I’m 21! 21,000 blog hits & Luchador to celebrate!
That’s 21,001 hits as of this minute! I can drink now! Whoo-hoo! Good thing I’m legal since I consumed quite a bit of wine, like the Luchadore below, tonight at the Animal Fair Party!
My favorite of course was an Aussie shiraz–R Winery’s 
Luchador Shiraz 2006! Pictured is “El Jefe;” we drank “Gigante”–there’s 4 different Luchadors to choose from! No surprise this came from Grateful Palate Imports and was PERFECT for the tritip BBQ, roasted corn, chili beans! Luchador shiraz can stand up to ANYTHING you might throw at it since it has so much flavor, liveliness, PERSONALITY! We were battling for the bottle, I admit! At 15.5% alcohol, it’s a tad hot (and I didn’t get a chance to cool it a bit before we drank it), but remarkably well-balanced (at least that’s what several people remarked!) And what a conversation starter! Seemed like everybody there had at least a taste as we shared glasses and conversation amongst good friends (like, wow, this is really good! for example…). You can find it for about $15, which is a great price for a wine with this much pizzazz. But hey, it’s a Chris Ringland wine–what else would you expect??
Plus I had some Red Jest, a great American bargain blend at $3 from Trader Joe’s! Definitely going back for more of this lovely, easy to drink (especially at that price!) wine! And the label was fun for the evening too. Tasted an American syrah from Radonovich Winery (good but mmmm love those Barossa Valley shiraz!) and sipped a little Velvet Moon Cab (value priced at $6 at Trader Joe’s). Split a yummy Kennebunkport blueberry wheat beer, AND carried and drank a homemade ginger-lemonade tequila-gran marnier margarita down to the beach for the fireworks (in my leopard print skirt and pill box hat! really!). Started the party off with an iced coffee with coffee liquor and irish cream! All things in moderation–hic (just kidding).
Thanks for helping me get
to 21!
Tiled over by travertine: it’s all about the tools
After I bought my major fixer-upper house in 2001, my first project was remodeling a bathroom. I redesigned it to accomodate my washer/dryer (the gas dryer had been in the kitchen for 5 years!), and to take out an awful shower insert and replace it with a clawfoot tub which we refurbished. I found a lovely purple tile in Taos and so this is now the purple bathroom. I took my first bath in the tub the night I gave birth to my son in 2003. Read more…
3:15 Experiment Poem 8/18/06: words for the dodo
something about writing the date at 3:15am
makes you feel how fast the days go by
it’s not the same as writing the date
on a check–too many distractions
perhaps it is the malodorous whiff
of the passage of time itself
experienced by marking time
night after night in the
quiet breath of 3:15am
on the one hand opportunity
for grace for words not your own
to spill forth & trouble the page
on the other the terrible temptation
to turn off the alarm & turn over
each night an opportunity gained & lost
each night an opportunity briefly weighed
as light goes on
as pen touches down
as date is recorded
as seconds tick by
as cool night air flows in &
transforms into breath & words
that may or may not
make it to the page
be birthed into the world
be remembered be shared
be driven into day
they belong only to that silent moment
eyes close head body hand pauses
poem takes flight
words do not always belong
to the Wright Brothers
but instead to the dodo
beautiful
important
extinct
This poem was written at 315am August 18, 2006 as part of the 3:15 Experiment started at Naropa in 1993 by Danika Dinsmore & Bernadette Mayer.
Join the 315 Experiment August 2008 here.
Don’t join the dodo!
PS I hope to get a you tube up on this one soon!
