New photos - of old books

My friend J just got back from Shreveport & brought home a mess of kids books. I got to photograph them today - nothing great, just wanted to remember the cool illustrations. Here are a few of my favorites:

Sundays

Woke up with a desire to crack open a New York Times & then remembered how disappointed I am in that newspaper & in news in general lately. Apart from the upcoming election in France, the news was a bit too gloomy for a Sunday look see; the reduction in welfare & Medicaid is indicated in the increase in infant deaths, the ongoing issues with the dismissal of 8 US attorneys, the list goes on and gets worse.

I used to think that if more people knew something was bad happening, it would motivate folks to intervene. It may be more accurate to say that knowledge has little relation to what can be done to help.

So, no paper this morning. After breakfast, J got busy in the yard & has been out there all day. I've been inside, hanging new curtains and doing chores. It's so beautiful outside. We've got seeds to plant - vegetables & flowers. There are tulips out now, the dogwood tree is in full bloom and we harvested our first bunch of asparagus yesterday. There are so many things to do to get the ball rolling, not to mention we'll have our first actual harvest this year & will need to be ready to grab the food & share it.

Speaking of sharing, we have a plant we're hoping to have adopted. It's a pretty sedum, or sempervivum & it's crowded into a spot with rosemary & primrose. I have a picture of it below:



I've got a Territorial Seed catalog to pore over & dinner is almost ready. J is downtown so I'm getting the mashed potatoes & turkey meatloaf ready. We've still got spinach in the yard, that should round out the meal.

These last few weeks have been busy, with lots of change. I had been trying to schedule surgery and wasn't looking forward to it - I got a reprieve of sorts -
The doctor I'm working with has given me a clean bill of health & surgery has been canceled. That has sparked a big change - I can get back to work & all of the things that entails, I've been getting more active & honestly, I'm looking forward to rejoining the world in progress.

Last week we went down to a local park to have ourselves a beach fire. Hopefully, the first of many.

Spring is here

Just got back from Jr. Mom'ing with Paloma & Jennifer. We went to the park & P played on the swings & slide & practiced her balance. She did very well. Each day starts out super damp around here, but the sky was bright blue & the clouds were not obscuring the sun at all.

P at work:


I went out to windowshop for bulbs & plants for the garden yesterday. Between heading to a local nursery & pruning forsythia + magnolia branches to brighten our house up - I've got a real hankerin' for the beauty of spring. Since I'm not on the East Coast anymore, I'm asking folks back there to think of making the trek to Longwood Gardens, the botanical gardens on the mall in DC or the National Arboretum - just knowing someone back home may be going to those places warms my heart.

Here are two pictures of pretty plants out here:





That is all for now...

Sunny, instead!

Moll and I had a fabulous time at the sculpture garden afterall!

Here's the Neucom Vivarium, by Mark Dion - it's a "nurse log", a fallen tree that acts as an incubator of sorts for a variety of plant life. I've not yet been inside, but took this pic today:


Loved catching up with Moll, we spent the hours chatting happily. When I got home, J had just arrived from a long bike ride that ended on the Burke-Gilman trail. He was wiped out, but has been keeping himself busy listening to music tonight. I've been idling on the computer too. I'm hoping to shift gears in April, but don't regret the time I've spent tonight. Got to catch up with Eero, her orchid blossoms are not to be trifled with & I forwarded along her artist recommendation to a pal in Chicago. I was also able to confirm that the bakery Nerd's Eye View was referring to is indeed the one with the tasty baguette I enjoyed over at the Gulassa's a few months ago. So, time well spent afterall...

The Living - Annie Dillard

Epic stories expose the arc of life, with all the tucked sorrows and stretched out joys. The Living is no exception.

