Finding Happy, Enough

 89°

Prompt #8:

Draw a line that suits your mood or the day's general temperament.

Change or amplify its meaning by scattering its path with meaningful or random bits of collage.

So, after the bridge, I pulled out the papers again. Things had changed and then began to happen. I had "drawn a line" the other day, but it did not suit me (and I forgot to photograph it). I'd had a feeling about lines - jagged and up and down - think stock market or a heartbeat, as in an EKG...but I was also wrapped up in thoughts of the line (and life) "circling around" - as in changing, continuing, getting worse and then better and then worse again...and better again. My lines looked like some freaky beast that was not communicating what I wanted it to. So, I put it away and sat on it overnight. 

Today, using what was at hand, I tried to convey mere 'representations' of this complicated feeling in this complicated time. I also went back to Grace's first days of collage and was fed by her words, images and processes and many of the comments (there were so many in fact, but I did not allow myself to get lost in the conversation of 5 years ago, but instead read some here and there...ones that jumped out at me. I was completely touched by all of the familiar names there, chatting away - like not a day had gone by between now and back then). As I worked, I reflected on my own process and how I was working within, beside and around Acey's prompts. I considered how the images I was choosing seemed to be just falling together, in a way similar to the WORDLE stories. Nice. I got very involved in the whole activity, finally noticing that I'd better go get my shower!

I again wished I had more choices,  a more earthy, diversity of papers to choose from - even with my recently pulled out old scrapbook...I wished for more rawness. But, I made do, which harkened back to the goals - rules I'd made five years ago and implemented again this time around. 

So, in the end, what you see here is a rather choppy, random selection of images - meant to represent so, so much.

The "make it sturdy" foundation paper is a center spread from one of those old magazines. This image is of trees in the spring and some kind of growing fields, edged by big trees. The white flowers reminded me of trees in my valley right now and of my birth story - both beautiful backdrops to life. The left page (seen above) has a big flight of outdoor stairs, mimicking the jagged up and down of my previously drawn line, EKG, financial woes...life. The Rolex watch boldly shouts out to the haves and the have nots. The child within the blue hanging disks is an old exhibit in Sonoma, in which visitors could write their "wishes" on the translucent blue circles...reminding us that wishes and hopes need always be just within reach.

On the right page, the lines become more active, more abrupt...there is a small circle showing a city scene for all of the millions that live on top of each other - a far cry from the beautiful landscape placed there beneath it. There is a tortoise...for all living beings and a seeing eye dog...for the collaboration and support for those who need extra help, in one way or another. Coming down the circular line on the left is a 'library bus' - for literacy and learning and public spaces. Along the bottom are "people" looking very much the same and different...but equal (under the law?). Lastly, there is an old stamp from Cook Islands, which speaks to far away places and one world as well.

I'm positive that there are dozens of other ideas, ideals, and concepts I could have included, but I used my images to give an overview. As I type this, I'm thinking that I probably could have found a small rainbow to add in for magic, diversity and acceptance. Maybe later. 

7’s Hero: St. Luke’s 'Dancing Nurse' brings young patients and their families joy

LINK 4:39 minutes

It was so peaceful at the bridge today. A weekday amount of folks there, which means hardly anyone...just a few bike racers and a couple of walkers. A crow on the bridge-top and on a wire, a hawk crying somewhere out of sight and many, many songbirds providing the soundtrack to my walk. Not too many lizards, but the red ants were so busy! One of their abodes had a dual entrance/exit floor plan.

Dad Dances in Parking Lot During Son’s Cancer Treatments

LINK 1:55 minutes

I have been viewing "happy things" (along with meaningful or inspirational things) on my you tube explorations. 3 recent videos are here, along with a link that came in my email. I love finding these bits of joy. Along with the "happy things"...I've discovered some very, very funny comedians. We've watched some of them together and laughed until tears rolled down cheeks or sides ached. It's been good. I highly recommend humor at any point in your days.

I was interested in the trees along the beginning of the path. In answer to Dee's previous question...the trees that were in B&W, with one cloud above - are not cottonwoods, but I am unsure what they actually are.

There were workmen down by the river. At first I thought they were working on power lines...but, then I decided that they were trimming trees. That makes sense to me as I've been noticing how thick the growth is. I guess I'll learn more on my next visit. But, seeing all of the cars and trucks parked down there sure changed the vibe of the "lovely place for a picnic", which was noticed the other day. And of course, there are always more "locks for nothing" - protecting the open gated areas.

