Flit Knits

Heart it

2009-03-09T17:52:00.000-07:00

,
Hello there little dust bunny.

The photo above is of 30 "compassion" hearts I made for a class over winter break. Yes, I did arts and crafts for a class. No, I'm not in art school.

I happen to dislike Valentine's Day and hearts in general, but decided to reclaim the heart for myself as the most powerful muscle in the body and as a symbol of bravery and compassion. On the back of each of these hearts is a cookie fortune sized slip of paper with a quote on compassion. A different quote for each heart. I gave one to each member of the class. They worked for them; the honesty, bravery and vulnerability they demonstrated in this class bowled me over.

The fabric bits on the front are from a plethora of vintage scarves....a big boxed lot I got on ebay years ago and that have served me well for many fabric projects. They are covered over with netting and sewn to the heart shaped remnants of a felted red wool sweater that was hand knit by my friend Sarah. Washing machine accidents and wool can have happy endings.

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In other news I am about to take a trip with my eldest to the East Coast. Airfare right now is ridiculously cheap and there is a marketing/recruiting shindig going on at a university she is interested in. It has been a challenging year for her, she's doing well in school, but is bored by the whole thing and thinking about the light at the end of the tunnel seems to be motivating her. In some ways I feel a little silly doing the whole college thing when she's still got two years to go. Honestly it is just a selfish mom excuse to spend a weekend out with a lovely young woman in a great city. I'm looking forward to it. We may even get to have dinner with an old friend here one evening. I hope so.

I could use some motivation myself. I keep thinking I've turned corners and then find myself standing in front of a brick wall. In the meantime I will work on some graffitti.

Blur

2008-08-05T19:41:00.000-07:00

I just returned from a month in the Northeast Kingdom of Vermont. A month of sheer, unadulterated joy, the beauty of living in an intentional community and the heartbreak of leaving many wonderful new friends who I felt a deep connection to within that short time. I also got to work at my passion as the baker's assistant. Heaven.

There aren't words to describe it....some pictures will have to do:

My oldest friend

2008-06-16T19:27:00.000-07:00

This same moon saw me crying through the back window of my parent's car as a song on the radio broke my heart open, it watched me spin around and around with a group of people to Rembetika music outside a cafe in Chios , as it rose blood red over the Mediterranean. I can even imagine it catching my attention as a baby slung over my mother's shoulder on a summer evening a brilliant, glowing ball on the horizon.

One of the first things I look for when I go outside in the evening is the moon. Throughout numerous moves, lonely evenings spent smoking out back (when I was smoking) and times of transcendent joy it has been there. So much changes, but it has been with me wherever I go and whatever I'm doing.

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It doesn't matter how well you know yourself...What matters is how you relate to what you do know. ~Mark Epstein

Every Thursday evening I drive along the Braes Bayou to the meditation center and the moon is there keeping me company in the damp green heat of Houston. Over the last month or so this winding road past trees dripping with Spanish Moss has moved me past something, a resistance I have had all this time to this place and myself in it. My feelings about sprawl and a car-centric city haven't changed, but something has shifted. I'm not looking to leave here unless something very specific comes looking to take me away.

I had dinner on Friday with a friend at a restaurant I had been dreaming about since we moved here. The entire menu was local and the food was stunning. I told my friend that I was tired of always wishing myself elsewhere, not to mention moving, and that we will make our lives here as if it is the only place there is to be. We walked outside the restaurant and I stood under a peach tree full of velvety ripe fruit and saw the moon through its branches and thought of it shining on my own garden: the fig tree, meyer lemons, blackberries and muscadines.

I thought, where the moon is, that's home.

Coming out of the shell

2008-06-06T18:09:00.000-07:00

We found this snail shell on a morning walk. The snail either abandoned the shell, doubtful, or was plucked up and emptied by one of the herons that sometimes hang out in the trees of our neighborhood which is bordered by one of the many bayous that make this Bayou City. For the uninitiated these are not pronounced Bye ooo as I did when I first landed on these humid shores, but Bye O. Anyway, this snail is no native either. A gourmand or entrepreneur (or so the story goes) "introduced" them to the area hoping for a windfall in escargot. I do love escargot, but have never gotten up the courage to harvest them for consumption. Which doesn't mean my hands are clean, as I do round them up and make them "swim" in order to save our garden harvest. They can wreak havoc.

This snail is a good metaphor for what's happening in our lives in these parts soon. The shell is what I've surrounded myself with the past several years; taking care of others, putting my own needs and desires on hold and also just holding on to what came before in a way that keeps me from moving forward. I'm hoping to leave that all behind. A tall order, but one worth pursuing I think. I feel like this is a watershed year for me. I turned 40 and I'm about to spend an entire month on my own without my family. When I come back I will embark on a new career path.

The kids are heading out together to spend two months with their grandmother on a farm that has been in the family since 1885. I'm so happy that they can sit by the fireplace with books I read as a child and listen to their grandmother's stories.

And all three of us girls, heading out on our adventures, have a wonderful guy who supports us in our need to expand our horizons holding down the fort!

Onward

2008-05-09T19:03:00.000-07:00

In truth I gave notice at my job two days ago, BUT this is because I was accepted into the Graduate School of Social Work at the University of Houston AND I was accepted into the volunteer program at a meditation retreat in Vermont for the month of July. Big changes on the horizon and an unbelievable month all to myself (it has been 16 years since I've had one of those!).

There has been some tense dramarama at my job post giving notice. My boss was actually very nice about me leaving, but there are other issues with other people and I will be glad to walk away from there in three more weeks.

In exchange for working 30 hours a week Monday-Friday here I will have the privilege of spending, room and board free, the month of July far from the wilting Houston heat. Much to my delight I was informed that the majority of work will be outside. This will hopefully detoxify me from the desk bound life I've been leading. I've already got the books I plan to read while there lined up, some fresh notebooks on hold as well as visits planned with two women I love and haven't seen in a while, one in Quebec and the other in Burlington.

The kids are spending two months with their grandmother on her farm in Argentina this summer and Juan will be watching all the crazy violent movies I can't take here at home.

Come August I will be in school once again. I'm excited about the program in large part because we are required to work at a community agency for 16 hours a week every semester. I'm a hands on kind of girl and think/hope that classes will be more interesting due to the fact that all the students will actually have real life experiences to bring to the theory and study of social issues.

One other thing I am looking forward to in July is no access to a computer. It's been at least 12 years since that has happened for more than a short bit of time. I plan to write letters something I did a lot more of before email entered my life!

Here

2008-04-11T21:49:00.001-07:00

This weekend there are no fixed plans a relief and a luxury after over a month of weekends on the go. Fridays are traditionally family nights so we had dinner and then Madelines and tea outside with the local wildlife.