3:15 Experiment Poem: 8/04/02 Jasmine & Jaguar plus YouTube
August 4, 2002 3:15am
the night blooming jasmine’s scent
climbs the walls finds the window
jumps inside invades my bed
like the tide it is stronger
certain times of the evening
right after dusk like the datura
it muscles its way in
it spends the year preparing
for this gathering its energy
then pouring it out
summer in a burst
if driving the freeways now
top down be prepared
it can go freeway speeds
overwhelm you with desire
knock you out with fragrance
be careful too at home
combined with gardenia tuberose
your dreams jungle like
tropical you become
a jaguar awake in the
morning disturbed aroused
charged the heady scent
in your self conscious
causing your ego to make demands
to know no limits
the jasmine’s power in your
blood having traveled the
oxygen in your cells
changing you forever
This is a poem from the 3:15 Experiment where crazy poets everywhere wake to write in the middle of the night, half awake, half asleep. To join us, to learn more, or to read other 315 poems, go here.
It’s also posted in response to the prompt from readwritepoem to write about smell, and you’re invited to take a ride on the Poetry Train!
Wish me luck–I’m trying to get this up with audio/musical/art track via garage band and whatever else I can find!
AUGUST 4 update–Click below to view the you tube I made of the poem with music and images!
I’m in LOVE! w/my MacBookPro & iPod Touch!!
My old MacBook fell, went boom, and the screen looks like someone shot it and it bled blue…a long slow death, the blue blood oozing across the screen in a cobwebby pattern, the pattern growing with time, a blue blob growing, eating up my productivity, eating up my desk icons, my pull-down menus, my dashboard…I was blogging blind!
Finally finally finally I broke down and bought myself a new laptop. I splurged on a MacBookPro which I bought through the Apple store. Using my educational discount ($100 on this model), I also got rebates on a new printer and an iPod Touch. The MacBookPro arrived at my door within 48 hours, and the iPod the next day, just in time to learn how to use it and set it at 3:15am to wake me to write for the 3:15 experiment! I admit I was a virgin when it came to these machines…let me just tell you that they incredibly beautiful, sleek, and seductive–a saphire gin martini up with a twist…Now I’m jonesing for a G3. sigh*
MacBookPro comes with iLife, a package which includes Garage Band. Last night, I taught myself how to use it. I recorded two poems with music, as well as a really swinging rockabilly song! I recorded the poem in the post previous to this and the poem in the post following this one.
The challenge now is to figure out how to get them liberated from my laptop and unleash them on the web!
Any tips??? Help!
3:15am Weds Aug 10, 2005
this writing practice
in the middle of the
night
at 315
is a lesson in
impulse
this is not a time to
think so hard but of
first thoughts not
thoughts on thoughts
at 315 in the morning
you’re too sleepy to
bother to do anything
else–and if you
do think too hard
casting about your mind
searching for something
to write about
rejecting this idea and that
you will be up for
too long
you will never get
any sleep
you will never
catch any poems
either
I am doing the 3:15 experiment again this August; for more details or to join go here
I will be posting 3:15 poems form past years, especially those which pertain to doing the 3:15 experiment in the hopes that I can convince you to join me!
We Went to the Animal Fair
We went to the Animal Fair
The Birds and the Beasts were there
The Big Baboon by the light of the moon
was combing his auburn hair
You should have seen the monk
he climbed up the elephant’s trunk
the elephant sneezed and fell on his knees
and what became of the monk? the monk?
and what became of the monk?
http://ksolo.myspace.com/music/Children-s-Fun-Songs/Animal-Fair
sing along!
(Kids singing the song in case you forgot the tune or need some kid energy…)
We haven’t been to the Ventucky County Fair yet this year. We will, for sure, like we do every year, and see animals and visit the building named after my great grandfather, Elmer Paquette. His name is painted above the doorway. Maybe next year I will laminate a story with photos about him and post it so people will know that Elmer Paquette was a real person who moved to town in 1906 and was a barber and then a caretaker of Seaside Park where they hold the fair every year.
We live close enough that we can hear the fireworks go off every night at 10pm. I used to ride my bike down to the beach every night to watch them; now with a child, it is harder to do that with his bedtime and all, and the trees have grown up enough in the 10 years I’ve lived here that I can’t see them very well from out front of my house.
