A Perfect Pot

A waning moon, hot, dog days of Summer, a perfect pot of purple petunias blooming outside my front door. Hard to believe it's already August! I'm so busy right now. I've written and am rehearsing a play I'm directing ; a play I wrote earlier in the year. My daughter's wedding is set for December 21st and the play goes on here late in October. Crunch time! If I am largely absent, you now know why. I'll try to update the blog weekly. I'm taking my camera to town tomorrow, there's stuff I want to show you. Till then, I'm off to get some well deserved rest!

Cherry Oh Baby

Life might just be a bowl of cherries today! The colander in my sink is full and the tree, still laden. I'm sharing with the birds. These are wild, sour cherries, found on old trees all over Taos. I am going to make a pie but I also found a wonderful old recipe of my grand mother's for sour cherry soup so I'll try that too. Better get busy,lots of de-seeding to do! I'll take a pic of the finished product and share (virtually) with all of you tomorrow!

Heat Wave

It has been hot here lately! Too hot to be outside until evening and hot enough to keep the blinds down and doors and windows shut during the day. More time inside means more reflection on the importance of the home. I am so grateful for my humble abode these days. I look at the news and it only serves to make me dig in further. We should all be growing now, food and herbs for medicine. Trees for shade and oxygen. Flowers for the soul. You can grow anywhere in anything that will hold soil. Inside and out, plants are not just beautiful, but so important for our collective health and sanity. Only a few remain in my home during the summer, but I love their greenery and occasional blooms. I desperately need to clean - have been so busy - I've been getting by with tidying and a quick sweep, but as I putter about, I see dust settling on my books and bibilots and dulling corners.What I'd rather do is sit in my cool and serene bedroom and flip through a magazine or lose myself in a book... Hope your days are cooler than mine and for those of you, with heatwaves of your own, I empathise!

Twilight

Yesterday evening, I sat outside sipping my tea, watching the birds come and go. I have a nest of magpies in one of my pines and they have become quite tame (and cheeky). I tried to get a shot of a woodpecker who has been making my ad hoc birdbath a regular stop, but he flew off before I got the camera. I did get a pic of mama maggie though, perched below her nest, keeping an eye out for her brood. They stay year round. Then the sun began to sink in the West and the twilight fell. My very favourite hour, perhaps because I was born at that time? Anyway, I got a couple of pics. In the middle you can see how my meadow is maturing. So exiting! And at the top, the view over my back fence as the last rays disappear. Enjoy.

Love In The Air

My daughter Genevieve's boyfriend proposed to her last night. We had just had dinner on the deck - buffalo burgers that he, Oz, had made, mixing blue cheese and red onion in with the meat, before grilling on the barbecue - just delicious! Potato salad made by me using fresh herbs from the garden and red potatoes from the farmer's market. A big green salad, with cherry tomatoes (from my pot) avocado and a crisp, cold pinot to wash it down, made for the perfect Summer evening, and it seemed like a typical evening Chez Moi, with the family. After dinner, with Natalya and Tatyana sorted with plenty watermelon and ice cream, my daughter Angelica inside, reading a book, Oz (as we affectionately call him) asked me to tell Gen to go talk to him in the potting shed. Natalya the spy reported first! "He was on his knee and now they are kissing." She made a face. "Slobbery kisses." Gen arrived next, teary eyed. "Oz asked me to marry him!" She sounded like a woman in love should. A toast was drunk and happiness was shared by all! Now we have a wedding to plan! We have time - they want to do it on 11/11/11. Today my mini roses bloomed and today is also Oz's birthday. They met three years ago, moved in together a year and a half later. He's definitely a member of our family and I couldn't be happier for them!

Solstice

Where I was born and grew up, today is the Winter Solstice, but here it is high Summer and I have spent the morning in the garden. Baby lettuce and Nasturtium are springing up in their pots, as are Petunias (that's a recycled tire planter in front of the shed) and the tomatoes and herbs I grow year round, inside and out, in containers Natalya ate her first ripe Strawberry off one of the plants yesterday, and the blackberry is starting to peek out of its basket. I love Summer, upside down or not! Happy Solstice everyone!

Midsummer Night's Dream

At least 19 people were killed in Tehran, Shiraz, and Isfahan Saturday in clashes between reformists and security forces, sources in Iran have reported, bringing the number of people killed in the riots that erupted following the Iranian elections up to nearly 50...

