I need a vacation....., in the tropics.

I want you to look at this photo (above) closely. I took it from quite a distance up the road and it's not a very clear picture. It was the end of a really hot day and everything was very still and quiet. I saw movement down on the road near my favorite tree, the old druid, and I walked down a little closer to see what it was. As my eyes focused on the road I stopped and backed up. I saw a snake lying very still, not moving except for small vibrations once in a while. At first I thought it might be a big lizard because it's head was larger than a snakes. It was only about 12' to maybe 15' long. I wondered if we had accidently run over it coming home earlier in the day and maybe it wasn't dead yet. I always watch for critters coming across the road. I should have one of those signs that says "I BREAK FOR ......" you know. Mine would have to say "I break for ANYTHING." because I do. The prospector says that someday I'm going to cause a bad accident because of my inability to drive down a road without trying to avoid every living creature that tries to cross the road in front of my car. I don't find this behavior unusual at all., If I'm going to break for some crazy, jaywalking, risk-taking, " Haven't got time to walk to the corner and use the light" fool, why wouldn't I stop for some poor, innocent Tarantula looking for love in all the wrong places. Some people just need to get their priorities straight.
Anyway, back to the snake... I walked slowly down the road toward it, thinking how badly I was going to feel if it was dying because we ran over it. We have had so much snake killing this summer that I just couldn't take one more....., and that's when he lifted his head, switched his tale at me and said, "Chee,chee,chee."

That darned squirrel was just taking a rest in the middle of the road. I took a picture just before he stretched and jumped into the dry grass and flew up the side of the Old Druid. I had been decieved by a squirrel. I'm surprised that he didn't have a little lawn chair and some iced tea. He was all spread out like he was getting a suntan at the beach. I think I'm the one who needs a vacation.

Remembering 9 / 11

I think this should be a day of peace, quiet and honest reflection.

Spooky changes?

I took both these photos of the old druid last night on my walk down the hill. One with a flash and one without. Look at the difference! I tell you: This tree has something going on that has always seemed altered in some way. I know that Halloween is coming. I know that I've been emersed in Halloween decorations for my gourds, but the contrast between these two pictures is amazing to me. The weather is changing and there is a different sharp edge to the evening fragrance of early Fall. I'm drawn away from what it is that I have to do and I'm drawn out into the wonders of this new season that speaks to me of change. I loose my focus and my favorite old oak tree is playing Hocus Pocus.

Murphy's Dancing

I had a wonderful surprise today. On Saturday we got a slip in the mail box that said we needed to pick up a package at the post office. So today, I went down and picked it up and what a surprise it was. Terry Busse (at terrybusse.blogspot.com) sent me the fabric art work that she had done about my goat Murphy. I was so pleased that she wanted to tell his story about the night I caught him dancing. It was a full moon night and he was up on his back feet entertaining the other goats. When I wrote the post about him dancing ,Terry emailed me and asked if I would mind if she did a fabric piece about Murphy dancing to the full moon. I said yes, I'd be honored. She told me that she was having a show at the Davis Art Center in August and "Murphy's Midnight Dance" was one of the pieces of art that would be hung there. Murph' has definitely had more than his 15 minutes of fame because of all of this.
I was able to go down and see the show. It was wonderful! Terry is so talented. I mean there is quilting and then there is quilt art and I'm in awe of what she can do .

I can't begin to thank you enough, Terry. Just know that I will treasure this piece of art and take good care of it. We won't be able to live with Murphy for a while but that's ok. I'm sure he will be wearing sunglasses and struting around here like a big shot, but we can live with him acting famous for a while because...,well ..., he is!! Thank you so much.

It's not a Pumpkin!

