Your place or mine?

Dating is a relatively new concept for me. I strapped myself into a marriage at only 20 years old and while I'm inclined to use the term "stupid" when describing my decision, stupid is not wholly accurate. Marriage was what I wanted at that particular time in my life and the man that I married, well I was so blindly in love with him---not even a freight train could not have stopped me. Alas, one of the most beautiful and bittersweet things about life is that it's full of change and in the end---I changed, he changed, and it ended. Since my divorce, I've had the opportunity to learn how to be single for the very first time in my adult life. And dear sweet God---how I've needed it!

If I took the time to really discuss my dating life, how I've grown, how I learned to be content, what I'm looking for...yada yada yada...I could sit at this computer for hours and bore you to death with my emotional epiphanies (although I know my soul mate would love it)!

So instead of boring my readers, I'll keep it to the basic facts: I'm single. I do occasionally date & enjoy the company of men. But most importantly, I'm ridiculously happy sleeping alone in my twin bed, inside my trailer, underneath a sleeping bag, and with only my two cats by my side! :)

While I've promised not to go into details, I did want to share with you how the addition of Terry in my life has made for some very interesting dates. Take the time I was wined and dined by a successful man in the real estate industry. For the sake of this blog, I'll call him "Mike". Mike and I spent the night going from restaurant- to restaurant- to bar, where he graciously footed each bill and told me men should always pay for the first several dates (for a girl who lives in a trailer, I say YES--MEN SHOULD!).

I found Mike to be very intelligent, classy, and like most men I seem to date these days--his shoes were better than mine (this is the huge downside to dating metros, they dress better than you). Drinks and conversation flowed effortlessly, until about mid-date when Mike looked at me very seriously and said "I know about Terry".

"What?!!?!" was the only word I managed to mumble as I tried not to choke on my sushi. I was completely floored by his statement and my mind was racing..."how does he know about my trailer??? I didn't tell him...or did I??? hmmm...is he a stalker? Wait...how....OH MY GOD--HE MUST HAVE GOOGLED ME!!!"

It felt like the longest thirty seconds in the history of dating before my brain finally clicked and I responded by asking if he had found this blog. He said he had and that he'd seen my Europe blog as well. Wow, what a dummy I was to think that men don't google women they meet off the internet. Of course he would have googled my name to see what he could dig up in advance. The real problem here was me--- what the heck was I doing by not googling him!??!

Some people think my blog should be private in order to avoid the situation I experienced while on a date with Mike. However, I like that my blog is public. I don't put enough personal details to identify where I live or work and I want people to access my blogs without a login. While I might have been surprised during my date, I'm not ashamed of my life or where I live---it's just not something I generally refer to in my opening line.

I've not seen Mike since our one and only date--so if he's continuing to google me, I'll say this for the record: Thanks for the fantastic night out! But no thanks.... :)

For any future men that I might date and have googled me, let me also set the record straight in advance: I own a trailer. My trailer's name is Terry. And try as you might, Terry is not going to be "rockin" from anything other than my poor dancing skills. Terry, Kudos, Harley and I are quite content in the woods alongside my parents house, even with the coyotes and deer. Should you pose the question "your place or mine", you'll NOT be getting this response:

"Oh yeaaaaah baby, you can come check out my trailer..."

But I'll welcome a dinner out! HAHA! :)

-Jenny

Bed time routine

Let's face it, I'm a unique woman. And no, not for the 100's of different reasons why I'm just "oh-so amazing" (ps: this is a joke people---note: sarcasm!) but simply for my bed time routine.

I once used to be like "most Americans", some nights I was good---I'd brush my teeth, put on my pj's, and slide happily under the covers. Other nights I drank too much, never even took my clothes off (let alone put on pj's), and crashed on top of my sheets. But NEVER, did my typical bedtime routine include bundling up, wearing a head lamp, or looking out for coyotes on my way to bed.

Things change though and in the era of "trailer trash Jenny"...I most certainly do all of the above & more! Let's take a closer look...

It's 9:52 pm:

• I've brushed my teeth & put in my bite guard
  
• Gone to the bathroom one last time
• Replaced my corporate clothes with sweat pants and a sweatshirt
• Checked my facebook one last time...oh wait, maybe two last times...
  
• Now I grab the essentials!
  

The Essentials: BITE & SUCK (it's the pink waterbottle), ipod, cell phone, and (wait for it now)...
a HEAD LAMP!

(Male announcer voice here) That's right ladies and gentleman! Jenny went to Italy, had the best time of her life, got fat, racked up a bunch of debt....and earned herself a HEAD LAMP! (insert: loud cheering crowd).

