If you haven’t noticed, I’ve kind of been under the radar for awhile and have neglected my duties with into the Soup.  Rather than go into great detail, let’s just say I was bombarded by a shit storm…or 7!

Can you imagine being in a real one – figurative speech aside.  YUCK!!!  It’s not in my nature to crawl under a rock, but I did; and upon emerging, you can bet I took a long, hot shower.

Pardon the repetitive use of the word, but the “shit” that has recently landed in steaming heaps at my doorstep, has made it difficult to put on my “Happy Heidi” face and reflect on the lovely bits of life for all of you. Acting is in my blood, but my “agent” hasn’t been coming through with any good gigs lately, if you know what I’m saying. For the record, that analogy would have sounded great if read like a Mafioso.

The first storm (and the only one I’ll delve into) was when I made the painful decision to cancel the radio show and was faced with the enormous and onerous task of re-inventing myself, yet again.  My husband says I’m akin to a child’s toy ~ a top.  I start spinning at dawn and basically pass out around 9:00 p.m.  So staying at home, watching daytime TV, and baking cookies probably won’t work for me; however, coming to a screeching halt after 3 years of spinning made me kind of dizzy.  So, I’ve been taking a bit of a break to adjust, evaluate and breathe.

My plethora of job titles include paralegal, substitute teacher, bill collector, chef, fundraiser, PR consultant, traveler, product promoter, sales executive, event coordinator, radio show host, TV maven, and writer.  Yes, I’m that old…or schizophrenic – the tests haven’t come back yet.

Anyhoo, after I escaped from my self-absorbed hiatus under the rock, I found something I didn’t realize I had been missing: Time.  You know if you spin those letters around you get ‘item’, ‘emit’ and ‘mite’.   Eww, is that a psychosis coming through? 

To be candid, all this new found time on my hands was rather frightening and I foundered listening to the tick of the clock.  Then one day I took a good, long look at my forlorn back yard and saw myself in its desolation. Then and there I made a life-changing decision; I cleaned my tools, bought a new pair of gloves, brought in a load of dirt and started to dig. It had been nearly 3 years since I cultivated anything unrelated to into the Soup and I was more than giddy!  Please allow me to quote the Scarecrow from The Wizard of OZ, “Oh Joy!  Rapture!”   Gardening has again become a salve and my solace.  To watch your labor of love bear fruit is one of life’s greatest pleasures.  

You’ll be happy to know that my herb garden is scenting the air with rosemary, oregano, tarragon and thyme; my heirloom Juliets, Big Boys, Celebrities, Romas and Early Girls are coming into bloom and I visit them every day.  We have long conversations about politics, religion, the next big food trend….oops, there it is again.

As far as reinvention goes, I’m giving myself some time to just keep digging. I will continue writing, as best I can ~ it seems it’s just as cathartic.  And as for shit storms, they’re still hovering around, but instead of returning to my cave, I found a big ass umbrella, am showering daily and keeping a positive eye on the horizon.   Oh, and if you haven’t done so lately, may I suggest that you smell a rose, or something – it will do wonders.