yellow creek august 2014

I wrote this the morning of August 11th, sitting on the edge of campsite number 2. I usually like to write directly on my computer, but hard to take that technology camping so my notebook had to do. It was a somewhat magical trip, and seems like long ago.

Mike's birthday
raindrops falling
electric air
harder raindrops
stopping, starting

empty campground
host swings
grass soft focus
rain soft sound
now heavier
take cover

sun comes out
host still swings
flies buzz
squirrels call
wind in the trees

The idea was to come for the Perseid meteor showers, somewhat wishful knowing there would be a full moon and the threat of evening thunder showers (thus cloud cover). The full moon shines in the tent door through the clouds. The first morning all the other campers leave giving us the campground to share with only the young hosts and their dog, Nellie, Dustin, and Maple.
Humbug Valley has not lost all of it's green. Summer rains have been kind, keeping a certain verdancy. Many of the birds have left, but the sandhill cranes still call in the morning. The squirrels are actively collecting pine nuts. The falling green cones land heavily on the ground at first light. There is a peacefulness that can only be felt, not described. If no meteors are seen, it is all right, the trip has accomplished it's purpose.

The evening of the 11th gave us an incredible sunset. I just wanted to lay in the meadow and soak it in.

only you!

Smokey

Commemorating Smokey's 70th birthday.... I was a junior forest ranger at age 5.

on turning 63

I just completed 20 hours of yoga in four days. Not bad for a 63 year old with bad knees. Before this morning's practice I managed to popup into a handstand. Handstands are my measure of how I am feeling. I was quite pleased that being a year older, and having done 15 hours of yoga in the three previous days I still had one in me. It has been a great day day. My yoga buddies bought me lunch in between sessions today. And I am about to go out to dinner. I do have to include a closeup of the card my sister sent me.

The inside reads: they'll never notice the whiskers..... happy birthday

the latest tams

Lately I have been in a frenzy of tam production. I have another one completed but not blocked and two new ones on the needles. I have been trying to perfect, well come close, to devising the perfect pattern and getting my bands to stay on the head, but not cut off circulation. I've become tenser in my knitting lately, not entirely sure the reason. I don't seem tense. I am in the middle of a four day, 20 hours of yoga, in-town retreat. I probably shouldn't try knitting, I might be loose again.

what is art?

We spent three nights at this wonderful house in Moss Landing. Nancy's art covers the house inside and out. Her garden a feast of color.

It was a rather foggy and grey time, but somehow I didn't mind.

Yesterday afternoon we attending a Building 14 potluck, with not only my fellow building mates but also a group from the Bauline Crafts Guild. The food was fantastic, best potluck spread I've ever been to. We met a woman who makes shoes from pig gut as sculpture. The question posed to her was why? I was glad someone other then myself asked the question because I was quite puzzled by this choice of medium.  Her reply was she had to. I'll stick to wool and tams as my creative outlet. At least you can wear them when it's cold and they are quite nice to touch. Maybe I'm just not ready for the world of art.

fourth of july

I have always enjoyed July 4th, an almost non-Hallmark holiday. The Paulist family usually hosted barbeques that were known to result in things like sparklers catching someone's dress on fire. This activity in a county where all fireworks were forbidden and where many members of the local fire department were in attendance. So in the family tradition we are celebrating today, with a small party hoping to enjoy grilled hotdogs, beans, and potato salad.

A good potato salad has been a goal of the Rettie household for a long time. Something we have yet to achieve, until perhaps, dare I say, today. After a weeks of scouring the internet for various recipes Mike and I settled upon the above. Which is a combination of all of our research. It's currently festering in the frig. Before I forget what we both did here is a list of the ingredients:
red potatoes
a can of black olives (sliced)
chopped red onion
chopped radishes
chopped dill pickle
additional pickle juice
apple cider vinegar
mayo
dijon mustard
salt and pepper
After it festers we will taste again and perhaps add some more salt and pepper.

I'm going to bake a peach pie, so no one will go hungry.And here it is:

avoidance on a sunday afternoon

So what I really need to be doing is piecing the next 36 blocks for my niece Katie's quilt.

But somehow after 12 blocks I got pink and purpled out. So I have so far this weekend: finished and blocked the three hats that were my latest projects, started a new hat in attempts to get my band sizing correct, ordered some new knitting needles, fixed an irrigation valve and replaced a sprinkler head, and now I am blogging.

This quilt has become a college term paper. I was even in the kitchen looking for a snack.

But doesn't my zone look productive?