That stuck inside feeling

September makes me a little stir crazy. It's so hot outside and it feels like fall is never coming. Every single year we go through this and yet I cannot stop hoping September will go by quickly so we can wear layers and feel cold enough to want to snuggle up with a bowl of soup. (Okay yeah I know, it's currently October and while it has cooled off somewhat now, I am currently wearing shorts and a t-shirt. So we're not there yet).

I often feel like I have cabin fever in September because I cannot deal with the 90-100 degree weather that is every day here August - September. So I stay indoors and thus the seasonal opposite version of cabin fever kicks in.

But ever since covid came into our lives, this time of year feels every worse. I work from home. And, obviously, I live here. I feel like I do not leave this space, which starts to feel pretty small, especially on the weekends. Working from home has kind of ruined weekends for me. I am here all the time.

And, of course, the natural solution to this issue would be to start working from the office. But our office space is still under major construction and it's literally not an option to work there. So I am here, stuck inside always.

While it is true that I am in our house a lot, in reality, I do actually get out and about. But since cabin fever is mainly a state of mind at this point, it feels like I never leave. I never do anything.

I've actually had a lot of people comment on how my instagram feed always makes it seem like I am traveling all the time. And when I look back, I realize that yes, I have done a lot of things. But since things aren't constantly happening, emotionally I feel like nothing is happening. Ever. I am just stuck inside.

Emotionally, the covid lockdown has hyped up my desire to constantly traveling, constantly doing things with friends, constantly hosting people. (Which is ironic since I know that my introverted self could not actually keep up with that).

This brings me to my blog post. I need to check myself and remember all of the things that have happened in Kansas in the past few weeks. 

1. Farmers markets. Every summer I spent a good amount of time (and money) at farmer's markets. I even turned it into an event one weekend.  At the end of August, my friends Tina and Karin and I went to the Old Town Farmer's market and got coffee at First Mile Cantina afterwards.

2. I took another round of pottery at CityArts in Wichita. It is still really hard, but I was better than last time. I cannot wait to take it again.

3. My Uncle Cal and Aunt Carol came to visit Heidi and Hayden in Kansas and invited us over for supper one evening. We enjoyed a vegan meal together (since my Aunt is vegan) and I made a delicious vegan chocolate cake with raspberries.

4. I took myself on a solo artist date to the Wichita Art Museum 

5. Levent and I went to a lot of weddings this summer. Well, more than usual that is. (Usual is like zero). Our last one of the season was on labor day weekend. Not all weddings are created equal, but I do like the chance to get dressed up with my boo.

6. The weekend after I got back from Illinois, (Yep, I also went on a trip in September. See, Anna! I am always doing stuff), Wilbur and Shirley came out to Kansas to visit Wilbur's brother Linford who has been in poor health lately. They spent most of their time in Hutch, but we did go out to bunch with them to Coca Dolce and Homegrown in Wichita on a Saturday morning. (We also had supper with the extended fam in Hutch that following Sunday evening).

7.  Levent and I went on a date to Public at the Brickyard in Wichita on Friday evening. Since we usually don't go out to eat unless it's a high holiday (aka my birthday or our anniversary), this was very exciting to me.

8. I hung out with my cousin Heidi. Last weekend we had coffee and cake together on the front porch and then yesterday, Hayden and Heidi came over to eat snacks and watch the KU football game. (None of us watch college football at all, but the idea was to have a reason to make snacks and hang out. Plus KU is having a very uncharacteristic winning streak. They are currently 5-0 which is both not nothing and also not very much).

Heidi and I have been trying to take a photo together for awhile but we keep forgetting. I keep forgetting to take photos of people in general. Usually I just photograph my food and my pets. But that doesn't mean things didn't happen. They did and when I line them all up, it does seem like a bit of somethings. And I am grateful for that.