New Home. New Life

October bring rains and colors to the Northwest.  I'm getting a lot of writing done. Today I need to practice making squash soup because I'm preparing it for the Community dinner we are having Saturday night.

Finally I have settled into my new home.  My daughter came through, my brothers have come through town. My sister lives not too far.  Love my family.  My daughter Amber and I pictured here have seen each other 3 times since June. Wahoo.

My room where I spend lots of time.  Would that it would look like this all the time!

 Today, it doesn't.  I'm in process of packing some thing to take back to storage.  Chose a couple of paintings of mine to hang.  Lots to write, edit, format.  My goal is to have my first book published on Kindle by November 1.  So forgive me my brevity.

2012 Transitions - AGAIN

So my gypsy life continues.

I had thought that once I settled in Bellingham, I would be there for a while.

Nope, just got settled into the apartment the fire next door on Jan 1, at 4:00 am .

The whole of January was needed to process that. And I couldn't stay there during the cleanup and rebuild. I did two pet sitting gigs and went to stay with 2 different friends.

Now I've got a respite and I'm just resting and writing.

This space is upstairs, and I can journal in one place, and sit and write at the little table. Pretty cool. Wish I could be here for a couple of months!!!

This place has one of the best used book stores I have ever been to!

When I want, I can go explore the rock beaches, and look at marinas. Weather was sunny for almost three days. Now its back to rain and drizzle.

All these pics are of where I am right now.

Here's one of Mount Baker from out on the water.

Eat Pray Love

2011 is a very interesting year for me. It began as I sat in front of the lovely fire of the woodstove at the farm, and contemplated the coming year. I made my traditional posters for the year, and as I review my little "treasure maps" I find that I have already accomplished a lot. I am traveling a lot. To California I went in January and February to do some accounting for a friend, and an association. March and April, I roomed at Cindy's and studied my music diligently for our Beatle's concert April 30. Way cool.

May 7, I picked up and went to Oklahoma to help Linda my sister-in-law by helping to care for her Mom. Staying in Oklahoma was a spiritual experience for me. I got to read and research for my websites, and it was powerful. I was so involved in my writing, that I was sort of oblivious to the 108+ degrees for almost 90 days. We laughed and laughed. I begin to accept that all of us are aging, and there's a sort of peace about that.

Linda met me with a huge cake. Something I couldn't pass up, and wouldn't you know it, I have been eating and eating and eating ever since. I can really relate to that scene where Julia Roberts is laying on the floor wrestling to get her jean on.

And we ate out and ate out, and ate out. Oi-veh!

Leaving Oklahoma on August 30, I went to Minneapolis, where I had 12 days of intense gatherings with friends. I had left so abruptly three years ago, that I didn't have good closure, so I just met with people 3-4 people a day, and sometimes more. It was a great time for me. I practiced setting my intention almost every day, and had really heart connecting times, and resolution - at least within myself.

Off to Burlington Vermont, I went to see my son. Darling sons. Darling daughters. It is so wonderful to see each of them happy in their lives, being successful, and liking their lives. I don't think either of them understand the need of a mother to see them, hold them close, and touch them, and say you are so gorgeous, you're OK. Ahhhhh,,,,,.........

And tomorrow I leave to go to Orlando, where I will stay a few days with a favorite aunt and uncle. Next Monday My cousin Wanda picks me up in Leesburg, and we will head out to LaBelle, and then to Naples, where we lived until we were out of school. She talked me into going to Florida for our 45th high school reunion.

So of course I have put on almost 20 pounds in the last four months. Oh, well. And I have almost worn out the clothes I took on this trip-which were mostly casual.

In Feb during my California stay, I read Eat, Pray, Love. It is a fabulous book. One you want to savor. Here is Burlington I am reading her next book called Committed. I figure this year is one in which I am doing an inner and outer journey similar to hers. I am eating a lot, praying a lot, and loving a lot. Only, please God, let's also include a partner into this picture cause I wouldn't mind the sex and companionship.

Figured I have moved my stuff about 15 times in the last three years. Maybe the road trip may finally conclude sometime soon. Had some wonderful adventures this summer, Savoring the abodes of other cool people. I stayed a an incredible cabin in the woods, a lovely apartment surrounded by gardens in Portland, a villa right on the edge of its own small rain forest, and a wonderful chalet on a lake. There's a beautiful picture of the lake on my facebook.