Sofía is my nature chick. She reminds me of myself at that age. I spent hours staring into a creek bed, catching frogs and even more hours turning over rotting logs to see if I could capture newts. I wanted so much to be a herpetologist and to write for National Geographic. My own father saw his dreams of being an "ologist" in me. The last time I visited him he pulled out a record he found that was made in a booth when he was 10 where he talked about wanting to become a scientist "geologist, zoologist or some kind of ologist." He used to hang out around the staff entrance of the Museum of Natural History in Washington DC hoping to learn more about the things he found, and he learned how to do taxidermy from one of the scientists who must have seen some potential in him. The sound of his young hopeful voice made me very sad. College was so far out of the reality of anyone in his family and he never managed to make it there. He had a family to support instead. I grew up with snakes and lizards and preserved these pets when they died in the formaldehyde my dad kept in his closet. I regret never having been challenged in science and I do think a lot of it had to do with being a girl. Sofia announced this evening that she wants to be "a natural scientist that studies frogs and toads" that would be a herpetologist! No pressure, but it would be cool!

The only fixed plan I have this weekend is to go see Marjane Satrapi with Micaela. My very good friend Adam gave Micaela her first book a few years ago. We have yet to see the movie, but Micaela is looking forward to getting her book signed for her collection of books signed by women authors including Isabel Allende and Gloria Steinem(a picture of her getting the book signed and she wasn't 9 she was 4!). The only man in the group is Ira Glass who we saw earlier this year.

I'm feeling rather insular these days...I'm trying to be here in my life even when it sucks, which the 8-4 part definitely does. This too shall pass.

This is what 40 looks like

2008-02-24T13:08:00.001-08:00

A day like any other, but with bigger expectations I suppose. A beautiful brunch out with my family, a new book of poetry bought (a yearly tradition) and the gift I most wanted received. Things aren't quite as I'd hope they'd be at this milestone in my life, but when are things ever quite as we hope? I'm trying to appreciate the moments I'm given.

Somewhere under the rainbow....

2007-12-21T18:07:00.000-08:00

This past weekend I went to visit my friend in D.C. We walked out of Second Story Books on Dupont Circle to the most amazing rainbow either of us had ever seen. It was huge and luminous and the picture doesn't do it justice, but it was worth documenting.

Last night we celebrated Solstice which is, of course, technically today, but today Micaela has a friend over and Sofia is at a sleepover. This is the first year we have decided to do the whole gift thing on Solstice. I look forward to sleeping in on the day most dedicate to presents. The kids were beyond happy with their gifts and extremely grateful. I'm grateful that today brought a Solstice mix (and other goodies!) from the musical Wordy Diva and a gift certificate to a local spa from my boss.

Tomorrow we will be invaded by teenage girls for a birthday party. Micaela will officially be 14 on Sunday. There is an element of deja vu in the whole thing; some of these kids are dressing in the "latest" 80s fashions and the movie line up is retro too....The Breakfast Club, Sixteen Candles, Stand By Me and Heathers. The last two I recommended as they asked me help them find 80s films. Nice to be of some use.

There is absolutely no one who makes me laugh like Micaela makes me laugh. I could not have imagined, 14 years ago, as I cursed the heat and my enormous belly how much I would enjoy being the mother of a teenage girl. She speaks her mind, has great style, stands up for what she believes in and isn't afraid to show us affection in public or act like a total goof ball. Who else would skip down the bayou walking path with me while singing made up lyrics to hypothetical heavy metal songs? I know, no one. Truly she's a kindred spirit and I'm glad we met up this time around.

Late night loopy

2007-12-07T23:17:00.000-08:00

It's late and I'm luxuriating in the thought of not having to get up at six in the morning and walk the dog in the dark before heading off to eight hours in an office. Of course the long list of things I have to do tomorrow will hit me like a speeding truck in the haze of my impending sleep deprivation, but for now I'm goofing off. Happy Friday (ok, technically Saturday now)!

Let the madness begin!

2007-12-04T17:22:00.000-08:00

Today was my second day back at work full time. So far so good, except reading policy and bioethics papers for 4 hours in a row starts to make your eyes go blurry. The biggest bonus was finding out that the center closes for two weeks over the holidays. Enforced vacation time and no more worries about juggling the kids being out of school, priceless. Crazy evenings trying to catch up with kids, make dinner or walk the dog (Juan and I switch off), supervise homework, then violin practice , make the next days lunches etc. etc. not so much. A balance will be found!

I can finally post a picture of my latest finished object, the last swap in an almost year long swap with the members of my former knit and spin group in Illinois. This hat has Sarah written all over it!

Sofia looks pretty cute in it too, although the light could be better. I spun the yarn and then knit the hat and felted it. The red flower is from a sweater Sarah gave me long ago and the black velvet button was taken from a 1940's coat dress I no longer wear.

I've been sewing quite a bit and have everything to make this (I was the happy recipient of the one pictured, my last swap gift from Dorie. Ironically I bought Lotta Jansdotter's book the day before I got the bag, I now plan to make one for my mom.) and this. Both of them holiday gifts. Sofia made a place mat for herself from the Lotta Jansdotter book and I made this backpack.

My plan was to show it on my back, but it makes me look like a linebacker. Note to self: much longer straps next time. This backpack will go to some lucky kid.

Just a few pictures from today...

2007-12-01T20:46:00.000-08:00

Getting Gracie riled up!

Battle of the Bands, Contemporary Arts Museum Houston

Juan exchanging breath with a statue outside the Museum of Fine Arts Houston where I also saw an amazing exhibition of Avant-Garde jewelery, but somehow missed the Kara Walker exhibition. Next time.

Life in the tropics

2007-11-07T07:10:00.000-08:00

This morning for the first time this "fall" I put on a light jacket to take the dog for a walk. But then I came home to harvest these:

Meyer Lemons in front of Jasmine

These still have some time before they ripen:

The fig is a little out of focus, but I love the leaf.

And our approx. 7 foot x 7 foot Hibiscus is in full bloom and laced through with Plumbago.

This is a winter I could get used to...as my friends up North head inside I'm on my way out the door after a summer hiding from blistering heat. It all feels so very backwards, but right now I'm loving it.

A change is coming...

2007-11-04T12:53:00.000-08:00

Since arriving in Texas I have been applying for jobs; many, many jobs. My criteria was that they had to be jobs I was interested in (lucky me to have the luxury to choose and to wait) and that they would challenge me. It has been a long and often depressing wait as I didn't even get interview requests for any of the full time jobs I applied for. The wait is over. I was offered a job last week helping to coordinate research in a center that investigates ethics and health policy and I accepted. The work will be intellectually stimulating, and will give me a chance to learn a lot about genetics and ethics as well as to do a wide variety of tasks, including a lot of writing, over the period of the three year grant. The fact that the information we gather will be used to make policy recommendations, and that I will be a part of making those recommendations in the third year, is especially exciting. I now have 4 weeks to get my house in order.

In the meantime I've been working helping international nurses get settled here and doing a minimal amount of sewing and knitting. Here's some proof:

I don't know if I have plans to be a better blog poster. I have been trying to do more living and less looking. I wish I was the kind of person who didn't get sucked into the whole blogosphere in an obsessive way, but I am. It gets especially bad for me when I'm down, which I have been since we returned from France, and I find that looking at the beauty (granted that little slice we're willing to put out there) and productivity of other people's lives just mires me more. Hence I try to stay away from the computer and I usually feel much better that way. Hopefully my horizons will broaden with a new job and some mental stimulation and I will be back here in the way I was meant to be.

