Sunday, September 05, 2010

Pumpkin

I purchased a bag of candy corn pumpkins and emptied it into a bowl. I put the bowl on my desk at work. I knew I would be safe with Kristi; she has expressed more than once her disgust of candy corn, and pumpkins in general.

Yet I find it interesting how every time she walks by my desk, she pops one into her mouth. As does several other office visitors. I am glad that they do. It takes the temptation of overdosing on a high-sugar, worthless sets of calories type candy, away from me.

It's that time of year again. The time of year that brings about intermittent periods of crisp, cool air and deep blue-sky days. The time of year that Morton adopts the smell of rotting pumpkins in the air. The time of year that Dairy Queen announces on its sign "Pumpkin Pie Blizzards are back!" and half of Morton can be found searching under picnic tables and benches for the hidden pumpkin pin.

I have already logged about 3 hours looking for that pin. I've had my fair share of pumpkin candy corn, and upon seeing the DQ sign yesterday, I dreamt about ordering a blizzard but have yet to do it.

Apart from thinking "pumpkin," I have been filling my time with wedding photography, sprucing up the new office space, and trying to get through whatever else is on my plate. It seems like even in my down time, I still have so much to do. I liken this to how I often view eating, if you may humor me with my analogy here. My eyes often tend to be bigger than my stomach. I would like "one of everything," and usually in no small portion. This looks interesting, that looks great, and for that I should have room to spare. Yet after I sit down, take a few bites, and survey what I have before me, I find I'm "full" a lot sooner than anticipated. Before I know it, I have a plate full of food I can't finish.

And so runs my life. I say "yes," to this, "yes" to that, and "absolutely" to everything else, because, well, it all looks interesting. It all seems feasible. And why should I turn it down?

Nonetheless, I am learning the power of saying "no," and the power of relaxing with a book in hand, going to bed early, or just taking an hour to pamper myself amidst chaos.

Anyway. It's Labor Day tomorrow, which means a day off. This is very exciting.

We shot a wedding this weekend, on Saturday. It was truly gorgeous weather. The bride and groom were also beautiful people inside and out, both of them vivacious, full of life, laughter, and love. There was never a dull moment the entire day. The highlight of my day was as follows:

Kristi and I were walking out of the church with the bride and groom trailing behind, both of us with our hands full of camera equipment. My eyes were fixed on a small piece of cardboard that one of the groom's men was eating out of... he saw me staring so I asked, "What's in there?"

"It's a cinnamon roll. Do you want the last bite?" he asked.

I did, but replied, "No, I'm not going to finish your cinnamon roll for you. I would hate to take your last bite."

"No, no," he said, moving towards me, "I can't finish it. Here," he offered, holding the fork out to me with a huge piece of cinnamon roll that was dripping with frosting.

I smiled big, and with no hands to help me, I leaned in and enjoyed the bite of warm cinnamon and sugar.

"That is amazing," I told him.

"It's the best bite, too," he agreed, "because it was right at the bottom so it was soaked in all the frosting."

YUM.

Let me make it clear that this groom's man was older and married. No sparks flew, and rightfully so. But I will say, feeding me delicious food may just be a quick way to my heart...

That night, I went out to dinner with my parents and a family friend couple of ours. We ate at a wonderful pizza place, then we came back to our house and played cards. I was introduced to buck Euchre. I have never played this version before, and my beginner's luck was nowhere to be found. I ended the first round with a score of -16. For those of you who have never played, this isn't like golf where a negative score is good.

As soon as our fifth player arrived, we played 5-way Euchre, always a favorite.

Today was excellent. I am off to a campfire shortly, so must wrap things up. Otherwise I'd probably just keep writing. I'll be back soon... love you all.

T

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