Ex Libris en Kimonos

It has been awhile since I found a scarf in the season offerings from Hermes that knocked me into a scarf fantasy heaven. But this season's Ex Libris en Kimonos wowed me like the good old days.

Having lived in Japan for eight years, I had plenty of time to fall in love with the people and the history, with the arts and the culture of a past that people continue to keep alive today.

Ex Libris en Kimonos spoke to me loudly, especially when I read that much of the design was taken directly from historical Kimono fabric patterns from the Matsuzakaya Kimono Museum. I knew I had to have it, and I knew I wanted it in a colorway that stayed true to the historical element from which the design came. The colorway of noir/ocre/petrole does just that. It stays true to the historical colors of the time. This colorway also lends itself to a magic of pairings within the wardrobe, oranges, peaches, blues, browns, creams, black, silver, golds, turquoise, and greens, and purple. Such a vast awray makes it the perfect "go to" choice. Which is exactly what I was wanting in this purchase.

Introducing "Vida" born 10/26/50

Many many years ago when I first started quilting, I wanted a Singer Featherweight Machine. They are a piece of sewing history and historically are on record for having sewn the straightest seam in history. Plus the feature that they are only 11 lbs. of total portability for quilting. They simply are a quilter's dream.

I waited many years to have that dream realized. I was recently with a friend of my Mother's with whom I have stayed close to since Mom passed. I told her of my dream, and much to my astonishment, she said she had a machine for me.

Vida is a Centenial edition Singer 221, her case is beautiful as she is, and she has a penguin walking foot.

I named her after my great aunt Vida from Rogers Arkansas, who proudly owned a sewing center, and never missed a day of work. It seems fitting.

Buddha Party

I wanted something I had made to decorate the walls of my office. And I wanted it to be bright, and cherry and say something about me and how I think. I was extremely attracted to Terrie Mangat's fabric that came out a few years ago, called "Buddha Party". I managed to score some panels, and have started on my wall hanging. I like how well it is going, I will probably make a lag quilt out of the extra fabric.

A Very Nice Suprise!

My friend Kerry, really wanted me to enter the quilt in the local fair, so I did and I can't believe it won a 5th place ribbon. There were so many wonderful quilts, and over 92 entries.

With Love

Wow, I have not been around here for awhile! So much has changed in my life. For the better, but still hard to grasp the amount of change. I work in a totally different setting now. I still work for Sonoma County, but I now work for Outpatient Mental Health Services. I love the work that I do! But enough about that.

I am back to a passion I had left behind for a very long time. I am back to quilting. I have always loved to quilt, but I had left this wonderful hobby when my mother passed on.

You see the last thing I quilted, I made along side her during her battle with cancer. For some reason I just never picked up again after that. I think that I was really angry over all of the loss, and I just wanted life to look so different in some sort of effort to protect.

This past year my best friend was able to tell me that I had been carrying a lot of that anger, and due to the stress of the changes my life was going through, I was not hiding it as well as I always had. At first those were hard words to hear. But the universe has a way of moving us in the direction we need to grow and to work on things left undone.

The universe led me back to my sewing, and quilting. It was very cathartic. Little projects led to me wanting to create something very special for someone so special to me. My best friend loves horror movies. This is something we have always shared together, and something that in a strange way defines the kinds of funky fun we always have together.

I found some Kaufman fabric that is a retro horror movie poster print, and the design took off from there. The quilt has been a blast to make, and a true labor of love. The process taught me much about myself, and about life. Nothing is or ever should be perfect. I am not even sure that there is such a thing as perfection. Look around us, the universe creates, and forms and nothing is ever totally like the one before. That is the beauty of this place and the people we share it with.

Life is fleeting, and short, we need to experience love, enjoy the gifts that life gives us, and simply be grateful for every moment and every encounter we have. Life is a celebration no matter where we are or what we are experiencing. Yes even the hardships, they strengthen us, we move forward and past them only to be stronger for life that comes next.

For me life is like a quilt, so many pieces, such varied pattern and design, carefully stitched together in the end to say who we were, and what we meant to those we share the journey with. I am so happy to have a friend like Kerry, I feel so blessed.

As it turns out this quilt has so much meaning and none of it was planned. You see, I finished the quilt on a very special day to her, the birthday of the brother she loved and lost. I had no idea of this fact until today, when she told me. Funny how the universe ties so many things together if we only take the time to see them.

I will be quilting again very soon, but this time it is one planned for myself, and I doubt that it will have the meanings or the lessons this one has gifted me with. But it will still be a fun journey.

Back Again!