2007-09-28T23:41:00.000-07:00

Two weeks in France have come and gone. I enjoyed every single last second of it. I felt very at home there; the walking, the biking, the baking, the weather, the individuality in people’s dress, the incredible gardens and flowers everywhere. I felt so incredibly lucky to spend two weeks there, so appreciative and so alive.

We also saw lots of old stones:

Which works on a person’s perspective. I’m not religious, and don’t go to church, but the size, beauty and age of these amazing buildings really gets to you. Standing inside an enormous church, ruin around it, that was built in the 9th century makes you feel very small in the scheme of things. I thought so often about all the lives that had passed through these buildings; the sorrows and joys people had brought with them to these places, now long gone and forgotten, and I know that my life in the grand scheme of things is just a blink of an eye. I experienced that kind of happiness that teeters on the edge of overwhelming tears for most of the trip, because I could see in these ancient stones how fleeting it all really is. Note to self: don’t sweat the small stuff!

It has been almost exactly 15 years since I met this guy in a cafe in Dahab Egypt, both of us with backpacks and me with only $5.00 left in my pocket. I took a huge leap of faith then and accepted his invitation to travel overland to China. I know now, once again, that traveling with him is one of the best decisions I’ve ever made. It still is all these years later.

Here comes the rain again

2007-09-04T18:39:00.000-07:00

Yes, it is raining again in Houston, like it does everyday. It could put a crimp in our summer grilling routine, but I live with an adventurous griller.

Our grass is like a full sponge, there are tadpoles in the neighborhood puddles and I have to wipe the dog's feet before she comes back into the house after our walks. I have yet to see "gentle rain" here in Southeast Texas.

In other news I went a little crazy last week at co-op and bought 30 pounds of these organic Heirloom tomatoes:

And 16 pounds of organic Strawberries, here are some of them ready to be dehydrated:

8 hours later I had canned tomatoes and strawberry jam along with 4 lbs. of dehydrated strawberries. You'll just have to believe me, at the end I was too tired to take pictures of preserves.

Last year just didn't feel right since we didn't have a garden in and I didn't can my own tomatoes. These tomatoes really tasted homegrown, but of course, were not. The only thing that ate tomatoes out of my yard this year were squirrels (and peppers too!). Considering growing tomatoes in this climate is a crap shoot (it gets too hot too fast for them) and they don't taste nearly as good as my northern tomatoes I think I'm giving up the ghost on tomatoes. This winter I will depend on snap peas, chard and greens, all things that do well here. In other produce news my Meyer Lemon tree is full of, yet to mature, lemons.

Tomorrow I am going transatlantic for two weeks, alone with Juan. The kids and my mother in law will hold down the fort while I work on my chocolate and cheese diet, a big thick book and a few slender things I plan to read while sitting outside in no humidity temps of around 70 degrees. Heaven.

Dog days

2007-08-17T12:39:00.001-07:00

We got back just in time for the real dog days of summer. We also got a real dog, a true boon for sweating it out on our twice daily walks. I think this is probably the best non-prescription anti-depressant. My mood since getting her, no matter hundred degree temps and plus 80 percent humidity, is 100 percent better than before we left for the East Coast. My walking partner is pretty cute too.

Gracie

While away I finished Picovoli I took pictures of me in it, however, Mica, who has been lobbying for me to give it to her won out as the public model. This was decided after the kids both said, after looking at the pics I took of myself, "You look SO much better in person!"

Picovoli

Other finished items include a skein I spun up for my friend Drew. I neglected to take pictures of it, but you can find him documenting its transformation here.

If you're a weather news junkie you undoubtably heard about our tropical storm, downgraded to depression. Nonetheless one of the entrances to my neighborhood yesterday was completely underwater. There were a lot of leaves in the pool this morning.

The Blog of my Dreams

2007-08-12T09:18:00.000-07:00

I'm still here, back from DC and enmeshed in the day to day of my life and pondering what to write about here.

BUT I just had to share a blog I just found (that perhaps everyone else already knows about) that has got me inspired and excited and feeling creative Cecil Vortex "...a churning urn of burning funk..."

There are quite a few reasons I'm loving this site so much. The guy has great musical taste, as evidenced by his The Bands I've Seen Project (many I've seen as well), the Conversations on Creativity are fantastic; the questions and answers move far beyond what most interviews on creativity manage to capture and he's just plan funny and critical in a way I enjoy.

Worth checking out and adding to my own list of Inspiring and Informing.

Heaven

2007-07-21T14:55:00.001-07:00

Today was spectacular. The weather was perfect and I was on my own. My mom and stepdad took the kids to a horseshoe tournament. My stepfather just so happens to be ranked 4th in high ringer average in the world. So he's pretty serious about horseshoes. Before I met him I had no idea horseshoes was a bona fide sport. Micaela was scoring the tournament today to make a few extra bucks.

I headed for Dupont Circle, an area of Washington DC that I know very well and that holds lots of memories for me. It is my favorite neighborhood in DC, and while I know I could never afford to live there it is probably one of my top five places that I would like to live. Maybe number one considering it is right near my family. I bought Jane Hirshfield's newest book of poetry for reading with coffee later in the day, ate lunch, and then I headed up to S St. specifically for this:

I saw a gorgeous exhibition of central Asian tent bands. The colors, the textures, the insane amount of work that went into these practical works of art!! I so wanted to take pictures, but alas no pictures in the gallery. Not so in the gift shop where I saw books on natural dyeing and knitting and spinning that I had never seen before. Plus the textiles for sale were museum quality themselves with prices to match. I didn't buy, but I did admire. This is just one corner of the store.
From here I walked to another favorite neighborhood, Adams Morgan, where Madame's Organ is still to be found keeping watch over Columbia Rd.
Coffee, poetry reading and writing ensued before walking back down the hill.

More wall art in Adams Morgan

Everywhere I went I felt like I was going to bump into my 16 year old self dressed in a dirty black slip on her way to the nearby hotel to wash herself in the "public" bathroom sinks off the lobby. Or maybe my somewhat older 18 year old self dirty and sweaty from working as a bike courier locking my bike to a parking meter for the dash into a building with a delivery. This trip home has been all about the past. I've met up with various people I haven't seen in over 20 years and for the most part it has made me feel good about the direction my life took. Still, there is a bittersweet sense of my youth and being in such a beautiful, walkable city makes me yearn to live here again.

On my way back to the car I took this picture and then realized, when I got to the end of the block, that this house was only three or four down from the abandoned house where I squatted with some other kids when I was 16. I walked down this street a few weeks ago when I went out to dinner with some friends and couldn't place exactly which house it was. Once this street was so familiar to me, now I can't place it a few weeks later. It all looks so posh and upscale now!

One last picture before I got in the car. I've always loved the National Headquarters of the Supreme Council of Scottish Rites right behind me, but I didn't do such a great job of getting it in.

I think I got some sun today.

Who's coming for dinner?

2007-07-16T16:40:00.000-07:00

1. If you could invite three people to dinner (they can be living, dead or fictional) whom would you invite, and why would you invite them?