Haha. I get ahead of myself. Seriously though, I walk out to Terry with a head lamp on. It's pitch black and I live in a heavily wooded area complete with coyotes, deer, and vicious little raccoons (they are so loud in the brush that it makes me think they are really cougars)! So yes, it turns out that head lamps are very handy little tools! 1) Wearing a head lamp allows me to see a great distance ahead while I walk. 2) I can hold other things in my hand instead of a flashlight. 3) Well I don't have a third reason but really, who doesn't just love head lamp?

Me...in all my glory







Where were we now? Oh that's right, I've got my gear, now it's time to head out for bed...

To back track a little, let me talk about the boys. Right now, I let Kudos and Harley out in the mornings before work and then again when I get home. When it's time for me to head out to bed, I usually have to do a little work in the dark to coral up my two little ones. Now if they haven't eaten---it's usually a quick endeavor, especially for Harley (AKA: The fat one). Just call out food and that little kitten will come running from where ever he might be! Kudos can be a bit trickier though, it just all depends.



Captured--- Kudos! You can tell tonight wasn't too hard because you still see light from my parents house.





Found Kudos...but where is Harley?

"Harleyyyyyyy FOOOOODDDD" I call out as I scan the yard...

"FOOOOOOODDD''.....

Oh look! I spot him!

"Harley...don't run my little kitty kitty..."

Got HIM!

It's 10:04 by now, I've managed to gently toss both my boys inside of Terry and then I jump into her freezing cold interior.

First things first, I go to light my candles as quick as possible.

Problem: lighter is out---dang! No mood lighting for tonight, so I continue to wear the head lamp.

As I said, Terry is a cold girl at night!!! While I do have a small space heater, it takes a while for it to do any good. To get warm in a hurry, I plug in my ipod and start shaking that ghetto booty of mine! Ok, I could say this a little more literally for you: to get warm, I dance. I dance in sweatpants, in the dark, inside a trailer, wearing a headlamp, and listening to bad pop dance music. I dance on what used to be the bathmat in my old apartment because Terry's floors are cold on bare feet. I dance and the trailer rocks a little. I dance and wonder why the heck I'm scared of coyotes when they are probably terrified of this old trailer, stuck on the side of the woods, expelling bad tech music, and has a girl jumping around while checking herself out and waving her head side to side.

Wow, what a sight I am! Sometimes I wonder what the world would think if they could only see the real me....BUT I'll have you know----that I love it! I love dancing when there's no one around, I love being a goofy idiot, and I LOVE that my headlamp gives the trailer a certain disco light effect! :)

Eventually I tire of listening to "All the things she said" seven times in a row, remove the head lamp, and slide under my 5 layers of blankets.

Of course, as soon as I've laid down-- Kudos runs and jumps on the bed! He stares out the window and I know he see's something. My thoughts quickly race to the idea that there's an ax-murderer standing outside of Terry just waiting to attack.... (yes...I'm dramatic).

Before my brain completely hits panic mood, I force myself to remember that if it is an ax-murderer...I'm screwed. So I might as well just not worry about it and go to sleep...

Oh, but wait! Now Harley is interested too and has gotten up from cuddling with me....arg!

This happens every night though.... so "oh brother, I'm too tired to care" is what I'm usually thinking as I finally fall asleep. People ask me all the time how I sleep in my trailer, whether or not I'm comfortable. Honestly, I could be more comfortable--a lot more. I doubt though that I could truly be any happier, heading to bed is now an adventure...and boy, do I love a good adventure! :)

I don't think my bed time routine is "normal" anymore, but hey--- I was never normal to begin with!

Sweet dreams to you
Love: Jenny, Harley, Kudos & Terry!

Tour Terry!

Let's start with the outside...

While some people have their cars on blocks,
I've got Terry on logs!

Harley checking out her plumbing

Kudos inspecting the hitch

My awesomely sweet duct-taped door

Trying to keep the door open--one stick wasn't enough

What trailer would be complete without some trash?
Stuff from the previous owners, just sitting out front

The living room

Storage in place of where a fridge would go

My bed, complete with several layers
and a heating pad for the kitties at night

It's super convenient when I sweep
...just sweep it out the front door!

My lovely kitchen

The bathroom, the tub is great for the cat box

Bathroom door with pre-existing cat door
Clearly, Terry was made for me!

Always remember this:
Happy is what we make it!

But of course I'm going to have a pretty
candle, a girl has to have some class!


Me & Terry
(and of course, I just got done running and haven't showered here--
I wanted to be in prime form for taking pictures with Terry)