Been having a wonderful palship with a man. I'm finally ready I think to settle in somewhere, claim a town, and have a brilliant relationship with a partner. I like the northwest. I have found ways to live incredibly well on little or no money.

Currently living with Deb and Dan for the month of November while I have a part time job as an office manager. I'm trading pet sitting for rent. Suits us all fine.

Amber's back in school fulltime, and moving this weekend from the farm where she has been for more than a year. She's happy and blossoming as a person.

My son is doing well, but I miss him. Haven't seen him for 3 years. Too long to go!


Had a lovely reunion with my pal Marsha while I was in Portland. She and I ate so much and had so many glasses of wine, that I have only now begun to shed those pound. Here we are having traveled up the gorge to a lovely place for lunch.

Have joined a choir, which is the highlight of each week. This season we are singing a Celtic repetoire, including several song in Gaelic.

I'm looking forward to Thanksgiving with my Portland friends. And I'm beginning to dream of settling in.

New Career?

Susan, a friend, has gone to France, and I am in Portland living in her apartment and housesitting her three dogs, Mama, Papa, and Baby. I have a best friend who lives in Gresham, a suburb of Portland, and we celebrated my birthday together. We are old pals from back at Unity Church in Minneapolis.

Cindy really wants me to return to living on the farm. Debbie and Dan, my Snohomish friends with whom I stayed last summer, told me they selfishly want me to live with them, so I can petsit and they can travel.

Another friend named Michelle will be going to France in September. So I will be pet sitting and housesitting for her. She has a lovely wooded lot on a creek close to Bellingham.

I am having fun being a gypsy and tasting new towns and locations. My sister took me to Victoria, in Canada for my birthday. Love going on the ferry. This first picture is of me and my sister Susan.

Housesitting

While "jim" and Dave are in Scandinavia and then on to Romania as a part of the Chorus Tour, I am staying at their 'cottage' in the woods. Lovely place.

There's a cute bridge from the parking area over to the front door. These plants in the front are foxglove - which are all in bloom now.

jim and Dave built their home about 20 years ago after looking for a long time for property that faced south.


It's quite cozy. They have lettuce and spinach growing on their deck outside. The only downside to this sweet place is that we have been living through a monsoon this last month, and the lawn grew unbelievably high. Yesterday, I finally got it all cut down again.

I have another house sitting gig to get formalized, probably in late July through August 20. Debbie and Dan want me to come back to live with them, so that I can pet sit, while they begin trying out what it would be like to travel together after Kasie goes to college.

I don't know what I am going to do. I had a real yen to be a gypsy, and I certainly have enjoyed it. I do not enjoy the thought of finding a full time job to support a lifestyle of having a home and all the maintenance that goes with it. I'm living an alternative lifestyle and I like it. We will just have to see what will happen after summer. Living in the question. Living in the unknowing asks me to trust the universe, trust myself, and trust Source. I think I will practice the thing called trust. It calls to me.

Spring and Sprong

Hi folks. I have been living at a permaculture farm (a what?) for the last nine months. It was quite wonderful in many ways. Also quite rustic. No warm water, no shower, the toilet was self composting - and in another building. That was interesting when it was nighttime or when it was raining. But I am all the more hardy (smirk). Permaculture is a way of farming that looks at the relationships between the land, the plants, the animals, and the people, and all things that are involved in growing - weather, soil, water, etc. It was quite lovely to be woken up in the morning by the rooster, and create beautiful gardens this spring. So many incredible flowers and a whole fruit forests. Pretty cool.

I have this week, began a housesitting gig back down the river not too far away. It's a beautiful open cabin, with lots of windows and beautiful wooden floors. I find myself dancing in my stocking feet listening to the great jazz and swing music. My friends have gone to Europe for two months, and wanted me to stay and watch their home. It is very quiet, tucked into the woods.

Had a parttime job doing census taking which is coming to a close this week. Lots of changes in my life. It was quite interesting to knock on doors, and meet the people behind them.

Sprong is a writer that has interesting questions about spirituality.

I have a brother who loves to answer the phone "it's great here in paradise. How is it there in your part of paradise?" Spring here was magnificent. Hope all is well in your part of the world.