TikTok Helps Author Become Bestseller After Lonesome Book Signing

LINK 1:45 minutes

Please do go here to read 34 Questions from First Grade from "Looking at Picture Books" co-author Mac Barnett. It is so rich, so full of small and large truths, questions and concerns. So full of things we need to pay attention to.

How do you adapt instructions so they work for you?

May you weather the ups and downs

May you search out both the songs and the cries

May you wonder, question and grow

xo

Photos by NAE @pomegranatetrail ©2025 

#goodenough

Very

First of all...to all of my people up towards Northern CA, I'm thinking of you and as I just learned about these earthquakes today...I hope you are all well and as unaffected as possible. Stay Safe Out There Folks!

 No short walk on this path today as the County was dredging the riverbed. I'm pretty sure they have their reasons and routines, but we felt bad for all of the wildlife that makes that space their home. We spoke about the duck we'd seen there recently and the frogs/toads we've heard. I suppose this is a prudent move pre-rainy season, but still. This is actually the Very First Time that we've seen some of the ever-present locks in use to stop people. If you've been on the Trail with me, you'll remember all of my locks photos. Here's one for today...

We did a tiny spin around City Park instead (part of that was blocked off too - what's going on today?!! lol). It was 80° on this December day. Wild.

It was surprising to see some very green leaves still on the trees. And some odd things on a tree as well, Go figure.

Close to home at a local park, very heavy duty tree trimming was going on yesterday. By today we noticed that most of the trees in the park were being cut down. A small amount of searching and I think the park is getting some very big upgrades. I'll be watching...in the meantime, watch this!

The Ross Sisters - Solid Potato Salad (DVD Quality) Full Video

LINK 5:13 minutes

I'm pretty sure I'd seen this video long ago...but fell upon it again this week and well...why not? In these trying times, I'm game to try a wide variety of escape, relief, self-care - you name it. So, this song and dance...wow! I may have winced in pain just watching them bend their bodies into impossible positions. Crazy. 

There was a lot of sidewalk chalk play at City Park. This is but one of them. One of us tried out this Hopscotch game. Hint: It wasn't me! You can't see well in this photo, but at the top of the last square, it says "POP" with a small grouping of bubbles. Very adorable.

A very good reminder to engage in some kind of "play" every day. Besides the little jaunt in the park, my play will be to continue stitching the name of the arriving soon baby!

What kind of play have you engaged in today?

May you find an alternate route

May you remain flexible, if only in your imagination

May you play each day

xo

Photos by NAE @pomegranatetrail ©2024 

Slow Day

 

It was a slow day around here. No photos to show for it. This is fine, days are just days. I meant to share this yesterday, but forgot to add it in...If you are interested, you can read what my niece has to say over at I Care Too Much, where she talks about what may not be all that helpful after all in these current times.

✏️.     ✏️.      ✏️.      ✏️.      ✏️.

But, if you just need to not think too hard and you just need to smile, I give you this old video. I was grinning from ear to ear. That felt good.

Tap dance showdown between toddler and seasoned pro

LINK 2:36 minutes

Justin Lewis  and  Luke Spring - 2021

✏️.     ✏️.      ✏️.      ✏️.      ✏️.

And if you'd like to read a lil something and maybe smile a little bit, I give you the most recent batch of WORDLE STORIES. One of these stories really cracked me up. Can you guess which one?

WORDLE LIFE

11/2/24

The wee SHOTE sat quietly in the pen while we went to the feed STORE. For such a small pig, he sure SLOPS a lot of food everywhere, I told my husband. So, do you think we should SPOON feed him? he quickly replied. I laughed. What would Alice next door think? You know what a SNOOP she is!

11/3/24

I DOUBT the thin slices of BREAD will stand up to this juicy sandwich, she said. Okay, he replied, let's use a BAGEL instead. After eating several bites they agreed that this was indeed a stellar recipe. He said, this is so good we'll go down in a BLAZE of glory when we take them to the next picnic.

11/4/24

They stood on the porch to count the VOTES. It was windy and they ignored the little slips of paper that sailed to the ground beneath the VINCA plants. It was a pretty loose version of a democratic process. When the bowl was empty, they announced to their children, who stood waiting, It's decided and VINYL wins! We will put new vinyl for the kitchen floor!