First up, Ella Maillart, she was a trailblazer literally and figuratively. She traveled to faraway places under dangerous conditions and wrote spectacularly about it. A sailor, photographer and great writer I'm sure she'd have some fantastic stories to tell. I highly recommend her books, especially The Cruel Way.

The Dalai Lama. He and Ella could talk about her trip through Tibet in the 20s and I can't see him without wanting to smile. I heard him speak in Houston and his laugh and spirit were infectious.

Sharon Olds would be my third choice. She is probably my favorite poet and I admire her, not only for her work with words, but for her strong political convictions and her ambivalent attitude towards motherhood. Her poems are never sentimental, but strip situations down to their raw essentials.

2. At this dinner, what would you serve (meal planning is the key to the soul, I think)?

I would serve very good homemade baguettes and whatever fruit and vegetables were in season (the fruit with clotted cream!), good cheese and wine and ripe melon wrapped in proscuitto.

3.If you could live go back in time and live in any era, which era would you choose?
I think I would probably like to come of age in the 1920s. So many things changed for women then and I think it would be an exciting time to be woman....of course a woman with choices and some means. Kind of like when people say they would like to be a cat. I guess it goes unsaid that they would want to be a well cared for cat!

Thanks to Linda for this meme. I won't tag anyone, but enjoyed thinking about this.

More math

2007-06-22T11:40:00.000-07:00

Another experiment with natural dyes. This time I took this:

12 oz. of Parmelia Sulcata (tree lichens) from the tree we took down in the front of our house.

Plus

4 oz. of handspun angora I brought back from Argentina (along with several other kilos of yarn!) two years ago. I didn't think to take a picture until it was in the bowl of water. The brighter white at the top is the still dry fiber. There was also a tablespoon of alum and a teaspoon of cream of tartar added to the dye pot.

Equals this

Not particularly brilliant.... I don't think the work of scraping all those lichens off the downed tree was really worth it. Now I know to pass them up next time. I knit this for my friend J, who does have two hands, as part of an offline swap.

My dye garden was officially a bust, but there are still things in my yard that are plentiful and possible dye plants: yarrow, tansy, hibiscus and turk's cap.

This post has been sitting in draft form for over a week! I'm off tomorrow for the East Coast to spend time with friends and family. I've had some realizations this week about things that have been holding me back, things I have determined I will overcome. I have a plan and that is a good thing. Until I return here are a few things I've finished recently; gifts for others that I will deliver in person this week.

Veronik Avery's Prairie Tunic

Mari from Hip Knit Hats in red onion skin dyed handspun merino

Twins

2007-06-15T14:24:00.000-07:00

These are thank you gifts for two little girls who kept Sofia company in California. As always my sewing method is slapdash and less than perfect, but they work and it seems they coveted Sofia's pencil case while she was there. I don't think they'll critique my craftsmanship!

A Texas kind of day....

2007-06-10T16:24:00.000-07:00

My first outing today was to pick up my meat order from Paidom. I saw Staci there waiting for her box.

What would you decide to do if you were in Texas on a day where the heat index is over 100? Go to a State Park, of course. This guy was not shy...

Immature Black Crowned Night Heron

These were sharing the same bush. Dewberries are another Texas treat I didn't know I was missing. They are a bit smaller than blackberries and I think sweeter.

I finished Veronik Avery's Prairie Tunic last night it just needs to be blocked. I'm also in the middle of helping Sofia make a doll for a swap. I'm amazed at how adept she is with scissors and she draws very well. We'll see how the construction comes together. I'm not worried about her sewing, she is very good on the machine...my construction skills are the concern!

I also finally finished spinning up almost 500yds of incredibly soft merino superwash for the ubiquitous Clapotis. I just need to dye it first. Last night I cast on for the Bella Blouse. Kudos to all my knitting compatriots who enjoy lace, but I HATE it. What was I thinking when I decided to buy yarn to make this top? It is possible that I may turn the border into something cabled. I have done hats before with a cabled border that is then picked up. Maybe I just need to get through something I don't really want to...isn't that supposed to be character building?

Gotta fly!

A little math

2007-06-07T08:10:00.001-07:00

425 grams of this (hand spun superwash merino mordanted with alum):

Plus 200 grams of this (red onion skins):

Equals this:

Not the color I was expecting. I don't really eat tons of red onions; a fringe benefit of working at the co-op is being able to empty 25 lb. boxes of red onions of loose skins.

Quick and dirty

2007-05-25T13:41:00.001-07:00

Sofia and Micaela took off yesterday for San Francisco to spend time with their grandmother and uncle. I whipped this up for Sofia in 1 1/2 hours just before they left.

The craftsmanship leaves something to be desired (the lines are not even I didn't even bother to measure), but it works and her colored pencils won't be swimming around at the bottom of her backpack. And of course she was happy and thought it was perfect!

Flashback...Fast Forward

2007-05-12T20:04:00.000-07:00

Yesterday an old friend of mine sent me this picture...

I was 17 and in my very first apartment after a time spent squatting in an abandoned factory, and then in an abandoned house. The house was busted while I was on a whirlwind adventure to Virgina Beach in a car that was too small with a limited soundtrack (we had exactly one tape in the car; Metallica's Ride the Lightning). When I got back to DC all my stuff (conveniently stored in a big black trash bag) had been removed by the police, all I had left was what I was wearing. A few months, and several sofas later, I was living in a basement apartment in a building that was owned by a friend's father. I was the youngest tenant, but most of us were young, unemployed and irresponsible. These were my "dorm" years.

Now the fast forward...

We took my mother-in-law to San Antonio for the day. Somehow when I was 17 it seemed like I would always be 17. This past week I have been encountering my past at every turn...A friend sent me this book and I saw lots of familiar faces, including a picture of the friend who sent me the picture. I watched this movie and re-lived quite a few shows I went to, and I had two old friends find me via the internet. I plan to meet up with them, and my friend the photographer, when the girls and I head to DC in July.

Time marches on...

Roots

2007-05-05T09:54:00.000-07:00

While I'm on the subject of trees...Here is something I completed as part of an offline swap with a group of people from my former hometown. The recipient was Tumbling Blocks and this was really an extra, as the main swap gift was the Cosima hat from Hip Knit Hats. Hopefully Dorie will post a picture of herself in the hat, as the one I took of myself in it, well, I just can't post it. I am that vain. It is appliqued to a piece of red felt (Sarah, I cut up the felted sweater you gave me, forgive me! But there are plans in it for you too, and I thought it was fitting that it has a bit of both of us in it.) and I appliqued pink paisley fabric on the back with this poem written on it. Spring required more than a hat knit with baby alpaca. I received a very cool planter with a knit "cozy" from Sarah When I decide what to put in it I will post a picture

I'm feeling a bit more settled here mostly due having some set moments in the week where I get together with people with whom I share some interests (one day of the week it is food and the other fiber) and a lot of laughs. In my experience (having moved 5 times in the span of 10 years and living in 9 different States/Countries over a lifetime) it takes about 2 years to really feel like I can put down some roots; I'm almost at the one year mark here. I've also realized over these nomad years that my roots really have to do less with places and more with people. I definitely envy people with strong roots and historical connections, but I also have a group of people from all over the world who I know I can count on and who would take me in if I ever showed up on their doorstep. I also know that I have what it takes to make it anywhere, even if it means suffering quite a bit initially (and this move in particular has been harder than any before it). Juan's mom is here right now, and now that I have been with Juan for 15 (!!) years she is definitely a big part of my life and it is great to have her here with the girls. It is nice to have some constants in this life of continual change.