Every year for the past 11 years, I have had a preBurning Man costume party on a Saturday night during the fair where we parade down from my house to the beach to watch the fireworks go off over the ocean. This year of course the party theme is ANIMAL FAIR, and we’re encouraging people dress as inspired by the song. Prizes! Prizes! Prizes! and possibly some notoriety. It’s the second Saturday this year; potluck, BBQ, dancing, shenanigans galore and lots of kids running around like the happy little wild things they are.
So break out that playa animal finery and come on over anytime after 5pm! If you have too much to drink, you are welcome to sleep over in the back yard or on the deck, and have pancakes and clean-up with us!
RSVP below and let us know what you will be bringing (Hint: we are particularly fond of sparkling red Aussie shiraz! Which reminds me you may know a different version of Animal Fair with these lines: The monkey he got drunk/he slipped on the elephant’s trunk…
The moon becomes new Friday August 1 at 3:13am (Pacific Time). I will mark the new moon by setting my alarm for that moment in anticipation of the first night of the 3:15 Experiment, where I, and others around the world will write in that hypnopompic/hypnogogic state “between sleeps.”
On that day also, a solar eclipse will travel east with the dawn and cross eastern Canada, Greenland, Siberia and Asia. (Here in the US we won’t experience a total solar eclipse in the US for four more years although parts of Maine will experience a partial eclipse at dawn).
the path of Friday August 1's Total Eclipse of the Sun
An eclipse occurs when the moon gets in the way of the sun, much like you can hold an orange up in front of you to block the sun. Just as you can hold the orange in such a way to only block part of the sun from your perspective, how much of the sun is blocked by the moon depends on where you are at the time. (This is an Art Predator explanation–no one to credit and I’m the one to blame if it doesn’t make sense to you.) The lunar eclipse two weeks later on Sat. Aug. 16 is centered in Madagascar; it will be over by the time the moon rises in the US. For more about the August 16 lunar eclipse and astrology, scroll down.
For tons of maps and graphs about where the eclipse will be etc as well as links for live coverage, check out Nasa’s eclipse site: http://eclipse.gsfc.nasa.gov/SEmono/TSE2008/TSE2008.html
Eclipses are times of great change; change can be scary, threatening or an opportunity for growth and empowerment. Just before moving from the Paradise of Santa Cruz to the Limbo of Reno, during a break in a summer school spanish class. A few years later, I was in the path of a total eclipse out in the Basin and Range near a Native American rock art site when I was struggling with immense grief and loss. A solar eclipse occurred in Anarctica in February; two weeks later, the lunar eclipse, and the rituals we did were powerful and empowering.
For some eclipse astrology, I explored a number of sites and fell in love with this one.
Unfortunately, it is only general info on the astrological impact of eclipses, and not specific to this one as she hasn’t updated her site in the previous year.
In general, according to evolvingdoor,
Solar Eclipse in Leo!
Eclipses bring powerful transformation and growth, often disguised as an obstacle or crisis. This eclipse is all about seeing yourself in a different light, which could show a side of you that you didn’t know was there.
Astromarc offers lots of specific details at :http://www.astromarc.com/horoscopes/sagittarius/index2d.ht
This wordpress blog, Celestial Space, was my favorite–very imaginative, metaphorical, colorful and painterly. Be sure to check out her post “New Moon/Solar Eclipse” where she urges
United we Stand”
Sun and Moon will be hand in hand in the astrological sign of Leo – having a unified focus. Some themes and potentials of Leo are: individual style, expression, heart/romance/love, play, innocence, dignity, passion, royalty, drama, creative flair, generosity, laughter, inner child, children, heart chakra, compassion and leadership. Some off balance qualities of Leo: arrogance, narcissism, dominating, overly self-centered, childish, willful, pride, glamour gone awry, melodramaThe Conscious and Sub Conscious are looking to work together, bringing you in tune with what you would “love” to say, do, act or express. Listen to the wisdom of the heart. What would you feel passionate doing? It is a major opportunity for changes or shifts in Consciousness. Generally speaking, Solar Eclipse energies unfold over the next six to twelve months. Solar Eclipses tend to repeat degrees every 19 years. From August 1, 2008 (9 deg. Leo) look back 19 years and see what major transition, event or transformation that unfolded for you. You may get a peek into upcoming themes or events. New Moon/Solar Eclipse is like a super energized, wild card energy – especially that its in a fire element (Leo). There may be spontaneous surprises in store or you may be the one giving them.