Ok, so I have not blogged anything in a long long time. I suppose life has had me so busy that my thoughts have been squirreling away. But just as life seems to be resuming in my backyard, my life too seems to be taking on new pathways, complete with new adventures and journeys.

Work for me is in a state of turmoil, as the county budget will not support continuing the program that I work for. So I have been busy first advocating ( for the soon to be laid off county workers ) that they might be seen as a valuable resource for the county of Sonoma. As such that human resources would see each worker as an individual with valuable skill sets that may work for other classifications within the county system. I feel that that part of my journey as went well in that, I have had several interviews, and I have been placed on several transfer lists. This is what I was originally advocating for.

The stress involved as one waits to see what is going to happen to their job is tremendous! For me it has driven me back to a passion that I had placed on a shelf for awhile. My passion for knitting. In order to find some sort of inner peace, I recently picked it back up, with a few goals in mind. One goal was to knit, a simple yet elegant wrap for myself, one that could be held in place with a shawl pin. I accomplished that task and then some. Having completed four mobius wraps, in various beautiful yarns. I gifted one away after a friend commented on it. I am in the process of knitting another for a coworker. My other were to learn to knit socks, and lace triangle shawls.

I recently, reconnected with a dear friend from the past who also knits, and she recommended the Ravelry site. Becoming a member on Ravelry has opened a whole new world regarding knitting for me. I made a friend who lives in Toronto. She has over the Internet, held my hand and taught me to knit the lace triangle shawls I so badly wanted to learn to knit. My first one came off the needles last night (it is waiting to be blocked), and my second went on needles this morning.

The experience of learning to knit from charts has taught me much about life:

Don't be afraid to make a mistake, go slow and pay attention, focus, focus focus, be gentle with yourself, all good things take time and speed is not that important.

Feeling the richness of the yarn, between my fingertips has been calming to me. I have discovered yarn therapy.

I have also discovered that there exists an Hermes of yarn. It is called Wollmeise, it is beautiful rich with color, hand produced, and very much sought after. I have managed to acquire a few skeins,






It is lovely to work with, and the intensity of the colors are breathtaking. But it is hard almost as hard to come by as a grail Hermes scarf.

This new knitting journey has taken me along such wonderful pathways. Going into local yarn shops is like coming home to the ultimate in hospitality. Something I have felt was missing from my pathway lately, that warm inviting feeling where everyone treats you like they have known you for years.

That was what I found when I entered the local yarn shop in Sebastopol, the staff there were vibrant, eager to help, and the shop was warm and inviting. This is also true of my very local shop called "Castaway" where the owner brings her little dog named Olive who greets each customer, and then almost leaves with you as you exit the shop.

Today I had the pleasure of visiting "The Knitterly" in Petaluma. The store is breathtaking! The staff treat you like forever best friends, and they are eager to help and a wealth of knowledge and passion for the craft.

These times are difficult for many across the globe. Feeling a sense of community, and togetherness seems so important to me as of late, and just as yarn is looped and drawn over needles and through other loops, connecting with others, to share warmth, and appreciation seems to fill up my spirit cup these days. I am grateful for that!

Musings On Oberon Design Kindle Covers

http://www.oberondesign.com/shop/cart.php?m=product_detail&p=949

Dragonfly Pond A Special Place Of Remembrance

Sometimes those we love open doors for us to journeys that last a lifetime. My father opened one such door for me which led to a lifetime love and passion for reading.

One Sunday while Mother was clearing away the dinner dishes, my father announced that he was going to take me to a magical place. The excitement rose in my chest. Where? Where are we going? I asked as I jumped with anticipation.

“You’ll see.” came his response.

So off we went, me snuggled beside him on the seat of his pickup truck one crisp fall day. We did not drive far, in fact we were still in town. My mind questioned what could be so magical this close to home. We had parked across the street from a large modern brick building, with people shuffling in and out, their arms weighted down with the loads they carried.

“Are you ready?” my father asked.

“Yes, I think I am.” But ready for what I was not sure.

He held my hand, we crossed the street, and into the building’s doors we went.

Once inside I gasped in awe, for floor to ceiling were shelves upon shelves of books. Big books, small books, fat books, skinny books, books old, and books new. I was amazed. “But, what could be so magical about books?” I quietly asked.

My father then told me, “Everything, you ever will want to know something about, someone has written about in a book. Anything that you want to know how to do in life, you will find someone, somewhere has written how to do that thing in a book. Want to take a journey to another land or place? There are words recording the journeys of others written in books just waiting to take you and your imagination on a journey of your own.”