11/5/24 

I couldn't hear her VOICE over the sound of the crashing OCEAN waves. She stepped closer to the shore and shouted, Look at the beautiful OCHER coast across the bay! Oh yes! I shouted back and I saw an OCTET of seals on the rocks nearby.

11/6/24

They worried with the FIRES burning again and rushed down to the dock. Jumping aboard their small vessel and moving out onto the ROLLY sea. It TRULY was going to be an adventure to write home about, they agreed.

11/7/24

Everyone wanted PEACE, of course. They wanted to CHEER and explode with joy. Even if it was more of a flicker, than an explosion at their TEENY EVENT, they needed to celebrate even the smallest wins.

11/8/24

He always READS while in a waiting room. And he's always READY to put the book down when it's time to go.

11/9/24

She held the carved TIGER, her totem animal. It brings me PEACE, she thought. There were two SHEDS to clean out and she knew the SMELL would be awful. However, she also knew that she'd feel SWELL when she was done. So, she put the tiger in her pocket and headed out back to start the job.

11/10/24

We went to hear our favorite band "TOXIC RIDER". They were playing at an awesome outdoor venue. They opened their set with our favorite song: "Trapped in the BRIER of an INNER Hellscape". Man, they were good! 

11/11/24

The dogs' SNOUT poked through a hole in the fence. It was barking incessantly. It never STOPS, said the neighbor on the other side of that fence. It's the same old STORY, never a moment's peace the roommates complained to each other. Plus, their cat STOLE my yarn off of the patio last week. Now I have to take STOCK, to see if I have enough to finish my sweater. Grrr. It's hard to remain STOIC when I get so worked up!

11/12/24

He was so SORRY that he had to cancel his trip. He sincerely hoped it wouldn't SPOIL it for the others in the tour group. They had to have a certain number of people traveling, so, besides him, one more BLOKE bowing out would cancel the tour all together, for everyone. However, his anxiety over never having FLOWN before got the best of him and a week's worth of panic attacks made his decision for him.

May you not forget the hard that needs attention

May you not forget the joy

May you remember to laugh

xo

Photos by NAE @pomegranatetrail ©2024 

Travel On

 

Best of Favorite Dance Moves (2024)

LINK 4:55 minutes

It is gorgeous out...70°, with a fairly cool wind. The sky bright and beautiful, the air itself is lovely. However, the wind plays with my asthma a bit and today is an achy day. But IF one has to feel 'under the weather' - as the saying goes - at least this is wonderful weather to be under. Lucky for me, I can take it easy today. Just watching the video above exhausted me! But, I had to put it here because it is so cheerful and the dancers are so talented. I do love to watch dance.

I love how if you look closely, you can see the wind in the trees. Next best thing to a video camera 😉

I have mentioned that I've lost count on how many CMB I have made. I started keeping them home with me (mostly) while I continued working my way through an internal need related to color scheme. Is that what real artists do, work in series? Anyway, I still have 5 brownish bags and 9 blues bags here at home. The browns are tagged and ready to go, the blues are not.

Today I took them outside for a "Mug Shot" (😂 🤣 that literally popped into my head as I was typing this!). As I mentioned in a comment to Deb, last post, this mug holds a story.  First of all, as far as holding a story...I am reminded about the 'boots can hold a story' that I posted back HERE. I love that poem and that story (memory). 

Anyway, for today's story...years and years ago, while living at the old place, I saw something - somewhere that gave me the idea to take a series of photographs. I had already begun the "places to weave" series, which included tangled ancient wire on the desert floor and black hillside retaining netting on the California coast, among other things. Anything that had 'holes' was perceived as a place to weave. The new series I was inspired to think about was things that could be held in a mug, a plain white mug. I bought this mug, made a list...and I never did the project in my head! I put some natural materials into it and stood it on a shelf in my studio, but never took the focused photos I was imagining. Those natural seed pods dried up and made a mess, so out they went. Then the mug hung around for more years on shelves, dressers, windowsills...it moved into the cabinet to used for his coffee. It sat, white and empty as the day I brought it home. Suddenly the other day, after bringing home the first little handful of oak sticks and needing a place to put them, I remembered this ancient plan. Those are the photos you saw the other day. I remembered how lovely the light on the patio can be, how the backdrop of the green vine-covered wall makes the photographed item pop. So, I thought...just do it!

So I did. I have and I will continue. 

