

too cutsie for me, but i wore it

we are sentimental folk

one of my favorites

who love the memories

held by our things

i was a psych major

so while i donated

my 90's vests

(oh, the fashion)

a turning point for me, sophomore year in college, after a rocky freshman year

i am keeping

these faded, yellowed, stained, painted-on

junior year in Sevilla...thanks Mom & Dad!

t-shirts

i left in 1990, but these were sold in anticipation of the Seville Expo

that chronicle

my young adulthood

the location of my first real job...& what started my love of OT

i've folded them better

than i did before

he went there & brought me back this t-shirt (but i've been there, too)

duly documented & blogged

(hello)

his...i stole it

& will tuck them away

our dating hang-out when on his turf

for what?

they aren't cool concert shirts

i know way more about music than i ever thought i would - but i'll never know as much as he does.

(well, a few are)

his favorite...my very faded autograph

mainly

before they went to Europe & stated their opinion

they are place-holders

to remind me

absolutely no recollection of this place.  they all run together after awhile.

of the sounds, smells, sights

possibly not mine.  but i've been there!

& feel

his job & a huge part of our early parenting years.

of these oh-so-brief

preschool years for my two

years of my life

nine years of my life (& 6 of each of theirs)

someone else

can give them away.

one of the solutions to my mid-life crisis = become an OT

i climbed out of

my t-shirt wearing days

by going back to school,

getting a job,

and developing a

middle-aged

silhouette.

but

i still have

a few favorites

in my closet:

a faded purple frank lloyd wright one;

a hot pink OT centennial one;

a soft blue one with the outline of

state of north carolina

& the word

HOME.

sojourn

where have all the letter writers gone?

our personal communication has been abbreviated to

snapchat, memes, & filters.

this proves that i have always been:

a) a list-maker

b) a lousy nightowl

c) ocasionaly poor at spelling

d) able to find many reasons not to do something.

my typical pattern.

it's horrible,

but

i'll survive.

&, usually,

after all that,

i never want to leave.

you'd think i'd be over it

by now.

& perhaps i am,

finally,

in my middle age.

i did a lot of

arriving & leaving

in my childhood.

we lived in St. Andrews for three years

(1975-1978)

this class photo is from Primary 4

(third grade)

i believe you'll be able to figure out

which one is me.

~ ~ ~

my best friend was Caroline.

she is on the row behind me,

with a red bow in her hair.

& i still recall

which boys

i thought were

cute.

Primary 2 (second grade) Guess which one is the American Import?

a family member requested a copy

of some original family documents,

so my mother has been sorting through things.

i had never seen this photograph before,

of my paternal grandmother's parents.

William Evans Hannum & Charlotte Davis Hannum,

likely around 1909 in Massachusetts.

he was an electrical engineer; she was a nurse.

i see my eyes in her face.

i'd wanted to see the You Are Here

exhibit at the NCMA...

interesting to see it

after going to the Renwick's Burning Man exhibit

when we were in DC.

i do so like some *SPARKLE*

this is a rather disjointed post,

but it is the events that filled the sojourn.

which mainly was filled with

lazy hours in my parents' house.

this is NOT their house,

but it is one in the neighborhood.

when i was growing up,

it was the Cat Lady's House

(rarely a positive descriptor).

i waited for my school bus here

in 7th or 8th grade,

standing on the cat-stinky porch

when it rained

(compounding the odor).

before & after,

i am allergic to cats.

it was fixed up nicely

since them,

but it has been sold.

& unbelievably,

the new owners

ARE TEARING IT DOWN

to build a new house.

looks like it's being scavenged

by architectural salvage

at least.

there's actually quite an uptick

in construction projects

in my parents' neighborhood.

there are very few open lots

in Cameron Park,

and only one in the area

where my parents' live.

it was just sold.

& i'm eager to see

what they'll build.

walking towards vacant lot

looking at vacant lot

walking back to 1810

childhood home*sweet*childhood home

my parents have a fox family
in their backyard!
there are four pups,
& the den is under a low, wooden deck.
on the deck is a swing....

fox on a swing

foxes waiting for dropped birdseed

&

a few fleurs from a walk

in the neighborhood

sweet pea

black-eyed susan

naked lady (belladonna lily)

spiderwort (purple heart)

then it was

time to go home