As a junior high school kid in Oregon in the 60’s…yes, I wore saddle shoes. We were cool in saddle shoes and knee socks and plaid kilts. Continue reading
Things from my days
Stuff that happens, is found and sometimes lost
serenaded by lilacs
I know, I know….those of you who live in climates with year round flowers and trees won’t quite get this, but here we revel in the exuberant bursting of scent in our short seasons.
Lilacs sing with fresh soft colour and pillowy blossoms as they serenade us with their scent. What is overwhelming and overpowering in those body sprays and bath bubbles, becomes a song in the June breeze of my yard.
Lasting just long enough – like a song circling your mind until the next one comes out, the lilacs are here to fill my world with a minuet from the composition of the season.
dear diary, it was a long week and the story of a new job
Much like Jasmine crashed in her nest, Friday night found me nodding off pretty early as I curled up on the couch. A new job will do that to ya. Continue reading
pig moments and the accidental collection
Well, it’s interesting that Sigmund Freud harkens the psychology of collecting with ties back to toilet training. And in his way, he says that the loss of control and what went down the toilet was a loss we strive to get back by collecting things. Give or take a literal translation of his theory. Continue reading
before you know it – you’re vintage cool
Well, maybe I’m not vintage cool, but my sewing machine certainly is! As I took it out to hem the chopped off sleeves of a shirt, I was thinking about the forty years I’ve had this little Genie. Continue reading
flowerpots and the news
I don’t know what people expect you to be doing when you’re not punching the timecard in the 9-5 world. When you’re in between contracts, or stepping slowly into new opportunities (as they say which is also known as job hunting and interviewing and that cycle).
Me? Well, I’ve been doing some creative stuff with flower pots. And watching the news. Lots and lots of news. Continue reading
rocks in the china cabinet
He said “I found another Agate for you” as he pulled a little rock out of the pocket of his dog-walking jacket and put it on the kitchen counter. Continue reading
hello there, Bear!
My friend was driving back to town and found some awesome bears a couple of hours from here. Spring is time for bears to wake up and smell the roses. And eat whatever they can find, and bring babies out.
We are just so blessed to live where we can see this!!
Thanks for sharing, Martin.
Photos courtesy of Martin Istok
picking up a few things at the store
This time of year picking up toilet paper and milk at the store pretty much assures a trunk full of plants too. We are manic with our spring-time planting and rightly so. Continue reading
9 people, 6 days, a tribe and a mug
9 people in a room for six days. Like really, really in a room. Not leaving. And days are 12-14 hours long. That’s what it means to work for our election as an officer facilitating advanced voting opportunities for the masses.
I don’t care who you are, it still takes a big inhale and twinge of expectation and anticipation mixed up with the tiny insecurities we all pack around when you commit to in this case, 6 days of intense group dynamics. Continue reading
the weight of your vote
I admit that I have been totally engrossed with first the campaign, then the election and now the first 100 fumbling days of politics south of our border. You can’t make that stuff up. Continue reading
potato soup
The smell of potato soup wafts up from the stove as I hold the seven week old baby girl tucked to my chest, rocking back and forth to try to get her to stop crying. And shivering. She is shivering. With my free arm, I stir and stir and stir the soup with the big broken metal spoon that I found in the cutlery drawer with a few stray spoons and forks and crumbs. The spoon grates against the pot with each pass through the thin soup. I can’t let it burn; it’s all there is to eat in the house.
I hadn’t thought of the family for years but they came rushing back to me with all the desperation and fear and hopelessness from so long ago. With a thick, creamy soup simmering on my stove; bacon, onions, potatoes, rich and creamy, I caught a memory as I lifted the lid to check and stir. Continue reading
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