The Zen of Snowflakes

It has been very beautifully changing seasons here in the Pacific Northwest. I have been trying to capture...so many variations...the crisp fall leaves....which change colors daily for about 3 weeks...and then before you know it... gone! Each day the sky has so many colors....we are right next to the mountains...One day we will have fog.....drifting in mysterious shapes.....The next rain.....The next day breathtaking cloud formations....hiding all but one peak. And, then, without warning Snow....the first snow.

Last Sunday I dragged my husband out to drive me up toward the timberline to see if I could shoot any last bits of fall...in the forest....It was raining...it was a little before lunch...and I could tell he was bored..or annoyed? So often I go out..and don't come home with anything......It takes so much perseverance and patience...to create....

We headed back home...I was hoping for a nice mysterious fog to engulf us..and it just didn't happen....the fog was always just a little higher...the rain came down harder and we decided to head back for lunch...

An hour later...I looked out to see the first snow of the season....I grabbed my Japanese flute CD and my big old muck boots and my hideous gold ski coat....and camera and headed to the lake in a hurry...Because the flakes were big and soft and moist..and I knew they could disappear in a moment.

I thought I would leave my husband at home ....and that way I could make my way slowly up to the lake..stopping every other minute if need be..and see if I could find some deer or some magical occurrence. No pressure...and beautiful shakahuchi flute....accompanying me...

If you have read my blog before..and if you have bless you....for taking the time!! You will probably know I love haiku and have always wanted to go to Japan...so you can imagine my joy when I pulled over at the lake to see this amazing....zen like landscape....

I jumped out of the truck..and stood in the middle of the snow in absolute wonder...
It was one of those magical moments...outside of time ...when inner landscape and outer reality become fused. It did not look real...it was so still, peaceful, quiet....mystical.

When, I drove away, I passed by the boat launch..and there was the town's only Buddhist Monk in brown robes alone in the snow at the edge of the lake...We were the only two people there...

I remembered running with my dog in a torrential downpour in LA's Runyan Canyon.....there was only me and one other English man and his dog.. . As he passed me he said in greeting...."Couple of nutters we are..."

And, there you have it...the reason...I create...for that one mystical moment when time stands still And, the fact, that deep down...I really am a nutter :)

Halloween

Well, it's another Halloween and we are all a year older.....(A line from one of my old classic favorite films)...
This year has really sped by.....We have a fire in the wood stove every night now, though the days are still mellow. The leaves are just beginning to turn.....The pumpkins and apples are abundant. Most of the beautiful birds have flown somewhere warmer....the fawns have lost their spots. And, winter is just around the corner. I really feel like curling up with a good book.....way too often. I have been trying to get out and shoot landscapes and capture some fall color...and thinking about holiday gifts, and homemade soup and spending more time with friends and family. I am kind of obsessive when it comes to my photography....but life is just too short...All of my animals and friends and loved ones come first..as I seek to maintain balance..
I think balance is difficult for an artist to achieve....

In The Mood!

I really want to create....I really want to be inspired....take long, quiet walks, sip tea (OK..a latte)...and journal and read poetry....and then....in a dream like state create! Lately I have felt so busy....trying to complete tedious unfinished projects..trying to find OLD negatives....dealing with business issues...I really feel like I have lost touch with my other worldly state...that I need to be in to create.

Drowning in the mundane.....

Well, at least I accomplished a lot today..and feel good about that...I cleaned and organized (a teeny tiny bit)....and finished some projects...that had many details...to tie up.....


My old hen Dexter and I have been spending quality time together.....after lunch, I take her out of her pen for a dirt bath..she loves to roll in the dirt and fluff it all through her feathers....I spend this time.....reading.....I love to read...but do so little of it these days.....Lately I have been reading Trollope..and am thrilled with it.. He is not Jane Austen...but for a man, he is close to Jane Austen...he is witty and really has incredible female characters.....strong and independent.....If you like Jane Austen..I think you will love him. I found a few small Out of Print volumes at our microscopic small town library...They weren't even in the computer...still had cards in the pockets...to stamp the due date on....A local literary family (a rare thing around here I imagine) donated the books to the library..and I am the first one to check them out...they were all but forgotten...


Slowly finishing the first volume....

Well, I have the day to myself tomorrow..and with the house clean...I might feel the space and slowness to create.....I hope so!! I hope you all can create something beautiful tomorrow....even if it just finding time to read a book..