I never forgot my father’s words. I got a library card that day, and each and every year of my elementary school years, I won awards for having read the most books. Many of my journeys through the pages of books were shared with my father. As I grew he would share titles with me that had been favorites of his when he was my age. To this day I am happiest with a book in my hand.

I lost my father unexpectedly in September of 2001. While in the process of losing him, we found out my mother had cancer, and she joined him in death 18 months later. Losing my parents was the hardest pathway I have ever walked in life.

The day that we buried my father a blue dragonfly showed up on our porch, it stayed and stayed for what seemed like a very long time. I would go outside to get some sun and there he would be, as if waiting. I have always loved and collected things with the images of dragonflies on them. My parents always new if they bought me a present and it had a dragonfly on it, the present would go over big time.

Mom, and I discussed the blue dragonfly that seemed to have come to visit. She thought it was the spirit of my father, letting us know that he was still with us. She shared with me a story that she had read, about dragonflies.

She said, “Dragonflies begin their lives as small grubs on the bottom of ponds. They enjoy their life under the water, the other insects, the fish, the occasional frog swimming by, the cattails growing up through the silvery ceiling which is the waters surface above them. One day a grub was consumed with overpowering urge to rise to the surface above him. When he reached the surface, a miraculous transformation took place, he shed his grub skin to reveal beautiful silver wings, and a long brightly colored body. With his wings he found that he could now soar above the pond and experience the warmth of the sun’s rays. He longed to return to tell his other grub friends what lay in the world above their silver ceiling. He tried over and over again to get to his friends he could see below the surface of the water but with his new form he could not get back to their world. He then realized that even if it were possible they would not recognize this new beautiful being he had become.”

Mother spoke further that, we can not see the ones we love who have moved on in death, but this does not mean that they are not with us. They are always with us, just changed into an even more beautiful form, that will always stay near us.

18 months later my mother lost her battle with cancer. She moved on to join my father. A few days after her service was held, I went out to the front porch. To my surprise a blue dragonfly had come again to visit, this time he was joined by a beautiful red one hovering close by his side.

We all have people in our lives whom we have loved, whom have taught us more about life, whom have opened doors to journeys we are still taking, even though they have passed on.

The dragonflies tell us they are always with us. There are three on the Oberon cover, for me they tell me that both my Father and my Mother are always with me, and the third one in the picture reminds me that someday I will have the pleasure of being with them once again.

Oberon Designs is having a contest. They want to hear people's stories regarding their designs as covers for ebook readers such as the Amazon Kindle.
Here is the link regarding the contest.

http://oberondesign.posterous.com/

I have an Amazon Kindle 2. Before my Kindle arrived to me, I had done some research on covers for my new reading device, and I was thrilled to find out that a local company of which I have been a big fan for years was making covers for the Kindle. I had come to know Oberon Designs Leather products because of my father, who was also a local artist. When he was alive, we did many art fairs showing his woodwork, where Oberon was also in attendance, I have owned many of their products for years, so the choice of what would cover my Kindle was easy. I chose the "Dragonfly Pond" cover pictured above.

The story above is my entry into their contest, it tells why this cover is so special to me.





Thank you Oberon Design for having this contest. As I stated previously I have a Kindle 2, your covers are very addictive, in honor of my fathers love of woodworking I hope to someday also add a "Tree of Life" cover to my collection.

Ah... Heaven In A Cup, and Serenity In A Book

I have always loved my time to curl up with a cup of tea and a great book. Now with a kindle that seems to be so much more easy to make happen in my life. It is always with me, and therefore I am not limited regarding timeframes for enjoying a quite moment in time for a special treat.

Not long ago, I rediscovered a favorite place to steele away and spend some time with Earl Grey, and a favorite read. An inviting little shop here in the Northbay, called "Northlight Books."

They have a marvelous selection of literature, shop folks who are great at hand selling because they too are bibliophiles. I always enjoy their recommendations. Attached to the shop is a wonderful little kitchen with delectible delights also serving tea and coffee. The patio, is ensconced under a huge arbor of wisteria, which provides shade and filtered sun, setting the perfect mood to drift away with the characters within a good story.

Today it was "Sunnyside" by Glen David Gold. I have only just begun the book, but it is already one of those that I love most with real characters from history blended into well researched fiction. In this case the main character is Charlie Chaplin, and the story starts out in 1916 at a great lighthouse off the farthest north coast of California.

I went for so long having to read for school, and work, that I had almost forgotten how wonderful reading for pleasure feels. Only recently after a trip to Northlight, I discovered a book titled "The End of Mr. Y" by Scarlett Thomas. A wonderful story that took me on a journey and had me feeling like an adult "Alice in Wonderland." I devoured the story, and in the end had that sense of self satisfaction that good books had always given me in the past.

