Looking S-MUG.

Does my outfit match my mug?

Maybe. Maybe.

Are we surprised though?

Our story begins at Train Stop Market. So there I was, Friday afternoon, shopping at the Market, which has become the epitome of what summer is all about.

Sunshine, shopping, supporting small, everyone in good spirits and spending it all together in the great outdoors.

It was here that I found this sweet mug.

So I took it home (amongst other things, including a salmon bra- you’re not Alaskan until you own one!) and it wound up coming in handy when I was trying to find something to wear.

If you don’t know me by now, I have a TON of clothes, yet for some reason, I still struggle with finding the right outfit. Well this time, as I was perusing my racks (yes, racks) I remembered this mug I had bought and thought “oooo I like those mug colors.”

I go and grab it and sure enough, the result was an outfit that was fully inspired by the colors of my new mug.

So Sunday rolls around and of course everyone is complimenting my look, to which I very quickly pull out my mug to show them just how cute my outfit really is.

Yeah, I was feeling proud of this look, one might say I was looking a little sMUG.

Get it? Get it?

As the day goes by, I start thinking, remembering, recalling what it is that makes me dress the way I do.

It’s the expression of self, and being inspired by something as seemingly insignificant as a mug. And it’s not just a pattern in how I dress, but in how I write, and in how I live.

I believe “everything is copy” (thank you, Nora Ephron) and that means that everything has a story worth being told. With that comes an observance and an appreciation of things that others glaze over. I am inspired by the seemingly insignificant, the little, and the overlooked because I find that those are the things that make me see, feel, and understand myself and the world better. My life becomes richer and happier the more I learn to appreciate all the little things in life.

Here’s a mug: a piece of pottery that probably just stood pretty on a shelf for months and look at the impact it had on me because I saw it as more than just an ordinary mug.

It’s about living with gratitude, which helps me see the possibilities of what’s there instead of the lack of what isn’t.

So yeah, am I a little bougie for walking around proudly holding my little mug and looking as matching as could be? Maybe. Maybe.

Again, are we surprised?

Gonna Be good.

The other night, I awoke with a fright.

It was 12:32am. Its sounded as if the entire neighborhood dog patrol went off.

Unaware of what was up, I went to the kitchen to snag a snack (because, well, why not) and was just returning to bed when I heard a kerfuffle outside. Heart pounding, I crept to my window, bare naked in the moonlight, pulled back the curtains, and not four feet away from me was the biggest moose I had ever seen.

Stomping her hooves and huffing at the neighborhood dog, I stood there in shock as this moose prepared her imminent attack.

Moments later, she bolted away, shaking the ground as she ran.

And that, was just one of my many summer highlights.

The other day, I was out on a hike and saw a momma bear and her three baby cubs on my way back, and the week before I went out to sea and caught my limit of halibut. Of course I brought in the biggest one. ;)

Let’s see, Monday I nearly fell into the river, attempting to salvage the drift boat from floating all the way down river to Skilak Lake. I finally had my house warming party the Sunday before, and I even went out for karaoke with my friends, which was a first for me!

(karaoke that is, not going out with friends)

It has been go go go, which is, if you ask anyone in Alaska, what one does when you’re living with 20 hours of sunlight in a day.

But I’ve realized I’ve fallen short doing some of my daily routines in the wake of my summer schedule. Laundry, vacuuming, dishes, mowing, reading, writing, and of course taking my coveted naps have all but been tossed to the wayside as I wake up early and go to bed late, exhausted, but ever so happy.

It’s been a while since I felt this alive, this vibrant, and desirous for more days like the ones I’ve been having. Summer is busy, I know that much, but this year feels different, better.

I don’t know if it’s because I’ve finally settled into my house, officially living in a space that’s all my own, or because I’ve taken a major step forward in taking care of me and my health, or all my time spent in the company of those I really enjoy spending time with (*happy sigh), but I’ve definitely made the choice that this summer is gonna be good.

And it has been.

So I’m not neglecting writing to you, or God forbid ghosting you. If I’m late in posting, I’m probably out slaying salmon, or taking in the sights. Or trying to recover from a midnight moose…