It's Already September

Can we believe that it is already September? No! I was gone for such a long time this summer..that it really seems I missed the entire season...The artisans collective that I am a member of has team challenges each month. We create something in a particular theme. We have potters and clothing designers, jewelry makers (metal works), all kinds of artists..incredibly talented...Check out the top link to our Collective website. Our first theme was bees...because we call ourselves The Hive, the next challenge was lost at sea...and this month's challenge was to create a gift for Ellen Degeneres to congratulate her on her recent marriage. My balloon photo is the result of that. My husband, the cowboy, was holding onto the balloons with a fishing pole...(at 6 am this morning) they were way up in the air...up with the geese and birds...He is such a good sport!

There is snow on the mountains already!!!! Supposed to be a cold winter..but I still hope we will have a lovely fall..for another month! The other photo is from my photo shoot with the owner of tutuschic....if you need a Halloween or Wedding tutu..you must check out her etsy shop!

Happy Friday!

It was 35 degrees this morning! But, 90 yesterday! There is a slight feeling of autumn in the air...this time of year makes me feel creative. Fire in the woodstove..is so cozy....and good books to read.....more photos to share.....beginning to be inspired....Summer is fun, family friends.....Work..but it's outward..Fall for me is turning inward....slowing down...settling in. Have a lovely weekend!

As the summer's gone,
we are not surprised to see
"autumn rain" at night.

-Eiki (1823-1904)

Procrastination!

I am embarrassed to show my face here..I have been gone for soooooooooooo long....Yes, I procrastinate! Yes...I admit it...

It's super hot here in rural Oregon....and dry....I, too, long for fall...It is my favorite time of year....although I don't actually look forward to winter...

I have had so many fabulous experiences while away...I got to shoot real ballerinas with a ballet instructor who makes tutus and sells them on etsy...The name of her shop is tutuschic...and I would like to thank her for the wonderful opportunity she afforded me...furnishing models, tutus and inspiration!

I will post more of these later and details about the magical experience...but I just wanted to post something ...quickly...and ease my way back in!!!!

I am so excited to share my art with you..and so touched that you take the time and trouble to look!

A Small Break

Well, I am off again...I wish I could say I will be in Paris...shooting....of course...I don't think this is the right time of year to go to Paris...but I will go any time!! Maybe next year?

My brother is actually going to London for a month and I am going to take care of my father...I am hoping I will be able to find a little time...to take photos and read...I like to read to my dad and sneak him all the foods he is not supposed to have.

So, I would like to update my blog...because I might really have some time for that, but I don't know if I will be able to upload my photos....so I might be away for awhile....

I would like to thank everyone for their kind comments and generosity....spending time reading my blog....Hope everyone is having a lovely summer...See you soon!

Another Day Another Poem

Today I processed and printed some ballet recital photos of my husband's grand daughter. She is 10 and a beautiful ballerina..I have used her as a model before and hope to photograph her again this summer. Now, I am off to photograph a one year old "baby" for a birthday portrait. I am so busy...getting ready to leave and take care of my father for a month..who is nearing the end of his life. So much going on....birth and death...so closely related....perhaps it is the poets who say it best:



What Issa Heard

Two hundred years ago
Issa heard
the morning birds
singing sutras
to this suffering world.

I heard them too,
this morning,
which must mean

since we will always have
a suffering world
we must also always
have a song.

by David Budbill
contemporary American Poet
written about the Japanese Haiku poet Issa

Summer in the Northwest

Well..we finally have summer...hot and humid in the day time ..and dramatic thunderstorms at night....lightning striking as the sun sets...it's beautiful...and warm and I feel LAZY.....my hen Dexter is lying on the back porch....like an old dog...
Our garden is planted..and my white peonies are about to bloom...but I caught deer sneaking into the yard last night....and I wonder will I get to photograph my favorite flowers this year or will they be eaten????

If you haven't read my blog in awhile..I am trying diligently to post a haiku or poem and a photo every day....so here goes!


Summer rainy season!
Talking together passing by,
straw cape and an umbrella.
(Buson, 1700s Japan)

More Poetry and Photos

Well, I tried to do this every day...but I couldn't....I am amazed at people that blog every day....I take my hat off to them..seriously...I am just jotting down a poem or two...and adding photos...and still...it takes time...
Today...one short poem....because it is so breathtaking..that I decided it should stand by itself...




Everyone stands alone at the heart of this earth
Stunned by a ray of sunlight
and suddenly it is evening.



by Salvatore Quasimodo (1901-1968)
an Italian poet born in Sicily.
The Central Figure of Hermeticism--an Italian movement that took its initial inspiration from the work of the French Symbolists.

A Haiku a Day Keeps the Doctor Away

Well...
here is my second poetry and photography blend....Eventually I would like the poetry and the photos to reflect each other...but for now..I am simply not going to worry about it...I'd rather just do it..and not stress...I have so many photos in my camera...I have a new Mac in a box on the floor..I have quite a few filled memory cards from the last 3 weeks..basically, it is a disaster..so why not sweep it all under the rug..and pull out a little poetry....a few photos..that have nothing to do with said poetry and call it a night....

