Weekend Coffee Share | Patio Make Over

Welcome back, friend.  

I'm glad you could stop by and visit.  Did you notice something new?  Well, my parents were by this morning and we were able to spruce up my apartment patio area with flowers, plants, and a new set of windchimes.  Best of all, my mother gifted me a cafe table and chair that she had originally found by the side of the road.  I had mentioned how I wanted to write outside more, but my furnishings at the time were less than ideal for it.  

Cue my mother saying "Oh.  I have a table out back that might work for that."  

And, sure enough, it fits perfectly on the patio and is the right size to hold my laptop, a cup of coffee, and allow me to actually sit up in the chair instead of slouching over my portable lap desk.  

My dad contributed to my patio make over by putting up some mesh wire so that my dog could not slip out between the bars and as of this writing he's currently lounging out here and enjoying the view with us. 

Weekend Coffee Share | Breaking Bread and Poetry

 

With March at an end, I've also seen the end of my Slice of Life Story Challenge writing.  Writing a blog entry every day for 31 days was quite the feat, and I'm happy to report that I was successful in it.  I'd say it's the project that helped me find a purpose in blogging again and, after all, it's how I came to find this lovely community for sharing my week over coffee.  Although, if I'm being honest, at the moment it's a little late for coffee.

I thought in April I'd shift my focus back to novel writing, but the past few days I've found myself diving into poetry over at #verselove on Ethical ELA.  It's hard not to when April is National Poetry Month.  It's been a joy to dabble and experiment with low stakes writing.  I've always been a fan of poetry, but I have to make sure that it doesn't completely overshadow my noveling.  I've got a project to finish after all, luckily I have an excellent writing group continuing to cheer me on and I know they'll help keep me focused on my novel commitments. 

Of course, I do have other projects ongoing and now that it's April it's time to revisit my monthly personal challenge of a new bake for every month of the year.  Earlier this year I set the goal for myself to try a new recipe: January and March were both cookies and February was probably my favorite (a rather fancy coffee-based brownie).  Last year, when quarantine began, I joined the rest of the population in learning how to bake bread.  That was my first time baking bread of any kind and it was a pretty big hit.  I thought this month would be a good time to focus on enriched doughs, another thing I've never baked before.

Specifically I made hot cross buns using a recipe from "A Literary Tea Party: Blends and Treats for Alice, Bilbo, Dorothy, Jo and Book Lovers Everywhere."  It's apparently a pretty popular Easter bake and so it seemed appropriate to make it this weekend.  The buns turned out to be pretty tasty.  While I don't think I'll be presenting them to Paul Hollywood any time soon, but my mom certainly approved of them and that's what counts most.

It may be late for coffee, but it's certainly still chilly enough.  Tomorrow's weather promises to be just as gorgeous as it was today and maybe even a little warmer.  I look forward to getting out and doing some exploring while the weather holds and before the infamous southern summer makes the outdoors unbearable.  I hope you'll come again for a drink next weekend and maybe then this will be a better chance for coffee.

This is part of the Weekend Coffee Share Link-Up as hosted by Natalie the Explorer.  Check out her blog and the link up and join us for a beverage of your choice.

#SOL21 | 27 | Chatting Over Coffee

Welcome to another weekend of sharing a nice warm mug of coffee (or your drink of choice) and some time together thanks to Natalie's link up: Weekend Coffee Share.

This is also the last Saturday of the Slice of Life story challenge (see the information at the bottom of this post).  I can't believe we're in the final stretch.  Last year when I first did the SOLSC I don't think I came anywhere close to blogging all 31 days!  Now here we are at the end and, though I hope I'm not jinxing myself by saying this, this time I may actually manage to share a slice every day this month.

But there are still a few days to go before that happens.  Instead I'd like to tell you about my week as we sit sipping our coffee.  I've really been inspired by how Tammy structures her coffee share posts, so I am going to try and mimic that writing style today.

If we were having coffee, I would lead us outside to my patio with our mugs.  I would mention how I just got a new order of coffee in from Grounds and Hounds that I hope we can both enjoy.  We can hear the birds singing in the trees and a quiet lofi song plays from my laptop.  It's cloudy and cool this morning, but pleasant if you have a warm beverage to enjoy.  It's a little disappointing after the sunshine of most of the week, but at least it's not raining yet.  There are likely to be storms later, but at least we're outside for now.  There's a small window to enjoy temperatures like this in the southern US and I want to take every advantage I can to be outside.  