These are three pieces of gourd art that I finished last year. I have a few blog friends that are interested in what a finished gourd looks like, so I picked these three because they represent the kind of work that I like to do.
The first one is a Kettle gourd that was stained with a brown leather dye, then I wiped it off as much as possible. I applied acrylic paints with a natural sponge, blotting quickly with different colors to give the gourd a stone look. After the finish was the way I liked it ,I waxed it with clear shoe polish. I made a bead necklace which I glued in place along with a sea shell, a stone, a piece of ocean weed and a "spirit"sign that I made with paper clay. I sold this piece in Amador City at the Wine and Art Festival.





















The second piece is a gourd purse, sometimes called a Ju ju purse. You can use any piece of gourd you have handy, but it should be fairly oval or round because you need to attach a piece of leather to the back of it. Part of that leather flaps over to become the top and closure on the front. I twisted the rough ends of the leather together before I added the embellishments.
I stained the gourd, attached the leather hide with a good strong glue , added a shell, some feathers, agates from Oregon and a leather string for a strap. I will be making more of these. They can be worn around the neck if they are small enough, like a spirit bag. This piece is still for sale.









The last one is a birdhouse. I love to make a gourd into something useful and a bird house is such fun to make because it's ...., "for the birds." Most gourd shapes are ok for a birdhouse. It's a matter of preference. I don't paint my birdhouses but you can. I've seen beautiful drawings, bright colors and really lovely art work on some birdhouses. It's a personal choice as any finish is for a gourd. I burned some cracks into this one and added some small stones for the birds to land on instead of small tree branch or stick. I have this in the flower pot just for the photo, but you would want to hang it safely away from cats and other predators .

Gourds are a wonderful way to express your creative soul . They're organic and the seeds are planted in the earth to grow a product that was the original bowl, plate, ladle, container and jewelry of early man.
You must pay attention to the spirit of each gourd.

The saying goes...., "Listen to the gourd and it will tell you what it wants to be." I like that.

Gettin' busy- gettin' motivated

Yesterday the gourd group met at the library and set up our annual display. We do this every year to let the community know what we do and who we are...., and to just plain show off. We have such fine artists in our club (Amador County Gourders) and we love to show folks what we do. Next Thursday we will have our monthly meeting at the library and anyone can join us, ask questions and find out what it is that all these crazy people do with gourds. We end up showing people that gourd art is fun , beautiful and profitable (well, sometimes). The display case looks really good. Everyone who contributed should be really pleased with it.

So, all of a sudden I realized that I was spending way too much time with the goats, the garden and the computer. With two shows coming up next month I had better get hoppin'. So here's my mess. These are the bit's and pieces of what will become pins, wall hangings, ornaments and gourds of a different color. I have two weeks before the first show : the Amador Artists Open Studios Art Tour on Sept. 20 & 21. For the first time ever, we have been invited to be a part of this tour. It's really exciting! But, in order for this to go well ,you have to have some finished gourds to display and that's what I need to do. ..., finish something.

Right now I have pieces of gourd, leather dyes, drills, sandpaper, my new mask (to keep the gourd dust at bay) and tons of embellishments. I have found the all time best scissors for cutting detail work. The Cutter Bee is great for small neat cutting. I have 3 pairs. I get mine at Wall Mart. They are the least expensive there. About $7.00, ( I'm guessing), and they have a safety cover. If you do any kind of scrapbooking, or paper work you have got to get a pair of these.

Ok! Got my gourd pieces, good idea books, glue, scraps and I'm motivated. Being motivated in your 60's is very important. It helps you keep moving and thinking: because after 60 you've got to put one foot in front of the other and get a little crazy. If you don't, the "powers that be" may think you don't want to be here anymore. I certainly don't want that to happen. I've got too many things to do first. Fair warning to all you "young'uns" out there. You've got time on your side, so if you have something you want to do. DO IT.

Well..., I'm going to start drilling and scraping the guts out of another gourd in the garage. Sounds kind of maniacal doesn't it? But it's fun! Ha,ha,ha,ah,ah! Want to join me? Halloween is just around the corner. Summer is almost over!!!!! Yes! Life is good and ..., Oh no, the chickens are heading for my garden. I've got to go and head them off at the pass. See you tomarrow......

