Spider Central

I was doing laundry at my neighbors on Saturday (does the simple phrase "laundry room remodel" speak volumes?) and noticed some activity on the handrail of the stairs so I sat down on the bottom step to see what was up.

There was a huge hatch of baby spiders in cluster about the size of a silver dollar on the railing so I decided to trot home to get my camera. I held my breath and moved in for a close up.

When I slowly exhaled 100's of these youngsters dropped a foot or so on their silken threads creating a jeweled fringe. Still others spread out on a before unseen network of webs. A few seconds went by and they all scurried back up to home base. I have no idea what kind of spiders they are, but I was charmed and amazed by their antics.

"The artist is a receptacle for the emotions that come from all over the place: from the sky, from the earth, from a scrap of paper, from a passing shape, from a spider's web." Pablo Picasso

Cowboy Caviar Synchronicity

As mentioned in earlier blogs my husband and I started on a Vegan diet three weeks ago to take charge of our health. It has been a lot easier than expected and we've already seen some early results. There's a binder of great recipes on the counter and additional recipes will continue to come via email ~ more bricks for our foundation of change. We pick 3-4 recipes for the week and shop for any ingredient we don't already have.

We aren't what you'd consider hard core Vegans, but strive to stay on point. There were some great quotes from Marilu Henner on Day 9 that will no doubt make it to the refrigerator door:

• Nothing tastes as good as healthy feels
• Set up your environment to win
• Life is all about progress, not perfection
• There's no such thing as cheating, every day is an experiment
• It's all about choices (I said that!)

I brought home one of my friend Trisha's cookbooks and I found the following recipe folded up inside. It had been emailed to her in 2008 by a friend who brought the dish to a potluck. I remember how good it was. Three years later the recipe found it's way to me. The fact that it fits into our experiment in health is not lost on either one of us.

Cowboy Caviar

Ingredients

1~16oz can shoe-peg corn, drained

1~16oz can black eyed peas

1 to 2 avocados, cubed

2/3 cup chopped cilantro

2/3 cup chopped green onions

1 tomato, seeded and chopped

Dressing

1/4 cup olive oil
1/4 cup red wine vinegar
2 cloves of minced garlic
3/4 tsp. salt
1/8 tsp. pepper
1 tsp. cumin

Mix together black eyed peas, corn, avocados, cilantro, green onions and tomato. Mix dressing and then pour over veggies and toss to mix. Chill. Makes 6-8 servings. Serving ideas: As a dip with baked chips, over salad greens, stuff a potato, or dress up a brown rice dish. The possibilities are endless, eat in good health!

Vegan Morning - Bodacious Porridge

I'm hunkered down in my studio trying to stay out of the way as our contractor demolishes and rebuilds a "plumbing wall" for the reconfiguration of our laundry room and installation of an on demand water heater. You know how it is, you're simply going to replace one thing that broke and then your wheels start to turn and off you go "well as long as we're in this deep we might as well do this and change that..." Sounds like he's coming through the wall in about 7 different places, but his whistling and self conversation are quite amusing.

We'll be camping for a day or two with no hot water. No challenge there boss, I've learned how to wash a dinner's worth of dishes and pans in the motorhome using only a large coffee pot of water heated on the stove.

So, as promised here is the great hot breakfast cereal we have a couple of times a week ~ rain or shine. Components make up about a 1.5 quarts of dry ingredients. We buy in bulk to minimize cost, mix together and store in a container in the fridge (wheat germ needs refrigeration, so if you want to store mix elsewhere add wheat germ when you're ready to make porridge). 

Ingredients:

2 cups cracked wheat
1 cup rolled oats
1/2 cup toasted wheat germ
1/2 cup raw wheat germ
1/2 soy grits
1/2 cut wheat bran
1 cup course cornmeal

Preparing in a double boiler is recommended, it will preserve vitamin B which will get destroyed over direct heat. Get the water boiling and then add 2 cups water and 1 cup of the mixture to the double boiler (that's the perfect amont for two). Stir it a bit, then cover and cook at very low heat for about 20-25 minutes. Throw in a handful of dried blueberries, raisins or craisins on top so they plump up during cooking time. We often serve over fresh berries or banana slices, the possibilities are endless so just make it up as you go along. Enjoy!

