A Tree and an Outback

 Well...so much for writing more regularly. I do often think about writing, but by the time I sit down to write, the inspiration has floated off like a lost birthday balloon.

At the moment, I'm sitting in my Christmas tree-scented living room. For growing up in the wild, it sure is a beautiful tree. Wait, maybe that's why it's a beautiful tree. It was also a cheaper tree. We showed up to the old-fashioned Christmas tree lot in town--a local family business--and first explored the trees with names like Douglas and Noble. They were impressive...and expensive. One of the tree guys pointed out the section with the "mountain trees." He said those are the ones he usually picks for his house. They have their own special shape and character. They also have a lower price, which I was happy about. Within about 30 seconds, I found my tree, and another helpful tree guy took it to the tree shaker machine. He turned it on for a few minutes and violently shook all the leaves and any half-hearted pine needles out of the tree. After paying for it at the cute outdoor booth, the tree guy loaded it up into my housemate's Outback. The only thing that makes me kind of sad is that I learned that it takes 8-12 years for a tree to grow to this size. It makes me love this beautiful tree even more knowing it endured the last decade of freezing winters and burning summers...just for me. It's truly an honor, and I promise to keep it alive as long as possible and enjoy every minute of its presence in my living room.

Back to my housemate, Sonya's, Suburu Outback. She bought it a few weeks ago, and the next day we test-drove it in the mountains in our backyard (about 20 minutes away). It was spectacular. The all-wheel-drive 1998 champ powered up those steep gravel roads, crushing ice puddles and plowing through slush-powder snow. Did I mention it was spectacular? So were the views!

The school is on break for six weeks now, so that slows down my life a bit. There are definitely still some things I should be working on, but there's definitely some time to procrastinate--or at least pace myself. I was hoping I could spend a nice chunk of that time with my family back East, but ended up realizing there's a little too much COVID in the air these days for my comfort level. It's hard not to be with them, but planning to make the best of it.

Alright, off to bed. Night.