The Book List

I'm starting a book list. I'm going to post them and then they'll wide up over on the side bar under The Book List. I'm not going to link to the typical Amazon books 'cause they're a little too corporate for my taste... So I'll leave it up to you to find the books, if your interested you'll find 'em.



This is one of my new favorite books. My Dad sent it to me and at first I wasn't that interested, but I gave it a try.. And.. Well I got hooked and bought all of the Kelley Armstrongs books that I could get my hands on at the time. Bitten is the first book of the series, I've read all but two of the books and they're all good, some better than others but great reads, very addicting. Mostly about warewolves and witches but with a few other beings as you go. I love books about "women warriors" and these books fit the bill perfectly. Enjoy!
The other books in the series are: Stolen, Dimestore Magic, Industrial Magic, Broken and Haunted.

Small Weekend Adventure in Our Backyard

Andrew, his Dad and sister Zuri

Well...Not exactly our backyard...But there's nothing like having someone come for a visit and showing them around your town to make you appreciate where you live. Andrew's Dad and sister Zuri took a of couple of days to drive up the coast with their final destination - our house. We had a ovely time taking them to the Communtiy forest, it was a beautiful day. The rain held off just enough to let us tromp around in the woods for a couple of hours. We had a yummy dinner and some Andrew's famous homemade banana ice cream (minus the cream) and chocolate sauce. They camped out on one of our beautiful beaches here and then took off on their return journey home the next day after a big pancakes and eggs breakfast. When you get used to where you live you forget what surrounds you (although it hard here to forget), it's nice and refreshing to have visitors to remind you.


This is the Community forest - we have had so many storms this year I hardly recognized the place.



Can you believe the color?!

Dream Journal

I better do this fast because I fell like I'm already forgetting...Also I had a thought this morning when I woke up..I wonder if I'm remembering more because I'm writing them down...Hummm.
Anyway, this is a dream that I decided to wake myself out of, yes I seem to have the ability to do that, and yes it's a wonderful thing wouldn't give it up for anything. Ok start from the beginning - I was in a garden, my garden though it was no garden I have ever seen before. I was adding more soil to potted plants they were white pots with red plants. It was a kind of french garden where everything was in order (not the kind of garden I would have). Than someone was walking towards me and I look up and it's Sandy - my boss when I worked at Kokopilau. We started talking, don't remember about what, just that she was venting sort of about something. Than she told me it wasn't safe and I should with her. So we got into her car (and it was her real car) and drove to the her store. Than I'm at her store though it's defiintely not a store. There are lots of people actually I think it was all girls. Her son was there and he was in big trouble (it get a little cloudy here, can't remember much). It seems he is the reason why it wasn't safe in the garden. Than there is a show that we're all watching, women are dancing and I remember thinking - this is odd. When it is over I go to walk home and realize it is dark and decide to call Andrew to come get me. I ask a girl to use her cell phone and offer her money for using her phone she refuses the money, I call Andrew and he is messing around on the phone , I get mad and tell me to stop because I'm using someone's cell phone. Next I know I decide while I'm waiting for him I go outside and get some air becasue there is a court yard that should be safe. I open the door to go out and I remember a big cool wind and it was so windy, I had a skirt on and the wind was blowing up my skirt and puffing it and than a big strong gust lifted me up in the air and kept me there and than flipped me around and layed me down gently on the ground on my back. I stayed there for a while, I looked around and saw tall brink walls like a courtyard that be in the old colonial houses in Center city in Philly. When I stood the sun out and I walked though a big greenhouse full of flowers, went out another door onto dirt parking lot and saw my parents - they were there to pick me up (I guess I called them too). I started feeling SO incredibly guilty for making them miss work to pick me up when Andrew was there to get me. This is what made me want to end the dream - that intense feeling of guilt. So what does this mean, lots of guilt and safety issues?? Humm.......

MaryJanes Farm Chapter Quilt

Mary Jane is a wonderful lady who is trying to rekindle ladies chapters of the old days when women would gather together to chat and quilt and whatnot. Through her forum she has given us modern ladies a chance to meet other ladies who share common interest. So these ladies have been forming their own local "chapters" and gathering toghter. I, somehow became the chapter "leader" of the only "global" chapter - a mail art chapter. This mail art chapter called The Sisterhood of the Traveling Art became so big with so many members that I feel we kind of grew out of the whole chapter thing. I don't feel like much a leader, I have to say, since I could never keep track of this many people (probably close to 100), but nevertheless MJF asked me to join in on the chapter quilt and represent The Sisterhood of the Traveling Art...How could I resist? So MJF sent me a square of fabric to embroider and here's what I came up with....Since I couldn't really dicuss what to do all the ladies I decided to go with our common bond - our love of the garden.