If we were having coffee, I would point out my nearly empty bird feeder and the new hummingbird feeder I put out.  According to what I've read the hummingbirds should be migrating through my state soon and I want to make sure I catch their attention this year.  I just hope it doesn't draw ants or wasps instead.  The other birds are happily partaking of the bird seed at least and I'll probably need to refill that soon.  Unfortunately, it looks like they may have also attracted a cat to skulk around this morning.  Her belly is low to the ground though and I'm starting to wonder if maybe she is a pregnant cat looking for a safe place to give birth.  I really don't need a cat or her kittens -- my dog Cooper doesn't share attention easily.

If we were having coffee, I would tell you about the adventures I went on with my dog this week.  It was our Spring Break and I forgot how nice it was to just take things slow and go out into nature.  I took Cooper to several parks and gardens.  I tried to get him to ride in a special dog-back pack I bought, but he was pretty stubborn about that and insisted on being on the ground.  I think he enjoyed getting to smell and leave his mark on all the trees and bushes.  While he did that, I would try and leave my mark on the pages of my notebook: sketching the plants and creeks and scenery in either drawing or words.  It was pleasant and did wonders for my anxiety and stress, the opposite of having to brave certain crowded places in a mix of masked and non-masked individuals.

If we were having coffee, I would definitely share those pages of my notebook with you, as well as, some of the pictures I took of my time out and about yesterday with my friend Katie.  We are both vaccinated and felt a little more comfortable eating outdoors at a restaurant in Hot Springs called Diablos Tacos & Mezcal.  We ordered tacos and margarita flights to top off a day of shopping and garden walking.  It was delightful, though I'll admit I probably drank a few two many margaritas.  It was a nice treat for myself though and I don't regret the money spent at all.  

If we were having coffee, I would sigh and say that unfortunately we are going back to school next week and that I'm not sure I'm ready for Spring Break to be over.  It was relaxing and I have not yet prepared lessons for Monday.  It's still break though and I need to focus on that, not the fact that I didn't grade anything over break.  It really is hard to get out of the mindset that I should work during this time -- I shouldn't!  I've also reached another snag in my novel writing because I've reached a part in the story that's new and not just revisions, so it's causing some frustrations for me to write.  I know I just need to push through it, but it's not always easy to find the motivation to even open the document.

If we were having coffee, I would reach over and pet my dog's head for comfort.  He's sleeping soundly, even snoring, likely still exhausted from yesterday's adventures.  I would offer you a smile and invite you to share your celebrations and frustrations as well.  No sense in me doing all of the talking.

I'll sip my coffee and wait for you.  After all, it's not raining yet and the coffee is still warm.

This post is part of the 14th Annual Slice of Life Story Challenge.  

                    #SOL21 and information around Slicing can be found on Two Writing Teachers. 

#SOL21 | 19 | What's More Spring than New Things?

Weekend Coffee Share is a new link-up I am joining starting today and, much like the IMWAYR link up, I have no idea if there is a right or wrong way to do this.  I am going to assume there is no wrong way -- which is reassuring and actually something I stressed to my students' today when we were doing a practice with sentence structure.  The point is to experiment, stretch, and try something new right?

I am hoping that this break will give me a lot of opportunities to stretch myself in writing.  My SOL post streak is still 19 days strong, but I also have a novel I am continuing to revise and I am hoping I can carve out a lot of quality time next week to focus on it instead of the burdens of reading student essays.  

I actually started a new notebook today and one of the first things I wrote in it (aside from a note to the notebook itself) was a brainstorm for a new novel idea.  That brings my novel idea count up to 3 and finished revised drafts at 0.  It's getting really hard to stay focused on the revision, but I am determined to see it through.  Also, I think idea is being generous -- I have a premise or concept at best.  But we all have to start somewhere and at least now I have a means of writing it down and coming back to it for later.

That's not what I want to blog about though.  It's been awhile, but I finally got back into the habit of using my notebook to do a 5-4-3-2-1 Recap of my week.  My new notebook is completely without lines and that's a first to me, but I've already noticed that it makes me want to play more with layout and drawing on the page.  That's what I caught myself doing between the novel idea notes and the recap.  I'm looking forward to seeing what I produce on the page now that I have no restraints with lines or dots or anything.

As for the recap.  Here are Five Things That Made Me Smile this Week (in no particular order):

5. The picture from my sister of my niece wearing a Captain America mask.

4. S's notebook share about music that included a subtle nod to the music we listen to in 3rd block.

3. My new story idea.

2. Attending wake up and write every morning this week.

1. Finishing one notebook and starting a new notebook.

Now, if you will excuse me, I am going to leave some comments and then make time to watch the latest MCU show: Falcon and Winter Soldier -- something I have been excited for since it was announced YEARS ago.

This post is part of the 14th Annual Slice of Life Story Challenge.  

#SOL21 and information around Slicing can be found on Two Writing Teachers.