It was after reading that book that I purchased my Kindle, and now I do not know how I ever did without it. Owning a Kindle does not mean that I do not still love going to bookshops, in fact I still love reading the back covers, jotting down notes and then adding titles to my "wishlist".

Have you ever finished a great book and then wanted something similar to read, well there is a website that will do just that.

http://www.whatshouldireadnext.com/search

Just type in what it is that you just finished and enjoyed and let the computer then make suggestions for you.

Of course Amazon will also always be ready with recommendations for you based on your rating of things that you have read in the past. But hunting for the next reading adventure for me is almost as fun as having the adventure itself.

Findking the Best Deal On the Amazon 2 Kindle

Searching for the best internet deal on Amazon Kindle 2 ? Looking for that illusive Kindle 2 coupon ? Well I discovered a way to purchase one that saves a few dollars so that you can then put the savings into some accessories like a beautiful cover from Oberon Designs such as the one seen below.


First you need to have a paypal account and be willing to shop for and purchase your Kindle on eBay.

Then you have to go to

http://www.bing.com/cashback/


Open an account there (do not worry no money changes hands on bing).

Then do a search using the Bing cash back search box for "Kindle 2" or any thing Kindle for that matter.

Once your search is complete on the right side you will see a link to eBay advertising the 10% cash back. Click on that link find your kindle that you want to purchase

***Do A "Buy It Now"

*** Use Paypal to pay for the purchase.

***** And later in 60 days you will get a credit in your paypal account for the cashback from your purchase.

***Make sure you follow all of the eBay prompts given you while purchasing.

It is that simple. And if you are a wise shopper you will check the feedbacks for the sellers, watch for "new" unopened unregistered Kindle 2. You will be on your way to the best reading experience you will ever have.

Take the money you save and buy your self a pretty cover over on Oberon Designs

http://www.oberondesign.com/store/kindle.php


You will own the reading enjoyment of a lifetime that will go with you anywhere you want to take your Kindle.

A Word Of Caution to all who deal or purchase on ebay.

We have all heard it before, "Don't do sales off Ebay", that is all well and good but I also run an internet store away from ebay for things that I cull from my collection.

Recently I decided to let some things go, on eBay that I had culled from my collection.

One item in particular is a highly collectible piece. A Venezia shawl, I had only worn the piece a couple of times, and due to recent health issues among other things I decided to place it in the cull pile and sell on ebay.

I received a message from an ebay member who is also a dealer of luxury goods, and she wanted to purchase it off ebay. At first I said no to the offer, for several reasons, her offer was a bit insulting, and it was evident that she is a dealer, and I really wanted the shawl to go to someone who would wear it and not be seeking to profit.

As it turned out the person was very persistant, to the point of complete pestering me at every opportunity. I finally agreed to sell through my store, but she did not want to pay shipping nor have me insure the item or request a signature confirmation. Well we all know where that would have led.

To make a long story short be very cautious in dealing with the ebay seller Bagageria. I firmly believe after review of her feedback the whole matter is a scham to purchase items, then either return fakes to sellers, or claim them as non received.

Ode To Love...

Throughout history there have been many love stories some true from the pages of time, and some from the pages of great literature. Many come to mind Romeo and Juliet, Anthony and Cleopatera, Robert and Elizabeth Browning, Abelard and Heloise, Napoleon and Josephine, (Prince) Edward and Wallis Simpson are a few who come to my mind.
I am fortunate in that during the month of Valentines day when I think of great loves, the love between my own mother and father comes to mind.
Married July 9, 1954, they would have been married 50 years in 2004. We lost Dad first in 2001, then Mother followed in 2003.
While going through her things a Diary was found wherein she had recorded the events of their courtship. I will always treasure the Diary, I wish I had known of its existence while she was alive, but some gifts are given when others leave us.

Shingles Vaccine Getting The Word Out

Today I am envious of our sisters in the world who for cultural reasons wear the scarf as a Hijab.

I know that a lot of people that I care about look in and follow this blog from time to time. I am hoping to spread the word that there is a vaccine for "Shingles".

I did not know this until it was too late for me.

You see I was diagnosed with this horrible illness yesterday. I am hoping that all who see this will ask their doctor about the vaccine so that they do not have to go through what I am now experiencing.

About 14 days ago I noticed I was have strange headaches that felt extremely tingly, and sensitive. I told people it was a headache because that is the only way I knew how to describe what was happening. In truth it felt like the top of my head was boiling from underneath my skin.

I went on with life, took Motrin which seemed to help. Went to work as usual, went on little outings to take some pictures with Joseph.

