Doggie Days

Today was another one of those unmotivated days, or at least that's how it certainly started. Marshall and I lounged around the house, drinking our coffee and debating whether we would actually change out of our pajamas or not. Finally, the sun came out and we decided to dust out the bikes and ride over to Mayfair. A round trip bike ride of 7 miles did us a bit of good. We stopped at Mayfair to walk around a bit and ran into our friend Reva. It was so good to see her and hug her. Reva is such a ball of energy and radiates such positivity that it did us good to see her. She commented that she didn't have my number and had been wanting to contact me but figured she would be able to when the time was right and I believe that to be true. Today was the exact moment we were meant to run into her and feel her love and positivity. I believe with Marshall about to return to work in a week, we both have been a bit down about the prospect of being apart from one another. We've been searching for something to bring us out of that and so we finally motivated ourselves to take a bike ride that would in turn make our path collide with Reva's. She was just the person we needed to see just then to make us smile and make our day just a bit brighter.

After our bike ride, Sally and Queso (or as Stacey likes to refer to them, Shells and Cheese) came over for little doggie walk date. Queso was ready to go, snorting and all. She is one of the funniest dogs I have ever met. She's part Pig, part Bull Dog, part Panther and all love. And boy does she love JoJo. It's funny to watch the dogs interact with one another and they are a great source of laughs and entertainment. After the walk, we hung outside in the gazebo and enjoyed the peacefulness of the evening. Marshall even broke out his guitar which was the first time he's been inclined to play in awhile. Right after Nolan's death Marshall picked up the guitar and the music spewed out of him and then it appeared to completely dry up. While I've found solace and comfort in not only writing this blog, but writing personal letters to Nolan in a journal, Marshall has turned away from composing and song playing. I hope tonight turned over a new leaf again and he can once again find music as an outlet for his feelings. 

He's an amazing guitarist and can write prolific poetry when he puts his heart into it. I've been pushing him for some time to get back into it and try to write songs and sell them. I think when his music career never took off, Marshall settled into just being a soundman and perhaps recording other bands but never pursing music as a career path again. I think that was a mistake. I've never met anyone as passionate and as knowledgeable about music as Marshall. He knows virtually any band that comes on the radio. He often hears an obscure artist for the first time and tells me that that band is going to be big, just wait. And within a few years, that band indeed is picked up by a big label and makes it huge. He has an ear for those things and the passion to back it up. It indeed was a beautiful thing to see as well as to hear - Marshall strumming his Gibson guitar once again. For me, Marshall's guitar playing has a soothing effect. He played the guitar to me quite frequently when I was pregnant and it always lulled the dogs to sleep. Buster in particular is a big fan of Marshall's guitar playing. Whenever Marshall pulls out one of his guitars, Buster lays in front of him and listens intently until he eventually dozes off. It was a very serene night sitting outside feeling the cool ocean breeze and listening to live guitar music. We might have been dealt a really crappy hand, but we do still have each other and our life is pretty good. Hopefully one day we will have another child that can enjoy all that we and our lives have to offer.