We've been on a bit of an Annie Dillard kick lately. J's Uncle highly recommends her, "...a fine writer", he'll say, "she lived, for a time, in North Carolina", he'll finish. He's right, she is good. For those of you familiar only with the book most used in college writing classes, Teaching a Stone to Talk, you should know you haven't seen anywhere near her best book. I remember gasping at the opening pages of Pilgrim at Tinker's Creek, over a description of an encounter between a bug and a frog. I won't spoil it for you, I will say it's typical of the immediacy she's able to conjure up and the bracing awareness she instills in her characters. J brought home Holy the Firm last year and has been recommending it to other folks who live, as we do, in Western Washington. J's Uncle sent this book to us, along with quilts J's Aunt made and sent that I'm looking to shift out here. It's the first book I've read through in a few years. I finished it tonight & am satisfied.

The story circles around the lives of several pioneers during the mid to late 1800's in Bellingham, Washington. The overwhelming forests and thickly clouded skies that the characters wrestle against still play a roll in daily life here in the Pacific Northwest and so are startlingly familiar. Anyone who has visited the Northwest has likely at least run into images of the huge Doug Firs that grew to improbable heights and were as big as small buildings at their base, the opening chapters catalog the impact of living among such monumental, living things.

In the earliest part of the book, Dillard describes their landing in Whatcom, like this, "It was the rough edge of the world, where the trees came smack down to the stones. The shore looked... as if the corner of the continent had got torn off right here, sometime near yesterday, and the dark trees kept on growing like nothing happened. The ocean just filled in the tear and settled down."

There is a type of loneliness that springs purely from being in a land that is dark for some portion of the year. The Living parallels that somber quality, in its beginnings by describing the solitary folks who are the first of what will be many settlers. There are so few folks around at the beginning of the tale that one of the main characters wins the position of midwife by being the only inhabitant with "string and a pair of scissors".

There is a bi-coastal feel to the West Coast now that I did not expect to see mirrored in a story that begins with the difficulties of cross country travel before railroads. Several of the characters make their way back and forth between the East Coast and Washington; to visit family, to become educated and then make their way back to live where they have found themselves. I remember thinking, when I first got here, that people out here needed to see how crowded the East is, to see beyond the dramatic natural landscape that made up their world. It took a while to see how many people are from the East Coast and how often those who were from here were sent back East during their college years.

I had never met indigenous Americans until I moved to San Francisco in the late 80's. In Seattle, I've felt the tearing away of this land from the folks who lived here when the U.S. was forming. It's not hard to meet good people who have come from reservations here, even today. Dillard describes the various relationships that pioneers had with the local tribes and her stories of armed-by-Russian Canadian tribes attacking armed-by-settler Washington tribes have parallel even the most modern warfare.

The West has been populated with a diverse mix of folks. In good times everyone was welcome, when times got tough, not so much. This truth is reflected in a plot thread that involves the changing opinions of white pioneers towards non-white emigrants.

Beyond the breadth of the land, the stories that Dillard chose to tell in this book are appealing to me - productive, against the odds folks and erratic intellectuals. There are enough pages to fit a good amount of time for character development and enough characters to make reading it enjoyable. The similarities to modern day Western Washington, where they exist, definitely added to the story & if you plan on coming out west, even if you've been here before, it'd be worth your time to check this book out.

Old days pic

I've uploaded photos from the '96 graduation of the Art Department at Cornish. Click the picture for more.

It's been a good weekend - more working out, we did our taxes & I actually painted. J just got back from a bike ride... I hope to paint some tonight. Next week is all about getting a paying job & catching up with friends I've not seen in a while.

Pretty city

Took a ride around West Seattle today. It was truly beautiful. Click the picture if you want to see more.

"Beings long to free themselves from misery, but misery itself we follow and pursue.

We long for joy, but in our ignorance, destroy it as we would an enemy."

Terrific weekend, though we were head down for the bulk of it. Seems like J & I are getting to enjoy the house now, instead of getting used to it.

Quiet night

I'm borrowing J's computer to catch up on email - I'm a few days away from getting my laptop fixed. Until then, I'm visiting internet cafes and borrowing...

