Thank you

Perhaps blogging is a good tool with which to slow down - to observe the insides and the outsides. I have been absent because other priorities wanted more time - fashion design & illustration classes, painting, traveling, changes in circumstances from full time worker-commuter, to a busy retired woman.

I spent much of the last week, between trips to the pool for aquarobics, preparing the garden and planting summer vegetables. I stopped only because there is no room - I have no more beds for future bounty. The yard remodel - from a hot chaotic mess to some utilitarian and esthetic spaces, done bit by bit, year by year, has taken away many square yards of vegetable space. I need a little more. I am not willing to forego the bright flowers that thrill both the hummingbirds, the bees and me so it is time to make a new space and build more beds for seed starts.

If I am diligent in my care I will have bush beans, pea pods, simpson lettuce, lolita zucchini, two varieties of tomatoes, a fresh batch of chard (I've been letting it reseed for way too many years) - and near the kitchen, a new batch of herbs - pineapple sage being one of the more exotic. All things are possible when you walk outside to gather materials for the next meal - or even eat on the fly as you wander the garden.

The winter squashes are missing. They take up too much scarce ground space, though I love watching them soak up the long sunny days and grow and grow. I didn't winter them on my roof, as they do in Mexico, but they did decorate the kitchen for weeks to months.

The person who really turned me on to growing ones food went on to be a full time organic farmer, and philanthropist. What a great gift he gave me 40 some years ago. Thank you DS.

Another Road

Where has the time gone? I spent the last many months studying fashion illustration and flat pattern design. These both relate to my love & study of textiles as well as my young adult aspirations to be a costume designer. As a non-drawer for most of my 60 plus years I thought learning to illustrate or draw the human form would be nearly impossible - and that flat pattern making would be a breeze. Wrong on both counts. The learning process always leads me down roads unsuspected. Hidden around that blind corner - amazing jewels.

In photography my love is nature and architectural shapes. I occasionally wanted to do portraits, but the faces I wanted to shoot were either too far away or camera equipment/lighting inappropriate for the job. After countless hours learning my rudimentary drawing skills - croquis, face proportions and so on, I learn I love doing faces. They come alive for me - they grab me and take on a life of their own. I fall in love a little bit and sometimes more, with each face.

After the second instructor suggested painting as something I would love - I decided to reward myself (as if I need an excuse) with the tools to go there, and am now eagerly awaiting the arrival of my goodies from Dick Blick. A little space was freed up in my weaving studio when one loom moved to the living room (space freed up by selling the well loved baby grand) An easel of my own…exciting, scary adventure. Each new media presents new challenges.

The paintings above are by two women artists, out of hundreds, who inspire me: Green Hay by Samia Halaby and A Self Portrait by Helene Schjerfbeck. Both are known in art circles, but perhaps are not widely known in America. Check them out for a visual feast.

The Coming Home Project

I just returned from a five day retreat with the Coming Home Project held at the Angela Center north of Santa Rosa, CA. See www.cominghomeproject.net for more details. Retreats are held at different locations around the country - currently, Washington, D.C., San Antonio, San Diego, and Santa Rosa.

This was my first post retirement volunteer stint. I look time to find the right fit - where I could lend support to an organization that was personally meaningful. This one seemed a good fit in my internet/telecon communications. As always, there are no chance meetings and this was a heart opening event for all people involved.

Why am I telling you about this? Perhaps you want to donate money to Coming Home Project. They survive entirely on grants and donations and they provide such caring support to post 911 vets and their families - children, parents, and siblings. Or perhaps you are a veteran of this era and could benefit from new tools and ways of thinking/seeing the universe. Or perhaps you wish to donate your time and energy - either as a trained medical professional or in logistics support.

I attended this retreat in the capacity of logistics support. My days started with qigong classes, followed by meditation, followed by 8 a.m. breakfast, then a full day of logistics events. Qigong, meditation, meals, evening meeting and social events are available to both participants, providers and the logistics team in a shared venue. The daily groups are conducted primarily by psychotherapists, veterans and interfaith leaders. The logistics team does not participate in these breakout meetings. The transformations that occur for participants are clearly visible and are life affirming and heart opening for everyone in attendance. The love and caring are palpable and are a reminder of how life can be lived consciously, intentionally and in community.

