Rain

A summer thunderstorm rolled in this afternoon and has continued into the evening. The smells (water saturating dry air and dirt), the sounds (the steady patter of rain hitting the earth, thunder rolling across the sky), the colors (gray, dark gray and darker gray; deep greens): they have reminded me of time spent in the woods, when my only shelter was in a creaky log building, a leaky teepee, or a flimsy tent.
Near Yellowstone National Park, a favorite camp of mine is situated at the top of a valley between a lake of the woods to the east and a large drainage basin to the west (think wooded valley with a creek dissecting it that stretches for a couple of miles). Clouds would bunch up in the western sky, gradually darkening as they crept eastward. Rain would often precede the thunder with its steady, soft thumping. The thunder grew increasingly louder until it hovered over the top of you, at times pounding right as lightning hit, and if you were lucky enough to be in your teepee at night during one of these storms, the lightning was so bright it would silhouette the trees through the teepee canvas.
I would lie in bed listening to all the sounds of a thunderstorm: water dripping onto the teepee, rolling towards the ground; trees swaying in the wind; bushes and leaves and branches catching the water and then letting it fall when it became too heavy. Life coursed through the forest during these storms, and I often found myself sucking that life in.

Mein Schatz

Erin has been on my mind a lot over the past couple of days, more so than usual. I'm just so grateful to have her as my friend and wife. I can't explain how it happened, but Erin is exactly the type of person I always wanted to marry. I often worried that I would be unable to convince this ideal woman that I was the guy for whom she had always looked. I have never figured out how that worked with Erin, but here we are, and I am happy she took a chance with me. Erin, I love you!

Bait and Switch

Our shampoo and conditioner bottles sit on opposite ends of the shower, and for some reason while our family was staying with us last week, the bottles were switched (shampoo where the conditioner was, and vice versa). The bottles look basically the same, so for the past couple of days, I have been getting a squirt of conditioner rather than shampoo.
During my shower this morning, I remembered that they had been switched, so I go to where the conditioner used to be thinking it's the shampoo, and conditioner comes out. I asked Erin if she had switched the bottles back, and being the smart person she is, she switched the bottle to their original locations so she didn't have to deal with it. She just didn't tell me about it. More proof that women are smarter than men.

Jump for My Love

So, we look a little crazy in this picture, but hey, we are ridiculously happy with each other (cue the theme music "Jump for My Love" by the Pointer Sisters).
Anyway, the Texans are in town for Camille's wedding. Good times. Our nieces (4 here so far, one more to come, along with the two nephews) are crazy fun. Here's a shout out to our special little ladies.