Then Friday we went on a drive along the coast to some favorite places. By the afternoon I felt sick, and on one side of my neck it was swollen in a lymph area. I was extremely tired. But this felt normal since it was the start of the weekend for me and I had worked midnight shifts all week.

Saturday morning I awoke to paralysis in my face and a drooping of my right eye. There was a reddish swollen area above the right eye. I was convinced I had a stoke in the night.

Joseph rushed me to my doctor, after we called the service and spoke to her and she had me come right in to the office.

The diagnosis was shingles, I was given scripts for the usual medications.

This morning I am in immense pain with more swelling and difficulty with my limbs on the right side of my body. Which I have found out is all typical for shingles like I have.

It is so beautiful here in our area, spring has arrived early and the mustard fields are wide and beautiful. But I can not enjoy the beauty of the wonderful gift of spring right now due to this horrible debilitating illness.

Please if you see this blog, talk to your doctor about getting a vaccine. I never even knew I should or that it was possible.

This illness will pass in time, but it is a terrible thing to go through and the pain is like nothing I have ever experienced.

Reflections & Resolutions

Life moves so fast we almost miss it in our own self created whirlwind. This is a brand new year full of so much promise and so much hope, for so many people. Sometimes something happens in a moment and I am caused to stop and truly reflect on all that the experience means.

I answered a phone call this past week, it was a business call and the caller was also someone I count as a friend. She had information that needed to be relayed and information she needed from me. We handled the matter of the call in all pleasantness, and then I wished her a good week (this one up coming) and she stated back to me in words that were so simple yet they were full of so much upbeat emotion. "This is going to be a wonderful week!"

I realize now that she was thinking outside of our moment's box. She was feeling and thinking across an unselfish, and broader plane than my colloquial comment had been. She was thinking with connection and all of the silver threads that come with our connections. She was reflecting a global consciousness, a gift to me in one brief moment in time.

Having that experience with her has caused me to reflect and wonder, how many of those moments have I missed in the past. Those brief ellipses of time where there is true meaning being cast forth from the universe. Meaning that is there to cause me to stop learn and listen, if only I would pause long enough to take it in.

It is always happening for all of us experiences and events sometimes brief, sometimes extended in time. But always gifts from the universe telling us that nothing is just about us. A call to say "stop, feel connected" to something bigger than the moment and bigger than ourselves.

I am not usually one for resolutions at the start of a New Year, but I vow to try to be more aware of the essences of each and every moment.

Mother Universe

I This Much Is True...

I have not been over here to post in a while. Reasons don't seem to be important, but the truth of the matter is that life and living to life's fullest seem to have been taking up much of my time. I am not complaining on that matter, for it seems that life and my reflections on living in the moment have been teaching me much.

Some of my most favorite quotes come from Thich Nhat Hanh. It is he who said "there is no enlightenment outside of daily life." I have been richly blessed in that category.

When I had first started the musings here, I had truly thought that there would not be a central theme, hence the title "Musings...". My passions led me to much discussions around the scarves that I love so much. More recently my wanderings have led me back to the real reasons I fell in love with them in the first place. That is for their artistic value, both the statements being made by the artist who create them, and the art one creates upon oneself when one wears them. For me those two characteristics seem to me intertwined, and it becomes difficult to separate the two. Hence they have become somewhat of a part of my own identity.

A paper I did in a college class on the relationship between collection and identity comes to mind, for it was in the research of the paper that I found that what we collect and how we collect says much about our inner being. I think for a long time I got lost in that world and only recently was able to reconnect to the roots which were the foundation for my collection. That being my true love of what I see as art.

This much I know is true, the entire universe is art. An infinite canvas which not only awaits our discovery, but is there ever changing from moment to moment. We are hurried creatures, so focused on trivial, meaningless tasks, that we often miss the glory all around us calling out to be seen. The age old idiom, "stop and smell the roses" should be a rule for living rather than a colloquial saying.

There are so many the world over who for one reason or the other (ie. war, oppression, hardship, poverty ) can not recognize beauty around them. I count myself as blessed and fortunate to have been given the opportunity to drink it in, and appreciate the created splendor all around me, and perhaps in some small way preserve and share it as I go.

It is all art, and art is all there is around me.

Looking In On An Old Friend

Rose Araignée Boudoir

A Chorus Of Life

Through Water's Veil

Tree Skin

A Gathering Of Drops

Hollywood

On High

On A Hill Far Away

Ancient Sisters

A Fairy Ring

Fireworks Are Where You Find Them

Zen

Rainy Berries

Mouth Of Truth

Quiet Reflection

Raindrops On Roses

Phoebe