bookends for the day

 this wee fawn and her mama wandered near the deck 

as i was stretching early this morning. 

 we harvested the carrots and beets today.

 due to our hot and dry summer, our root cellar

is not yet cool enough to store our veggies.

 we set the carrots out to dry a bit on the porch, 

then tucked them into our mini fridge that 

we use when we have a houseful of guests.

(which clearly isn't happening right now...).

we'll hold the veggies here until the root cellar cools down.

 as we tidied up after our gardening, the sunset caught my eye...

...and created a pretty reflection in the window of the workshop.

check back tomorrow to see some  sewing projects for miss magpie.

xo

hope you are hanging in there, friends.

mercy!

unprecedented times.

morning sky

Oh, friends, what a week it has been. 

I thought you might like to see the morning view out our bedroom window.

A clean slate.

A fresh start.

New possibilities.

Each morning asks of us...

What have I done to ease the pain in the world?

What can I do today?

xo

"bit of earth" quilt book

snapfish had a special going last week, 65% off photo books.

even with the discount, this little book was pricey,

but it's such fun to have this project documented!
their turn around time was amazing!
one week from placing the order til i had it in hand.

Two links for today

• Brave Little State episode, How to Support Vermonters of Color: "Listen to Us", a good podcast no matter where you live.
• Frog and Toad Tentatively Go Outside After Months in Self-Quarantine, by Jennie Egerdie, a very sweet read for anyone who is a Frog and Toad fan (and if you are not, I'm not sure we can still be friends). :-)

meadow weaving

 my second try at weaving bits of the gardens and meadows.

 the thinner string broke when i tried to pull it tight

as i set up the warp.

so i went with a softer version of the highly twisted string i 

used on thursday's version.

(nice to have three different types of string on hand!)

 birchbark, feathers, bits of lichen, a birch twig, 

grass stems and some aromatic sage.

 a stem of indigo, more birchbark 

and some rosemary.

tansy blooms and more rosemary.

It really was such fun, walking the gardens and meadow, clippers in hand, gathering bits to weave into some sort of homage to late summer. I have yet to figure out how to get the weaving safely off the loom and arranged to hang it. I hope it may hang somewhere in the house so that in midwinter it may remind us of the abundance of these August days. This weaving echos the quilted wallhanging I stitched some years ago at just about this same time of year..."meadow's ebb"

I have tried a few times to get into Robin Wall Kimmerer's book, Braiding Sweetgrass, and I am trying again! It's funny how some books sort of wait for you to find them, while others just jump into your hands.

A few of the things on the "to do"list this weekend

• tidy up the root cellar, remove cobwebs, air the sand from storage buckets, spread out on a tarp in the sunshine.
• prep the garlic, which has been curing in the woodshed, for storage.
• sort the potatoes by size and let them air out for another day or two.
• try winging a recipe for a crustless quiche topped with Black Krim tomato slices.
• process the rest of the chard for the freezer (sautée with onions and garlic).
• double check on dye supplies. what needs mordanting? what is ready to go?

I'm thinking of the week ahead. What would you like to see here, friends? 

xo

managing and navigating

 sunset on tuesday.

 sunset on wednesday.

  foggy morning, 

looking over to the white mountains in new hampshire from

the road along the ridge. 

weaving with string that is too thick.

will be trying thinner string this afternoon.

getting to know danica boyce over at fairfolkcast, 

still curious about what it's all about.

  

swooning over the embroidery of amanda cobbett over here.

 i feel my   

my heart going deeper into the natural world,

collecting scavenged bits of things,

finding solace and comfort and groundedness

in bark, feathers, twigs, blooms.

walking barefoot, looking up at the clouds, 

listening to the birds and bugs.

noticing dew on the cobwebs, and the hush at dusk.

a quiet mug of tea as the day starts,

stretching on the deck with deep inhales and exhales.

sitting on the brink of the hill with batman 

as the late afternoon slips into the early evening,

digesting the day,

collaborating on what to have for supper,

closing up the hoop house,

checking the mailbox.

doing what we can to manage 

how we navigate this odd world we are living in.

hope you are safe and well, friends.

xo

ballots and bread and roses and suffragettes

Alice Paul's "Jailed for Freedom Pin",

photographed at 

Belmont-Paul Women's Equality National Monument,

August, 2017.
(One of the most extraordinary museums I have visited).

Remembering that
100 years ago today the 19th Amendment to the Constitution was finally ratified,
enfranchising (white) women and declaring for the first time
that they deserved all the rights and
responsibilities of citizenship.

Friends, let us not squander the legacy of the Suffragettes!

Be sure to plan ahead and find a way to
VOTE
in this mayhem.
xo



Here's a sweet listen for the day...
Bread and Roses,
originated from a speech given by American women's suffrage activist Helen Todd.

some friday links

Hi friends,

Thought you might appreciate some interesting alternatives to the daily news, which these days is unbearable. 

• Living Tree Bridges in a Land of Clouds.
• California Teaming Up With Native Americans to Prevent Wildfires.
• Cat Named Dennis Quaid Gets Famous New Adoptive Dad.

Black Krim tomatoes, sun gold cherry tomatoes and zebra tomatoes are piling up on the kitchen counter. We are tucking a bumper crop of green bell peppers into the freezer...sliced, chopped...ready for winter soups and stews and chilis and stir fries. The onions are beginning to flop over, the carrots are ready to pull and it's time to tidy up the root cellar. The days are still steamy, but the evenings are cooling down nicely.

Yesterday Maggie and I had a zoom call. We each played with a pile of Duplo blocks, even though we are about 300 miles apart. I read her a story, too, and we chatted about an adventure she took to the shore one morning. We have not yet met Flora in Detroit, but we see lots of photos nearly every day. Weird times.

xo