Thank you Gerry

2007-04-21T07:58:00.000-07:00

Estate sales are always a mix of sadness and elation. Digging through a lifetime of someone's possesions not only feels voyeuristic, but also reminds me of how brief our time here is and how I too one day will be reduced to the rubble of my possesions here in the tangible world.

I came home $3.00 lighter with a box full of wrapping paper and vintage cards received on a marriage and new home and a cute green box with blank flowered notecards, very 1960s. Micaela wanted to know more about the woman whose stuff we were picking through and asked the person who ran the estate sale. She worked her whole life as a nurse, her mother had been a chemist and she loved to collect art. In among the papers I found her wedding announcement in the Binghamton, N.Y. Sunday Press Former City Girl Wed to Texan in New York City Ceremony. There were also pictures of her and her husband and a pay stub from 1969. She looks so beautiful and full of life in the picture, a reminder to me that life is what I've got right here in front of me. I need to give it my full attention.

Coopcopia

2007-04-18T17:03:00.001-07:00

Every Wednesday I spend the first 6 hours of my day at my co-op job. Then I come home with a box full of beautiful produce and start dreaming up all the wonderful things I will make with the bounty. Not pictured are the Portobellos that I sauteed with spinach and topped with mozzarella, parmesan and a drizzle of olive oil for dinner.

Some of my earliest memories are of co-ops; Glut and Beautiful Day, in Maryland, to be exact. It was the early 70s and my mom even started her very own produce co-op with some other women she knew. As a kid I sometimes found the co-op funky; all the bulk food came out of barrels (sometimes complete with weevils), the cheese was bulk cut and sometimes moldy and there was just a smell, a very special co-op smell that existed nowhere else. That smell means home to me now. When I first walked into the building of my previous co-op home the smell took me back to my childhood! The funny thing is my parents were not even remotely considered hippies food was just very important to my mother and she certainly passed that on to me.

My new co-op is very different from the last, but there is still a real sense of community and generosity of knowledge about all kinds of things; community resources, gardening, cooking, health....If I need to know something about anything chances are someone there has the answer or at least the map to more information. I'm going to be taking on some more hours there coordinating and organizing volunteers starting next week. I talked to my mom on the phone tonight and she told me that she never hears me happier than when I am cooking, baking or talking about food. I think she is right.

Something else that makes me happy is my new wheel and its bobbin capacity. This is my first spun up skein all 309 yards of it! The wool itself is nothing special I didn't want to practice on a new wheel with luxe wool, but I am very happy with how it turned out.

Now I'm awaiting 5 pounds of Merino superwash from my friend Halyna's farm in NY.

My Knitpicks package arrived today with the yarn for this:

Veronik Avery's Prairie Tunic from Interweave Knits Spring 2006

My friend E. will be 40 in June and I promised her this for her birthday. I just may have to make another for myself. Veronik Avery is probably my very favorite knitwear designer.

The circle of life

2007-04-15T20:12:00.000-07:00

It was an absolutely gorgeous day today. The weather was perfect; sunny, breezy not too hot or cold. We spent the morning outside weeding and pruning. They are everywhere in our backyard, but still feel very exotic to me:

a Green Anole.

After lunch al fresco we went out for New York Super Fudge Chunk, Ben and Jerry's finest, and then to a park to unsuccesfully launch our kite. We ended up playing frisbee. When we got home and opened the door Micaela noticed this:

a Green Anole.

This time on the inside of the door. It looks fossilized and I can't believe we never noticed it before. Maybe it should gross me out, but I think it looks kind of cool.

While I've been gone...

2007-04-13T12:58:00.000-07:00

The girls in Galveston last Saturday.

Micaela and I processed 15 pounds of these today. For those in Northern climes they are
Loquats and Houston is rife with them at the moment. I'd never come across one until we moved here, but they seem to be a purely homegrown fruit. I've never seen them in the stores. We planted a tree in our front yard,but until it produces we are counting on the kindness of neighbors and friends. The mom of one of Sofia's friends dropped off two full grocery bags of them on Wednesday. I noticed that the neighbor just across from us, a widow in her 80s, has a tree she didn't seem to be picking so I walked over there this morning and asked her if she'd mind if we picked them for her. After climbing the tree and wrestling with a large thorny bush I netted two more bags, plus some for her, and a visit inside to see some of her amazing paintings and to hear wonderful stories about her life during World War II and the "dustbowl" of Amarillo Texas where she is originally from.

Loquats taste something like apricots, but have more seeds and are thus more work to prepare for canning. I owe the loquat donors a jar of jam and some homemade bread.
Good jam, all 19 jars of it! Bad picture....

In other news:
-I got a new wheel, and responsibly sold my old one to finance it. The new wheel is a Lendrum DT, my old wheel an Ashford Traveller.

-Tomorrow I'm taking Sofia to see Tales of a Fourth Grade Nothing at Main Street Theater. I have lots of memories of this book, which I read several times as a child. Remember Fudge and Dribble?

-I did a fiscally non-responsible thing and bought tickets to see my mom and assorted friends, in the DC Metro area, in July.

-Micaela was accepted into the high school we hoped for, she is very happy and so are we.

-New plants in the yard: jellybean tomatoes, yellow pear tomatoes, Juliet Tomato plant and a Roma. I went on a snail eradication mission today. The mystery of disappearing plants has been solved. Truth be told I think snails are cute, but I discovered where they hang out during the day. A regular snail convention I tell you!

-Birds continue to be a surprising source of pleasure here. All my life, since I was a child, I have been part of a bird watching family. The variety of birds to be seen here rivals anywhere else I've ever lived. We're participating in this great Urban Birds project, there is a fantastic packet of info and fun stuff to do with kids that you can download or ask them to send to you.

-I'm still at loose ends, but working on it. 5 moves, none of the places within even 1000 miles of each other, in 10 years might be pushing my moving mojo just a bit.

Spring has sprung

2007-03-19T12:40:00.001-07:00

While it never really felt like winter here in Houston I am discovering the changing of the seasons all the same. I hadn't really realized how dormant everything had gone and how much green was missing from the landscape. We had biblical rains last week; flooding the end of our street, bringing the bayou up over its banks and popping all the plants in the sunny days that followed.

With warmer weather a girl's thoughts turn to shoes. I really should return these, but they are SO cute and in keeping with the flower theme! Plus I have always wanted a red pair of shoes...

And of course Spring wouldn't be complete without bunnies. I made this one thanks to a great tutorial from Betz White.
This is a bunny for a one year old birthday girl. Micaela and Sofia fell in love so I made two more with appliqued polka dots of fabric on their fronts.

And Spring also brings babies, my little brother and his wife had twin baby boys Friday afternoon. I'm in the midst of finishing up a project (ok make that plural) for them.

