an apple a day...

If it's ok...

I would like to have a moment of silence for my Blackberry Curve who has been a superb mobile device.

I have had a pretty good track record with cell phones. Three is my running total. The Blackberry Pearl was my first introduction to the smart phone. That little Pearl saved me from getting lost on multiple occasions and I’m convinced that brickbreaker is the only reason I survived my freshman year of college. Sadly, she was lost forever in a tragic accident involving a beginning of a lifelong friendship during a John Mayer concert. What turned into a celebration of said friendship post-concert at IHOP resulted in the Pearl being left in the IHOP restroom. Tear. My second Blackberry was the curve. She was great. Her keyboard had a special clicking noise and her blinking red led notification light was bright and brought me lots of joy when I was waiting for someone to reply to a super important text.

There comes a day though when it is time to move on. It doesn't mean that the last thing wasn't awesome and right for you at the time. It might just mean it's time to embrace a change. Before embracing the new though, it is important to celebrate the old. We are still talking about phones though, right? Just checking. We could go all willy nilly and say that idea could apply to friendships, relationships, moving to new places, etc. but we will just stick to phones for the sake of the next paragraph.

Here is the deal, (excuse the gpoy) I am super excited. I never understood the "Christmas in July" shtick until right. now. Well actually, yesterday but you get it.  I agree that Apple is a very trendy product and  makes the banana feel super left out, but it truly is one of the most remarkable brands and is able to produce products that are incredibly user friendly and fun. I explained to my mom "you can do or find pretty much anything which seems complicated but it is so easy!" Most of you have probably been a part of the apple family for a long time but I’m sure you remember your first happy apple feeling moment. That is kind of what is going on here.                                                                                                  

Oh the Places You Will Go

The city of Huntsville, Alabama is located in a pretty sweet spot for being able to take day trips. Chattanooga, Nashville and Birmingham are all within a respective two hour radius. This is awesome.

So, last week I was a camp counselor for Jr. high kids in Chattanooga and got to talking one afternoon with one of my fellow counselors about Chattanooga and my lack of exploration in the downtown area she decided that I simply must come back the next week with her and explore. We hopped in the car on Monday and brought along another friend who was looking for an antique table. She had a specific store in mind and so we made that our first destination. The Knitting Mill was quite fabulous. The range of different antiques they had to offer was quite impressive.

They had pretty flowers. In pretty vases. To make you smile.

Here I was in the middle of an antique mall. Dreaming...dreaming of my future kitchen and how future me will make my future kids cookies and cream milk shakes using this antique hand spun malt milk shake mixer. There will probably be a night I don't feel like cooking in my future life. What is for dinner my future children might ask. The answer will be hand spun malt milk shakes, of course. It will be glorious. 

Things go better with [diet] Coke!

Vintage greeting cards are really worth the money. Some are made with fabric. I totally see why Hallmark could charge $3.99 for a card made with fabric. I do not see why their non-fabric, totally corny greeting cards can still cost me more than a venti ice coffee with Carmel, soy milk and a splash of love from starbucks. No sense, I tell you. No sense.

Did I ever tell you about my girl scout days? They were really special. It is then that I learned how to bake brownies and start a fire. Basic life skills.

Treasure chest. Literally. So much bling was in the place. Vintage bling. Vintage, which makes it slightly cooler than regular bling because it is probably safe to bet that at least a couple grandma's have worn it. Who doesn't love their grandma? Yeah, that's what I'm saying.

Getting to explore a town I've never been to is really one of my life's greatest adventures. The people who are unique to that town and how that town has helped make them unique. The local flavors, the coffee, the history. I love it.

We walked around downtown Chattanooga for a while. We stopped in Clumpies and probably gained a pound just from the intoxicating smell of fresh waffle cones being made. We stopped in Coolidge Park  and watched the little kids play in the fountain and ride the carousel. The landscape of the park was absolutely beautiful and seemed like the perfect place for a picnic. Next time in Chattanooga: a meal at Good Dog is a must as well as a little dessert from this divine bakery.

Life. It is quite good.