Friday, November 09, 2012

One Glass of Wine, With Wes Anderson

There are great movies. There are great directors. Wes Anderson is one of my favorite directors of some of my favorite movies. Geoff's FB link, of Wes Anderson's audition tape for Star Wars, had me laughing out loud, joyful. It was a Geek Double Rainbow of Pop Culture and Art.

Then my cousin, Elias, shared an equally amusing Wes Anderson fan film, for Spiderman. More laughter. More Geek joy.

In all fairness, if you don't know his movies... Life Aquatic, Moonrise Kingdom, Rushmore, Darjeeling Limited, well this may not register as all that hilarious. Otherwise: Hilarious.

I was rolling. I went straight to my FB page to thank my husband for making me laugh, to thank my cousin for adding to the merriment. I gushed profusely, in affectionate terms most befitting social media, but Geoff found me out...

It was one, small glass. With dinner. Honest. If it had been any more I would be asleep right now.

Geoff, I adore you.

{this moment}


A single photo - no words - capturing a moment from the week. A simple, special, extraordinary moment.
A moment I want to pause, savor and remember.

:: Inspired by Soule Mama ::

If you're inspired to do the same, leave a link to your 'moment' in the comments, for all to find and see.

Thursday, November 08, 2012

Goodness

A list of goodness from the day, from life, from you, for you, and for me.

Trader Joe's is committed to finding and providing "...foods and beverages made without the use of genetically engineered ingredients." Additionally, I find no better place to shop for dye-free, additive-free foods, so when I don't have it in our garden, missed it at the Farmer's Market, or simply have an insatiable craving, Trader Joe's is there to satisfy our healthy appetites!

The plates are from Pier One, a few years ago... seriously, how could I resist?
And the Blondie is from... you guessed it: Trader Joe's Blondie mix!


My apologies to all of our East Coast friends, who perhaps would rather not start winter, just yet. But out west, some of us, have overly romantic imaginations, and news of snow is a bit of a thrill. I can't stop peeking in at the Hencam, where it's warmed up to 37 degrees Fahrenheit. Their snow seems to be melting, so, I wonder if Candy, the bunny, has given up the comfort of the hen's dust bin?

So, is it "Autumn Into Winter" where you are, too? I woke up to an unexpected rain fall, here, but in Maine the Soule family's pumpkin looks like he was caught unawares by the arrival of winter-like weather. I can almost here his teeth chattering! Brrrrr...

My cousin posted that she was reminded by a friend, that Christmas is six weeks away!

Well. I said, "That's impossible."

Then. I fainted.

And then I realized, I LOVE Christmas, and lights and music, and friends gathering, and Elf, and peace and grace, and hope, and so I said, "Joy!"

What's the earliest you ever put up a tree, or hung a wreath?

Other goodness of the day...
Lots of laundry is washed and dried, and folded. Don't you just love when this happens? Tempted to send everyone away, to preserve this moment of near order.

The roses are pruned... thanks to Alex, and William, and James, and me, and two goats. I know... it's too early, but then again, it's really late. I cannot remember the last time they were pruned. I think it was a good choice. The goats agree, so you know, that's valid.

Geoff comes home tonight. Alright, so maybe this is goodness for me, more than for you, but it is goodness. You should be happy for me, please. Uhm... I am going to stop now, because I see I am on the precipice of public tmi-gushy-smoochy-twitterpated romance.

Ahem.

Where was I?

Hey how about art, and independent artists, and being a patron to a rising star? Goodness is being daring and creative and making beautiful music! Our cousin, Kree Woods, has five days to fund her Kickstarter project, so her new album can be marketed. She's on iTunes. She's writing lovely music, and working hard, and for as little as one dollar, you can be a real life art patron!

And how about this... a little Geek-movie history-Industrial Light and Magic Kingdom news: George Lucas is donating his billions from the sale of "Star Wars" to charity. The Force is with him!

Well, I haven't had my Blondie, yet. I am going to enjoy just a small corner wedge of sweetness, and then see what's left to tackle in the laundry room.

Do you have some goodness you'd like to share? I love our chats.


Wednesday, November 07, 2012

From The Farm

From Mucky Boots Farm! Miriam made an offer I could not refuse... for poppy seeds. Way up north, in British Columbia, Miriam and Kim are together, farming and dreaming, with beautiful gardens, happy chickens, and more.

"Try mixing the seeds with sand and then using a shaker."
They must be teeny-tiny seeds. I shake their sealed envelope and they sound like the tiniest of seed beads, or loose grains of sugar. She was so generous! There have to be hundreds in there.

Thank you, Miriam and Kim. I feel honored... not just because I love seeds, and flowers, but because they are your seeds, from your gardens. Lately, I am extra keenly appreciative of how precious seeds can be.