Variations on a Theme

Becoming a Vegan is a consciousness raising experience. You have to rethink a lot of things you used to do without a second thought: Behavior Modification 101. We're learning to plan ahead (what a novel concept) so we are prepared to eat right. This is the no excuses tour after all!

We discovered a delicious breakfast porridge recipe in the Laurel's Kitchen Cookbook (I'll post it on the next blog) that we have a couple of times a week. It's easy to make up a large container of the dry mix and store it in the refrigerator.

The 21 Vegan Kickstart Program provides a thorough list of ingredients to help you stay on track. We now keep a variety of dry beans in the pantry, veggie burgers in the freezer, and a great selection of fruits and veggies for meal prep and snacks. I made up a tasty brown, black and wild rice mix so we can easily prepare enough for a couple of days.

The program also emails you recipes for each day.  We've been printing out the ones we liked and set up a binder in the kitchen. Yesterday we picked out a weeks worth and will get any missing ingredients on the next shopping trip. So we have been following the basic guidelines since the program started but have been winging it on recipes.

Chef-Boy has truly stepped up to the challenge and is a master of creating utter gastronomic bliss with whatever ingredients are on hand. He is the "cooka" and I am the designated "cleana-upa" which is a partnership that work's great for us. Here is one of his Variations on a Theme: 

He slow cooked a large pot of red beans and sauce (home canned tomato sauce from last summer), froze 2 quarts for another time and kept some aside some for dinner. I should have photographed the presentation, but I was too hungry! Red beans topped with asparagus tips, carrots and squash; a small portion of edemame salad (Costco has a great one) with sliced tomatoes and the kicker: mashed sweet/white potatoes smoothed with an avocado instead of milk and/or butter and little ground pepper. Oh Baby!

Day 10 Observation: We are more creative than we imagined and aren't missing meat, dairy and eggs.

Day One As a 66 Year Old Vegan

We recently watched a PBS program called the "21 Day Vegan KickStart" that set us on a journey to see how changes in eating habits might keep us healthy and add to longevity. At 66 you start thinking about those things.

Wake Up Call ~ Slap on the Back of the Head ~ Hello is Anyone in There?

For most of our lives we have taken our bodies for granted and along the way forgotten the concept of common sense. Our eating habits are a train wreck and self discipline left the building along with Elvis. When we were young we could get away with it because we had something called a metabolism rate and walked to school, played sports, hiked the local woods and spent most of our time outdoors. There were no electronic diversions except perhaps Ed Sullivan and Bonanza on Sunday night.

Over scheduled lives, computers, advertising and fast food have led us down the proverbial garden path and into an endless maze of bad habits. The truth of the matter is we're easy and have mastered the art of justification. The irony is that we now have the audacity to wonder why we aren't as healthy as we used to be and whine about aches, pains, adult onset diabetes, weight, and bad numbers on blood tests. Well guess what it's our fault and we're the only ones that can fix it: no whining, no excuses! So here we go.

To our credit we already work out at the local gym and have a large garden that keeps us physically active. We still however will be making a paradigm shift in eating habits. Sacrifices to come for sure, but it's only for 21 days. And truth be told we may find the new habits are worth keeping.

For me the toughest part is giving up butter, cheese, chicken and yogurt. However that loss is tempered by the fact I'm married to "Chef Boy" who has already been doing a little experimenting within our new perimeters. So stay tuned for further adventures of the 66 Year Old Vegan.

The web site is http://www.pcrm.org/kickstartHome if you're interested in finding out more.

A Moment in Time

I'm starting to work on my family genealogy again. It's been on the back burner since 2007. I was sorting accumulated information into folders this morning and tucked into some historical letters, totally out of place, was an experience, a moment in time, I wrote down on 07/07/07. 

Two highways intersect in my home town of Sebastopol. I was on my way home from Santa Rosa and was stopped in the left turn lane on Hwy 12 waiting to turn south onto Hwy 116. It was one of those magical windows down, summer days. Traffic was backed up because of the timing of the signal so both directions were stopped, but no one seemed to mind (unusual to say the least).