Food for Thought

2007-03-13T07:35:00.000-07:00

The current edition of Orion Magazine has what is in my opinion a must read article The Idols of Environmentalism: Do environmentalists conspire against their own interests?

Once you read it you will see it is not coincidental that it is offered online free.

It goes a little deeper than the now de rigueur argument that we can't buy ourself out of trouble by shopping for energy efficient, organic, local, recycled etc. etc. to the very roots of what got us here in the first place; the way we think, live and the language that we use. The very roots of what makes us a society. I also appreciate his lament of our turn from nature as something transcendental to simply another resource.

I agree with his premise that we, as a society, are not ready to make the real changes required. I am so very sad that I think it will require great crisis for people to recognize what they must give up in order for any of us to make it. I am looking forward to the second part of the article.

New redwork

2007-03-11T13:20:00.000-07:00

In the garden

2007-03-09T19:37:00.000-08:00

The Giving Tree

2007-03-04T10:28:00.000-08:00

When we had our house inspected we were told we should take down this tree:

It is too close to our foundation and also has some sort of disease so it is pretty sad looking. Juan, determined not to pay anyone to do it, bought a chainsaw with an extension and started bit by bit taking it apart. I was helping him lower branches pully style when I realized the branches were covered with lichens Parmelia sulcata to be exact.

My next thought was dyestuff so I spent a few hours scraping branches and filling up two ziploc bags with fungi. Supposedly it yields a yellow to golden brown color.

The weather is gorgeous and my plan today was to garden, but I got derailed, not to mention sore fingers, from working to scrape off the lichens. The day is still young though so I am going out to plant jasmine, water our new plants and transplant the dye plant seedlings.

The tree isn't down completely yet. The big fall is what makes me the most nervous. Juan, as always, is underwhelmed by the task. I'm glad he's so handy. The past two weekends he spent digging a French Drain all the way around our house. The rains here are biblical and there is a slope towards the back of our house. The soil here is "gumbo," which is to say heavy red clay making this an epic job. Here's the after shot of the back of our house. The plants in front, which will come back, are Ruellia, which the hummingbirds love. The vine on our house is Fig Ivy.

In the moment

2007-03-01T12:35:00.000-08:00

I recently celebrated another year on this planet; my last year of being in my 30s. Birthdays do not freak me out, but this last move and my desire to figure out what fulfills me has led to lots of soul searching and unfortunately a lot of down time (emotionally). I prefer to think of the year beginning with my birthday and in that vein I am committing to the 28 day Meditation Challenge sponsored by Tricycle. I have been sitting off and on since Sofia was born (some 7 years ago), but would really like to place it firmly in my life in the same way I brush my teeth twice a day, without really thinking about it. I kicked it off by going to sit with a group of people that meets once a month. It was really wonderful to sit in a group and I look forward to returning.

In other news I've started seeds for my dye garden and the woad, yellow bedstraw, sacred purple basil and marigolds have sprouted. Not so the indigo which according to the instructions is challenging to get started. The bed is ready to go (I gave away 10 azalea bushes to someone on a plant exchange list). We also planted muscadines, a celestial fig and blackberries last week.

Today I finished this sewing machine cover
Front:

I like the top and side fabric best, I've used every last scrap of it (bought via ebay a few years ago):
I also received my redwork swap package (sponsored by the lovely Dorie!). I figured the bird needed to out of the house.

Many thanks to Faun! New art for my room.

Here's what I sent to her

Illustration copied from old children's book. 'Nuff said.

Here and now...

2007-02-17T20:07:00.000-08:00

Things have been a little rough lately. I'm job hunting, again. This time I'm holding out until I can find something that I really want to do. Difficult since I put off my own work experience over myriad moves (5 times in 11 years) and hence my resume doesn't look so consistent. In the meantime I'm keeping busy and working one day a week at my co-op as cashier. There's no glory there, but it is an excellent way to meet like minded people.

The view from here? The Cedar Waxwings came back today. We counted over one hundred. Perfect timing as this weekend is the Great Backyard Bird Count.

Micaela had a birthday party to go to this afternoon. I made this messenger bag for the birthday girl. Started it last night and finished it a half an hour before the party started.

We got lucky in a way with this move. Juan's cousin and family moved here the same week we did. Ali and the kids came over this afternoon and I gifted her with this Everest Vest I finished this week (from Interweave Knits). It fit her perfectly.

Tomorrow we're going to see Bridge to Terabithia. I read it to the kids this week and cried just as hard as I did when I first read it in fourth grade. I had the honor of interviewing the author, Katherine Paterson, while in elementary school. Some friends and I started a school paper and she generously agreed to let me interview her by phone so I could print it in our fledgling paper. I still remember how she treated me like a true journalist and not just some kid.

Around the dinner table last night talk turned to death and what happens to people's bodies. Morbid dinner conversation, true, but I am glad to have death out there in the open as it is part of life and too often, in my opinion, glossed over in our society. I think that Paterson's book, published in 1977, helped bring topics previously considered not kid friendly into children's literature and that is a good thing.

A day of art

2007-02-06T12:02:00.000-08:00

Micaela and I got out of the house today and went to the Museum of Printing History and then to the MFAH where we saw an amazing exhibition of French painting from the Met 1800-1920.

I always feel a mixture of sadness and exhiliration when I see the female models especially knowing they were the rebel women of their times and most of them only live on anonymously, captured by the brush. I try to imagine what it might have been like to be a woman outside of the mainstream at that time; more difficult I imagine than now. I can't look at paintings and the texture in them without imagining it placed in its time and environment; some dusty studio, the smell of oil paint and an itchy nose that couldn't be scratched. That painting in front of me was part of a life that is now gone...makes me feel small, but inspired!

I'm not a huge fan of impressionism, but the organization of the paintings from early in the 19th century into the beginnings of the 20th gave a real feeling of how painting evolved over that time, including, of course, the impressionists.

Around here

2007-02-02T20:01:00.000-08:00

I'm becoming a bagaholic...

Sew what...

2007-01-29T09:38:00.000-08:00

I have taken to my sewing machine again. I only learned to sew on the machine 7 years ago. Juan taught me after having taught himself several years before when M's room needed curtains. I have my grandmother's Husqvarna bought in the same year as I was born, 1968. She made everything on it including bras and girdles and quite a few outfits I wore as a child. The thing I love about sewing, especially as compared to knitting, is that it is almost instant satisfaction. I started and finished this bag in one evening thanks to this tutorial at Tiny Happy

I was doing a literal happy dance as I am "construction challenged" and this tutorial managed to make me understand how bags go together. That said I still messed up and did lots of stitch ripping. I feel confident though that my next bag will go more quickly and with less cussing.

On Saturday afternoon I saw a gorgeous log cabin pillow on Dioramarama's blog and thought I can do that (albeit not quite as well)! The last time I quilted was 13 years ago when I hand quilted and appliqued building blocks for Micaela.