It's been pouring rain here. Pineapple Express they call it, since the front comes from Hawaii. Jason and I have taken turns clearing leaves from the lawn - we still have bulbs to plant. There was no real closing down of the garden this year.

Some photos:

downtown Seattle, 2nd Ave. heading South



Mt. Rainier, on our way back to Seattle with J's parents a few years ago


Forgive me for this shot - I shot quite a few frames of the male lion. After a few seconds, I was surprised to see the female lion got up from behind him & then they rubbed noggins together before she walked away.


I've turned on the heaters in the studio. I'm heading out there tonight.

A post about a dog

Teddy, my sweet bouvier des flandres mix who lives with my ex, visited this week. He returned home Wednesday. We lived together 8 years ago, and in that time he's made it to 16 years old. It took a bit of adjusting to his new "old dog" ways to feel as though we could give him a comfortable time.

J & I took him on walks around the neighborhood, which was cozy and fun. I noticed that our new neighborhood is visually like a mountain town, with houses distributed in among pine trees and madronas. On the second day Teddy was here, I took him on a walk around Greenlake. It was a bit much for him, but he was a trooper & finished the 2.8 miles without appearing to suffer any injury.

Before he left, he managed to pull himself up our steep staircase & into our room. After a few panicky moments, I walked him down the stairs on his leash. There were a few tense bits, but he made it down ok.

There was something soothing about having him here. I was surrounded with old pets, sleeping everywhere in the house. Since I'm still way low energy, I take a nap on occasion. No matter when that was, Teddy or Jema would be there, sweet company & very welcome.

Jema was not pleased by having Teddy around, but was tolerant if she had an escort when traveling by him. We brought her food upstairs, which kept her from needing to go downstairs too many times a day. But a cat likes to wander the garden & so I was reminded daily of her particular frustration with having to deal with a dog, for goodness sake!

There are big doings this weekend, we are almost overbooked. We've been getting the house ready for company & Jason's been running errands to make sure there is enough food. I don't think things will settle down for a week.

Here is a lovely version of Bob Marley's Three Little Birds, by Gilberto Gil:

for the video & the more polished version, click here

Big Sale

We're back from the beach - the trip was great. We took a side trip to the North Carolina Zoo and, with a borrowed camera, I took the picture to the right.

The seals were the best part of the zoo - it was blazing hot & their pool was cooled. The windows we viewed them through were covered with condensation. I think we each touched a window, as a means to cool off.

Tomorrow, or today really, there will be a big rummage sale down on Market at 17th in Ballard. The Ballard Seafood Festival is also on. Should be a fun weekend.

My camera is back. I've taken a few pictures & am looking forward to doing more. Here are a few pictures from last year's Ballard Seafood Festival: on Flickr.

Something old, somethings new

There's plenty going on these days - last week included events like; (music file) J & my 5th year anniversary, a Mos Def show, a trip to the Volunteer Park Conservatory & Jen, Paloma & the zoo.

Work has been going well - tho start up is a bit slow, with research predominating and implementation coming later. I'm excited about the intricacies - it's great to be contributing on these projects.

I got to volunteer at a local high school, this week, to critique the senior year final project presentations. All of the kids we had in our class were great - lots of art & physical focus on the projects. The high schools out here leave East Coast public schools, that I knew, behind. I felt as though these young'ns were actually ready to join the larger community. It's been too long between volunteer opportunities, it always feels good to help out.

Today was all about mowing the lawn. It's been a while, so the clippings were pretty dense, clogging the bag after two passes. There are so many plants in the yard, my inclination is to mow over anything I personally haven't planted. Not that I was the mower for the most part - J takes that honor. I kicked in at the end with the last of the backyard mowing and took the rentals back to the rental shack.

The yard is really a joy, although it's a bit overwhelming. J is great about getting out there, antagonizing dandelions, etc. It is inspiring to me and I love to get out there & tear it up. We've got a fair amount of debri to get rid of now a days, we should be able to take care of that soon enough.