These poppies... oh, my! These poppies are amazing. Mucky Boots Farm is the place, Miriam and Kim are the farmers, and those poppies are the best. Please, please be sure and follow these links, dotting this post. Also, if you *click* on the photos you get to see an extra large image. You'll want to see what I am talking about. You'll also appreciate I am feeling a little anxious about following every step to ensure that I can hopefully get some of those gorgeous blooms to blossom here at our Little Farm By The Sea.

And what about tulips? Don't you love tulips, too? They have garden delights, aplenty!

Tuesday, November 06, 2012

Rainbow Connection

Double rainbow, home, October 11, 2012
Thinking of you, Geoff, and feeling so thankful for us.

Tomorrow the election, hopefully, will be decided. This has been a long, and strenuous campaign... on every side. I believe that people care deeply, that this is a great country, with good ideals, and tremendous potential. If we give respect, if we act with compassion, things can be alright.

“He drew a circle that shut me out-
Heretic , rebel, a thing to flout.
But love and I had the wit to win:
We drew a circle and took him in!


From the poem Outwitted
― Edwin Markham

Monday, November 05, 2012

Thank You For The Beans

Gracias.
Gracias, por frijoles, la olla, agua, ajo, y sal. Gracias, por mi madre, mis abuelas, las memorias de cocinas, mesas, platos, las manos.


Preparing a pot of beans never fails to surface good, good memories. I feel in company with my mother, and her mother. I am in my Tia Ventura's yard, thirty years ago, and she's cleaning beans. She holds a small bowl, flicks it deftly, the beans fly up. She blows away loose bits, debris, and the beans spill back into the bowl. She repeats this. It's a beautiful rhythm, and the arc of the beans, holding in the air, is alluring. They come down, like a pattering rainfall on a tin roof.

As many times as I have sorted and cleaned my own beans, I am never without the memories, and spiritual company, of all those wonderful women I have known. I can't say that collective knowledge is necessary for such a simple task. But that is beside the point... the point being... I love when a routine chore presents an opportunity for feeling a comforting connectedness, for gratitude, for a sense that there is trust in traditions passed from generation to generation.

Thank you.
Thank you, for beans, the pot, water, garlic, and salt. Thank you for my mother, my grandmothers, memories of kitchens, tables, plates, and hands.


This is the month of Thanksgiving, of harvest, of gratitude, of being truly aware of our connectedness with each other and with this Earth, with God, with the astonishing mystery of variety, and balance, inherent in nature. I am thankful for gardens and seeds, for planting, and growing what nourishes our bodies, and promises health to our children, their children. I am thankful for this era of knowledge, reason, understanding, when we can foresee the need to protect our resources, and plan for the next harvest, the next planting, the next Thanksgiving.

Recently, I was realizing that I have always believed in a most basic assertion... that seeds belong to the Earth and to the people who save them, plant them, share them, and plant them again. We depend on continuity... of our collective knowledge, the seasons, regeneration... one seed, begets the next. I am thankful for this tradition, but I fear this basic truth, this essential balance, is in jeopardy. As a nation, the United States, has prided itself on the independence of the individual, on our manifest assertion that we govern ourselves, choose our destinies, hold the right to pursue our happiness, but we have slowly, catastrophically, relinquished control over these assertions.

It confounds me that we are risking the seed, our food, our choices, the most basic components and symbols of our independence, our strengths, our health, our collective knowledge and traditions, and handing over all control and power to private corporations. Throughout history humans have struggled with power, who has it, who wields it. We have gained great strides in understanding that in a healthy, vibrant, just society no single entity, or body of people, can have supreme control or power over the same resources that are needed by all people for life, for health, for trust.

We do not accept totalitarian government. We do not accept subjugation for all, under one religion. We do not settle for one political party, or even one channel television programming. We demand the right to know, in countless arenas, and yet tomorrow, in California, we are being asked to vote, to choose between, labeling GMOs, genetically modified organisms in our food, or allowing food companies, pesticide, fertilizer, and chemical corporations to make the choices for us, and to leave us ignorant of their choices.

Why? Why are we having to make the case for labeling? What blundering nonsense has brought us to the point when we have to seek permission to hold private corporations accountable, and ask them to 'please let me know what you have done to my food, where did it come from, how have you altered it?' And why are these corporations fighting, spending, protesting our interest in being informed consumers?

Monsanto, you are not my religion. You are not my elected government. You are not my grandmother, my guardian, you are not my God, and I relinquish you from power over our traditions, our health, our future, our harvest, our choices, our beans!

I am voting Yes for California Proposition 37: "A YES vote on this measure means: Genetically engineered foods sold in California would have to be specifically labeled as being genetically engineered."

"Proposition 37 gives us the right to know what is in the food we eat and feed to our families. It simply requires labeling of food produced using genetic engineering, so we can choose whether to buy those products or not. We have a right to know."