so i walked 5 miles today.

don't laugh, but i was expecting it to be a nightmare.

see, i have short legs. and sweetie doesn't.

for every step he takes i need to take like 2.5.

and frankly, i've never measured distance while walking before. so 5 miles sounded like a really long way.

but you know what? not so bad. not bad at all, actually

my feet are a little hot. other than that. everything's fine.

and it only took us an hour and a half.

one of the most interesting parts of the whole thing was that i realized how much you miss when you drive. i saw stuff in our neighborhood that i never knew was there. entire buildings i had zoomed right by and never seen.

it's way more intimate, walking.

you get to take your time and really look. study each building. the different types of doors that people put on their houses, for example. fascinating.

and i got to look at people's flowers and gardens. god i miss my garden. like really really miss it. my heart ached a little when i saw some of the beautiful plants that people had. i had to walk faster.

you get an appreciation for things when you are up close to them. i realized that i like my neighborhood a lot.

oh, it has its quirks. but they're sort of precious. like there's this one house that has the word "HERE" on their roof. in giant orange plastic stand-up letters. i'll take a picture next time, and you guys will understand. quirky, but precious.

and while we were walking sweetie and i talked. not about anything exciting, really. we laughed at funny things and brainstormed about our future. we got into a 10 second fight over something i said [me: (dreamy) i want to move somewhere it snows, him: (pissed) goddammit, i told you i don't like snow! why do you keep ignoring that?]. but then i decided not to be mad, and i apologized and it was okay.

but the best part. was that we didn't have to talk. we walked in silence a lot, each of us enjoying what we saw. we would point things out to each other if we saw something interesting. and the other one would smile or laugh or comment appropriately. and then we'd fall back into a comfortable silence.

i like that. when you can be silent with someone. and when all is said and done, i think it says more than being able to carry a good conversation.

because honestly, one day the stories have all been told, and the nuances have all been explored. and what's left after that all falls away is the silent moments.

and i realized. again. how lucky i am.

i can be silent with him.