Enjoy!!!

I love haiku..because it is about the every day most ordinary things..and yet by framing these scenes in such a delicate and touching way..the mundane becomes a tiny moment of beauty...

Sometimes it is the words..that bewitch...although they often seem clumsy in translation from Japanese into English.. Often it is the image the words create in my mind....Haiku is organized and written in seasons..so I will stick to the summer Haiku!

These are also from Buson (1700s)


Lodging a priest tonight,
how happily the mosquito net
is being hung up.


White plum flowers!
The fragrance of an inkstone
in the Chinese guest house.

A summer river being crossed,
how pleasing!
Sandals in my hands.

Poets and Photographers Series Day 1

I have noticed that many photographers love poetry..and that some poets are photographers. I think they are similar art forms..in that they involve SEEING....looking deeply...calmly at the minute details of light, shadow, form..
They evoke an emotional response...to a simple statement..

This is something I love to do and it is easy for me...because I love both art forms..
I am going to try posting a poem or haiku a day..and a photo or two....just for fun..

I hope you will enjoy it....it is easy for me. I am probably not going to be posting my own poetry...but who knows....I will start with my favorite poets. I love haiku and I love other forms of Asian poetry....and I love Mary Oliver (the greatest American poet)..And, these are the poetry books I keep around the house....along with some compilations...so here goes!

Keep it simple, brief....open your eyes and heart..and look around! I dedicate this series to my dearest friend Ivy....a great poet and lover of photography.


Time of summer clothes,
and someone on the pathway through the field,
showing faintly white.



Into water fell
its blossoms and disappeared,
plum tree on the shore.


I can never stop with just one haiku! These two are by Haiku Master Buson (1700s)

One Woman Who Inspires Me...and more!

I have a beautiful friend Kerri who I met through the internet....We live in different states and have never seen each other in person. She has several lovely etsy shops:
Ten Things where she sells bohemian style jewelry and A Peace of Cake, where she sells her gorgeous photography. Kerri calls herself a casual girl obsessed with creating. When I first opened my etsy shop, she "found" me and sort of took me under her wing....She has a gorgeous blog, where she shares her great eye and style...She just began a feature on her blog..where she interviews Ten Women Who Inspire Her. There are fashion designers and jewelry makers and photographers and other creative women...who are dedicated to pursuing their dreams and to helping others. In this first piece she introduces the ten women, asks them how they got started on their particular journey. It is interesting, beautifully illustrated and I am sure it will inspire you as well...I can't wait to see the answers to the next questions and find out more about these women. The photographs today are from Kerri's two shops, her jewelry designs and photography and this is a gorgeous photo of Kerri and her daughter...When I think of Kerri, I think of kindness, generosity of spirit, style, fashion, passion for creating! She loves the ocean and her family of surfers, bright, gorgeous colors, and all art forms, exotic and ethereal...

You can probably all SEE by now..that I am blog layout challenged...So to view Kerri's inspirational blog...please click on the beautiful flower image on the right hand side bar...

Small Town Girl?

Is it just me? When I am in the city, I long for nature...And, when I am in the country....I miss the city....? I guess...I enjoy variety.....

I'll be traveling again soon.....but right now I am enjoying the breathtaking spring..we are having here in the pacific northwest....It is raining every day....and everything is so green. When the sun comes out...the sky is so clear..and the clouds are spectacular...And, being a photographer, I LOVE clouds...don't you? We are having a wet early summer....and the lilacs are just starting to open....gorgeous birds are every where....people are heading up to the lake...and, every where I look..there is something begging me to photograph it!!!

Two from Haiku Master Buson...(Japan 1700s)

In evening wind--
water is slapping against
the legs of a blue heron


Far and near, far and near
sound of cascading waters--
the fresh new leaves.

Lamb in the Kitchen

I went on a short get away this weekend..to visit the ranch of my dear friend's Ryan and Kristen. It was gorgeous....and sometimes very very windy...They live on an organic ranch and served me incredible food...we huddled around the wood stove and drank Way To Much COFFEE!!! And, Kristen inspired me....she is an incredible writer..with a great future, some prestigious publishing interest and she is working on a novel. Upstairs in the old farmhouse she has what her husband refers to as her woman's cave. She has inspirational artwork and her computer..where she writes. We had so much fun....The visit was way too short...and I will be going back soon (I hope)..They sent me home with some Rhode Island Red fertilized eggs for my husband's new incubator. And, they introduced me to the newest member of their family: Sweat Pea..a little lamb they are raising and bottle feeding....I will be adding some more photos to this as I process them....but wanted to leave you with these...it was a wonderful time...