credit goes to: http://www.flickr.com/photos/24522007@N02/ 

After a year and a half, the Caudills decided their hearts have healed enough to make room for a new four-legged family member. This past weekend, they rescued a german short-haired pointer named Sadie. She’s young and feisty and lovable. She’s going to be a great companion for my parents and I absolutely cannot wait to photograph her and show her off to everyone.

In the meantime, I’m wondering how my sister’s dog is going to feel about a new girl at the Caudill household when she, Lauren and her husband come to visit. Lauren told us Josie (pictured below) was making a welcome basket for Sadie, but we’re all convinced it’s a basket of tricks and Sour Patch Kids, just like Josie herself. If she’s not sleeping, she’s up to no good.

[Josie “Bean” Holtzclaw, puggle made of sweetness and mischief. Photographed at my parents’ place, 2009]

Joyful, joyful, joyful,
as only dogs know how to be happy
with only the autonomy
of their shameless spirit.
-Pablo Neruda

In this year, my 30th revolution around the sun, I vow to live my best life, just like my greatest teacher showed me.

[photographed: Miss Gertie Caudill]

…promise,

             Jen

Yes, those are my purple undies. Don’t try to act like you’ve never seen a pair of purple undies before.

Back in the states, I use a dryer. My clothes pop out of the dryer all fresh and warm and soft. They smell like dryer sheets and make me deliciously content.

In Girona, I hang my clothes out to dry. They hang in the sun and the breeze for hours on end, slowly drying and slowly becoming nearly as wrinkled, crispy and stinky as they were just before they were put in the wash.

They’re lucky to be in Girona though. Verrrry lucky.

I feel a bit like my clothes hanging out to dry. For the first few months here, it was so romantic. “Oh, look at how everyone hangs their laundry to dry!” Outside windows, on rooftops, along terraces and across ancient, paved streets. Such lucky clothes to be hung in this romantic, fresh air, instead of being tumbled and baked inside an energy-sucking dryer.

We’re approaching the end of August now, creeping dangerously toward my 29th birthday, and I’m beginning to feel disconnected from that “soggy clothes on a line is romantic” mindset. Someone please give me a dryer and some dryer sheets. And while you’re at it, I have a few other things on my list that I’m missing dearly:

Five Guys burgers and fries
Good beer
My favorite bands playing live music [that I can actually understand in small venues that serve good beer and are within stumbling distance of french fries]
Movies in english on a big movie theatre screen with a gigantic soda and stale movie theatre popcorn

Now I know what you’re all thinking. As soon as I get my fill of these things in the states this winter, I’ll be dreaming of the fresh Girona air and paella and croissants.

Ahhh. It’s true.

Time to bring in the clothes from the line. While I’m out, I’ll take a long glance at the sun setting behind the pyrenees in attempt to straighten out my attitude. It will probably provide a nice, temporary reprieve and I’ll begin to feel bad for this rant and the laundry-related metaphor.

Oh well.

I promise to write again - sooner this time, rather than later.

-Jen