About the Maineiac
The Maineiac circa 1977
The Maineiac, circa 1975
The Maineiac, atop Cadillac Mountain, Acadia National Park, 1995
Welcome, my name is Darla and this is my blog. Also my therapy. Hope you enjoy.
20 Things About Me That You Might Regret Knowing After You Read This:
- I am allergic to every group of antibiotics out there. My doctor tells me I am down to one rarely prescribed antibiotic that I can safely take, so if I contract pneumonia and you don’t hear from me, it’s probably because I’m dead.
- I had three cats in my lifetime: Cujo, a gray tabby who was the sweetest, wisest old soul that ever lived, who also went by the nickname Old Man; Conan, a giant orange tabby that loved to swim in puddles; and Lint, a puff ball of rage who used to claw at me for no reason. I’ve also had several dogs, lizards, gerbils, hamsters, birds, guinea pigs, fish, chickens and ducks. I currently have no pets.
- I love football. I grew up with five brothers so it was mandatory. Before kids, I would sit there and watch it all day long, flipping between two games at a time. I used to know every single player, coach on every team. My husband hates football. God has a great sense of humor.
- I can sing very well. I’m alto, but could even be a tenor, my voice is that deep.
- I do celebrity impressions. Back in high school, I was the hit of any party. My favorites: Katherine Hepburn, Rosie Perez, Jimmy Stewart, Cartman from South Park. I can do basically anyone if I study their voice enough. My teachers didn’t appreciate my talent much.
- I am a great combination of skeptical and open-minded. I will start out questioning how something works, analyze it to death, then embrace it because I will basically believe anything is possible.
- I had a dream about my husband before I met him. Also about my son who was with my late father in a vivid dream. My dad told me he was his grandson, my son. I didn’t get pregnant until years later.
- I am deathly afraid of spiders, any size. Also afraid of killing them. I have been known to trap one under a cup and leave the cup on the floor until someone else comes along and is brave enough to scoop it up. Once I held my breath and picked up the cup only to find no spider. Finding no spider is almost as panic-inducing as seeing one.
- I once tried out for a solo in chorus in sixth grade and didn’t get it. The song was ‘What a Feeling!’ from Flashdance.
- I started writing when I was 10 years old. I wrote and illustrated mysteries starring me and my best friend. The first mystery: The Case of the Missing Legwarmer
- I have been thinking about concepts like death and eternity since I was a child. Sometimes I try to grasp what the edge of the universe is, or what this all means, or if we’re really alive or just a figment of one person’s imagination, and my brain short circuits and I sit down and watch a marathon of The Golden Girls to bring myself back down from that ledge of panic. That Sophia sure cracks me up!
- I was obsessed with Lost. Still am. Still can’t believe it’s over.
- I am very blunt. I’m straight-forward and honest. I will blurt anything out at the most inappropriate times. Usually at the dinner table at holiday family get-togethers. It’s a curse and a blessing. Mostly a curse to everyone else but me.
- My earliest memory is riding my Big Wheel down the driveway at four years old eating peanut butter toast with one hand and steering with the other. I crashed and my older brother laughed. My driving skills have improved since then, although I did hit a moose once while I was zipping down a back road going 55 mph in the dark of night. I hit it from behind so I suppose you could say it was an “ass-on” collision. The car (a tiny Ford Festiva) was totaled, the moose died and I survived with a sore neck and a story of a lifetime. My co-workers made me a cake with a matchbox car and a tiny moose laying on it’s side. This is Maine, where tragedy can be humorous. It’s how we cope.
- I love to be alone. I lived alone for years in my early 20s. I had a little apartment off campus out in Olympia, Washington. I wasn’t scared of being alone at all, after growing up with five brothers, I relished it. I spent lots of time meditating, reading and talking to my cat. I think of those days fondly even though I am grateful for the family I have now. Still, I can easily see myself as a future crazy old cat lady. (It’s a secret goal of mine.)My husband has never been alone for even one night in his entire life. This mystifies me.
