Harvesting today: 9 baby broccoli

Thank you everyone for your birthday wishes and thanksgiving greetings!

This week I have to fly south and I have no choice but to harvest my fall crops today. I have to be here to cover them to protect from freezing temps and then open them back up so they don't bake in the sun during the day. Sad, because they really aren't mature, but they should have been by now. The sun is so low in the south the trees block a lot of the light making progress slow.

Normally, I would not choose to fly. But the trip is quick and it is the only way V will go; not being willing to spend two full days on the road. I've designed a T-shirt for my travel; I will model it later this week, but it reads TSA: Training Submissive Americans. I might add some other choice words and/or graphics. This homeland security situation is just a total joke; its meant to train us to accept an increasingly evident police state. Im not walking through their radiation booth -so I guess I will be receiving a pat down. It's insane and I am disgusted by it, but I dont for a second believe the scanner is safe. They take a picture of your tooth at the dentist and they cover you with an iron blanket for crikey's sake. What does that tell you?

The red cabbage will be left to weather the frost

Also in the garden are red cabbage, onions, herbs and asparagus. We had our first tender shoots of the asparagus on Thanksgiving day. I think the unusual warm weather may have prompted that. I think that next year we will have much better asparagus because this is their first fall and I think it takes a few years to really get the nice big shoots.

I can't pretend this doesn't hurt

I lost another bird to the studio window. I hung my older paper garlands over the studio windows thinking it would alert the birds that they weren't flying into sky. The garlands moved in the wind and reflected light and I hoped that would be enough, but it clearly was not. So I have relocated my feeder to be far from any structure and hope there will be no more accidents. 

Double Cola: the fat black lab

Lately I've been making smaller dog paintings on plywood. These are 7x10".  I call these "folk art" because of the simplicity and rawness of them, and the fact that I dont spend more than 2 hours on each. They are very different from what I would call the "A" level work. Its fun and liberating to make this kind of work. Some of them are in a show down in ATL called "Little Things Mean a Lot" which is a show of small and inexpensive work made especially for Christmas gifting.  The next two dogs are loosely based on Moi's two dogs:

Chill - the dog that looks like Maddie

Cocoa: the brindle pit-bull

Have a great day everyone. I've got to drive down to ATL in a major rainstorm with 4 fussy hens. grrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr.

happy thanksgiving (and haiku)

a fan of bronze spread

wide open forest clearing

doe eyes Thanksgiving

DIY: Snowball Garland

Candy Santa Garland

Today is moody with wild swings from brilliant sunlight to dark lavender overcast with gusts of wind and oddly still lulls. Very tornado like. The wind is blowing away the unusual warm weather and promising crisp mornings once again.

I was up early working on Christmas garlands. I am making sets of them, boxed and ready for my mom to give to her caregivers at the nursing home for Christmas. This is the best gift I could give to my mom; her tiny room is already overflowing with family photos and dishes of candy; books and magazines. I know that she will want to gift people but has no way to get out and select anything. On the outside of each package is a handmade card that says "Merry Christmas from *my mom*" and there is a tiny description of what kind of garland is inside so my mom can pick who gets which ones. And of course, I am making one for her room as well. Several, actually.

The garlands are a result of my former hatred of Christmas: the whole thing had turned into this hideous commercial stress fest that was no fun at all. And certainly not in the spirit intended. So I started making all my gifts and I began to like Christmas again. I like using inexpensive materials. I thought I would share with you one of my favorite easy easy easy garlands.

The SnoBall Garland

You need: some kind of pretty and thin (but strong) cord. You could use metallic like I have here, or baking twine or even embroidery thread. You also need self adhesive labels - white in this case, but silver and gold are terrific modifications. A vodka Gimlet wouldn't hurt either.

dont get removable labels - you need the cheap kind that sticks for life

Im sure this photograph explains everything. Just sandwich the thread between two labels stuck to each other. Takes some practice to get them lined up perfectly, but you'll get it. Crafty!

sun dropping nectar

My job lately has been to photograph jewelry. I bid on a job to photograph and videotape an artist and her work a few weeks ago, got it, and its expanded into shooting all of the artists' work that are represented by this licensing company. (my movie "snow falling on chickory" has helped me so, no, blogging isnt a waste of time ) It's interesting work. Even better is that Chickory makes a great background setting for these sparkly things. And I get to stay home with the animals. This is my favorite from today's shoot. It's like a drop of nectar from the sun.