I looked to my left at the same time the driver of a car going in the opposite direction looked up and we caught each other's eye. He was grinning from ear to ear and out of the blue said "I just found out my pregnant wife and her baby are healthy". She and her young daughter (maybe 2 or 3) were also in the car and she broke into a big smile at his comment.

I said "It doesn't get much better than that" and then thought for a second and added "unless you get to retire (which I had done the previous year)!" We laughed out loud, wished each other well and then traffic started moving.

Rainy Days

Sometimes pictures really are worth a 1,000 words

Simply enjoy the view from the porch

Get up close with a pine branch

or look a raindrop in the eye!

Rainy Day Projects ~ March 15th

Play yesterday ~ pay today. It's raining so we decide to tackle two projects: map out the garden bed plantings for spring and reorganize and clean up the garage.

Southeast Corner of Garden  - last Spring

Garden planning was a piece of cake. I made up a spreadsheet map of the garden beds and barrels and all we had to do was write in what goes where. Done in under an hour.

The garage be a whole different story. It's a 14' X 20' man cave that houses Rod's large and small woodworking tools, fishing gear and the inflatable fishing tube/deck chair unit, wall to wall cupboards, copious numbers of man tools and other important stuff.

"Before"

He tends to leave things where he uses them, which is okay for a little while but then the work bench and all other flat surfaces disappear under a protective blanket of clutter (important no doubt, but clutter none the less). He likes to have things handy, but is at times unclear on the concept that if everything is handy, nothing is handy.

So, once a year I volunteer to help. I'm an organizer at heart so I enjoy the challenge. It also buys me a little leverage to help him decide to relinquish a few of the "useful" things he's kept for ages and never used. Let me be perfectly clear, "rid of" means recycle or selling at the flea market, the words "dispose of" are not in his vocabulary.

We put in a 7 hour workday, time for a shower and some down time. It was a good day, I liked the sound of the rain on the skylights as we worked. A few more hours and we should be done, maybe tomorrow...

Just Listen

Tuesday is errand day. The list is sometimes long since I try to make a run only once a week. There's great satisfaction in crossing items off the list as I make the trek. With gas over $4 a gallon one approaches these kinds of simple chores with a new perspective ~ full circle, no backtracking allowed.

I had to make a stop in Santa Rosa and while I was waiting for my appointment I decided to grab a bite at Panda Express. I brought the fortune cookie home to share with my husband and cracked it open while he was fixing dinner. I read the fortune, burst out laughing and handed it to him. In light of all the aha moments we've experienced and shared with a group friends over the last couple of months neither of us was at all surprised.

"Counting time is not so important as making time count"

  

There seems to be an unseen force afoot here, guiding us all along a new path of awareness about priorities and what's truly important in our lives. I think most of us would agree that the force at work here is a gift from a friend who watches over all of us and isn't shy about providing the occasional cosmic kick in the butt to keep us on this path to enlightenment ~ the important thing is that we just listen.

"Listen"

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Every day is a gift, choose your attitude and remember how fortunate you are. Make time for yourself, make time for your family, make time to give back to your community. Everyone wins!

Wisdom Part Deux

Serendipity once again dances round my campfire.

Shortly after posting my blog, Wisdom from a Refrigerator Door, I received an email from my friend Margo Metegrano at http://www.cowboypoetry.com/ guiding me to the source of those words "Fun, Freedom, Fierceness, Fearlessness".

They are from poet Paul Zarzyski, released in 2007 blogcast to the participants of his Writing Workshop at the National Cowboy Poetry Gathering in Elko, NV. Paul was a close friend of Trisha and her husband Vince. I attended most of his workshops, sessions and concerts at Elko this January and instantly understood the connection. He's a total character, an amazing writer and a gifted storyteller. The link for this week's reading assignment is: http://www.westernfolklife.org/weblogs/artists/paulz/2007/01/

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Trust me, the blogcast is well worth reading and you need to take a time out anyway. Go get a cup of coffee, find a comfortable spot, put your feet up and prepare to learn and laugh yourself silly. Perhaps your inner writer/poet will request a chance to be freed from inside your head. Perhaps the National Cowboy Poetry Gathering will be added to your bucket list. Life is short, live fearlessly!