- I used to twirl baton for years in middle school. I was the leader once in our Fourth of July parade and dreaded it because we went after the horses, which meant I was the first one in line to have to step over the giant piles of poop. Once I missed and had to keep on marching, horse crap all over my white sneaker the entire parade. I quit baton that year.
- The library was my favorite place to go as a child. I would ride my bike there after school to read and read. I loved the smell of the books, the quiet; the feeling that everything that had ever happened in the world was somehow magically there, and every author that came before me was whispering–urging me to open up those books and discover them all.
- Sleep is everything to me. I cherish it, I treasure it, I covet it. I look forward to it every single day (usually by 3 pm). I need at least 9 hours of sleep to feel fully rested. Last night I had about 4 and a half total. Getting old sucks.
- I once had a vivid dream where an orchestra was playing the most exquisite, never before heard classical music piece. I woke up, rushed over to write down the notes when suddenly the melodies had been replaced by the theme to Three’s Company.
- There is nothing in the world that I hate more than shopping. I must have inherited this trait from my grandmother. She used to rush into a store, grab what she needed and rush back out. I can’t even bring myself to go into the store. I usually opt to sit in the car and read a book while waiting for my husband to do the shopping. He loves to shop. God brought us together for many reasons.
Hey there, glad you could make it! If you're new, please feel free to take a look around my digs...maybe pour yourself a cuppa java. Just use a coaster for crying out loud. If you've been here before, you know where I keep the good chocolate, just please, save me a few pieces. And the wrappers go IN the trash, I don't want to find a trail when I get back. Enjoy!
You’re so perfect to the Bible passage in Proverbs 31:10-31…
I quite liked your website. Very nice. God bless…
I want your email address so that I can invite you to be a user on my page.
Can I ask why your blog address is miraclemomma? Perhaps you posted on this. Anyways, I rarely hear about the state of Maine; glad you’re enjoying it!
Sure, I think I picked it for a few reasons, I tend to believe in miracles, it’s a miracle I get through the day sane most days and the main reason is I think it’s a miracle I’m a mom. (lots of issues getting and staying pregnant)
My best friend Hadley Roberts is from Maine. She went to The University of Maine in Orono, ME and is a journalist with a degree from there. Her sister was in a personal plane on Sept. 11th (piloting it) and was hit by a terrorist and killed. Hadley has a way like you…that she is easy to listen to and kind and down to earth. She lives with her husband and kids now in Clinton, MA where she home schools. That is another reason that I like your blog so much as well because you are from ME.
Thanks jessicaber for your kind comments. I am so sorry about your friend’s loss of her sister. I like to think I’m down to earth too…being from Maine kind of brings that out of a person I guess. My blog tends to be simple and to the point (course, I’m usually writing it and typing it out while my 4 year old is climbing on me). Wish I had more time to write!
I like you profile.
I am a teacher, mum, bookaholic, foodaholic, perfumista, and writer. Yes, I write so I call myself a writer.
Notice: Still not over being defensive about it though.
I like your style! I’m a foodacholic too…and yes, we are both writers, dammit! Most days I don’t even require any readers at all, I just write to get it out, good therapy.
Surfing the waves of the web I am pleasantly stranded in this beautiful blog.
I write under the pseudonym of Josè Pascal (a descendant of the great Colonel Aureliano Buendía).
I invite you to visit my italian writing blog http://parolesemplici.wordpress.com/mytinbox/. I define this blog “In parole Semplici” as a “virtuacultural tin” box where they are guarded thoughts, memories, images, sounds, and simple stories. ”
If you want to participate and to have more informations send me a letter to inparolesempli@gmail.com
Good life and I hope to soon
Josè
i’ll wait you and your english thoughts, reflections and story
You’ve got an awesome blog going.
Hi, I am Kathleen (Irish) my grandmother came to the states from Ireland & homesteaded in Kansas. She & my grandfather use to gather eggs on the
prairie. They built a little hut to live in until they could afford to build. They
came to america from Ireland in a boat & met on the boat.Granddad came
Gauaway Bay & grandmother came from Cork. I Have enjoyed their experiences.
