The end of January, hallelujah.

It’s skunk season and every night about this time Chester is dying to go outside. I know exactly what he’s after; does he think I’m ignorant? He lays at the door and does big deep sniffs and growls and barks his Alert II bark, which is, “There’s something out here, friend or foe, I don’t know, let me out immediately.” And I don’t and he huffs and sulls up on the couch.

I don’t like drawing people out. I’m not going to play games about if you’re mad at me and don’t call, I will notice, but I won’t care. If you’re mad enough to do that, man up and call and tell me why you’re miffed at me and give me an opportunity to apologize. If not, it’s likely that I don’t know that I’ve angered you. Like most people, I’m happy-go-lucky in my own little dimension. If I did it on purpose, well, may the Lord be with you.

I wanted to write about something serious and thought provoking tonight but I’m sort of skittish about wading into those dark waters. I just know I’d be off down the rabbit hole and probably neck deep before I knew it and too late to turn back because I’d be having all the right words and prose and it would be too good to erase and I’d have everybody’s business told before it was all over. And we can’t have that.

I got to see a friend from dispatch days today! She looks great, hasn’t aged, and her makeup was on point. I sat there jealous of her eyeliner the whole entire time.

Where do the evenings go? They used to stretch on for eternity. Now it’s like I come in, change clothes, feed Chess, talk to a friend or two on the phone, and it’s past time for me to be eating dinner. And I still have to write this and I typically like to shower at night so I’m not rushing of the morning. And you know I’m behind on my reading. But there are just not enough hours in the day anymore! Or maybe I’m requiring more sleep. Idk.

I just opened my KUB bill. Summer definitely has its perks. *trying not to cry* And it’s times like this I am oh so grateful for my small house. I swear I don’t know how people afford to live.

I want to leave you better than you all found me. My poetry sucks, but y’all seem to like my lists so here we go:

• I hope your favorite song comes on the radio in the morning
• I hope your socks are soft and don’t wad up in your shoe
• I hope you get a really exquisite kiss from the one you love best
• I hope you feel the sunshine
• I hope your ink pens write so smoothly you remark on it
• I hope you get Wordle in two
• I hope you receive a sign of better things to come

It may be bland, but it’s kinda like horoscopes, you gotta make it appeal to a wide audience.

My dishes are washed but my face ain’t so I gotta go.

Love from Appalachia,

~Amy