Dream Journal

Today I don't have the entire dream just some interesting details. There was a river, it was a pretty big river and moving pretty quickly. Andrew was there and my Dad also. Spike from Buffy was also in the dream but that's definitely because I watched Buffy last night.There was movie theater and I remember Andrew going in and me being upset because he didn't want me to go with him. At one point near the river I saw Andrew and he was with my Dad and when I came to them I gave my Dad a big hug and held him there for a little while and than rested my head on his belly/chest and felt so good, it was almost overwelming, I felt so secure, so warm and comfortable. It's a funny thing my dad whenever he enters my dreams there is always an intense feeling, happy or sad. Other people just play their parts with or without feeling but whenever he's involved it's intense. I know what about dreams, but I have cried in my sleep, real tears and wake up with wet eyes. Now, usually I'm crying a lot more in the dream and when I wake up I only feel a little bit of tears. And the last time it happened to me I realized something... I only person I ever cry about is my Dad. Now for those of you who don't know my Dad... He's alive and well and never hurt me or abused me, my parents are divorsed but I saw him all the time and he never much further away than a couple of miles, we're very close. So... This is interesting to me. The rest of the dream is all in fragments - I found a book that made me feel like it was something I had when I was younger and it felt very nostalgic but in reality it never existed. The rest I can't explain. The most significant part was my Dad, it was nice that feeling, I can still feel it now.

Garden Magic

There are a few things popping up in the garden.

Some things I'm working on

These are some pins that I'm working on. They're still in the works, not quite sure how they're going to turn out.




Here I am starting "Bella" the gnome. She going to live at my Mom's new house in her soon to be new garden. She has an older brother Robin, who is almost ready to travel to his new home - my Dad's house and look after his garden.




Bella, a little more finished.

Dream Journal

So that one is a short one...And an interesting one. I am in some kind of warehouse, kind of like a Home Depot but with no people like it's not a public place. Andrew is there and one of his teachers, an art teacher acutally it's probably his painting teacher and I'm there of course. We are rooting through supplies and I'm talking to his teacher about Andrew's Mom - Carole. She's a faux finisher/decrotive painter and I'm telling her about how good she is and how I've learned from her. Than we shift to another scene - Andrew and I are at this big work table and I've got this big project all over the table and he is helping me with something. It seems like the project is all metal stuff and I have a thin copper pipe, thinner than what is used for plumbing. We start aruging, he won't give me something, some piece of the project, he has taken it away and won't give it back. Kind of like an older brother thing (you see my Brother had always bee twice as tall as me so...) where he holds whatever the thing is too high and I can't reach it. Well this time I had enough I guess and started beating him with my copper pipe. Weird?!? I wasn't really hitting him hard but I was still hitting him with a pipe and saying things like "I'm tired of you always doing this, you're always torturing me, give it back". Weird?!?! And than I said "if you don't stop, I'm leaving!" I was pretty pissed and than I woke up.
Ok..This one is weird. Now we do mess around and tease eachother all the time and tickel, pinch and poke eachother but I would never leave. I'm thinking it has a lot to do with the episode of Buffy that we watched last night. Spike took things a little too far and was trying to force himself on Buffy and things got a little wild for a minute.
This is a great example of how things affect you and don't even know it - subliminal messages. We don't watch TV acually we don't even own one but I can't imagine the imprinting that would happened to my mind if I did watch TV. Something for you TV watchers to think about, are you thinking the way "they" want you to think or are you in control? Humm?

Self Portrait Tuesday!

Here's my first SPT.

Blah

So bored I am. All day Monday through Friday I spend in blah land (work) filling my time between tasks with reading other blogs and seeing all the good stuff people are doing with their time while I'm at work...Just a little jealous, huh? My brain fills up with so many projects and I have to squeeze it into two weekend days. Well at least I have those two weekend days, I suppose. But I could be doing so much right now. I do have to say there are some nice things aout this job...You see, my bosses reside about 3 hours away and never visit..so..I try to sneek in as many little projects as possible, whatever I can carry along with me to work stuff that doesn't require an easel or a sewing machine. So that's good, right? Than I read stories like this, which I so admire, she put herself through college by selling her stuffies. I want to do that or at least I think I do considering the grass is greener theory. I'd like to support myself on the things I make. This is my ultimate goal..well I've got a couple of ultimate goals, this is one of them though. I'm not looking to get rich here just do it and try it. Like I want to one day get my work into a gallery just to try it and say I did it and I'd also like to be a vendor and have all my wares displayed and meet all kinds of people. I think that one comes from going to craft show all the time with my Dad and always admiring the artists. I'd also like a goat and some chickens and just enough land to have a big veggie garden, an herb garden, berry bushes and some fruit trees, not a ton of land just enough, don't want to be greedy. I also want to teach, share and create.