Tomorrow is a clothes swap/potluck. I'm jazzed to be going. There are more & more opportunities these days - I'm grateful for that & very conscious of where my limits are. I'd like to ride out an era of consistency, rather than consistency for "a good chunk of time".

Hope it rains tonight.

dandelions be gone

Folks came over this weekend and helped us with yard work! We got lots of pruning and dandelion removal help. The weather was good & it's wonderful to have the yard moving along.


originally uploaded by Lilbenne.

dusk is on it's way...

I couldn't ask for a better week. Lot's of fun bike riding around Lake Washington starting at Seward Park, having friends over to the house for the first time, cooking pupusas - food that reminds me of the brief year I spent in San Francisco and to top it off, a trip to the Average Joe Cat Show.

There's still more to go - the weekend is jam-packed with activities & friends in town. We're going to do a maypole celebration tomorrow, then off to Whidbey Island (the Whidbey Institute) for a Mevlevi event - then days of talking with friends from Portland/Hawaii/etc.

Jason gave me the greatest gift today - time to think about storage for the art studio. We got one shelf of a set that we'll get over time. He's out buying corn for the Chicken Corn Chowder he'll be making tonight for the potluck portion of our weekend (I'll help with the dumpling-like rivels) and I'm heading out to put the shelves together. It's been great working together - with folks coming to stay, it's good to know we've got each other's backs.

Twighlight is here. It rained today, leaving drops on all of the leaves, blossoms & veggies in the garden. Beautiful, but cold. I got a few shots before the sun dispersed & now the inky gray clouds are all that's left of the day.

Mostly done

We got further along than we expected after seeing what we were up against. Still a ways to go, but not as much as we first thought.

Here are the pics, right this way.



Splendid day.

Sunny after all

Sunday brought plenty of sun - a lovely accompaniment to J's return home. Hope everyone had a good Easter - Passover - Mohammed's birthday and other festivities of this season.

Saturday's performance with Ahmet Ozhan went very well. The dervishes joined in two separate sections - Avery Fisher hall was full, tickets sold out and Ahmet Ozhan's performance was met with a standing ovation & encore requests.

We sent four local dervishes & were regaled with wonderful stories from their experiences in New York on Monday. I've been looking for reviews & will post when I find one, but so far - no luck.

J & I are gearing up to take on the garden this weekend. This week has so far been very pleasant, although it's grey again today. I've been getting out more & even made a trip to the zoo yesterday. An early visit was they way to go as most animals were out to have their breakfast. Photos here.

My neighbor, Margaret, invited me over to play scrabble any time I want. She's going to be 103 this year & I got to spend an hour or so with her yesterday. It's really something to spend time with someone who has decided to live on their own for the long haul. Margaret is very companionable & terrific to spend time with - I'll definitely take her up on her offer!

Bossy

Pics from weekend plant work follow:





Daisies that are alabaster white on the interior petals and smoky lavender on the outside, primroses that look like roses with flecks of gold on the petal edges, violas that are pale & sweet, trailing plants with delicate, tiny blossoms and ornamental sweet potatoes with dark purple leaves - beautiful colors in the containers in the front & back of the house. Lovely to hear the rain this morning & awaken to see plants energized and bright with water droplets on the leaves and blossoms.

I also weeded the container with the pretty pink and salmon cone flowers, which are growing back nicely from last year. This house has cone flowers growing around the patio & geraniums growing back already - primroses aplenty & flowers practically everywhere ya look.

On to bossy: I'm still backtracking - the picture cds are done, but not in the mail. The studio feels like a space built for me, but is far from functional. I'm going through my things to see what I need vs. what I bought impulsively & is now just taking up space. I've spent a week watching what I'm doing & as opposed to the last several months, I've stuck to the goals I've set - achieved a good portion of them.

My thinking these days is less tied up in the brutal-ish mania of overproductivity I still read about & admire on the web. I've dropped coffee, caffeine rather, and have done the same with cigarrettes and overall feel more solidly grounded in just what my body can provide on it's own.