Wordless Wednesday: Sanctuary

Seeing into one's own nature.

Do you know what death looks like? Is it peaceful, beautiful, forgiving or tragic? Is it final or a part of some journey?

If we live long enough we get weathered and tired. Life takes parts of us, physically and emotionally. We should become wiser for all of this,but we don't. We could show someone our scars and wounds,but that only produces pity...., Oh look, she has holes in her skin. I feel so sorry for her."......

Where is that one part of me that holds on and doesn't let go? Can I find that warm, green place that says "Things will be all right.?" I think I have found where to look. It is the place that I always turn to when I am in need. I seek solitude and comfort in a place that is away from the speaking voices of man. Alone and surrounded by nature I find a clearer acceptance and understanding of things to come. It's where I find the silent voice of God.

Cease thy Labor and Relax

Free range isn't all it's cracked up to be.

Oh no...., where are those chickens? Look what they've done! They haven't been out for more than an hour and look at this. We have forty two acres and they found the only part of the garden that isn't fenced. Give them a little freedom on a nice day and what happens...,
















..., this


Ah ha! Feathers! I've found proof. Clear evidence that this was an act of wanton destruction by chickens running amuck; whipped into a frenzy by a feeling of freedom and well ammended soil. All the signs are there.




I find all of them hiding under the tent trailer, looking innocent of any wrong doing. "You can't even look me in the eye, can you? Henny Penny, you're the only one who will look at me and you probably weren't even a part of all this. I want all of you to know that there will be consequences for this behavior. Napoleon, you better get these ladies under control or you and the gang will be spending the rest of the year in confinement. "Do you hear me?"
...., no answer, just a few whispered clucks.

Drive to Volcano

Ten years ago we lived here. This is the little "mother lode" town of Volcano, Ca. We rented a house here for three years before we built the home we're in now. This is the most charming town, in the middle of nowhere, that I have ever seen. I'ts east of Sutter Creek and north of Pine Grove and anyway you get to it is winding, slow and very scenic. I was working at Pine Grove Elementary school when we lived here and I use to joke about the long commute from our house to Pine Grove. It was 6 or 7 miles and sometimes I didn't pass one car until I got to hiway 88. Quite a change from Bay Area traffic and an ugly 40 mile commute.
Yesterday we had to drive up 88 to Buckhorn and Mace Meadows so, on our way back, we decided to have lunch in Volcano. It hasn't changed much. You can still stand in the middle of the street and take pictures without worrying about getting hit by a car. Your bigger concern would be a large Buck or a Mountain Lion. It still seems that way.
It was very quiet yesterday . We had lunch at Humble Pies and , yes, they have really good pies and they are very humble about it. And ...., yes, there was a dog sleeping out on the sidewalk.

It was very hot so we ate inside. We ate and reminisced about the car shows, and crab feeds we enjoyed there, and the summer evenings when everyone would bring wine, a picnic dinner (and friends) and sit on the lawn in the amphitheater while watching a wonderful play.
Everybody knew you and Rosie( that's her bench ) ,who had lived there all her life and now lives in a nursing home, would sit on her bench and wave to everyone who went by. I mean everyone, even if she didn't know who it was.
Such good memories. Doesn't seem like 10 years. Where did all those years go? Where DID they go?
It's a charming little town that the world hasn't found ..., yet. I always thought that the old building ( see photo above) ,that looked like it had sunk into the dirt, seemed to be slowly dissappearing like many little towns in the mother lode area of the Sierra's. I sure hope Volcano stays untouched for a long time. It's like stepping back to the 1800's.
So, if you ever come up to this part of California please drive a little further and visit Volcano. You'll love it!