I loved them very much & they say I take after my grandmother. Thanks for
listening to my story & experience withmy Irish grandmother
Yesterday I was having a crazy “mom moment,” and took to blog-surfing for some comfort. I am currently a stay-at-home mom, and it is extremely trying sometimes. I’d like to say thanks for writing your blog…it’s nice to read something relatable and so comfortingly honest.
Thank you. I think no one can truly comment on what it’s like to be a SAHM unless they’ve actually done it. In my case, for years. No question, I am very lucky to be home, I love my children more than the moon and stars, but every parent deserves a bit of a break sometimes from the daily stress. This is why I choose to laugh at it. Helps keep me sane!
Glad to have found your blog. I, too, am a mom. Used to live and work on boats on the coast of Maine. I need to post more “mom stuff” on my blog- more light hearted, funny stories. Thanks for the inspiration. Looking forward to reading more.
Oh, I forgot to ask if you have some of your photos posted somewhere. I’d love to see some, as I am an aspiring photographer, shutterbug, picture taker, can’t leave home without my little camera in my purse.
Thank you for visiting and your comments. Some of my blog can be a bit more heavy, but I like to add the light-hearted side of things to balance it out. I will have to check out your blog.
I absolutely love to take pictures, always have since I was little. I doubt I’ll ever be a professional, I’m a newbie, but it’s fun to experiment. The coast of Maine is the perfect backdrop for lots of photos. I am trying to get a little photo blog going but haven’t posted much on there yet. All of my blog headers here are photos I’ve taken and I’m sure most of them need serious editing in Photoshop.
Hello. I’m newly into photography. Just got my first digital SLR. Now all I have to do is figure out how to use it. I grew up in NH, now I live in California. My mom lives in Maine, I love it there. Congrats of being freshly pressed! What kind of a camera do you have? Maybe we can share tips…I’ve got a Canon T1i.
Hi there and welcome. I have a Canon Rebel XSi, my first and only camera. But I have a sweet nifty fifty lens I bought separate from the kit lens for all those great bokeh shots. (I love photography jargon, makes me laugh…) I dream of saving up enough money for a better camera. I suppose there will always be a “better” one out there though. I am still learning how to use my camera. It can be a little too complicated with the shutter speed, ISO…blah blah etc etc. I just fiddle around with it and experiment, take TONS of bad shots. Maybe once in 100 shots I get a good one.
You sound just like my friend Hadley. She used to do yard work by the way for Stephan King, because he was her neighbor. She is a writer too and is very into family and always has kids climbing all over her.
Just wanted to let you know that I gave you a Versatile Blogger Award! Love your posts
Stop by to pick up your award!
http://melissasmeanderings.wordpress.com/2011/03/29/random-ramblings-nay-versatility-an-award/
Thanks so much, Melissa!! I am so honored!
I love your blog as well. Now I just have to figure out what to wear to the award show…hmm…will slippers and a bathrobe suffice?? 
Hi there, what area of Maine are you in? Your blog probably says that somewhere… My wife and I are both Colby College grads (Waterville) and obviously have fond memories of the state, and my grandparents ran a summer camp their for years back in the 50′s. I wrote a little bit about that here: http://brownroadchronicles.wordpress.com/2011/01/12/youre-so-handsome-i-hope-you-never-die/
I have always loved Maine with its farms and forests and lobster shacks and Ben and Jerry’s Ice Cream! And Portland is a totally fun place for a small city! Unfortunately we rarely get back there now. Have been to a couple of Colby reunions but that is all. Thanks for reminding me what a great place it is!!