Gratitude

After food shopping and running errands we sat down to have our lunch and I was filled with so much gratitude I just had to take picture and share it with you. Here we are sitting on our deck in our little yard on a quiet sunny afternoon. I t had been raining and stroming all week and we were so happy to be basking in the sun and eating our delicious lunch. And looking at our delicious lunch got me thinking - we are just so lucky here, everyday we have an abundance of food. We eat like kings. I wish that everyone in the world could have what I have and eat like I eat - delicious orgainc foods everyday. That is my wish, I'd like to share what I have.

Two Frogs in a Bucket

We have lots of frogs at our house.

A Tribute to my Farmgirl Sisters

I dicovered MaryJanes Farm throught her beautiful magazines with I must say have absolutely no advertisements, can you believe it?!?! They full of beautiful pictures, stories, recipes, how to's and tons more. Really you must check it out. Anyway, she created this forum as part of her site - The Farmgirl Connection. I can't express how much these women on this forum have become a part of my life. Before this I had never been on a forum. It seems strange to have such a connection with these ladies when I've never seen them or heard their voices but it's real and I'm happy to know them. There is such a wealth of knowledge hidden away in the many pages of this forum, you should see for yourself.
Many of these women also have their own blogs, a peek into their farmgirl lives. See the links over on the side bar and check out what these ladies are up to.

Anise Cookies

I had this recipe tucked in my horribly disorganised exploding cookbook forever. I love having cookies or crumpets or biscuts with tea. Something about that I always crave. So after a couple failed attemps of Bunsen experimenting in the kitchen (he does that a lot, well not the failing part - the kitchen experimenting part) I decided to take things into my own hands and rooted through my collection of articles and recipes and found this one and another - raisin bars which I'll post later. I''m going to post the original recipe and than tell you after how I changed it because I almost never truely follow a recipe, it's like I can't physically or something I always find something like "Oh that's just too much sugar!" or use whole wheat flour instead white, those kind of things. These are a drier cookie although I'll working changing that, definitely a tea cookie.
Oh, these cookie are pretty darn healthy, whole wheat flour, not much butter or sugar.

I recommend as always to use all organic ingredients.

1 1/2 cups Whole Wheat Flour
1 1/2 baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
3 tbsp butter
1/2 cup sugar
1 tsp lemon peel (I used one whole lemon)
1 1/2 tsp anise seeds
3 tbsp water or juice (I used the juice from the lemon)

I added a few spices just a little of each - ginger powder, fenugreek powder and coriander powder. Now, I know these are odd spices to be putting in cookies. But try it, you'll see, bet you'll like it.

This recipe SO easy. I just mixed the dry. Melt the butter and mix the wet. Then add the wet to the dry. And here's where I changed it a little. I felt that the dough was way too dry (you'll see) so I added a little water here and there until I got the right constistancy, you want to be able to roll them into balls. Bake for 10 minutes, I bake them on a stone but a cookie sheet would do just fine, but may be than bake them a little longer like 2 more minutes.

Dream Journal

I remember part of my dream last night or may be it was this morning that part I can't remember. But anyway...I was in New Orleans regular New Orleans not the current beat up city. Well I've never been there so it's whatever New Orleans my mind decided to make up. So I was there with my Mom and we were trying to go somewhwere, to some event. We were walking and arguing, I was saying we needed a map and she was saying we didn't and remember saying "we've never been here, do you even know which direction were going? Like which way is north, do you even know?" So I like to analyse dreams like anyone else but instead of getting some book that contains definitions that don't mean anything to you I do what my Mother-in-law taught me...Ask yourself what does that mean to you, what does that river mean to you or snake or balloon. That's where you find the answers, and I recommend asking pretty right away 'cause first you usually forget those important dreams once our daily crap takes over and if you wait to long the meaning will become immaterial. So I ask what does this map thing mean, does the city has significance, what about being there with my Mom. What I found out in my little brain was my fear of moving back home. As much as I want SO badly for so long to move back to my home (meaning the east coast not the actual house I grew up in) I have this unlying fear. I "grew up" when I moved away to LA, I found out who I was and made myself who I am. All that time of "making" myself I wanted so badly to move back to where came from and now that I'm may get that chance I have all these new feelings. Now, I'm a spiteful person and when I have something I fear I don't run away I'll face it just to spite myself. You learn a lot stuff that way. So I have a fear of returning to the place I was a child as an adult. Interesting. And why was it my Mom who represents that fear? Because she is the one I broke away from to do this "growing up". So, I think naturally she would the icon for that fear, sorry Mom.

my head shot

Ok I can't figure any other way to do this so bare with me here.

Just wanted to give you a peek at my studio. It's my favorite place to be , I spend as much time as possible there.

Well hello there....

This is well...My first post. I guess that's obvious. I've been obsessively reading other people's blogs for months now. Secretly saying to myself " one day I'll day have my own blog", but do I have enough to say? Enough going on in my little realm to be of any interest to anyone else? Will there be people like me reading my posts every morning first thing when they get to work? Well eventually I decided who cares, right? And well....Andrew, my bestest friend started a blog and if he has one I have to too.