In my 20's I spend several years in a Zen macrobiotic house and decades more studying various religions/languages and cultures. In many ways this retreat felt like my own coming home - after three decades in a job that did not reflect my personal values - it feels exactly right to once again connect to the spirit, to my center, to formalize daily practice, to express fully my artist self in both textiles and other art media, and to strive to be fully open to this life. It was my great privilege to serve our veterans and their families and I am deeply grateful to The Coming Home Project.

Pourpier or Purslane

I should have given the French name for purslane. I know Susan M will want to collect some from the market in Aix en Provence. It is pourpier.

Did I mention this weed is served in The French Laundry in the Napa Valley?

And to really feast your eyes check out some lovely pourpier images here:

http://www.recipezaar.com/bb/viewtopic.zsp?t=307806&sid=988c482fd667e62729f77ebe590af832

Pigweed by Any Other Name - Eat It & Wear It!

My garden is not so prolific this year. Perhaps because I didn't plant much, but it is always a joy to harvest the first meal. It is perfection & always makes me smile. Today I harvested purslane, my first ever crop of green shiso & mint - to chop and use in my home made yogurt. Sometimes I add chopped cucumber to this and a smidgeon of salt. It is delicious and refreshing and cools down peppery hot foods. I served this with a spicy beef kabob.

Purslane - I first heard this word in English literature novels while an English major oh so long ago. Henry David Thoreau mentions this as a meal source in Walden Pond. I learned to eat this vegetable in the Middle East, where it is sold in the markets. No one was calling it pigweed! (Inside joke if you are Moslem). Let me tell you some purslane history.

Purslane was found in the 7th century BC Samian Heraion site in Greece. It is used in China as medicine. In Kerala, India, it is used to make a dish known as thoran. In France is it considered a delicacy. In Japan it is one of the 7 herbs used in a ritual New Year's dish. It is eaten widely in Europe, Asia, Mexico, North Africa and the Middle East. In 2003 Brian Jones got a patent on topical mixture for treating facial lines and deep wrinkles. Maybe I should be wearing this instead of eating it?

It tastes delicious - especially raw in a salad though it is also used in soups and sauces. And it is a good antioxidant source, contains vitamins A, B and C, plus has more omega 3 fatty acids than any other vegetable. A dozen or so years ago there was some talk of this as the new super food.

The point I really want to make is that pigweed (portulaca oleracea) is considered a weed by most people in the United States. This is not to be confused with pigweed (amaranthus retroflexus) - which grows upright and is also considered an invasive weed. Purslane is a small, low growing, succulent type plant. If you want to see this before you check out your own backyard, search the internet using the Latin name - portulaca oleracea. You may see some yellow flowers, though mine has never lasted in the garden long enough to produce any flowers. I have never intentionally grown purslane. One year I had lots of it - and ate it all. The leaves, stems, buds and flowers are all good eating. This year I only had one volunteer in a pot…I'm thinking of touring the local fields to find a new supply. And while I'm chopping up a salad, I may as well throw some in the blender to slather on my face.

Going Home Again

Who says you can't go home again? (Yes, I know, Thomas Wolfe).

Standing in the kitchen five minutes from the old family home is some kind of magic. There are more birds there than here. The light, filtered through the trees, fills this wonderful old house. The town seems so much smaller than I remember it and much has changed. Still the theatre sign has remained the same. The hills surrounding the valley are dotted with houses that were not there forty-five years ago. New commercial buildings are evident, while too many business store fronts are empty.

All places are beautiful when your heart is there. This is another dance in your nightgown sort of feeling.

Tony's Place - Piercy, CA

What a joyous getaway to the land of Georgie and Tony.

We dined on abalone lasagna caught by Tony - artichokes we picked from the garden and a rich chocolate cake. Lasagna and cake were both cooked in the sun oven.

We did things besides eat. We walked, talked, marveled at Tony's art, lounged in the sky chair, admired all sorts of ocean bottom creatures, knit, and some of us even spun around in our nightgowns (again and again) marveling at the stars.

Heaven is being with people you love. Another gift. The universe has been so generous to me this year.