Wisdom from a Refrigerator Door

Another Friday at my friend's ranch: a labor of love, never a chore. A storm just rolled through, the air is crystal clear. I can see Mt. Tamalpais from the window seat where I'm working in the morning sun. I grew up on that mountain and to say I have a connection is an understatement, but that's a story for another day.  

Today I've been going through papers and organizing spaces. One of the last tasks of the day is to remove some photos from the refrigerator door that friends have requested. I come across four words typed in capital letters on a piece of white paper stuck between pictures.

FUN ~ FREEDOM ~ FIERCENESS ~ FEARLESSNESS

  

What do they mean? No doubt something different to all who read them.

• For Trisha they were guidelines for one unafraid to pursue life and dreams on her own terms.
• They're learning tools for some, life can be pretty simple if we don't muck it up.
• My grandmother would say "Honey, leave your baggage at the door and get on with it. No time for regrets:  shoulda, coulda and woulda are only excuses for a life not lived to the fullest. What are you waiting for?"
• For me it means live every day with eyes wide open and a passion for:  

laughing at myself

"Hunting Ladybugs While Completely Invisible"

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fearlessly taking on challenges, changes and chances

"Fearless"

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being a force to be reckoned with

"Bear"

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and creating the freedom to chase my dreams

"Freedom Horse"

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Diane Ackerman "I do not want to get to the end of my life and find that I just lived the length of it. I want to have lived the width of it as well."

Bill McKenna "Life is not a journey to the grave with the intention of arriving safely in a pretty and well preserved body, but rather to skid in broadside, thoroughly used up, totally worn out, and loudly proclaiming -- WOW-- What a Ride!"

So take a look at your agenda and the mile long to do list. Now simply walk away from it and do something spontaneous that will make the day for someone.

Inspiration Sometimes Comes from Odd Sources

I was looking over a section of my friend Trisha's library yesterday and saw a piece of folded, yellow tablet paper stuck between two books. One of her delightful quirks was that she was never without a pen and a yellow pad. She was ecstatic when she found out the "note pad" on her IPhone was also a yellow lined pad.

We talked often of travel and adventures. Some adventures we took together, some were shared stories of adventures with other friends. Losing her last Fall was a wake up call to all of us on just how tenuous a hold we humans have on this thing we call life.  

Trisha was the hub of an extraordinary wheel and her friends the spokes. Through her loss we have found each other. As we have talked, visited and emailed over the last couple of months we find we are all on a similar journey: one that has us re-examining priorities, not sweating the small stuff and making plans for adventures, a "just do it" state of mind has taken root.

"Wandering"



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Here in lies the serendipitous and intertwining nature of yesterday's library find, a quote from Ray Bradbury.

"Half the fun of travel is the aesthetic of lostness"

"The Road"

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I've always been fond of the bumper sticker that says "I'm not lost I'm wandering" and to quote Anatole France "Wandering re-establishes the original harmony which once existed between man and the universe."

"The Happy Wanderer"



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No wonder my parents were on the road for a decade, they got it! How many wake up calls does one need? It may be a different truth or destination for everyone, but it is the journey that is important. Pass go, pick up your $200 and step off the Monopoly Board.

Day 4 ~ Coming Home

One of the things that always impresses me about driving across Nevada is that it seems there is only endless open space between you and the edge of the world (I found this incredible photograph after I wrote the words).

"Nevada's Edge'

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When you finally reach that edge you realize it is a set of bluffs, or foothills or a mountain. The climb brings you to yet another crest and once again you are facing endless open space. It's a wondrous land: beautiful and dangerous, charming and unforgiving. Imagine coming across this vastness in a covered wagon or on horseback. 

"Magestic Mountains"

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Visualize the emotions of reaching the Sierra's after endless miles of the sagebrush sea. A rare breed of fearless men and women explored, travelled and settled in this land including, I'm proud to say, some of my own hardy ancestors.   

When we drove from Reno to Elko on the way to the Gathering it was late afternoon and the sun was already behind the Sierras. The desert was beautiful but monochromatic.