Biscuits for Brownie

"Did you miss me Brownie?"
"Yes, farmlady, but I'd like to talk about the colors of the new sleeping place."
"Why, what's the matter?"
"Well, three of us are brown and white. Bart is the only one of us that is gray and black."
"So you don't like the colors?"
"I just think you should have asked us what we thought."
"But Brownie, I was going to paint the house red and white at first and that wouldn't have matched any of you."
"That's true but those colors would not have favored just one of us. Red would have been politically correct."
"Come on , you mean that because I painted your new house gray and black that I wasn't being democratic?"
" Something like that. All Murph', Freckles and I are saying is that you were favoring Bart by using those colors."
"Good grief. I'm sorry that I have offended the three of you but I'm not repainting ."
"Hey, they all wanted me to say something and I have. This doesn't mean that I'm going to get less of that delicious grain does it?"
"No Brownie. I wouldn't do that. All of you have the right to speak out when you think there's been inequality but this is kind of picky. I have a lot of things on my plate right now and I don't need to worry about what the goats think of the colors that I painted on their new house."
"Plate? What plate? Did you come out here with a plate of food? Did I miss something? Hey guys, Farmlady had some food and she didn't give us any." Did you get anything Bart? She said she had something on her plate. I don't see a plate and I don't see any food. I'll bet she gave some to one of you when I was getting a drink of water. Who got something? Maybe it was Murphy because he thinks he's such a big celebrity. Murphy..., did Farmlady give you some extra food?Where are you, Murph'.

"I'm over here Brownie. Settle down. Farmlady has the camera and I'm giving her my sweet and wonderful goat look. You never know where these picture are going to show up. Maybe I should do a little dance for her."

"Farmlady, you are my very favorite two-legged besides the prospector. You know that don't you? You care about us and protect us
and I just want you to know that whatever you have on your plate will be fine with me because I'm not that picky. I was kind of afraid to say this to Brownie, but I really like the gray and black. It's sophisticated and classy."
"Thank you Murphy, I thought so too."
"Your welcome, Farmlady. Brownie will be all right. He just gets upset when he thinks that no one cares about him."
"I will be more careful next time. I didn't mean to upset him."
"It's ok. Do you have any crackers?"
"No, but I'll bring some with me, later, when I close you in."
"Oh, thank you. ..., and Farmlady?"
"What Murphy?"
"Bring two for Brownie."

And so the little goat house was finished except for a few things like overhangs and some gravel, in front, before winter. I checked later on that night to see if Brownie had been watching the Democratic Convention. What a commotion about equality and fairness; but then I thought to myself that some goats are right. Brownie needed to be heard. He wanted a say in how his life was affected by a decision that he had no part of.
This week I listened to all the speakers at the Democratic Convention and I will listen to all of the Republican speakers next week. I'm kind of undecided about this election, but my discussion with Brownie made me stop and think about the democratic process and how important it is that everyone votes and that I shouldn't say "I have a lot on my plate"unless I have food on it ,because some goats and people rely on others for their food and they don't use this expression as a euphmism for having too much to do.
The little goat house will stay the color it is, because it was a lot of work and I'm not changing it...., but I will take five biscuits out there tonight and two of them will be for Brownie. One for courage and one for affection (mine)...., and I'll serve them on a little plate, just for him.