Let Freedom Ring! For the brave people of Persia, a prayer. A song of Hope from the heart. Real change always starts from the ground up, when people say "Enough!" Real change is never manufactured, nor is Hope bottled like Coca Cola. Real change is in the air. The Revolution is being Twittered. This blog will keep you up to date! Do not remain silent! Bear witness!Raise your voices! Light a candle! Spread the word! Let Freedom Ring!

http://iranriggedelect.blogspot.com/

Comfort Zone

Waking up this morning to rain pouring down, made me very happy it was a day off for me! I spent a couple of lazy hours on my sofa, doing little more than read a book while sipping a cup of coffee. I watched the birds come and go through the windows, seemingly unperturbed by the flood from above. Magpies chattered to each other as they tried (in vain) to shoo away the sparrows and finches encroaching on their turf (very territorial birds, these Magpies.)At noon the sun broke through the clouds. The rain has stopped and I'm going outside to battle with the weeds again!

Outside In

I was out in the garden early this morning, watering - we've had rain but not enough - and pulling weeds, which is never ending. The garden is beautiful but I've been promising to show you new pics of the interior, so here are a few of each. The office/entry is the same except for the chair I switched out with the little Louis one I reinvented. I also hung a hand blocked, Indian print on gauze, in front of a white muslin panel above the desk. The meadow I've been creating in the front, is really coming into its own this Summer! The old fruit trees are full to drooping, and the baby Aspens I put in are growing up. I am off to do more gardening.Hope your weekend is relaxing.

Where Does The Time Go?

I am always short of it, so it seems. Three jobs, three kids, two grandkids and a garden that calls to be tended all summer long. That's where the time goes! I've cut back my schedule at the gallery, so I'll make a concerted effort to post here once a week now. No promises but I'll certainly try! Meanwhile, here I am, on yet another deadline so I'm off again till next time. Leaving you with a little bit of beauty from my garden - the bearded iris in full bloom, wild roses creeping up the wall in front of my bedroom and columbines taking off where the poppies are now tired from their spring show!

Outside My Door

My front door opens onto a little more than a quarter acre that I am turning into a wild meadow garden. Only native plants, grasses and trees allowed! I mow it twice a year - spring and fall - and only keep a cresent of grass around the driveway, cut. The raised beds in front of the house are coming to life, now that spring has finally arrived!Poppies and Iris in their full glory. A few more shots and tomorrow I'll take you back inside!

Blooming In The Garden

Most mornings and evenings I'm in the garden, weeding, mulching and watching the birds, bees and butterflies that are so much a part of why I am committed to wild gardens. I am a rather lazy gardener; letting Nature balance the land rather than attempting to control it. In addition to several fruit trees and shrubs, I have planted aspens, now in their third summer, and blue flax has sprouted among the grasses. In the raised beds in front of the cottage, I have iris, poppies, daisies, roses, lilies, columbine, cinquefoil, Russian sage, woodruff, sweet william and a berry patch, with strawberries, black berries and raspberries. The berry patch - which is in an odd corner - is cluttered with all sorts of stuff - heart shaped rocks and stones, broken or cracked, terra cotta pots and angels reconstructed into vignettes. Baskets with berries inside them, driftwood and other bits and pieces I find pretty or interesting. I planted the berries last year and now they are coming back to life. I also grow a lot of stuff in pots like the geraniums which provide me with flowers year long, inside my south facing windows, and colour my deck in summer. Cherry tomatoes, baby greens and herbs are all easy to do in pots.That's lavender beside the front doormat. We have a short season here at this elevation - 7000ft - but right now, in late spring, it couldn't be sweeter

Summer Of Love

It has been insanely busy in my world. Taos is celebrating the 40th anniversary of Easy Rider with a Summer Of Love Extravaganza which kicked off last weekend with a show at the Harwood Museum curated by Dennis Hopper. (See link in May Post above for more upcoming events) Parties and more parties have followed, and as I write for a couple of local papers/magazines, I've been running around from one thing to another. At home, I'm just happy to relax outside, where everything is blooming and the air is scented with lilacs which have turned the town every shade of purple! Those on my table (beneath my new painting by Stacey Huddleston) are from my garden. The deck is where I spend all my free time lately, though that's not saying much! Hope your days are as sunny and bright!

New Light

Funny how changing a few things in a room seemingly affects the light - I know it's just the way the light is catching the nuances of the texture and colour that is layered in this room, but it definitely feels magical! A few more views of the living room and I'll move on into the rest of my little cottage on Monday. The spindle-legged, gate leg table and the wonderful basket beside it, were found for a song recently. There is a sad side to my recent luck with finding great things for very little. As I make my rounds of my favourite haunts in Taos, I'm seeing amazing amounts of antiques and art being put up for sale at ridiculous prices. I feel for these families who have been so hard hit by this economic meltdown, that they have to let go of these pieces in order to eat! My prayers go out to them. Have a lovely weekend, wherever you are!

Another Point Of View

I recovered my old chairs in toile, which they have had on them before, added a shade to match and mixed up old and new. My need for white is tempered by the colour and gentle play of pattern and texture. I also like the way the kitchen/dining area feels seperate from the living room.

Morning Light

This was taken today in the early morning light. I'll be back tomorrow with more rooms! I've been on a tear changing and rearranging everything!