Since I'm gearing up for hard work I can't quantify on the outset (readings, studio work on a production scale & studying) I'm nervous that the habits I built in the last 5 years will resurface as I engage. That's where bossy comes in. I'm acclimated to pushing myself & need to see what that looks like without crutches. At any rate, it looks like I'm back in business.

Note to self

Tulips in WA are at their peak in April, the bald eagles feed in the Skagit in Dec-Feb.

I bring this up because when my sister & brother-in-law visited this weekend, we took a drive up to Newhalem, Ross Lake area. We ended up visiting the wildlife center there & taking in the sights (and the sights are plenty, here's the pics from J & my last trip there.) . I was hoping that a few bald eagles would have lingered, even though the salmon run that feeds them ended in December. No such luck. We did see a golden eagle last year tho, pics here and below.

The visit was dreamy - we all had such a good time! It means heaps to me to have my sister see the new place & take some time to relax. She has always been incredibly caring and super responsible, sometimes overwhelming herself with obligations. There's nothing quite as popular in the world as a helpful person & a capable, helpful person is just going to be in high demand.

My brother-in-law is no slouch either. He has amazing stories about his youth in Nepal, Cyprus & Turkey - a super dry sense of humor (which I didn't get until I was well past my senseetive adolescent years) and is just a swell guy all around.

A terrific weekend to get me into the two week class on vocational astrology. I'm looking at Martha Stewart's chart and following the details that reveal the underlying desires that motivate folks to choose the work they do. Martha's chart is a great one to look at & I'll look at charts from recent readings as well, to help get into the swing of things.

Food Poison'd!

Back a week now, from our trip to see my mom for her 75th birthday. My sister did a fantastic job of rounding everyone up for the party. Even though the snow in DC brought the party numbers down, the calls from friends have kept coming & mom has enjoyed that tremendously. So much fun!!

In other mom news, J's mom is much better after wrastling a nasty bacterial infection. After two months of losing weight & not feeling well at all, she has taken a turn for the better & is sounding wonderful. J & I have been very concerned about her & so this is terrific news.

Whoa! Blogger's linking abilities have bombed, so no pics here. I'll update the sidebar, so's you can see pics from the recent trip. Egads...here's a link to the album for now.

The snow was beautiful. It did stop flights out of National & so we took advantage of the extra day to hit the Mall & see as many monuments as we could. Good times. We capped it off with dinner from the marina - fresh, steamed crabs. They were out of season & my brother was lukewarm about partaking, but I bought a half dozen for fun & a taste of home & headed to my brother's house.

J & I ate the first two out of the bag. Mine was off, so after a nibble, I tossed it into the garbage. Crabs can be watery when cooked, which ruins the experience, but I didn't think much of it as I went on through dinner. J stopped after one, we wrapped up dinner & hung out with my brother, his wife & son. So much fun!

I started feeling rough around midnight. I laid out, trying to figure out what was wrong. J got ready for bed & joined me. That was the last of the awesome trip as I began a 7 or so hour spat with food poisoning. I missed our early flight home & spent the next day (and a good portion of last week) exhausted and nauseous. Fortunately, the seventh day adventists had a store nearby & so I was able to get charcoal tablets to rid my body of the poison. It was a relief to get home the next evening.

Well, onward & all. I plan on regaling soon with tales of astrology & art. In the short term, this will have to suffice.

Creakshow

It's just now warming up. With the chill in the air - I feel creaky. I've gone out to get more space heaters - and the furnace folk are scheduled to come at two this afternoon. Funny how constraining the cold is - I feel less able to think & certainly less motivated to do things.

I took a walk around the garden & into the greenhouse today. Talk about restoring yr spirit - It's raining and winter, so the plants in the food garden have mostly given up the ghost. I did walk by what looked like cilantro - still green and lovely, but can't be sure. Also, the blackberries don't seem to be weakening at all. There are some without thorns that are pretty weeds.

The laundry room needs cleaning and stat. I'll get back to that, but wanted to post some pics from the trip - (for the set, go here):