I was recently searching for information about putting our boat on the Kasnas River when I came across a site describing the river as a work in progress, never the same river twice. Nat and I tried and failed to reach the secret beach earlier this summer because the vegetation was out of control, but last weekend we tried again and saw that the main trail was mowed so we ventured on. We still missed the little winding path to the actual beach and had to spend some time searching for it, and once we found it we were surprised to see a very different beach than when we first started going in April. The giant piles of branches are gone, and now there are little sprouts growing on the sand. It was a pretty warm day and the water wasn’t too bad so we stripped off our clothes and went swimming. Ha! Saw three American white pelicans, too.
My parents are coming this time next month to bring me my grandpa’s desk we’ve been talking getting to me for the past couple of years. That plus Candy’s needing to be in her own space (that’s not the room in the basement because I despise visiting my basement past sundown) sparked this intense urge in me to completely reorganize and refurnish our house. So I spent a few minutes on Craiglist before I found us this great mid-century credenza with lots of storage to replace our old TV stand, and an awesome Restoration Hardware couch so we could get rid of the couch and loveseat that were my parents’ when they first got married. Then we went to the IKEA in KC, the first weekend it was open, to get this display case to replace my two old bookcases from the Baker neighborhood sale in Denver when I first moved in to my apartment there. I’m stoked I can finally display the fox hide/soft mount I’ve been stashing in my closet since I got it. And maybe we’ll replace our giant old CRT TV someday, but we’re both actually still pretty attached to it for right now. (Narrow shots of everything because that’s the best my lens can capture in my little house). So now there’s room to move things around for this beautiful, special old desk we’re getting next month. Here’s what our house looked like after we first moved in. I feel like it’s… grown up a lot.
I’m super wiped out by school lately and I missed working on photos. It’s been a rough couple of weeks. My normal excitement and anticipation for a challenge when I am presented with a new opportunity have been replaced by fear and anxiety, and since I am torturously nostalgic, I have been spending way too much time and energy thinking about past issues and relationships. I can’t believe I’ve been at my desk job two years already, and realistically I’ll be here another year before we leave Kansas. I have a lot to look forward to so I’m trying to focus on that. My fervor for trip-planning has been put to good use working out the details for my trip with Dan to SPE in Madison and Nat’s and my trip and eventual move to the Northwest (house listings galore), and I’m pretty desperate to make New York over Thanksgiving happen. Nat’s never been! And Thanksgiving in New York, with taxidermy and Lonesome George, sounds temptingly magical.