Warp & Weft

"I believe in kindness. Also in mischief". - Mary Oliver



In this surreal and scary time, trying to weave a magical weft into the warp of minutia.  

The weft:  Taking him fishing, and building fairy houses for the kids to find.  Creating and hiding a geocache in a hollow trail marker tree.  Filling it with left over trinkets from his early birthday favors and his outgrown tiny treasures. 

 





























The warp: Scanning a 25 page job application (not joking) to mail on Monday.  Checking the A/C to be sure it works for summer, and reprogramming the thermostat for the warmer days. Turing on outdoor spigots, while turning off the water to the humidistat.  Mowing the lawn ( No, my son will not not help, so please stop telling me that he should help.  I pick my battles, and don't want to spend my days arguing with a 14 yo every day. )  Caring for the seedlings.  Leaving messages with the DOI for my accountant.  Completing important documents like emergency plan, will and advanced directive.  And three hours each morning to restore years of missing photos to the diary because these are precious memories from his childhood.  It takes approximately an hour to repair one month.  I'm trying to repair three months each morning.

Most Alive Monday: Reward

The only thing worth stealing
is a kiss from a sleeping child - Houldsworth


















On Friday I received an email from a local store owner informing me that the letterbox I created and placed in his shop is missing. I am choosing to believe that it was mistakenly removed by a newbie to the letterboxing sport and will be returned to its secret hiding place. I refuse to believe that it was stolen - this is my most alive choice.

I am offering a reward to anyone who returns my letterbox. Click on the reward poster above for details!















*About Most Alive Monday: I've decided to make at least one "most alive choice" each day and post my favorite each Monday. This, of course, is to motivate me to consciously "live juicy"! I hope you'll join me and share your "most alive moment" in the comments section so we may inspire each other.

Worth

*Further proof that I'm the luckiest person on earth...
Satch and I took his bike on the trail to make sure the "Bee Charmer" was still there. I could see the little handle that I made hanging from the tree hollow. Then as I looked down, right there at my feet was a set of butterfly wings that once belonged to a Black Swallow Tail.... just wings...REAL butterfly wings! I took a scan of them, but it doesn't do them justice.

*Feel free to rip the jpeg from this blog, cut them out and use them for your art. (click on photo to view larger)

Then I discovered during Satchel's nap that there is a wendyful love-fest going on over at the Whole Self!

and then THIS article...

NEW YORK (Reuters) - If the typical stay-at-home mother in the United States were paid for her work as a housekeeper, cook and psychologist among other roles, she would earn $138,095 a year, according to research released on Wednesday. The 10 jobs listed as comprising a mother's work were housekeeper, cook, day care center teacher, laundry machine operator, van driver, facilities manager, janitor, computer operator, chief executive officer and psychologist, it said. The typical mother puts in a 92-hour work week, it said, working 40 hours at base pay and 52 hours overtime. A mother who holds full-time job outside the home would earn an additional $85,939 for the work she does at home. (Reporting by Ellen Wulfhorst)

To quote Fred, "I'll be back when the week is new" because tomorrow we're taking Satch to the kinetic sculpture race and meeting up with the amazing and talented poet, Shelley of But Wait, There's More! And if that isn't awesome enough...Julie of Self-Definition is visiting us on Sunday!

• listening
• reading
• watching (The first tv show I've watched in 2 years. They hooked me with the line,"Be careful where you walk, history's afoot")

Have a great weekend everyone!
*Those who know me would agree that my list of reasons why I am the luckiest person on earth is innumerable. (and the fact that I have such a long list is yet another reason)

Weekend Goodliness

We found another letterbox...in a store....and picked up our first "hitch hiker". I received an email from the placer of the missing "whale box" (see previous letterboxing posts) and it was found in a nearby trash can then re-hidden. I placed the "hitch hiker in the "whale box" along with a cd of whale songs. (Thanks, Nina, for my new obsession) I will soon be designing my own letterbox to hide. (Details on that soon)

In the meantime, I finished these journal commisions which will be published in the summer issue of, "Artitude"! The article will be a short tutorial on how I made the books as well as an interpretation of the imagery.

Did a little gardening (Robert calls this "dirt therapy")...I planted some native and not so native plants. I found some wild mint, fern and violets...separated the tubers (and rhizomes), took a few offspring while leaving the main plant intact and planted some of them in back of our nest.
We are also working on a container herb garden for the front stoop...just a few of my faves and most used herbs: basil, chives, cilantro and more mint (mmmm...mint for iced tea and cucumber raita)

Picked up a copy of SARK's new book, listening to the new Feist album, waiting not-so-patiently for the release of Volta and looking forward to a visit from Julie this weekend! (her birthday is friday)

Oh, and here's a find: Satch is wild about these mini organic blueberry waffles. They are delicious and cute...about the size of a half dollar!

My Boys by Moonlight...

& adventures in letterboxing part II

Last evening we tried to locate the "lizard box" and "ball box" as I recognized by the clues that they were close by. We found them! One was actually located directly behind our home. Satchel enjoys an early evening stroll with his dada and is obsessed with finding the moon.

Have a wonderful weekend everyone...and as my beloved edward estlin cummings would say...may your days be "most sane and sunly" and your nights,"most mad and moonly"!!!

The Elusive Whale Box

As you know, yesterday morn, Satch (don't his high tops look enormous in this photo?) and I headed into the woods with a list of clues in search of the elusive Whale Box.  We found the hiding place in a hollow at the base of a tree, but not the box.  We turned around and headed for home.

It was a little disappointing, but we saw some beauty along the way...like this family of turtles. (They were too far away, in a spot too dangerous for the stroller, so I couldn't get a clear photo)

And an itsy bitsy red spider.

















We ran into another mama on the trail and was invited to join a group of tots at the playground. They climbed, played ball...

splashed in the fountains and ate blueberries by the dimpled fistful.






I don't think there is anything cuter than a bunch of soggy wee boys with blueberry stained faces romping about in diapers and underoos!