Astrology.com says:
If your Sun sign or Ascendant is Leo, almost every part of your life will be affected. If you are an Aquarian or have Aquarius rising, you will also feel this eclipse more strongly than most because Aquarius is opposite of Leo and is in direct alignment with this eclipse. Overall, you will find yourself reinventing your life, even changing your appearance to reflect the shifts in your life. Ultimately, changes in how you see yourself will ripple out and affect personal and business relationships.
If Leo is in your First or Seventh House, you will focus on yourself, your marriage or your relationship. If it is situated in the Second or Eight House, your earnings or joint finances will be impacted. If it is the Third or Ninth House, travel or educational pursuits are highlighted. In the Fourth or Tenth House, home and career will come front and center. Eclipses in the Fifth or Eleventh House put the spotlight on self-expression, children, groups and organizations. Finally, eclipses in the Sixth or Twelfth House put the focus on health, work and service. Wisdom holds that the effects of a solar eclipse last as long in years as the eclipse lasts in hours. Events that are triggered by an eclipse usually take six months to unfold, so you can expect this process of change to continue. The opportunity to break old patterns will present themselves as you make changes.
Hmmn, Leo’s in my 5th House so the eclipse spotlights self expression, children, groups, and organizations; Leo’s also my north node (not sure what that means yet). I am certainly in the process of moving from teaching writing to doing writing–changing organizations and forms of self expression!
LUNAR ECLIPSE IN AQUARIUS AUGUST 16
FROM astrology.com: A partial eclipse of the Moon will take place on August 16. The entire eclipse will be visible in most of Europe and Africa, and partially visible in South America and Australia. During a lunar eclipse, the Earth comes between the Sun and the Moon, casting its shadow on the Moon. Eclipses always come in pairs, and this eclipse follows the dramatic solar eclipse of August 1.
Eclipses are like big exclamation points and since this eclipse is in Aquarius, a sign that is focused on the workings of the larger group or community, expect confusing leadership situations, power struggles and sharp words. In addition to the heightened emotions of this full Moon, an active pattern of planetary aspects also adds drama to this eclipse. The placement of Aquarius in your personal chart will define how it impacts your life over the next five months.
If Aquarius is in your First or Seventh House, the eclipse will signal a period of personal development and growth. And if Aquarius is in your Seventh House, the focus will be on growth and development in your relationships.
An eclipse in the Second House will always make you more aware of your attachments: the things that you believe that you cannot survive without. But an eclipse in the Eighth House highlights your responsibilities to others: both physically and emotionally.
When occurring in the Third House, you will be forced to confront fears and your communication style. And in the Ninth House, you will be forced to consider the bigger picture of your life. How do you want to grow and expand?
In the Fifth or Eleventh House, the focus on the next five months will be on issues of individual expression and group participation. In the Fifth House, the eclipse will stir up the creative urge, or represent changes in relationships with children or with casual romances. Eclipses in the Eleventh House can often indicate changes in relationships with our peers and friends. Interesting–that’s me! Looking for work!
If Aquarius occupies your Sixth or Twelfth House, the focus over the next five months will be on your health — both physical and spiritual. Eclipses in the Sixth House often make you aware of your physical needs and illness, while in the Twelfth House, they highlight religious or spiritual needs.
