connecticut.

well,
that was quick.
yeah.
neighbors,
the woodsly goodness is so flippin' different than my birthplace.
i mean it.
like, different planets, almost,
with people so drastically dissimilar as to be a species altogether separate from my own.
the good news?
i don't really socialize with either subset of folks.
not the nutmeg-stately urban-derived ethnically-ambiguous dirties in connecticut,
nor the bearded camouflagians in workboots that predominate the north country.
mostly,
i have the ones i'm around,
and the rest can F* right off.
the last few days were no exception.
me, and harvest and maple,
and a little tiny bit of my parents, too.
that's all i really needed.
berfday shoppin' after school?
yeah.
dinner in the city?
yeah.
cake at home?
yeah.
c'mon.
that's all that had to happen.
well,
that and also this:

i'm sayin'- rules is rules.
don't be dumb.
emergency tofutti with fall sprankles is a must.
and if i must, i must, and i certainly will.
*
anyway,
we had a good time.
there was a lot of driving.
across the northeast, and back again, in a short span of time,
with a whole ton of travel between towns once i got there...
but that's just the way it is.
you know what i did when i got to where i had to be?
yup.
i parked out of sight at the high school.
uh-huh.
because who knows if i'm embarrassing or not?
right?
what'd be worse than getting picked up at school
by some big loserhole of a parent in front of the rest of the entire student body?
ew!
nothin'.
i know what i look like, guys.
and i'd hate to be a source of stress to my kids.
turns out, she doesn't care, because she is not an A*-hole,
and apparently, in her eyes, neither am i.
expert.
so i picked her up, and she ruined about thirteen photographs,
until i caught this one without her making a face:

candid profile jauns.
awwwwwwwwwwww.
i remember when she was just a cute little baby!
everybody says it, but that's because it's a thing.
tall boots and high socks and flowing hair is a helluva lot different
than onesies and poopie diapers, so the passage of time is really severe.
what a beauty, tho.
actually,
they both are good-lookin', hard-workin', sweethearts, and that's no joke.
harvest:

maple:

huh?
i don't know what she's showing me.
i was taking pictures, man.
the thing is, they're big. ...for small people at least.
yep.
and they're really becoming actual people.
luckily,
they're not too sh!ttty yet.
and we had a hallowe'en moment, too.
uh-huh.
because i handed out all the ingredients for their costumes,
an they went bananas,
and everybody had big fun.
-
duders,
connecticut was a blur of food and roads and family togetherness.
i can't tell you about the relief i'm feelin' at how easy it all went.
the times have changed.
the fights are over.
the war is won/lost/forgotten about.
the old grudges are too smudged to read into,
and the new memories are founded on moments of monumentalgratitude and generosity.
this is the way we live now,
and i am grateful for the time i've been given to span with these women.
that's it;
never quiet, never soft.....