Thankful

It's snowing at sea level in the PNW, a rare occasion that never fails to delight...Nothing is sticking, but our Sunday morning walk was especially lovely today as a result. We've had a frigid system blowing through, and it's going to get much colder these next few days - it will be good training for our December travels to NY and WY!

The past month has been busy in the best sort of way - I can't begin to recount everything this late on a Sunday evening, but wanted to at least say hello and share some highlights of the things I'm grateful for lately...

Our harvest this year was bountiful, despite the cool rainy August/Sept we had. We raked in beans, tomatoes, cucumbers, garlic and apples - and fall foraging filled our freezer with chanterelle and matsutaki mushrooms. We're eating well this autumn, often from the soil under our feet, which makes everything taste even better.

And though my sunflowers were late, their brilliant blooms were all the more cheerful upon arrival:

In October, I got to visit the North Carolina siblings - just a long weekend, but a welcome change of scenery and opportunity to see family I've been missing. Mere hours after my arrival in Durham, we headed DC to attend Jon Stewart's Rally to Restore Sanity and/or Fear - a once in a lifetime event that I won't soon forget! Scott, Alicia and Morgan handled all the logistics, and I gladly rode shotgun; we joined ~ 250,000 other reasonable souls for an incredible gathering on the National Mall.

While in NC, I also went to see Wendy, Mike and Dani in Wilmington for a quick overnight - it was good to see them and get another tour of their lovely coastal city. Wish it could have been longer, but we made the most of the time we had!

Back in Seattle, I've been taking a class on mindfulness and meditation based on a course that was developed at University of Massachusetts by Jon Kabat-Zinn - it's been really interesting and challenging. It's surprisingly difficult to be present with each of the moments that make up our lives, and I've been grateful for the opportunity to work on this with the patient guidance of our amazing teacher and some terrific classmates. More on that to come, no doubt...

Before I wrap up, I'll toss out a few films we've seen lately and liked - Scott Pilgrim Vs. The World (the latest Michael Cera vehicle - fun!); Sweetgrass (a documentary about sheepherding in Montana); and CityIsland (set in the Bronx, with Andy Garcia). The last two are a great juxtaposition of the respective cultures that Bob and I come from - we found it amusing that we watched these next to each other, as we prepare to visit our families for Christmas. We've come a long way since we first met each other, scratching our heads in confusion much of the time...hee hee!

I'll try not to be so long in posting the next time, until then - Happy Thanksgiving!

PBS - A Murder of Crows

Last night on Nature, PBS aired a segment titled "A Murder of Crows" and I thought I'd share it with my 3 followers as a PS to my post this summer...

As you might have guessed, I have a fair amount of curiosity and admiration for crows - they are a constant of Seattle's city living, and the UW has a researcher who is doing really interesting work on urban crows...So - last night's segment featured the work of our local crow guy, and in general is just a really interesting look at these wily creatures. Check it out when you have an hour or so - who knew that baby crows had blue eyes?!

Time does heal - or 2 years later, still standing

Dates loom large in the imagination, anticipating this day for the past couple of months has been much harder than experiencing it - ironically enough. Funny how the feelings don't appear on cue, when they ought to, in an orderly fashion.

I've been spending some time this fall investigating myself, and working on being with whatever presents itself in each moment - it's a big challenge, but one I'm enjoying. At any rate, what do they say - where ever you go, there you are?

Well, I am here, and I'm doing ok. I hope you are, too. Wishing today of all days we weren't quite so far away - but I know you're here with me as I am with each of you, missing Eleanor.

Leonard Cohen

Got Bob LC's new cd/dvd Songs From the Road for his birthday, tonight we watched the DVD. What an amazing creature Leonard Cohen is - after watching his performances from the tour he's been on for the past 2 yrs at the age of 70+, I am in complete awe of his talent and generosity of spirit. In the extra backstage clip, he recites the chorus from Anthem:

So, ring the bells that still can ring,

forget the perfect offering,

there is a crack in everything -

that's how the light gets in.

I'll leave it at that, sending my love to those who are needing it this weekend.

Magical Mushrooms

Why, hello October...

How did September manage to completely escape me this year? Work has dominated the past couple of months, I guess - but my big push is finally over. As things calm down for me, however, they're just heating up for Bob as Fall Qtr gets underway - just in time for my favorite season...

This year we're determined not to let the academic calendar overshadow the lovely NW autumn. It's harvest season after all, and with that comes the emergence of...mushrooms! One of the biggest upsides of our damp mossy climate is the abundance of fungus everywhere you look: chanterelles, matsutakes, porcinis, lobster mushrooms - the list goes on and on.

Our brief forays into the forest were quite the contrast with noisy city life; while wandering amongst the trees I noticed a sound I didn't recognize, then realized it was the falling pine needles landing on the moss at my feet...amazing.

Here are a couple of photos, you can find more here...

Hope your harvest is bountiful...

Photo Shoot...

So, our old digital camera was stolen out of our car while on vacation in NM (sadly, with all our vacation photos therein)...I've been without a camera for the first time since I was - 15?

It has been interesting to be sans camera for a month or so - starting right off with being on the last week of vacation and no way to capture all that we saw. I noticed that I spent a lot more time looking at things with my eyes, and thus actually seeing what I'm often urgently trying to shoot. So - all of that is firmly captured in my mind (I even did a few sketches in our trip journal - Georgia O'Keefe I am not). But then we had friends visit from out of town with their 7-yr old son, complete with fun tourist activities and great meals - and no photos!

Thanks to my dear brother who is always willing to do the technical research on my behalf, I went out and got myself a new camera last weekend - Panasonic FZ35 (superzoom). I'm favorably impressed after playing around with it ever so briefly and looking forward to the chance to take it through its paces. The startling clarity and detail of the few photos we did take left me thinking the superzoom should be reserved for wildlife viewing, not closeups of the pores on my face!

See for yourself:

And here's Bob, to be fair:

And for good measure, Leota (check out her scaly leg!):

Pretty damn nice...Can't wait for the next vacation!!

So long, Mabel

We'll miss your pluck and zest for life - thanks for 7 amazing years of chicken delight...