Nothing makes the earth seem so spacious as to have friends at a distance.

-Henry David Thoreau

Bad news travels fast, but not really fast, or that it traveled at all, just that I finally decided to check my blog roll (aka Hello World) and get some updates on C's life.  Would text but. Not going to. Sorry about your bad stuff.  The next person I come across with an iPhone I'm grilling till I get at least the serial number and a full view through all pictures.  Absolutely. Unbelievable. Totally lost complete respect and all trust with the world. Like really people?? I'm sorry, you're not actually entitled to things, anything really, yes, even an iPhone, which you see sitting around, much less next to someone's bed. Like what? No, that isn't yours, I don't understand. I've never been so happy with those Fraternity boys and their reassuring protectiveness.
Go to hell, theif. thief? Thief.

I've spent the past few days MIA myself, in this small-beyond-small seaside town of Frankfort, Michigan, where I have been eating big breakfasts, meeting more old people than I've ever seen in my entire life, watching my grandpa get older and sicker than I'd ever thought possible, and my grandma love him more than I'd ever thought imaginable.  Taking hot saunas after surfing cold waves all night, napping in sun-soaked couches and sleeping on sand just footsteps away from our house.  I get bored about every five minutes, irritated by my talk-talk-talking grandma every four, and find myself sinking deeper and deeper into the mental retreat that is this week every one without looking back.  The first two days I tried scoping out for cute 20-something locals, but when I realized I would probably not be any more successful at the community church fish-broil supper than I was at the 10 a.m-farmer's market in town, I sort of lost interest.  I leave my phone everywhere and barely ever charge it.  I've learned this town doesn't go by the number on the clock, but by how low in the sky the sun is.  I've worked out more times than I have since New Year's and the only music I've listened to  is from the 77-going-on-21-year-old-potbellied-barefoot guy playing his guitar on the pier after lunch every afternoon.

 If there's one word to describe this place it's small, and if there were two more- slow and enchanting.  While the town is so small it doesn't have one stoplight, the houses are so big, it looks like God set up a bunch of magical doll houses, all with pretty front porches, right next to the beach, and all a sidewalk away from a happy little street they call downtown, where everyone buys jewelry and knows my grandma.  And here I'm "Phil's only girl, she's 20, can you believe that? College, that's right. Boy, she's radiant."  People are sweet here, if I've ever seen it. But they also tend to do that 3rd person thing when they're talking about you while they're with you, kind of like you're like a lime green bicycle on display in the window or something.

Speaking of lime green things with wheels, my grandpa bought funded a brand-new longboard for me to ride around on- Kahuna Creations- and she's a babe. Even my surf shop sales guy cousin says so.  Jake- but we'll call him -Guin: for the bloody forehead he got penguin-diving off the pier and into the.. sand.. shallow-ly located below the water.  The longboard- named Owen- is the beginner of all beginner longboards and I even got called out by some annoying 12-year-old skater grommet for my wheels being lame. Go eat pavement, scrawny punk.  (Now I need to go buy the new bright blue gumball wheels all the locals have around here.)  And also get a sticker or two to put on top of the sharpie-d "If found please call:" thing my grandpa made me write on the bottom. So lame right?!? Ugh!!

Well, I need to go to sleep if I'm going to be up for the old people 11 a.m. service at the church tomorrow morning. (Everything is "old people" around here.) If I'm not back before I leave this place, I'm probably out chatting with Miss Esther and Marge, or trying to fit in with my awkward junior-in-college age and beginner longboard.

Best wishes on new boys, no phones and loving life! It's really not so bad when you can manage to laugh back a little.

Live in the sunshine, swim the sea, drink the wild air

This dolphin is how I feel today.

Such a good day. 

I'm cooking tonight

Because when I know school starts back up, and I stop being full-time couch baby and start being full-time student, I'll never have the time.  And that's okay. Because tonight is probably all I need to shake the pepper outta my skirt.

So, we're having steak strips with grilled onions and green peppers, black beans, and blueberries and watermelon. That's one protein-anti-oxidant-packed meal, folks. But they starve me in Chapel Hill, as all I have on my shelf of the pantry is an almost-empty bag of pretzel chips and a box of Oolong tea bags. So this tasty menu is necessary for and energy/vitamin re-load.

Something funny just happened. I was responding to my mom's comments and questions, engaged in conversation, when I realized she was not, in fact, directing said comments and questions to me, she was talking on the phone to someone else. Nice shan.

Back to dinna:

Butter up the frying pan, throw in some onions and green peppers and flip them around till the edges get golden brown.  Then put them in a separate bowl and throw the steak strips in the pan to cook separately. Once the steak is cooked, throw the onions and green peppers back in so the flavors meet.   

Watermelon balls are juicy and lip-smackin' good.

Throw a whole wheat tortilla in the pan to crisp it up, then put on some steak, lettuce, tomato, cilantro, cheese, and black beans. Tuck it into a burrito, or eat like a taco salad. Yum! 

How to stay skinny #23: Laugh all the time and eat whatever you want

All the blogs I read are women happily married and getting pregnant. 

I need to find something else to do with my free time. 

Like dancing around in the sand.