Wordless Wednesday: Smile

Dragonfly Wings

On my way down to my mom's I needed to stop for some coffee. As I got out of the car and shut the door I noticed something on the ground. I reached down and picked it up...., it was a dragonfly. It was dead and kind of dried out but everything was intact. The wings were not damaged at all. There in the busy parking lot I found this lovely gift, waiting for me to save it from the wind, the wheels of a car, a curious dog or a childs awkward hand. As I held it in my hand I thought I saw it move. How could that be? It was dried out and was crush in on the top between it's wings. Maybe the wind made it move, or my hand touched it's wing and turned it's body just a little. It didn't moved again and so I found a safe place for it on the back seat , bought my coffee and continued on across the Delta and into the Bay Area.
I know the road so well after all these years of driving down and back. I laughingly call it "...the horse to the barn" road. I tell everyone that if I took my hands off the wheel, the car would just continue on and arrive at it's destination because it has driven that road so many times.
I was not sure what to expect when I arrived at Mom's, but my sister had just brought Mom home and even though she was tired, she seemed to be doing very well. She has Congestive Heart Failure and Diabetes. She went to the hospital because she couldn't breath. They gave her very high doses of Lasix, a diuretic, and she came home 20 pounds thinner. The pressure on her heart and lungs was greatly reduced by this procedure so the doctor let her come home. They don't let you stay long now. If you're still breathing and you can get to the bathroom by yourself ,they discharge you. There seems to be a kind of medical conveyor belt in hospitals these days. You are in and out of there before you know anyone's name.
Sis told me that the doctors were very nice and did as much as they could to help Mom. All Mom wanted to do was go home. She's 90 yrs old and she's getting very set in her ways. She just wanted to take a nap. She was tired and very glad to be home.

Over the weekend I showed her the dragonfly I found in the parking lot. We marveled at the beauty of this creature and talked about the wings; so fragile looking and yet with the ability to fly. How each dragonfly is, first, a thing that lives in water. It is born there and that it only lives for a month or so. Only a month, not years, not decades..., but for a very short time, this lovely creature flies around and catches other insects and flies above our heads and then it's gone. Where do they go? all the thousands of small bodies...., when there are so many of them? Why does the death of one Dragonfly seem so sad? Why does sharing this lovely creature with my mother bring tears to my eyes? Is this when we hold onto each other because we know that time is short? Will the fragile wings of my mother's life travel faster than the years she has been given? Can I make the dragonfly come back to life and fly over my head?...., no. I can do nothing to stop the reality of it's death. We are all creatures with fragile wings and now, with my mother sitting beside me, I can only share this knowledge in silence.

Cat waits for her return.

My mom is in the hospital. I'm leaving this morning for the bay area, Not sure when I'll be back.
Her cat, Honey, is waiting for her to come home.
















Please say a prayer for my mom.

Wordless Wednesday(almost); Pasturizing the Goats.

Murphy..., celebrity goat

I had to go down to Sacramento today for a doctor's appointment, so I decided to travel a few miles further and go to the Davis Art Center to see Terry Busse's art show. I have gotton to know Terry through her blog: Songs from the Garden at; terrybusse.blogspot.com. She does the most amazing textile wall art you've ever seen and a few months ago she asked me if she could do one about my post on Murphy (one of my goats ) and the night he danced on his hind legs under a full moon. I was delighted and so was Murphy....
By the way, the painting of the "acrobat" was on the outside wall of the art center(top left). Just thought it was cool. The two bottom photos are the room where Terry's exhibit was.

Photo's do not do Terry's work justice. The intricate piecing of fabric and felt have to be seen "In person" to really be appreciated. This one above is called "Murphy's Midnight Dance" ( that's my Murph') and if you look closely you will see the beautiful stitching and detail that each of her pieces have. I'm so impressed because I've never even tried quilting, let alone something like this. Her colors are wonderful and every piece has a poem and a story to go with it.

The exhibit is at the Davis Art Center , 1919 F street, Davis, Ca. and continues through Aug 28. If you live anywhere close to Davis you should stop by and take a look. Gallery hours are Mon-Thurs 9:30 to 7 and Fri 9:30 to 5. They are closed on the weekend. And please check out Terry's blog. She shows all her art work on her posts and sometimes shows the process or parts of the pieces before they're finished. Very interesting. Click on the photos above to see them up close.

The other goats told me that Murphy has been acting kind of "uppity" lately and they found a pair of sunglasses in his corner of the goat house. You think some of this has gone to his head? I'll have to have a little talk with him.

Congratulations Terry! It's a wonderful exhibit.