Jack o' creativity - the spooky chapter

Here's the pumpkins by candlelight.

My home has gone to the furry ones

So as frequently seems to happen to me, I walked through the door into my dark apartment this evening, and as I turned the corner at the kitchen counter, my feet hit a number of inanimate objects on the floor.

I flipped the light over the sink on and was met by a drinking glass (yes, one made of actual glass - luckily it didn't break), an empty Advil bottle and my new S'mores figurine lying haphazardly on the floor.

What does this mean? It means that my youngest troublemaker, Archimedes (the curious black cat pictured here), has been traipsing around on part of my kitchen counter while I was working hard at the office to put a roof over his head.

This is similar to what greets me every morning in the bathroom, a tipped-over trash can. Archimedes tips it over in order to pull out the q-tips. The best part is that he does it multiple times during the day. It's tipped over when I get home, it's tipped over when I go back into the bathroom to prep for bed, it's tipped over when I get up in the morning.

The second best thing is what he does with the q-tips - he plays with them until he gets bored and then he throws them under the bookcase in the dining room. This adds to his collection of milk bottle rims, toy mice and hair bands. Well, if I'm ever running low on any of these items, at least I know where to look.

My children are rounded out with Shelby, seen lounging above, and my diva, Patches, my calico shown super, super lounging at the left.

So while I'm working hard, the kitty crew are living large at home.

Brotherly love

My parents both come from small families. Each of them has one brother. My dad's brother - my Uncle Greg - lives in Knoxville, Tenn., and celebrated his 60th birthday this past March. My cousins threw my uncle a big weekend party to celebrate the occasion.

My parents ventured south to warmer pastures (March in Tennessee is definitely warmer than March in Ohio) for the weekend.

My cousin Shannon was in town last weekend to spend her school's fall break with me and was nice enough to share these photos with me. I just couldn't resist posting them.

Photo 1: See Uncle Greg be kissed by my Dad, Skip

Photo 2: The Eidam brothers hammin' it up.



Photo 3: All of the Eidam boys - Curt and Greg (my cousins), Uncle Greg, Skip

It had been years since everyone had been together under one roof. Unfortunately, my sister and I weren't able to make it down, but it was great that the original Eidam brothers were able to get together and share the love.

Jack o' creativity

The bf had a most brilliant idea this past weekend - let's carve pumpkins! Sheer brilliance. I haven't carved pumpkins since maybe I was 10 or 11. Needless to say, I was very excited!

So we trekked down to the local farmer's market to choose the blank pumpkin palettes that would become our artistic masterpieces. (Of course, we also had to pick up some homemade bread, strawberry jam, grapes and the best part, the chocolate buckeyes he found as the cashier was ringing us out - yum!)

My jack 'o lantern (pictured above) has interesting eyes, but lacks original character in the mouth. Bf's pumpkin on the other hand (captured here) has the spice of creativity that mine seems to be lacking - his is puking its guts out.

Now I just need the nighttime photos where their funny faces are glowing by candlelight.

And I have 12 months to plot next year's brilliant creative pumpkin masterpiece. He beat me this year, but I'm going to call it a "practice round" - which means it's game on next Halloween!

Full circle

In my first blog entry, I mentioned a person who had come back into my life, a person who completely turned things upside down and startled the outlook I had long held tightly to.

In the same entry, I made a bold statement that I only wanted to fall in love one more time in my life.

I probably told myself at the time that this person and this wish were not linked together – though I’m nearly positive that is what my subconscious desired.

In the time since then, this person and this wish have become directly linked together. In this man I have found the person I will love and spend the rest of my life with.

In this man I have found the one who makes me laugh and feel safe, who challenges me, who loves me and my quirks, who makes me smile at all the right moments, who is tender and passionate, who I adore and want to spend all of our days together making happy.

Down on one knee, foiled

So while driving home the other night, I had what I thought was a brilliant idea for a new book - one that I would of course write and from which I would make millions.

Why not write a book - aimed at guys - on how to make the best marriage proposal to the woman you love (though I did figure I could throw in a chapter for the gal looking to surprise her guy - or her gal - with a proposal).

Then I jumped on Amazon.com to see if any other books on this topic existed... much to my chagrin, it's been done already. Boy, I'm always behind the curve.

But in the meantime, I've decided to informally poll my engaged and married friends to see what their personal proposal stories are. Maybe some other brilliant angle to this book idea will come to me. I'd hate to lose out on the millions due to me.

The view from 25

So the PR firm I work for just moved into new digs on the 24th and 25th floors of Cleveland's historical Terminal Tower. With the move comes a new company name - Falls Communications - and a new view (pictured here). So, not only do I have a new view from my new office (though it is sans door), but my window opens. For me, this is a definite bonus!

In our old space, I had a window, but my view was the immediate side of another building.

So here's to watching the fireworks at Indians games next year from my perch on the 25th floor.

Random inspiration VI

You can't just turn on creativity like a faucet. You have to be in the right mood.
What mood is that?
Last-minute panic.
~ Calvin & Hobbes

Enthusiasm is excitement with inspiration, motivation and a pinch of creativity. ~ Bo Bennett

Creativity is allowing yourself to make mistakes. Art is knowing which ones to keep. ~ Scott Adams

Creative minds are rarely tidy.

The creative person is both more primitive and more cultivated, more destructive, a lot madder and a lot saner, than the average person. ~ Frank Barron

Every act of creation is first of all an act of destruction. ~ Pablo Picasso

The colors of fall

Though I'm still trying to get used to the quickly shortening days and too-rapidly falling temperatures, I am anxious for the beautiful colors of fall.

Autumn is my favorite season (see "10 things I love about fall" entry). My childhood fall seasons were spent outside, hiking in the woods and jumping in the leaves (of course, after we raked them).

Fall camp outs at Scout camp included hot cocoa around an evening campfire, hanging out with friends and perhaps even the occasional campfire song.

I find the season romantic and quixotic. Evenings curled up by candlelight. Sleeping in on a random Saturday morning. Long drives on a cool Sunday afternoon.

It's a shame when the snow comes.

Always as a gift

Why is it that some women require their boyfriend, partner, husband to say "I love you" at the beginning or end of every interaction... every time he walks in the door, every time he leaves for work, at the end of every phone conversation? Is she afraid that if she doesn't require it, he'll never say it? Does she think he needs to be constantly reminded?

It doesn't make any sense to me. Requiring it will all too soon turn into "Iloveyoubye." One word, not the three separate syllables it should be. Every time I hear these words from the man in my life, I want to know that when he looks in my eyes, or holds me tight against him, and he tells me "I love you," that in that moment, nothing else matters. And I want him to know that when I say those words to him, that there is nothing more important than him.

i never want the words "I love you" to be a requirement. I always want them to be a gift, to be received and cherished.