Hello! I grew up in Freeport (lived in a house right next to Bean’s) now I live near Lewiston. It is a pretty cool state. Hell, we were even voted Number One on the Most Peaceful States list today (poor Louisiana, on the bottom yet again). It definitely has a calm, laid-back kinda vibe (or maybe we’re just too damn cold to commit crimes) I agree that Ben and Jerry’s is sweet but I could pass on the lobster. By the way, I just visited your blog and it is hysterical, right down to your “copyright”. Good stuff. LOVED your post on what it takes to be FP. Also your April Fools’ post about quitting blogging. Brilliant. Oh the things we bloggers do to get more traffic and “hits”. But, really, “We all just wanna be loved, is that so wrong?” (old SNL skit) Anyway, I’m glad you enjoyed our fair state in college(and hope you don’t currently live in Louisiana)
Nope I’m in Michigan now, very similar to Maine, very beautiful and scenic, some wealthy urban and resort areas, some very poor rural areas. Not sure where we fall on the most peaceful list?? Ahh.. LL Bean, can’t remember how many times we stopped at that place! Glad you liked the BR Chronicles and that it made you laugh. Although I tend to crack myself up, it’s nice to hear from somebody else
Yes, Michigan. Know it well! My husband is from Dearborn Heights. He’s a Red Wings fanatic. We drove the 18 hours there last summer with our two kids, stayed at a hotel in which I was in fear for my life, ate at the Mongolian Grill and drove home.
Good Sunday! It’s Andi here, from Double Dose of Special. I just wanted to take a moment to thank you for taking the time to comment on my guest post on Our Typical Life. I appreciate that you were willing to share your thoughts with me, and that my post touched you in some small way. Please come over and visit me on my blog anytime.
http://www.doubledoseofspecial.com
Your posts are hilarious–thanks for sharing your humorous insights with us!
Thanks, Susan for visiting–off to check out your blog now.
Congratulations!! You have been awarded The Versatile Blogger Award. Stop by at comingeast.com to see more details.
Hi! I can totally relate to your blog. I am a stay at home mom too. I have two wonderful kids and wear many hats. I am enjoying reading about your life.
Cheers,
Louise
Hope you stick around, Louise.
Hi! I’m very new to blogging and you are one of the first I’ve stumbled on and I love it! Love how there is this big world out there for me to explore, relate and share all things wonderful and maybe not so much. Im not a SAHM but a SAHW and hope to soon to be a SAHM and doing this is definitely going to help me stay normal! Thanks again and I’ll keep reading.
Hello Darla! So nice to meet you. I love the description you give of yourself and your blog. I’m in the same boat….except of course you can substitute “house husband” (and Idiot) into my description…… I’ll pop back often. Thanks so much for visiting my blog. Have a great day and send a little of that Maine weather down this way will ya?
Congratulations! You are the winner of TWO very prestigious blogging awards. http://wp.me/p1jqDM-NQ
I so enjoy your humor! I try to live my life the same way…and also enjoy reading about being a SAHM since I am not one. It is always easy to believe the grass is greener (and it probably is in Maine compared to Cali), but every mother faces struggles in her own way, eh? SWM’s run on a different side of the road, but in parenting there are always places to join together for coffee. If you wanna glimpse of the “other side”, LOL, come on by to my blog and have a visit. Not to mention I’m on the other side of the country
too! I love this blogging thing, absolutely love it…:-)
Thanks, singleworkingmom.I will be sure to come over and see how green the grass is on your side of things.
Hi, I’ve been noticing your posts on recently found blogs, and came to “meet” you. I love your sense of humor, and wonder if we’re related–I’ve been told it’s a family characteristic. Please do not listen to TheIdiotSpeaketh, and keep that weather UP THERE. Thank you very much. My daughter has had a longing to see Maine for several years. I hope one day she gets there. She’s a mom of six, and homeschools.
Could be related, you never know. Do you also suffer from near-sightedness and high arches? I will not listen to the Idiot Speaketh, well, only when it comes to weather. Otherwise, the man is hysterical! Your daughter sounds like my hero. I have a close friend who homeschools seven, she is amazing. Welcome to my blog and hope you stick around.