"Nevada Desert"

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When we hit the road this morning we are immediately taken by all the colors we missed coming in. The desert is now backlit with the rising sun and is totally three dimensional. Some of the hills and outcroppings are vivid colors, some black as coal. Some look like they have indeed been there for an eternity and others look as though they were just delivered. The landscape plays with your mind and your eyes.

"Nevada Mountains"

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One thing I forgot to mention is that we saw the legendary singer/songwriter Ian Tyson on Thursday. Though in his mid-70's now he continues to ranch, tour, record and write. Carol purchased his new book "The Long Trail" about his life. As we started the 300 mile journey to Reno she began to read it aloud. When the scenery was too good to miss I'd let her know and she'd put it down for awhile.

We stopped in Reno for gas and lunch and were treated to a hit and run hail storm. Once back on the road the weather lightened up and Carol read until dusk, then we listened to music the rest of the way home. I'm now after Carol to finish the book so that I can bring it home to finish the story.

A great adventure and plans for next year are already on the calendar. Life is short, take time out to experience something new and at the same time old. You won't regret it.

Cowboy Poetry Gathering ~ Day 3

It's a wee bit crisper this morning, 20 degrees, so we make it easy on ourselves and toddle across the parking lot to JR's for breakfast while the Jeep windows de-ice in the morning sun. We meet up with our friend Michael after breakfast and head out to the trade shows.

"Raku Vase with Horsehair"

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The shows are at 4 different venues around town. A couple were easy to find, two were not: one in a small hotel conference room and another well hidden up the stairs to nowhere at Stockmans. I'm an artisan and have done fairs for over 20 years. There is something to be said for having all vendors at one place. It focuses shoppers on the artisans not the task of getting to the venues. It may be a matter of what space is available for the trade shows, with so much going on during the week, but I decided to email the Western Folklife Center and make the suggestion anyway.

"Bareback Rider"

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The variety and quality of the work offered was astounding: handmade saddles and tack, quilts, cards, clothing and jewelry, custom boots and hats, furnishings and frames, lamps and sculptures, plus all varieties of wall art from photography to etchings. Each of us came home with a treasure or two.

"Desert Rose"

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We took the afternoon off to rest up for the evening concert. Carol and I discovered a great little Italian place for dinner called Luciano's near the center of town. The concert opened with poetry and stories and closed with Wiley and the Wild West.  Wiley is the consummate performer: he has a great voice, is an amazing yodeler and has more moves that Dwight Yokum and Mick Jagger combined. We were either rolling in the aisles with laughter or at rapt attention enthralled with lyrics that told amazing stories of the West, of ranching, of rodeo and the characters that made it happen. A perfect closing to a grand adventure.

"Abandoned House in Montana"

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No early night for us though, we again decide to play the penny slots and both Carol and I walk away with pockets jingling. Still not tired we decide to pack most of our stuff so we can get an early start in the morning to head for home.  Dreams of horses and the prairie.

Cowboy Poetry Gathering ~ Day 2

Bounced out of bed at 6am and hit the showers, 5 hours sleep and fresh as daisies. As we head to breakfast we're thinking heatwave, who needs a down jacket, it's up to 24 degrees this morning! The dry cold of the desert creates beautiful ice patterns on the Jeep windshield. Definitely not the wiper strangling sticky mush we get with frost in northern California, but we still need to crank up the seat heaters and defroster and patiently wait until we can get a move on. The strategy for tomorrow ~ park on the side of the hotel that gets first sun. Wise women learn quickly!

"Morning Ice Crystals"

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Coffee and breakfast then we're off the the Great Basin College Theater to spend the morning at the "Song Swap" with Paul Zarzyski and Wylie Gustafson.

Wylie

We're entertained with stories, poetry, music and how the collaborative process works. Wylie's new album "Raven on the Wind" features a number of lyrics written by Paul. The audience was brought into a discussion of how to keep the Gathering, and this genre of poetry and music alive. One woman asked if either artist was mentoring young performers, another suggested bringing stories, songs and poetry to the schools to expose students to a way of life most only read about. It's powerful to have those you admire listen to you and take an idea into consideration that may become part of a solution.