The list is long gone (along with my memory, ha), so I'll practice this process in the arc of just going.

I played with the camera angle, which side I stood on to take the photograph and so on. I took no notes and I'm sure I will forget the next time I set up for a photoshoot. All fine by me, as the goal is playing. I will track them here, for fun.

Mug Shots

#1 - Abundance (the oak sticks)

#2 - My cup runneth over, weaving a story

I finished this one last night. It is very soft. This is planned as a gift. As I wove, I thought about Grace's recent remarks about how she uses her Medicine Bag and how it feels to her.

I will next make at least 3 holiday colored Medicine Bags, as I did last year.

May you travel on, however that may look

May you weave a good story

May your cup runneth over

xo

Photos by NAE @pomegranatetrail ©2024 

Good News, Bad News and the Suffering of Fools

 Maybe an alternate title could be: "What We Tend"

I made this drawing after and email and a beautiful post by Grace. She used the word "tending"...that I do that. Lil old me. It felt like an important word and more than I consider myself practicing. So, I tried out drawing me - tending. The tree is a stamp (one of those old ones I passed on) and I added myself to the scene. I made me big, big as a tree. Tending things is big after all. I'm wearing my usual 'uniform' of jeans and t-shirt, but have the moccasins of my heart on, instead of tennis shoes I wear for reals. And I made my hair super long...it feels like that, even if it is a bit shorter in real life. I don't care for my arms, hands and face, but hey...I never claimed I could draw! haha I may add to this, as the spirit moves me.

Adding on to the Mandala and finger crocheting on lunches or breaks...still.

I've completed the 'peach' straps I need for all 7 medicine bags I'm planning and 4 of the 'peach' medicine bags are now complete as well.

I add color and contemplate...

This catchy lil bit and the viral dance captured our attention a while back...so, I put pink shoelaces in those daily tennies. Every time I look down, I smile.

It has been so hot, again. Another triple digit heat wave this week. Even the squirrels seem over it! This guy only lifted his head when he heard me walking up. He was spread out like a squirrel rug! haha

A Saturday walk at the Railroad Bridge...today with J. 🙂

As has become the norm recently...I notice things never noticed before, such as these white puff balls!

I noticed the water levels and the fact that all of those wires are kinda unremarkable in full sun.

We studied the holes in the big rocks and saw faces in the photos later. Do you see the two faces in the bottom pic above?

I've started to intentionally take photos of the bridge from different angles. Each one a new vision. Isn't that such a statement...how the view changes so drastically with even a small shift.

That could be said about life events too.

The news of the week around here has been good and bad, some of the time both rolled together! For instance, the mailboxes in the building here were broken into. We were told that: A). it didn't affect our unit, but B). that ALL mail was being held at the main post office.

But before I could even figure out how I was going to go pick up the mail...I figured out that C). our mail was actually being delivered. 

~~~

Or there was the VA Tuesday...when the tub wouldn't drain...at all. We were gone way longer than expected...and the maintenance man got here much later than expected too...But...he did cub, fixed the drain and we were able to shower after a very long day.

~~~

Never mind the news of the country or the world or the other day-to-day bits and pieces...where things are not what they seem or they are exactly what they seem and that's no better.

The edge of of the river here looks like like a hard edge, a firm line...but is it? J. says it appears that way because the sand is actually soft and erodes with the flow of the water...the water flowing by cuts the edge and the top layer is a thin crust, which holds it together. I'll take his more knowledgeable word for it.

Things are not always as they seem, eh?

~~~

On the way home...we see this at the corner of our street..this one needs no words.

Once home, I then dashed down the block on a short (hot) walk...there were flowers I wanted to check out. First I saw others along the way.

Aren't they so beautiful...full of life and color!

Hot or not...season was showing...so full of shape and texture.

When I finally got up the block to the fall flowers I've been noticing on my way to work. I'd thought how nice that someone placed this small planter of fall colors on the wall for all to see. I've smiled at how bright and cheerful and welcoming of season this small display is.

Then I got to them...wait! what!! I touched them to be certain...FAKE. Artificial flowers. I felt tricked! What a fool I was!!

Things just aren't always what they seem, are they?!

I guess these are the days, the times we move through in 2023.

May you look for and embrace the good news

May you survive and move through quickly the bad news

May you know you are not a fool

xo

Photos by NAE @pomegranatetrail ©2023