It has a life of its own as a photograph and its meaning is expanded beyond a literal cataloging of features. I think the limitations of my point and shoot cannon power shot 1000 have their virtues. 

I almost didn't get the job because at one point they wanted me to have pro lighting and mic's and I just didn't want to do it. So I said so and lucked out after all. 

Sumptuous late afternoon light, some sticks and a piece of turquoise paper gets me this shot from inside the studio on the west facing table. Boxer, Shamy and Susan do a lot of great photography, and they have been an inspiration. I've loved your great photo blogs, ladies, and I thank you. Actually, I've been inspired by everyone's photography and blogging in general so thank you all. But wait, uh oh, what's this?

No way, Easter!

Swinging Bridge

The view from the Swinging Foot Bridge over the Toccoa River

I've had a steady stream of guests for the fall colors. This morning is the first saturday I have had to myself in a few weeks. Im in bed, with trusty hound and seattle's best, nice and toasty thanks to the heated mattress pad my sister brought when she visited.

Last week I took my best friend on a hike to the swinging bridge. I forgot to get gas on the way out and only remembered when I looked at the almost on E gauge about 3 miles into a forest service road. We played out the scenario of what we would do if we had to stay overnight at the camp site by the rivers edge.  I looked around the campsites. "It would be better not to camp here tonight." I said. I drew an imaginary ring around the spot where we stood. "imagine how far a person would walk from this campsite at night to relieve themselves. Its a perimeter full of human dooky." We would have been fine, however I was worried about my chicks and dog and decided if we ran out of gas I would have to call the Unofficial Mayor of Blue Ridge to come and pick us up, and suffer the subsequent and much deserved razzing that would follow. At least I packed the survival kit in a sardine can.

When we arrived at the bridge, we encountered a couple from Florida. We greeted each other and they said how relived they were that we were "normal people". They went on to say how once they arrived, they wished they had brought a weapon of some sort in case they ran into...who? "the deliverance boys?" I asked. They nodded yes.

After they left, I remarked to my friend how funny it would have been, if, when the Florida tourists expressed relief that we were "normal", we would have whipped out some pistols and said "oh but we're not normal at all." This led to a lively discussion of ways to rob people:

"we could rig up a board with nails sticking up and cover it with fallen leaves. a car would roll over it and have a flat tire. then we could come walking up a little while after....acting all helpful until we could assess the situation. then, at gun point, relieve them of their cash and cell phones...which of course we would need to pick a place on the forest service road with no coverage.....we'd leave them with a couple of sandwiches and water and be on our merry way."

We came up with lots of schemes which is really just another way to assess our own vulnerability and to be alert to it. But we hiked the trail with no worries what so ever, glad that our butts were on fire with exertion. We'd had a killer meal the night before we needed to burn off.

Almost all the leaves have fallen and now the structure of the land is apparent. Winter is the best time to buy property because you can see it as it is. It's also the best time for hiking the woods as there are no more ticks, gnats and snakes. I like to take a pair of pruners with me so I can cut back all the sticker vines that have made their way high into host trees. Sometimes the vine pulls on a tree so hard it shapes its growth. I love to liberate a tree from a vine; to see it spring back tall from it's bent position and sway back and forth with freedom.

Today promises to be a good one. I look forward to staying home and working on the soil in my garden. Right now, I have onions, broccoli, chard, herbs and red cabbage. I already harvested the lettuce and spinach. The sky is blue with high cirrus and there is a light breeze; I bet we make it to mid 60s today.
However the weather progresses, I am very happy in my heart and looking forward to a quiet day outside. Have a great weekend everyone.

Blue Forest

now three looks like six
azure below last light ridge
hiking winter hours

American Politics