"Raven"

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Our afternoon was spent at the Elko Convention Center for recitals, lectures and readings. Each of the presenters reeled in their audiences hook, line and sinker: making us think and leaving us with a desire to learn more. 

   

After a relaxing dinner we head out to the G Three Bar Theater at the Western Folklife Center. The best venue so far and two great shows: at 6:30 Acoustic Poetry with Paul and Wylie (can you tell we love these guys) and at 8:30 a triple threat: young and talented singer/songwriter Adrian, cowboy poet and story teller Leon Flick and singer/songwriter Dave Stamey. Both shows bring the house down. 

After the concerts we toddle back to the hotel, to wired to sleep we entertain ourselves on the visitor friendly penny slots. Too much fun!

So are you starting to get the picture? It's been a 10-12 hour marathon and we've come away more energized than when we started. We run into friends from around the West at the different venues. The contacts are "more drive bys than visits" according to my friend Margo, but we all understand, it's the nature of this event. The gathering is hard to explain, it just needs to be experienced. Put it on your bucket list!

Oh, did I mention it was going to be 80 degrees in Sonoma County today. This is early February, right?

Cowboy Poetry Gathering ~ Day 1

Good Morning Elko, Six hours of sleep and 22 degrees: okay I can run with that. At least there's no snow, a rarity this time of year. 

Task #1: Carol and I sit down to look at the schedule of events (mind you this is a 15" x 18" ~ 8 column affair for each day of the Gathering). Our strategy is to circle events we have tickets for and then check out all the free events we want to see. Too many incredible options, but some how we make decisions for Thursday.

Task #2: Dressing for the occasion. This is an art form unto itself. Boots, Wranglers, belt, cowboy shirt, vest, jewelry, jacket, and a scarf properly tied. Yes, no, yes, no, perfect - we are finally ready to head out for breakfast with the girls. Most of us cross paths occasionally but rarely have the opportunity to gather in one place since we come from Idaho, Nevada and California.  

"Cowgirl"

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Now fed, we dive into Thursdays menu for the mind: The keynote speaker is Judy Blunt - a gifted writer and eloquent speaker who captivated the audience with her story of growing up in a rural Montana ranching community and leaving ranch life to follow her dreams of becoming a professor. I look forward to reading her memoir Breaking Clean.

We attend a number of Cowboy Poetry sessions throughout the day. The audiences are supportive of poets young and old, first timers and seasoned professionals. There are reciters who bring historical poems to life with mesmerizing voices. We are taken on journeys that teach some and remind others of the dedication and tenacity of ranchers not only here, but around the world, who cling to a lifestyle that is often thought of in historical terms but in fact remains a vibrant way of life for those willing to take a stand. These small ranchers feed nations and survive against all odds, be it the weather, predators, or government.  

"Sundown"

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One of our favorites is Montana poet Paul Zarzyski. We got a chance to attend several of his workshops. He's a former bronc rider, now a poet and entertainer. His work runs the gamut from historical to hysterical, sublime to ridiculous, sensual to lyrical. There is indeed something for everyone.  

"Bronc Rider"

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On the Western Folklife Center website there are pod casts from some of the performances and on the list of entertainers you can listen to a selection from each. Well worth a little of your time. The link is http://www.westernfolklife.org/

Elko footnote: Drivers actually stop for pedestrians, something nearly unknown in these parts!

The Road to Elko, Nevada

I've never been one for Interstate Highways, I've always preferred roads less travelled, the blue highways on maps. We were, however, on a 550 mile mission to reach Elko by early evening so that meant Interstate 80 was our choice.

Once you leave California and in particular Reno it's a whole different world, one of wonder and wide open spaces. The speed limit is 75 and calls for cruise control, a real treat for a California Girl corralled at 65 most of the time.

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This is rough country ~ ruled by the elements and settled by a hardy breed of men and women who prefer rurality. The cowboys call it the "sagebrush sea" a land that is both desolate and beautiful, quiet and alive, charming and dangerous, and not for the faint of heart.

  

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My travelling partner Carol and I are just getting to know each other, brought together by our late friend Trisha. A mutual friend of ours, poet and teacher Ken Rodgers, just published a new book of poetry called Passenger Pigeons. Carol brought it along and read it aloud. It was a great way to pass the time and when the scenery got spectacular she'd stop for a while and we'd just enjoy the road. By the time we reached Elko we'd finished to book.

