10-24-2026

 

We went in person to vote today. It was the first day of early in person voting here. I asked and was told that they had a fairly busy day with consistent voters coming in. Good. Anyway, it was easy, safe and predictable...with no errors or mishaps. Good again. We really like voting in person.

Afterwards we went to the Mother's Day spot. I had the idea to walk up to top where that red phone had been so long ago. We went up the first hill (seen above) and I quickly changed my mind. Haha So instead we poked around in the open area and came back down the abandoned road, passing through where we put our chairs. It was another beautiful Fall day in the mid-70's. Just right.

The hills looked like Fall...browns and some green and a sense of season.

There were puddles, mud and moisture from the rains. In fact, the flowers above has their petals washed right off in the pounding storm!

The cottonwoods stood out, as they always do and the unknown variety of fruit tree glistened in the bright sun. I don't think there has ever been fruit on it when we've been there, so we've yet to figure out what kind of tree it is. 

We sat on the short bench for a bit, enjoying the sunshine.  Someone had left a "faith" stone there, which led to a conversation about the multitudes of meanings words can take on and how some words get know mostly for only one meaning above all others. It gets tricky to reframe them in ways that work for you.

I brought home four small pine sticks for possible weaving. Which one of them would win the straight stick contest?! lol

The road back down was very overgrown.

The last of the sunflowers held bees and a surprise of three ladybugs tucked inside! I found so much stillness and beauty in these dried flowers.

How did you view the world today? Did you raise your voice and vote yet?

 

May you embrace your traditions

May you embrace a new plan when necessary

May you embrace each day

xo

#goodenough

Photos by NAE @pomegranatetrail ©2026

Western Skies

 

We had big rain...it just poured! So, today off we went to visit Old Man River (that phrase has been running through my head lately - I love a good deep voice!). We wondered how the river grew in the rain. Everything smelled so good, especially the beloved Camp/Dam plants (AKA Mule Fat). 

🥢

Kid-led 'straightest stick' contest brings scores of entries & smiles to Minnesota village

LINK 3:42 minutes

This video made me so happy! As my friend told me, "it is so you!" And it is! This is just the kind of thing I love, would have supported in my classrooms and so on. I'm reminded of the fall fair that Catherine goes to, as this was so organic, so authentic. I love that it came from the children. I love the respect that each stick, each contributor was given.

It also reminded me of a Sticks Ceremony for one of my infant & toddler classrooms. The families were invited to bring in a found stick, decorated with their name. That was the only request/instruction. They could color on it use their first names or only their surname(s)...whatever they wanted to do to express themselves. At our first potluck, my co-teachers and I held up the sticks, mentioned which family they belonged to and then tied all of them into a bundle. I said something (rather spontaneous) about how as long as their family was in our classroom, we would be bundled together, strong and that they could take their stick with them when it was time to move on. I loved that ritual. Those sticks sat bundled with a muslin strip, within a basket for our whole two years together. 

What a wonderful way to build community.

 Today was a grand day at the bridge! The clouds were spectacular! The river was much fuller and we could easily see where it had run as the rain rushed down. There were many flattened plants and large soggy spots of earth, along with puddles - reflecting the space around.

As the sun played hide-n-seek with the clouds, the river held varying glimmers, clearness, and muddiness. It flowed fast and somewhat loud. The other day we could barely see the water hiding under all of the growth. Today, I took my time looking.

We walked down to the fence change and then up the hill to enjoy the view some more. I could not get enough of the clouds (as usual, haha).

The light on the wires, the surreal look of the clouds above the water tower and the dramatic, big views...the views! I had this song running through my head: Chris LeDoux - Western Skies (Audio). Sigh.

The light found pockets in the hillsides to land on homes there. It snuck in from behind and raced along the wires towards a lighter shade of blue. It got bright (and hotter) and it became dark.

I sure could have stayed longer watching the river, the sky...the world. I am so lucky, so grateful to have a place that feels like home.

Where would you like to stay just a little bit longer?

 

May you look for as long as you want

May you wrap up in the scents of your heart

May you go back again and again

xo

#goodenough

Photos by NAE @pomegranatetrail ©2026

Two Days

 

Clouds floated in a ring around the valley on Tuesday, whispering of things to come, possibly anyway. The weather reports kept saying rain will come. But we've seen these clouds before, heard these predictions before. They keep saying it is an "El Nino" year". We're not convinced, but have more of a wait and see state of mind.

Betsy Legg "In The Early Morning Rain" 1971 US Private female Psych Folk

LINK 3:17 minutes

This video came up a couple of days ago. I had never heard of her. At all. Period. She has a lovely voice. I listened to other covers she'd done. Anyway, 

We went to the local park where Pow Wow is held to hike the road up to the mansion, past the bison...someplace we've not walked a lot, so it was refreshing to be there again. There are great views from there, great scents and friendly park employees.

We passed by the pond and stopped to chat with the resident Emu. Then we headed up the hilly road, which greeted us with gorgeous pines, wrapping their familiar scent around us. Ahhh...

Tree bones, golden yellow leaves glittering, rattling sycamore leaves...and views galore.

The Torrey pines tower over the environment, the cedar cones litter the ground, baby pines sprout in groups, the road signs tell the story of the times caretakers take some of the animals on walks. An employee tells us they no longer walk the pigs, as they are too strong. Instead, they close the gates to the farm area and let the pigs out to play!

 

We counted 4 bison out of the 7 that live there. They relaxing out in the sun. They have a huge area to roam, so we were lucky to see them at all. This kinda cruddy photo reminded me of the elephant seals on the coast! haha

The pointy oak leaves remind me of my sister and stepping on them while barefoot as children. The pine bark makes me think of Grace and my study & weaving of oak bark colors. The green tree seed pods, path back down...the views give me the sense of 'heaven' on earth. What a beautiful place to be.

We walk through the far area before leaving...seeing Lee the yearling deer and a sweet looking alpaca with a hairdo that looks like Mo (from the 3 Stooges)!  We met really nice caretakers, a family with young sons and a woman with a map of the park, inquiring how to hike up to the mansion. We said again how we meet the nicest people while out and about. A much appreciated and needed feeling these days.

I spotted 'Chinese Long Beans" at the store and family with a sense of humor. 🙂

There were workers trimming trees near the parking area. The we saw the "trim" job done on these poor trees on the way out. I have questions, for sure.

Wednesday the forecasters won! It started raining mid-day, so no walk, just the drive up the canyon instead. Windows down, rain flinging inside the car - sweet smells and cool air! What a difference a day makes! It continued to rain all afternoon. The earth is smiling. So are we, as we love the rain.

What weather do you love?

 

May you enjoy each day

May you see new things

May you live in your slice of heaven

xo

#goodenough

Photos by NAE @pomegranatetrail ©2026