Although I was a stay at home mother back in the olden days of the 1980′s, I think we may be related because I’m also short-sighted and have high arches.
There’s nothing better than being able to stay home and bring up your own children. Those days with my kids though exhausting at times, were the happiest of my life. No one can ever take away the beautiful memories.
Rosie, you put it perfectly. These days are exhausting but I am very grateful for them. My kids are growing up so fast, I try to hold onto these moments and savor them.
Ha ha! Love it! My blog does not have a strict focus either, but I hope it is always interesting! Keep up the good work…
I would get bored if I just stuck to one subject, Brenda. thanks for visiting!
Great blog – I also remember how things were, growing up in the 70s. When I think of the technology we have access to today, it is truly amazing. I do a lot of hillwalking and hiking, but love to use a map and compass. GPS takes the wonder out of it, and also dulls your navigation skills. I laughed at your comments re records jumping, but think that they _did_ sound better than cd or mp3, at least until your brother used a cheese grater on the vinyl…
Maine sounds lovely – closest I have been is Quincy and Boston, MA.
Take care and keep writing,
David
David, there is something to be said about the sound of music coming from a vinyl record. More natural and raw-sounding. I miss my turntable, wish I had kept it all these years. I miss getting a record and looking at the sleeve it came in and the pictures of the band etc. Buying an iTune takes a lot of the joy out of it I think.
My kids and I love to hike around Maine. I do bring my cell though as it makes me feel a little safer just in case. Technology is a good thing sometimes.
Thanks for your kind comments and for visiting. If you ever do get to Maine, come during the summer. Right now it’s pretty cold and we’re getting 3 inches of snow this weekend!
Just wanted to tell you, i love the glazed look in your eyes. How do you ever do that?
Surprisingly, it wasn’t that hard. It might be because I was up so early due to my kids jumping on their beds that morning.
I don’t know what took me so long to check out your blog!
maybe it’s the name? Some people think it summons up bad memories of the movie Flashdance…good to have you here!
Ayuh…. I’m following
Good to have you here, ayuh!
it is a fun space!
Darla,
Recently 2 fellow bloggers past on the “Liebster Blog Award” to me. It is given to bloggers with gret blogs.
I believe you have a really amazing blog so I now pass on the award to you. Congratulations!
http://ichoosehappynow.com/2011/12/19/cup-of-joy/and-the-winner-of-the-liebster-award-for-blogging-is-www-ichoosehappynow-com/
Cheers,
Louise
Thanks so much, Louise. And congrats to you as well!
I love your ‘About’
I gave you the Candle Lighter Award! http://sancharib.wordpress.com/2012/01/19/candle-lighter-award/
Oh, thank you so much, Sanchari!
I’ve read this blog a few times and finally decided to buck up and say “Hi” so, Hi. And…I also wanted you to know I think your ‘voice’ is amazing and I bet you are twice as funny in person…The people who comment regularly on this blog are nothing to shake a stick at either.
Me? I ain’t no writer….But you people who can?… Well, to me it’s as impressive as building power plants out of ants and sand. {FYI: The ants and sand thing? Not mine. It’s a copy-righted saying of my brother-in-laws.}
Okay, so that’s it.
Don’t stop doing what you do.
It’s great.
~d.
Thank you so much and judging by your comment here, I’d say you write very well! I often wonder what my voice is and if it’s too loud and whiny, but comments like yours keeps me going and I appreciate that a lot, truly.
Oooh, pretty! I love your new header picture and tagline.
Perfect for Spring.
Thanks! I couldn’t take seeing my old header with the snow anymore. I can’t wait until some pretty flowers start popping up here so I can some good pictures. Next week it will hit 75. That is crazy for Maine this time of year!
Enjoying your blog – - popped over from Pegoleg’s blog after reading your jacket entry. Fun stuff
Glad you stopped by, Brooke! Peg’s contest was a blast. It’s fun to read everyone’s take on the jacket.
Hi Darla! I tagged you in a blog question-and-answer game! If you want to play, visit my blog to see what to do! (but don’t feel obligated!)
