Ye olde bag is being pulled out and packed, loose ends tied up and I'm almost ready to leave. One more day of completing work, home issues then I'm on the road, taking pictures, visiting friends and just letting loose. Hopefully I'll get a chance to post, but if not have a good couple of weeks.
I have spoken of the changes occurring for my family. When I spoke to my sister today and heard her tears over the loss of her home of several years, in which she invested so much of herself, it was hard. Looking at the statistics of foreclosures in Michigan right now, it is heartbreaking. Some people may say it's just a material thing, but it is so much deeper for so many people...For them:
Almost ready to head East. Took the pup to get an update on her vaccines so she can be kenneled, got supplies and then just relaxed, called friends and finalized some plans for get togethers. I'll be doing some serious thinking about moving or not and taking lots of photos.
I kept thinking about the future today and Fleetwood Mac's "Don't Stop" was going through my head. I was never that fond of it until I heard a version made with the USC marching band. Since I went to high school where we had a marching band which regularly took the state championship, I developed a passion for it. Watch the movie "Drumline" sometime if you've never sampled what it's evolved to today. Since Tusk inspired the marching band version of "Don't Stop", I'm doing a two for one.
I'm an equal opportunity music listener. One of the most interesting psychology classes I ever took was on using music to affect and change mood. Often I'll match the music to where I want to go. This week at work was what I call an ER week, one clinical problem after another. Plus I ended up working today when I was supposed to be off. I've embraced chanting as a way to begin to slow down and unwind. I've found various forms from Christianity, Sufi and Buddhist traditions to be especially soothing. There is a quiet beauty in all of them.
Deva Premal & Miten have a series of mantras that are wonderfully evocative. The Gayatri Mantra is haunting:
I went to the local farmer's market today which had just reopened. While there wasn't a good deal available, it was enough to put everyone into a bit of a party mood. The sun was out, smells from barbeque, bakery goods and the fruits/veggies wafted by all the strollers, tempting them. I took my camera and took some shots of the produce. I love that these are clearly fresh from the earth and not as my mom would say, "prettied up". You know that there is good eating ahead...
A tribute to Rick Nelson by his sons: "Garden Party".
The middle ages into the Renaissance is one of my favorite historical periods. Periodically I make forays into the food, music or art of the time. I decided to revisit the food tonight and looked for a spring inspired recipe. It might surprise people to find out that salads were popular. Try this:
A Salat ******* Serves 6
Salads, made mainly of herbs, were popular throughout the Middle Ages, often served at the start of a meal, rather than after the main course. The make up of the salad would change according to the season and what grew in the cook's herb garden, so feel free to adapt this basic recipe as desired. Do NOT make it with dried herbs!
2 bunches of watercress 2 cartons of mustard and cress 1medium leek, very finely sliced 6 spring onions or scallions, chopped small 1 bulb of fennel, slicked in thin match-sticks 1 large handful of fresh parsley, pull off into small sprigs the leaves from 1 young sprig of fresh rosemary the leaves from 4-6 prigs of fresh mint, slightly chopped 6 fresh sage leaves, slightly copped the leaves from 2 small branches of thyme a few leaves from any other herb you have (take care not to use too much of any very strong flavoured ones) sea salt and freshly ground black pepper 2-3 tablespoons wine vinegar 4-5 tablespoons olive oil
Wash the cresses, herbs and fennel and dry all thoroughly. Mix them, with the leek and spring onions, in a large bowl, sprinkle with salt and pepper, and mix again. Mix the oil with the vinegar and pour over the salad just before serving.
For your listening pleasure while you dine, the Mediaeval Baebes, "Delirium" with a bit of a modern twist thrown in.
It's warm in California today, but with more of a summer is here ripeness. A gentle fragrant wind is blowing and birds are singing, not to mention hummingbirds are taking some turns at the vines. I did an elaborate Mother's Day brunch earlier for my roommate's grandmother as she is fairly frail at 80 and it's getting harder for her to get around. A bit ago I found myself craving a simple sandwich. So after sticking my nose into our local organic grocer I've come home with cheddar/garlic sourdough bread, avocado, bean sprouts, creme fraiche and this branch of tomatoes whose fragrance inspired the whole thing. There is a Rose chilling and I'm going to put my feet up and watch the sun go down in a bit. Simple pleasures.
I found this artist who is incredible. Sonny Legaspi and he captures the spirit of today:
An interesting day. I spent a good part of the day getting things ready for heading East. I was talking to a friend about the kind of paralysis I've been experiencing in the need to make some major decisions. Knowing that I am open minded about receiving guidance from different sources, she guided me to a tarot reading. I can see the raised eyebrows...well if you approach tarot in a Jungian, rather then "fortune telling" sense, it can be interesting. This was, without going into too much analytical detail, in that it did touch on some amazing themes going on and gave me food for thought and some wings to fly with.
I've been listening to some classic rock that's a bit obscure while getting things ready for doing a brunch tomorrow. Paul McCartney and Wings are great for rocking out, so in the spirit of tonight's post, Venus and Mars/Rockshow:
I took this earlier this week after traveling back from a meeting in the Sierra Nevada foothills. I convinced my coworkers to stop at a little 50s styled roadhouse to pick-up some chocolate cokes and then we drove 5 minutes to walk through this covered bridge. They were amazed it was there, close by to where we work. They then proceeded to relax and renew, all in 20 minutes. It's fantastic what new experiences can occur when you escape just a few moments out of your limited cage of perceptions on where you should be and what you should be doing (I really had to talk a hard game, they felt we should get right back to work).
One of the things I don't get to do as much as I'd like is to see others work at galleries. I find others work online and it's inspirational, but still to see someone's work in person, is to honor and appreciate all that they've done. I'm heading to the East Coast in two weeks and I'll be spending some time in New York. I've found 2 exhibitions that will be opening up towards the end of my stay and I have plans to see both. One is by Frances Hill. The other exhibition is taking place at Kids With Cameras . It's a chance to see some of the work that they've help sponsor up close, to make a contribution and rejoice in someone using art for social change and good.
To celebrate the visionaries of the world, Fleetwood Mac, "Peacekeeper":
I spent today learning the intricacies of retouching photographs in Photoshop. It's a wonderful thing in some ways, terrifying in others. You create this fantasy that looks like you, but somehow is not you. Will you be satisfied with yourself after staring at yourself as the perfect mannequin? I'm all for some touch-up work, but as a photographer, I prefer to keep as much of the real person as I can. I don't want to make them thinner, blow their mouth up, change the shape or color of their eyes etc. When I am gifted with the opportunity to take someones photograph, I want the essence of that person, not a totally made over phony person.
A little Def Leppard to reflect on this thought of "Photograph":
I ended up in a discussion about my top ten CD picks. Since there is and are so many artists whose work I love, we refined it a bit. I ended up picking anything influenced by Motown and remberances of growing up years. One of my top ones is Stevie Wonder's, Songs in the Key of Life. Still as fresh today as it was when it was released.
These shoes remind me of the innocence of childhood and the ideals of those times...
From that, "Love's In Need of Love", good thoughts for what's going on these days....
...hmmm, watching the light dance around the windows towards the end of day, just thinking about an old love who I talked to today and the good times we had, seems there was always a constant craving for each other when we were together...
I'm glad we're still friends, but I miss him sometimes as a lover.....
