Day 10 “looking forward to”

Christmas lights and carols*, / strawberries in October, / D&D home games

I thought of the middle line first. I brought home a couple of tomato starts at the end of June from a co-worker. (You guys, we are not gardeners. I like the idea, but lack the follow-through it takes to grow things and keep them alive.)

But for some reason, these tomato babies needed to grow at The Hobbit Hole. They grew leaves and were so precious and then a deer chomped them. So, Ant and I moved them to the fenced-in garden and one never came back and the other is growing leaves again.

A couple weeks ago at lunch with my parents, Gramps, and Ant I was talking to Gramps and Dad about wanting to grow strawberries. They advised me to plant them late fall–all the strawberry farmers do this because it tricks the strawberries into thinking next Spring is their second time to produce (I told you, not gardeners.) So, it’s already in EveryDollar to buy strawberry starts to plant in the same pots when the tomato baby doesn’t grow.

When I first read through the prompt list, Christmas was the first thing that came to mind. The world is so much more naturally kinder at during this time of year and we need this right now. Obviously, we need the kindness all year long, but it shines at Christmastime.

Also, we’re hanging lights up outside on The Hobbit Hole’s roof for the first time–or any roof for that matter. Also, also, Ant and I save for Christmas all year (sinking fund magic!) and I am already thinking about buying presents.

I’ve also done this with Francesca Battistelli this past week and Drew and Ellie Holcomb.

The tree in the picture was last year’s Christmas tree. We’ve done live trees since we’ve been married, except for our first year in the Hobbit Hole (2018), and I must say fake trees have their positive attributes. Last year, though, we didn’t want to rearrange the living space for a full-sized tree, so our local nursery, Eisley’s, were selling these. Ant and our landlord neighbor planted it in the yard pre-quarantine and Ant named him Bart. He’s growing like a champ 🙂

And then, Dungeons and Dragons was a no-brainer also. I’m thankful for Roll20, the online platform we use to keep the campaigns going, but there’s a certain kind of magic in being in the same room as your party, fighting Medusas and shambling mounds, following druids through trees, saving the known world from the banned OG deity, and all the other shenanigans that happen in an adventuring party.

There are many other things I’m looking forward to: camping in a couple weeks, traveling, seeing that beautiful Pacific Ocean, book events and Shakespeare in the Park, hugs and game nights, my work cell phone arriving haha, and big, fun, futurey things that Ant and I have been talking about. These ones mentioned in the poem, though, are the closest to my heart and soul right now.

What are things, people, events you guys are looking forward to?

*Full disclosure: I’ve been listening to Christmas music throughout all of quarantine. We always listen to Josh Wilson’s version of “O Come, O Come Emmanuel” because it’s so legit. But I’ve been listening to All the Dave Barnes, to the point that I made a Spotify list of his albums in chronological order and this obviously includes Christmas music 🙂

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Writing Process Notes:

8-10-2020:

// Pretty much the entire poem was verbalized at breakfast this morning. The last line needed some tweaking to be five syllables, but I think I figured that out on the drive to the office.

// Like an hour. Picture editing. Writing these words. Posting on Instagram first and then FB and Twitter. Word TOTAL: 655.