And I did! I finished most of it in a few hours. It was the perfect vehicle for the thrifted fabric I've amassed (although it made me want more as I'm not entirely happy with the pallette of colors I've got). Again I'm not so happy with the construction. I know quilting is, for the most part, a perfectionist's sport, but ever since I saw the Gee's Bend exhibit I've given up thinking quilt corners have to be razor sharp.

Meanwhile I am weeks, no months, deep into a knitted vest. I think I need to sew more.

M and I are trying to walk for an hour 3 times a week. We follow the Bayou which isn't far from my house. This Great Blue Heron is there pretty much every morning. These are both the same bird I scared it off when I took the first picture and I love how it looks like it is about to test the waters from the stairs. Wish I had a better telephoto.

Redwork Redux

2007-01-23T11:55:00.000-08:00

I've been doing a bit of embroidery lately as I am tired of knitting. I started this last night and finished her this morning. We're calling her Miss Meow. I copied her off of a greeting card with a few modifications. I think I will send her on to my niece.

While stitching away I remembered a gorgeous redwork quilt I received for my 10th birthday. the Kliban Cats were very popular then and I asked for a Kliban quilt. My mother and aunt instead made me a redwork quilt with 16 panels, each depicting a cat in a different position. It had my name as well as theirs embroidered into the curves of different cat's tails. That quilt left home with me and my boyfriend and I slept together under that 10 year old girl quilt for 5 years. I have no idea what happened to it after we split up which makes me sad.

While sewing the front and back piece together I had to look up something in my sewing machine book. The machine belonged to my grandmother, who died when I was 13, and I found some notes she made in her lovely slanted cursive script. I felt at that moment very close to all the women in my family.

Finally, I thought it might be nice to look out from the screen for a change. Note crooked glasses...oh and new expression lines!

An eye on growth

2007-01-21T16:26:00.000-08:00

If I was being literal I guess I could flip this pic so the "eye" was vertical, but I like it the way it is; there, yet somehow hidden in its unusual position. This tree, cut down in my backyard, is kind of like my life. I feel very cut off from my usual mojo and definitely rootless.

This past week I've done some cutting of deadweight in my life, and while it was awkward and somewhat painful it is a good thing. It feels strange to cut activities out of my life when, in many ways, I want to branch out...but I think I may have finally learned, after multiple moves, that it is not quantity but quality that I am looking for.

I am also on fire with an idea that has been lurking at the edges of my consciousness for a long time, but which has finally taken root as a more fully formed plan for action. I think it has great potential to build community, stimulate me intellectually and do some good. And later this week I have an interview for a very part time position, but it is a possibility to work with people who share my passion for food and community.

A flock descends

2007-01-07T11:41:00.000-08:00

Spent the whole morning outside cutting down volunteer trees, cutting back Ruella and Turk's Cap and watching a flock of Cedar Waxwings eat the berries off this tree which is in our backyard. It was something of a war zone out there; berries in and then out, all over us.

2007-01-04T13:49:00.000-08:00

....excessive internet usage, writer's block, monkey mind? In reality this is a bit of embroidery I did for a friend of mine and that happens to be the name of his email and knowing him his political philosophy; the resisting having to do with our current political system and state of affairs...But, right after I downloaded the picture I found out that Tilly Olsen has died and I thought it was an appropriate sentiment for her passing at 94 as well. She is one of my all time favorite authors and wrote the feminist classic Silences; a must read for any woman interested in putting pen to paper.

Speaking of writing I am trying to come to the table (it really is a table, not an actual desk) and put something on actual paper. This is where you'll find me....

I'm still not very happy with my current location, but must say that the best thing about this move is having a room of my own. It is open to the rest of the house, but I can decorate it the way I want (as opposed to in the style of the ascetic I live with;) and it has room for all the accoutrement of my crafty leanings.

I have come to the realization that I am not a knitter or a spinner. They are both things I enjoy doing, but I don't identify with them the way so many people seem to, there are too many other things I like to do as well. Maybe that's always been my problem, focus. I'm trying to look at it this year as less of a problem and as more of an opportunity. I would love to get a group of people together to do lots of different things; a stitch and bitch, but not necessarily just stitching: bookbinding, woodworking, collage, sketching, sewing etc. etc. A Church of Craft really, but I'm not sure that is exactly the route I want to take...

Happy New Year

2007-01-01T09:09:00.000-08:00

**Like a dream,

Whatever I enjoy

will become a memory;

The past is not revisted.

~Shantideva

I don't make new year's resolutions, but I am keeping the sentiments above close to me as I move into 2007.

One of my favorite poems, and poets, particularly apropos for today....and in keeping with Shantideva!

I Am Running into a New Year Lucille Clifton

i am running into a new year
and the old years blow back
like a wind
that i catch in my hair
like strong fingers like
all my old promises and
it will be hard to let go
of what i said to myself
about myself
when i was sixteen and
twenty-six and thirty-six
even thirty-six but
i am running into a new year
and i beg what i love and
i leave to forgive me

from Good Woman: Poems and a Memoir 1969-1980

Wherever you are, whatever you do I hope you can move into this new year; no holding back.

**You need to click on the picture to see it in its original size/definition...

Back to the light

2006-12-23T10:12:00.000-08:00

Happy Solstice! I discovered today that we have exactly 55 more minutes of daylight here in the South which could explain why this "winter" has been that much more bearable for me. That and the fact that I am not freezing my butt off even with cuddleduds, my bulky alpaca knits, a hat on my head and fingerless gloves on while in my own home! Not to rub it in, friends in northern climes, but a girl could get used to these milder winters and the LIGHT. Happy that we are all moving into more of it.

Much love and happy whatever it is you observe...

2006-12-10T14:14:00.000-08:00

Maybe I'm not such a grinch...

Christmases when I was a child were magical. Every year Santa Claus not only delivered our gifts, but set up the tree and decorated it on Christmas Eve after we went to bed. So when we woke up in the morning the whole living room was transformed. My mom told me recently that they often just made it to bed only to have us wake them up an hour later in a frenzy of anticipation to see what was under the tree. We weren't allowed to step foot in the living room until my parents came with us, and my dad had his camera in hand. I don't blame them; the look on our faces was their reward for making the magic happen.

The year I was twelve my mother developed a sudden allergy to Christmas trees (and we had a very scary visit to the ER when she had trouble breathing) and from then on out we had a fake tree. This year for the first time since I went and bought a real tree, setting out this morning in the rain to our local grocery store. Prior to this we had a fake miniature tree bought about a decade ago when our abode and our budget were similarly smaller. The few ornaments we had were cobbled together with my mom one year when she was visiting and I just stuck them back on year after year. While I have plenty of magical memories of Christmas in my childhood I have never been much of a fan as an adult. I think it is, in part, due to my anti-consumerism leanings and I think also because my life as an adult has been spent in more locations than I might have liked and we often traveled somewhere else for X-mas making the time taken to decorate the house seem not worthwhile.

Our bigger tree required more ornaments. A felted sweater, a box of fabric scraps, a jar of buttons and two kids did the trick:

Through the window you can see our neighbor's house. Two days ago you wouldn't have been able to as the back was overgrown with volunteer trees and a thicket which I spent many hours yesterday cutting down. I wish now I'd taken a before and after. I much preferred the before, but I have plans to plant a Meyer lemon, fig and pear tree and there wasn't enough room. It is the between stage that hurts. I also discovered that I can grow a luffa plant here, and that it does well with a tree to climb. There is a perfect tree in the back corner of the yard. I'll never have to buy another loofah again!

