Monday, November 4, 2013

Many stones and breathing blue light

Stones....
I've got stepping stones in my garden paths now!
Yay!
Now I just have to wait for the grass to spread
into the paths and it will look pretty good.
The seedlings are peaking through, and
around Thanksgiving I will be harvesting fresh
mesclun.  A while after that the other veggies will be ready
to harvest.  It will be nice to have fresh food
on the table for the holidays.
I love mesclun with
olive oil and sherry wine vinegar and
blue cheese and fried shallots on top.
------------------
My mention of other small stones
is about paying attention to a single moment.
My other blog has some I have written...
I am usually inspired by a photograph
that I have taken.
 A small stone is short
like a haiku
and very descriptive.

Breathing blue light
in November sun


Savor the Day!
Yvonne

Friday, November 1, 2013

Happiness in the Accident

My small collection of pottery just grew by one more.
My friend Karen brought me a beautiful little Raku pot
from her trip to Seattle....
and also a handful of perfect tiny pinecones.

I have another Raku pot and you can see it
in my previous post here....

Raku means
"happiness in the accident".
It is a type of firing process
that dates back to early 16th century Japan.
Don Nibert, a famous late Raku potter,
said this.....
"What is it about the dynamics of this particular discipline that makes Raku so vital.  Raku exemplifies....a complex relationship of material, human activity, and qualities of the natural world...Raku implies freshness and simplicity; it also defines an accidental or happenstance element, maybe even a imperfection which lends elegance and uniqueness to the whole.  Raku has a beauty that stems from age.  It stresses the appreciation of transient things and of the cycles of life that give rise to change.  It can also refer to the quality of unpretentiousness or a kind of primitive naturalness."
--------------------
Did you notice?
The little Raku pot has a metal lid
with a Kokopelli engraved on it.
I love it!
-------------------
The tiny pine cones are now in my potpourri bowl.
I love pinecones, big and small.
Sometimes when I go to my cousins,
she gives me lots of pinecones from her yard.
Any new ideas for using pinecones?
-------------------
"Between every two pines is a doorway
to a new world."
---John Muir

Savor the Day!
Yvonne



Saturday, October 26, 2013

October garden progress...

Gardening time is prime in October,
here in south Texas.
I've been so busy that I just now filled my beds
and planted seeds etc.
The raised beds are filled with great stuff
like different kinds of compost,
peat moss, vermiculite, top soil,
and other good stuff.
John Dromgoole, a gardener from Austin, Texas
created a wonderful garden blend.
He is known as the Natural Gardener
and has the longest running garden radio talk show in America.
Visit his site here

Here is my garden today....
I planted herbs in the center bed where the sun dial is.
Where the cages are I planted pea vines.
Then I transplanted some cabbage plants,
planted some lettuces, mesclun, beets, and more
fall/winter veggie seeds.
In about 60 days it will be harvest time.

This is La Mancha, the cat.

He loves the garden,
and likes to lie down under my hibiscus.
Here he is coming up onto our patio.
He is still very shy.
He basically lives in the lot next door,
but visits us often.
He is a wild cat, but we hope to catch him
and take him to the vet one day.

A friend of mine told me her father was growing
a lot of Papaya trees from seed. 
She said they were up and ready to transplant
if I wanted some.
I was thrilled to take three.
They are
about 2 feet tall so far.

I can't wait to pick a fresh papaya!

Savor the Day!
Yvonne