To mark the first day of the 2008 3:15 Experiment and the great changes presented by the upcoming solar and lunar eclipses, here’s the 3:15 experiment poem I wrote on August 1 when I was pregnant with my son. I’m working on a iMovie of this poem, so please check back again!
315 time for transformation ARTLIFE broadside
it’s 315 time again
i go to lie on my side to write
but the baby is there
i can’t lie on the baby
it’s like lying on a watermelon
large and hard
the baby sleeps right now
no movement–i’m awkward
trying to find a way
to comfortably write i’m strained
as constrained as the baby at 29 weeks
we are alike today in that way
both trying to get comfortable
to get some sleep
the baby can see light
a red glow seeps through my belly
can hear sound but probably not
the crickets outside or
daddy making his going to sleep sigh
hmm mmm mmmm he says
the notebook too is pregnant
uncomfortable it doesn’t
want to open to bend back
to receive anymore
it too is slightly bent
out of shape its spirals
damaged well traveled but
empty of much writing
as i slide down scoot down
slip down off my pillows
losing my great grip on my place
the angle of the pen
the lightness of the ink
indicates betrays its discomfort
the pen is pregnant too
pregnant with poems with desire
to be a useful tool
yet more than a tool of transmission
a tool of transformation
i too am that tool
one of transmission of transformation
the baby in my belly
the pen in my hand
on the path & trout 4 breakfast
this brook trout photo came from: http://www.maryedwardsphotography.com/m_edwards/3Pictures/Fish/brook_trout.htm
Home again from another trip, this time around 7,500′ on the western slope of the Sierra. And I’m still looking for work, walking that new path to the waterfall…
I even had brook trout for breakfast! I caught it myself in Peppermint Creek in Sequoia National Forest, just a few short miles from the Trail of a Hundred Giants. After blessing it with cornmeal, and expressing my thanks and love for this beautiful, graceful creature which I caught on a combination of gold flecked salmon eggs and corn, I cooked it myself in salt, pepper, and corn muffin mix–it filled the iron skillet–and shared it with my friends and family. I cooked up eggs in the hot seasoned skillet, plus corn blueberry pancakes and Peet’s coffee (half French decaf, half Garuda blend).
A beautiful morning, filled with gratitude for a wonderful weekend hiking amongst the giant sequoias, out to the Needles Lookout Tower, and down the creek to the waterfalls and swimming holes, for our sweet shady campsite along Peppermint Creek, and for the opportunity to catch some trout!
(BTW, I am referencing Ray Carver’s poem “Looking for Work” from A New Path to the Waterfall–he wants brook trout for breakfast…you can find it on this blog here)
The Man Will Burn Without You
-
Burning Moms Logo
Bang the drum, the monkeys spin in the zoetrope above!
by Patrick May, San Jose (CA) Mercury News, May 23, 2008
“The flying monkeys are laughing at you, San Jose. You’re way too serious. Lighten up. …It’s called “Homouroboros.” … a gigantic zoetrope first unveiled at last year’s Burning Man… pure monkey magic.“ - Burn, Baby, Burn: Should I bring the kids to Burning Man? YES
by Kris Vagner, East Bay Express (Emeryville, CA), May 21, 2008“People who believe so strongly in art and fun that they’re willing to haul a week’s worth of food, water, shelter, and silly clothing out to a barren lakebed in Northern Nevada to share good times with 40,000 strangers. Those were the things – and people – I wanted my kid to see.“
- Burned Out on Burning Man: Can the artistic free-for-all go green?
by Matthew Taylor, Sierra Club Magazine, July/August 2008“Event organizers had long promoted a “leave no trace” ethic and ensured that volunteers scrub the desert of the last cigarette, but a chorus of demands for increased environmental responsibility helped motivate last year’s eco-theme: Green Man.”
- But why should you miss out on all the fun??
- And if you can’t make it, and I do, I will blog away for you, recharging my new MacBook Pro on a solar array someone has created for the event, uploading at the wifi in the cafe!
art predator 