Jul18

a look.

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the description: “Ever wish you could just wrap yourself in a plush blanket scarf and pronounce it a look? Well, hello! This pale grey top is crafted with shawl-like wrap styling and features pleats at the shoulder and a crisscross bottom. But unlike your winter scarf, the lavishly soft piece has full-length sleeves.”

my reality:

i do love how comfortable and cozy

this ‘plush blanket scarf’ looks

yet

i wonder

if i can master

(the shawl, wrap, pleats, crisscross features)

 and put it on

without getting all tangled up in it

which would not be

a good look

or quite as comfortable.

—

“simplicity is the keynote of all true elegance.”

– coco chanel

Jul17

rolling sculpture.

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this one shares my vintage

 

the return of

the rolling sculpture car show

where whimsical art and classic style share the road

 

this one shows its true colors

“whither goest thou, america, in thy shiny car in the night?”

-jack kerouac

Jul16

how now, brown cow?

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“This is our cow we lost. It’s actually a steer, but for simplicity, we called it a cow.”

My personal favorite neighborhood NextDoor conversation (a 6-day string) of the week!:

My neighbor’s cow (red and white) seems to have walked away sometime last night, and they can’t find him(or her?) 

Has anyone seen a cow ? Please let me know.  (My neighbor isn’t on Nextdoor )

Its a common problem here…one guy woke up to 4 cows in his yard! There are worse problems, lol

Is it utterly possible that cows are looking for new homes?

Did they find their cow yet?  Would they like some help looking?

So my husband and I both thought we heard a cow mooing early this morning while we were in bed. We live on ___. Not sure if a cow would come this far but….

Hi! This is __, the owner of the cow! We still haven’t found it! Could you tell me (or call me) whereabouts you heard the mooing?

 You can call me if you’d like at ___. There is a dairy farm east of us. Maybe it headed there?

Did they find the cow ?

 No we haven’t!

Has anyone lost a white duck?

I saw a cow in the 4th of July parade in Tawas City!  No, too far to go.

Red and white?

 Yes, mostly brownish red, with a little white.

Best of luck to you guys!! There is so much rural between here & there. A loose cow could have quite the adventure! I haven’t heard it again, but definitely will keep an eye out. I thought I was losing my marbles for sure.

We found it! It has been at a farmers place at _____! Whew! We are so relieved. It was in good hands. Thank you all for your concern and help!
My chicken ran away for almost 2 days maybe they are sick of our ___, just saying.
So glad you found it and no harm came to it.
—

“moo may represent an idea, but only the cow knows.”

-mason cooley

Jul15

yamabushi.

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A Beautiful Documentary About the Yamabushi Monks in Japan Who Immerse Themselves In Nature

In the short documentary “Mountain Monks”, filmmaker Fritz Schumann has captured the quiet beauty of the ancient religion and the monks who climb mountains and traverse waterfalls in northern Japan, often without shoes on their feet in a meaningful ritual that symbolizes death and rebirth.

This once-forbidden ancient faith they follow is a combination of Shinto, Buddhism, Animism, Taoism, and mountain religions, and its mission is to help others strip away the excesses of modern life and regain their strength in nature. Schumann reveals the rarely seen side of the Yamabushi through personal interviews and gorgeous footage. While their tradition is at risk of disappearing, it offers a way for those seeking a different path in Japan‘s society.

—

“my imagination is a monastery and I am its monk.”

-john keats

 

 

 

—

credits: lori dorn, laughing squid, fritz schumann, youtube

 

Jul14

the french connection.

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Washington and Lafayette at Mt. Vernon

 

In honor of the anniversary of Bastille Day-

 The Marquis de Lafayette, 19, arrived in the new world to join America’s revolutionary cause in 1777. Right off the bat, he made a powerful friend: George Washington instantly took a liking to the Frenchman and within a month, Lafayette had effectively become the general’s adopted son. Their affection was mutual; when the younger man had a son of his own in 1779, he named him Georges Washington de Lafayette.

The day after the storming of the Bastille, the Marquis de Lafayette became the commander of the Paris National Guard. In the aftermath of the Bastille siege, he was given the key to the building. As a thank-you—and to symbolize the new revolution—Lafayette sent it to Washington’s Mount Vernon home, where the relic still resides today.

—

“Rien.”

(nothing)

-Diary entry of Louis XVI on Bastille Day

 

—

Bonne fête nationale! 

 

 

—

Source credits: Mark Mancini, Mental Floss, Google Images

Jul13

balancing act.

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two of the six-pack of grandies finding their balance.

—

“we’ve just learned how to balance ourselves a little better

so that we’re happier way more of the time than not,

and,

you know,

being happy is a radical and desirable act if you ask me.”

-anthony kiedis, red hot chili peppers

 

Jul12

way out.

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The first publicly released image from the James Webb Space Telescope, showing countless galaxies and multiple arcs where the combined gravity of those galaxies magnifies light from background objects, bringing even more distant galaxies into view.  NASA—
NASA Administrator Bill Nelson described the image to President Biden, saying all the stars and galaxies it encompassed were located in an area of space the size of a grain of sand held at arm’s length by someone standing on Earth.

“We’re looking back more than 13 billion years,” he said. “That light that you are seeing has been traveling for over 13 billion years, and by the way, we’re going back farther. This is just the first image. They’re going back about thirteen-and-a-half billion years. And since we know the universe is 13.8 billion years old, we’re going back almost to the beginning.”

NASA plans to release additional “first light” images Tuesday, photos designed to showcase Webb’s ability to chart the details of stellar evolution, from starbirth to death by supernova, to study how galaxies form, merge and evolve and to probe the chemical composition of atmospheres around planets orbiting other stars.

This initial Webb deep field released Monday promises to rewrite the astronomy books yet again, providing the data needed to fill in many of the major gaps in the history of the universe, perhaps even providing the framework to determine when —  and how —  the first massive stars formed, exploded and seeded the cosmos with the heavy elements that make life possible.

—

“the size and age of the cosmos are beyond ordinary human understanding.
lost somewhere between immensity and eternity is our tiny planetary home.” 
-carl sagan, cosmos
—
source credit: nasa
Jul11

so close.

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so close to that first morning cup…..

—

 “coffee smells like magic and fairytales.”

-allison czarnecki

 

 

 

Jul10

sun.

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The one moment when 99% of the world’s population can see the sun

For a single minute at 7:15am, EST, on Friday, July 8, 99% of the world’s population was (7.688 billion people) either in sunlight or twilight and could simultaneously spot the sun in the sky. It’s a minute in time that only happens once a year. The only countries not under sun in that minute were New Zealand, Australia, Papua New Guinea, and Antarctica.

It’s hard not to see, but admittedly if someone wasn’t watching for the phenomenon that unfolded Friday morning, they could have definitely missed it. This does call into question what it means to be seeing the sun. According to the website timeanddate.com, while the claim is technically true, the number of people perceiving sunlight is a bit lower – about 93% of the world’s population.

—
“three things cannot be long hidden: the sun, the moon, and the truth.”
-buddha
—
source credits: derek kevra and jack nissen, wjbk news
Jul9

because i read.

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oh, how i love these tiny places

filled with books are just waiting to be discovered.

—

“i have lived a thousand lives and have loved a thousand loves.

i’ve walked on distant worlds and seen the end of time, because i read.”

-george r.r. martin

 

 

 

 

 

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glen arbor, michigan, usa – summer 2022