I just read your post, loved your answers, Carly. Thanks for the tag. Like you, I am stuck with the posts lately…they’re all half-written and writer’s block is looming so this gives me something to write about. (by the way, nothing beats Reese’s peanut butter eggs, not even Cadbury cream eggs…)
Hi Darlene. I’m passing on the ABC (Awesome Blog Content) award to you and linking to you in my post.
Thanks for the shout-out, Jeannette. I’ve never received an ‘awesome’ award before. Hope you enjoy the rest of your week. It will hit 80 here today, so I plan on spending it outside, can’t wait.. In March, that is crazy!
I am completely with you on #15 and #20. I love being alone but I equally love being with people. Some things are much better shared. I think it’s important to achieve a balance between the two.
And I’m the same about shopping. I can’t understand how some people take eons grocery shopping. And clothes shopping too. For some people, shopping for clothes is an actual hobby. Don’t get wrong, I ain’t judging but a day spent in hustling, bustling crowds in overheated stores playing crappy music so loud it makes your head ache is not my idea of fun!
You are so right–balance is key to most everything in life, isn’t it? Unfortunately, right now my alone time is lacking but I know that will change once the kids move out in about 20 years or so.
I also hate clothes shopping. I was just in Target yesterday and had some money to buy myself clothes (my current wardrobe is about 15 years old) And I kept trying stuff on and saying, nope, hate it. Hate everything. I ended up buying nothing but clothes for my kids. sigh!
Oops, that should read ‘Don’t get me wrong’.
Don’t you hate typos? Happnes to me all the time.
Hi, enjoyed reading your “about” page… know that’s a lame way to start but I’m cutting to the chase, wink. Yep, a few things in common (totally don’t like to shop AND my husband loves it) and simply looking to grow my following group. Going to read some of your archived posts now. See ya.
Hey, not a lame way to start at all! I just went over to your blog and read yours. I am training to become a Reiki volunteer at the local cancer center here, so we have that in common as well!
As someone who know you only from other blogs, congratulations on the Freshly Pressed!
Enjoy the ride!
(and the flooded inbox!)
Thanks, El Guapo! It is a lot of fun, very exciting, that’s for sure!
Hi, Maniac! Still trying to navigate all of the techie stuff, so hope you see my comment! I am also a Maniac in exile in the flatlands of Michigan! http://www.soulpoetry.org is my site for my book, Sanctuary of the Soul (meaning of course, Maine/Heaven)..coming home in June….I am 65 and a Freshman at a University, because of what I wrote about my life, I won a scholarship. E-mail me if you can: wacalice@aol.com (I joined the army right out of high school–from Old Town to San Francisco at the height of the Vietnam war, peace, drugs, hippies, etc…major culture shock a s you can imagine.
Smiles, Alice (over comer and wounded healer)
Working so hard to make a difference in the world.
Without my faith and wicked wit and sense of humor, I would be drooling in a corner, LOL!
I’m from Seattle and went to college in Maine, so we must’ve passed each other in the air at some point! And sister, I despise shopping too. Congrats on getting freshly pressed!
I just love the way you write. I’m new to blogging and I find your style and humor very catchy. Looking forward to reading more of your work.
Thank you very much! Blogging is fun, keeps me sane and I’m happy you enjoy reading my stuff.
I came over here from joehoover’s site — I’m glad I did! You sound like my kind of gal. I had the same feeling about the library when I was a kid, and probably started contemplating the subject of death and afterlife since I was about 8. And anyone who can do a good Katharine Hepburn imitation is aces in my book.
Oh, yes, love Katherine Hepburn. I just saw a show narrated by her about her many movie roles and I was mesmerized. And I miss libraries. We have a tiny one here in town that my kids love to go to, but no more bookstores anywhere to be found. Glad you dropped by from Joe’s blog!
love your posts. just added you to my blogroll! http://justanotherwakeupcall.wordpress.com/wp-admin/link-manager.php