It’s been awhile since I’ve written one of these.

Find joy where you can.

I like when the sun shines on snow and makes it sparkle.

I like Christmas decorations, except Santa.

I like Johnny Depp’s movies. I’d like an opportunity to find out if I’d like him in person.

I like reading real books, except when it’s dark- then I like my Kindle.

I like trips. Short ones, long ones, on a plane or in a car. To the city, to the sea.

I like trees and I will cry if deprived of them for an extended period. I like magnolias and live oaks best of all.

I like dogs with spots.

I like drinking cold beer on warm nights outside.

I like seeing 4-wheel drives that look like they’re actually taken off-road.

I like corny jokes.

I like being near water.

I like all the items on the Chickalay menu. Except that kale stuff. That should go without saying. And the macaroni, which I have not tried.

I like watching groundhogs.

I like driving when there’s not much traffic and the road spreads out before me. I like going 100.

I like flowers, but not the common ones. Keep your roses and daisies and babies breath. And your carnations, too. Bring me daffodils and dahlias and foxglove and lilies.

I like people that tell the truth.

I like my red hair.

I like singing, even though I suck at it.

I like dancing in the morning.

I like a lot of sugar in my coffee.

I like fences and old mailboxes.

I like to wear navy.

I like boots and high heels and sticky nights at the rodeo.

I like helicopters and trains and carousels.

I like looking at people and guessing their story. Their occupation, the relationship of the people they’re with.

I like eating big steaks and complaining that I ate too much afterwards.

I like cupcakes, but not at weddings.

I like key lime pie and creme brulee.

I like mozzarella cheese, basil, and tomatoes for a snack.

But I also like squirt cheese and chicken crackers.

I like feeling fancy on a average day.

I like forgotten notes inside books.

I like ludicrous objects found along the shore.

I like it when people say ridiculous things on a whim, when they don’t take themselves so seriously.

I like Etsy.

I like chocolate in non-conformist shapes.

I like I Love Lucy.

I like old country songs, old southern houses, and old men waiting for their wives.

I like some facial hair on a man, and eyes that sparkle, and a keen sense of humor. I like when they wear boots to make their living. I especially like it when they can operate heavy machinery.

I like not having to make a decision on dinner.

I like rain one day at a time.

I like when my copy machine works and I don’t have to cuss it.

I like to see kids playing outside.

I like seeing people talking to each other over dinner, not on their phones.

I like spending time with people who make me forget I have a phone.

I like to see people join hands and pray before a meal, especially in public.

I like to see people hold hands.

I like our flag. I think it’s the most beautiful of all.

I like .5 lead pencils.

I like watching cows. I also like eating them, as described above.

I like cheeseburgers a lot.

I like the smell of charcoal and cinnamon bread at Dollywood and the smell of the ocean when you first get there and open your car door for the first time in hours and it’s kind of repulsive but then you realize how much you’ve missed it.

I like blackberry cobbler, and that makes me miss my neighbor, Mrs. Conner.

I like watching birds hunting worms or just sitting there, singing. Why do they sing?

I like Kacey Musgraves and Margo Price and Brandi Carlilie and Sturgill Simpson. I think they’ve got nothing to hide and they’re not singing to impress anybody. They are birds.

I like lizards, but I like salamanders better.

I like seeing people hope for something that I already know will come true.

I like being downtown. I like mailmen that walk.

I like people that still wear “old school” watches.

I like baskets of apples.

I like it when we know the same people.

I like to talk about what you like.

Love from Appalachia,

~Amy