We Are Always Running For The Thrill Of It.

I have some good news and I have some bad news. The bad news is I found a fairly large spider in my bathroom and now I'm paranoid that they're all over the apartment. The good news is I won't be paranoid for very long because we're gettin' our bee-hinds back to Texas! I have started looking at apartments, and while I found four places that look good, H. is concerned about moving into an apartment that we've never set foot in. As such, we might request the aide of our family members in apartment scouting in the near future. We haven't actually set a date as to when the move will happen, but I have a feeling it will be in mid to late November.

We'll be renting a moving truck that will tow my car, and H.'s car will follow behind it. Am I nervous about making a 16 hour trip as a caravan? If you count planning where to buy gas based on the rental truck's mileage, then yes. The worst part about it will be that H. and I can't talk along the way (although, he is thinking about getting walkie talkies). I'll most likely listen to music most of the way, which means I'll be making twelve cd's full of all the songs I love. That might be a stretch - I technically have 2.1 days worth of music according to iTunes, but that includes all those songs that you think you like but end up getting sick of a month after purchasing. I might also look into an audio book. Assuming the rental truck comes with a cd player, H. will most likely stock up on Ticket audio for the ride there.

In my assessment of how much stuff we have in an attempt to determine the number of boxes to buy, I decided that it would be too much work to take my plants with us. Even if I could pry them out of the blinds and away from the window ledge, I don't know where we would put them in either vehicle where they would be safe from sharp box edges. I do intend to make a bouquet out of 'em before we head out, though. I thought for sure the first sunflower would be fully in bloom by now, but it turns out I'm wrong.

That purple dome center thing seems to be growing upward while the
frou-frou bits grow outward. I have absolutely no idea why it's doing this. 

As you can see, it's almost completely fuzzified. Theoretically, after the
fuzz covers it, the flower will slowly wither and leave seeds behind.
Hypothetically, I could harvest these seeds and plant them in Tejas.
H. is not very fond of eating the seeds, but I don't see why.

This is the shortest flower. The rest of the blooms begin
a foot or more above this one. 

As of today, there are four buds in full bloom, three buds with the beginner yellow petals unfurling, and five more buds in the "crown" stage. The oldest bloom is not the tallest at 2' 6"; the tallest is 3' 5", and is the second oldest. I would like to wait until the fuzzy centers all fill out before fitting them into a vase, but I might just clip them all a week before the move and enjoy the sunshine.

For the past two weeks I've had to remind myself that it's October. It doesn't feel like October here, it feels like August. The trees look the same, the bushes look the same, and the heat is the same. The hundred-degree weather has left, but it's still in the nineties every single day. I am looking forward to drinking tea and hot chocolate and eating spiced muffins. I'm looking forward to wearing pants and sweaters and long sleeved shirts and layers and fancy boots.

Most of all, I'm looking forward to seeing my family and friends for the first time in five months. It feels much longer than that, and I'm incredibly excited to have that back in my life. See you guys soon!