I've been busy on other fronts too:

Spinning

Lots of Superwash Merino

Indeterminate wool in Tapestry Colorway

Knitting
Child's beret in 2ply handspun koolaid dyed merino/tussah silk

Two children's hats both handpainted and handspun

I've knit a few other things in my blog break, but they flew off my needles and on to their new homes when I was sans camera. On my wheel: my first laceweight. On my needles: a cabled vest for myself. I do not knit lace so who knows where that will end up, I just know it takes forever to spin laceweight. I don't exactly know where any of these things will end up. I have considered opening an etsy shop, but I'd rather trade or gift these things I just don't know enough people with little kids!

I promise not to be so image heavy next time. I just got my new camera and I'm having fun playing with it.

2006-12-08T21:33:00.000-08:00

Dzibilchaltun, Temple of the Seven Dolls

I'm back, from here

This was the highlight of a rather lackluster trip. The temple above was/is a Mayan observatory of moon and sun cycles. During the equinox the sun rises and passes right through the doorway. We also saw pictures of planets and the moon lining up with the stones. As always in ancient places there is a feeling of the lives that were lived thousands of years ago in that place. A place that was once a vibrant city full of people who understood their lives to be contemporary and immediate and all that is now left are ruins and the jungle which still claims much of what archeologists are even now trying to recover. It made me feel small and very aware that the time I have been given is short. It also points to the hubris of believing that our great acts here on the earth as individuals will gain us some sort of immortality. Nothing lasts forever.

In a more superficial vein the mode of transportation to this amazing site was a cruise ship. I never imagined I would go on a cruise, but it was an opportunity to spend 5 days with my mom and the kids and I took it. I now know why I had a preemptive aversion to this particular craft; I felt like I was trapped in a hotel. To add insult to injury you are taken to fabulous places and given exactly 6 hours to explore them and then must get back on the floating hotel/casino/contest palace. It made me crazy to get out there and travel again, but on my own time, in my own way and definitely not with several hundred other people many of whom mistakenly took this experience; where you never changed money or had to speak in anything but English, for an exotic foreign adventure. Don't get me wrong I acknowledge that if I go somewhere to experience another culture I am a tourist, no matter how much some people try to differentiate between tourist and "traveler" in their attempts to feel more sophisticated than thou. That said, the way I prefer to visit places is more solitary and more interested in what the people who live there are doing and less on what there is to buy, drink or compare with what I do or don't have at home.

And in news on the home front we finally replaced our broken digital camera. It arrived today and I have plans to put up some pictures of stuff I've been working on.

Last but not least I was excited to see this book in print http://www.volumeone.com/manchild/

I have fond memories of this artist's work in Flipside, sadly yes now some 20 years past!

2006-11-22T12:00:00.000-08:00

Happy Thanksgiving!

This is, by far, my favorite holiday. It is all about food (Sofia today told me that eating is her favorite activity; it is certainly one of mine!) and friends and remembering the things in our lives that are good.

I started cooking this morning and currently am waiting for my second apple pie to come out of the oven and proofing yeast for Parker House Rolls a la James Beard. I've also made Sweet Potato Souffle (to be baked tomorrow) and cornbread for wild mushroom and pecan stuffing. Tomorrow the turkey will take up the bulk of the oven and I will just have to put the stuffing together and maked mashed potatos. Wine, vanilla ice cream and non-carbohydrate food will appear tommorow with the guests; all told we will number 13.

There have been very few Thanksgivings in the past 20 years that I haven't cooked for. Even when we lived in Argentina I celebrated, inviting family and friends for a traditional meal, with ham instead of turkey.

One of my most memorable Thanksgivings was the first I cooked when I was 18 years old. I lived with my then boyfriend and a couple of friends in a big industrial loft in the East Oakland. We invited everyone in our building who had nowhere to go to our place and had to build a table out of sawhorses and scrap wood to seat 21 guests. There was Alan, the 3-D neon sculptor from next door; the Czechoslovakian art restorers who lived down the hall; a group of friends who had landed at our place after a cross country journey; and the printmaker from across the hall (who I almost gave a heart attack some weeks later when my Black Rat Snake got loose, crawled up through the rafters and fell onto her easel while she was working). I can't remember who else was there, but there was a TON of food, lots of smoking and drinking and hilarity. I still remember looking around at everyone in my own house at a table full of food I'd cooked and feeling for the first time like I'd landed somewhere I belonged. I was home.

It is exactly 20 Thanksgivings later and I still know that feeling. Even though I'm not in a physical place that feels like home I know that, for me at least, home is less a place and more a feeling. I'm with the people who know me best, who love me despite my many failings and stick with me when the breadcrumbs back to this place I call home get blown away and I feel lost. That's something to be grateful for...

2006-11-14T19:14:00.000-08:00

My outfit today: a vintage 50s skirt, black t-shirt and sandals. What? November?

This is the first Fall season where I have completely missed that feeling of nostalgia that the season has always brought me. I often thought that it was the beginning of the school year that brought that wistful, inward feeling of Fall. Now I know better; it was the chill in the air, the turning of the leaves, that glow the trees gave off on sunny afternoons giving everything an otherworldly feel. Do people who grow up in Southern climes have that turning inward? And if so what prompts it? Maybe with time I will come to see the end of the opressive summer heat as the signal of something different. For now I just feel like I am waiting for something that has yet to come. A friend here told me that winter consists of waiting for winter only to find Spring has arrived and Summer is just around the corner.

I remember when I lived in the SF Bay Area I missed the seasons. Two of the things that most struck the Northeasterner in me was the lack of window screens and the fact that no one ever commented on the weather; it was almost always "nice" in the East Bay. Here in Houston the weather is definitely a topic...When will it ever cool down? What streets are flooded and impassable after one of our epic tropical rainshowers? My neighbors told me the other day that after Hurricane Allison some teenagers around the block were shuttling people out to the main road in their canoe. A few weeks ago two women, a mother and a daughter, drowned in their car when they got stuck under a flooded freeway underpass. Luckily our house has never flooded, but we do have flood insurance, just in case.

There are ways I know I can turn this weather to my advantage; a second growing season, citrus trees, months of bike rides along the bayou. It is strange though to feel the weather as a stranger, to realize how much my life in Northern climates was tied to the rhythm of the seasons. My guess is I will find that rhythm here eventually, possibly while standing in my backyard in February eating snow peas off the vine.

2006-11-10T18:53:00.000-08:00

Sit right down. I don't know what I'm doing back in the blogosphere. I just want something simple to keep track of projects and to enable me to participate in other bloggy activities that require having a blog. My previous incarnation won't be up for much longer. I don't want to pay and I don't much want to play with Moveable Type so here I am again. We'll see...Now I just need a digital camera that works, mine died. Here is one of the last pictures it uploaded for me.; a cushion cover I knit inspired by Alterknits, but in a mosiac design of my choice.