We arrived in the early evening, unpacked, had some dinner and played the penny slots for a bit before hitting the hay around midnight. Thursday was going to be an event filled adventure beyond my expectations.

Road Trip

At O'Dark Thirty Wednesday morning my friend Carol and I take off for a 5 day road trip to the wilds of central Nevada. We're headed to Elko for the 27th National Cowboy Poetry Gathering. I've never been before so this should be quite the adventure. Poets, musicians, artists, and cowboys. What more could a girl ask for? I'm taking my camera and a notepad and will report back on the adventure in the coming weeks. We'll see old friends and meet new ones. 

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This wonderful photo speaks volumes, check out their website link above.

We've got tickets for a variety of performances so it will be total immersion for three days. I'm excited to see Dave Stamey and Paul Zarzyski. I was introduced to their talents by my friend Trisha who was a devoted fan of Cowboy Poetry, Western Music and the annual gathering in Elko. They are truly gifted observers and storytellers.

Dave Stamey - Singer/Songwriter

Paul Zarzyski - Cowboy Poet Extraordinaire

This event is sponsored by the Western Folklife Center whose mission "is to enhance the vitality of American life through the experience, understanding, and appreciation of the diverse cultural heritage of the American West. This mission is implemented through the performances, exhibitions, educational programs, media productions, research, documentation, and preservation projects that celebrate the wisdom, artistry, and ingenuity of western folkways". The website is http://www.westernfolklife.org/ if you are interested in finding out more.

Taking Risks

My husband and I are pretty laid back, our approach to life has always been to go with the flow and that's served us well for 30 years. When we head out on a vacation the first questions are shall we turn right or left and which blue highway beckons?

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We lost an amazing friend in November. She was a delightful woman who made friends where ever she went, chased her dreams and made them happen and truly enjoyed life. She would sometimes wonder out loud why her life was so crazy and complicated. I'd simply remind her that she was the one setting the calendar and we'd just burst out laughing.

Out of this loss her wide circle of friends are getting to know each other and sharing thoughts, time and aha moments like: take nothing for granted, do what you've been meaning to do, live in the present without regrets, and (oh darn) it's my responsibility to take care of my body.

Our big Aha moment: It's so easy to become complacent and timid hanging about home territory. If we want to get to some of our Bucket List: like seeing the Aurora Borealis in Alaska, exploring the Maritime Provinces of Canada, seeing the US by train, and adventuring to New Zealand, it's time to get started. We need to start planning ahead, a new concept for us. 

Our Rogue River Adventure

Bottom line is that it's time to start taking some risks, I found this great little quote on the cover of a notepad. The author is Andre Gide an early 20th century writer and winner of the Nobel prize in literature in 1947.

 

"Man cannot discover new oceans

unless he has the courage

to lose site of the shore"

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Time to get a move on folks, put down the remote, back away from the television, shut down the computer and follow a dream. I said that! You are no longer in the Twilight Zone but on the No Excuses Tour. What's on your list?

Musings from a Journal of Yore

In my 20's I used to keep journals.  Though life is an ongoing educational process those were the first years truly on my own; out of college, out of the nest, and away from home. A time for testing the waters and finding out about who I was. This morning I picked a journal up and opened it to no particular spot. Here is what I found:

January 10, 1971

Clear light, clear energy

A very seeing day

There is time and no time

Eternities and brief moments

Find no distinction

Soft awareness, no edges

Lightness

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Next to it was two quotes, the first from William Faulkner

"I believe man will not merely endure, he will prevail. He is immortal not because he alone among creatures has an inexhaustible voice, but because he has a soul, a spirit capable of compassion and sacrifice and endurance..."

The second from Steve Miller

 

"You've got the power to open the door

You've got the power, it's been done before
Once you get there you're sure to see

You open your eyes and love will be easy"

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Different philosophers, different eras, but meaningful none the less. Accept who you are and revel in that, but never stop exploring your boundries and the possibilities of your life.
 

Thank you once again to the talented artisans of Etsy who help me illustrate my thoughts.