daily life – Page 28 – The Hermits' Rest

Americana Listening

What is your favorite genre of music?

I guess my experience with being in a vocal trio with a Kerrville Folk Festival devotee, volunteering at a monthly folk coffeehouse for years, and living with a rock/country guitarist for three years or so doomed me. I became pretty fond of Americana music. What’s that?

I’m lucky to have lived in Austin, Texas (or thereabouts) for 30 years or more. There is a lot of Americana music to watch. I watched and listened to a lot of it with my music friends. I loved this part of my life.

Oddly, I don’t listen much anymore. I think it has to do with the loss of my older son, who is a wonderful mandolin player (he’s not dead, just refuses to speak). And some unpleasantness happened to my other son in the music scene. Plus, my vocal cords are now damaged and I can’t sing certain notes now. It has taken away the pleasure of music.

That took a dark turn. Of course there were wonderful musical moments in my life. And music moves me when I do listen. And not just Americana! I love classic rock, classical, and Celtic especially. and the music of nature, naturally. Heh heh.

Eh. I’ll stop before I go on and on about favorite artists. Enjoy looking at Fiona and Drew.

I’m fine. Just musing. Long weekend.

Not a Good Deja Vu

Once upon a time I was in charge of a large flock of chickens that the owners were no longer interested in taking care of. Their coop had a door, but an animal had broken the screening. Let’s just say soon I had a small flock of chickens. Then I had one. Big Red hung on for a few more years.

I got a much sturdier coop and kept a few more chickens. I was down to six most of this year, then something got Bertie Lee. Then Blondie.

When I had seven. We lost the gray one last year.

Last night something got almost everyone else by coming in through their door and getting them while roosting. My fault. The hens liked to free range so I didn’t lock the door to their run. If the dang bobcat wanted them so bad, why didn’t he take them? Or maybe it was a raccoon. Or any other of the many predators we have.

I’ll really miss Buttercup. She and Bertie Lee were the friendliest ones I ever had.

I’m glad we didn’t have an attack like this for four years! But today was bad and made me cry. I’d had these hens a long time. But one is here still, poor Bianca, who can’t take the heat. It’s hard to be a lone chicken like Big Red was. She bonded with Sara’s horses. Either Bianca will do that or the predator will come back.

Circle of life. Blah blah.

If I get more chickens it will be in the fall, when it is cooler. In the meantime I’ll clean the henhouse out really well. Sigh. This past week has been rough.

At least the horses are okay. Apache seemed off yesterday but today he ate his food and took his meds like a champ. And Drew did all his exercises right, paying attention to me, his leader.

Thanks for being a good guy, Droodles. You were even good for your shot.

As icing on the cake, we are sleeping in the RV because our upstairs air conditioner has broken and won’t get fixed until Monday. Oh course, now is the time the bedroom slide decides to not extend so I can’t make the bed. Sigh again.

I’m doing a lot of deep breathing and trying to be kind to myself. I’d hoped to have lunch with friends today to cheer me up, but just one friend made it. I enjoyed a Negra Modelo in honor of Buttercup, Henley, and Billie Idyll and was consoled by Phyllis. I’m grateful to her and all my sympathetic Facebook buddies.

We can get through this stuff together (this means YOU, too, members of my household).

Messing with Plarn

Honestly, I’m not up to much writing or deep thinking right now. I’m not interested in discussing what’s going on with myself or in the world. So…let’s talk plarn.

I mentioned last week that my friend Steve’s cousin had made many balls of plarn, which is strips of plastic from those ubiquitous plastic shopping bags. The cousin had been very busy, and made them much more even and consistent than my early attempts. I brought them home and promised to make something to give to a charity. But first I had to experiment.

Actually, first I had to do my Independence Day nails.

I got caught up to today in the Temperature Blanket, so I played with the plarn this afternoon. I looked for patterns but mainly saw bags, baskets, and mats for unhoused people or however you say it.

My first test was crochet with a giant hook

Most patterns I saw were for crocheted projects. I tried to start the circular thing above but it didn’t look so great. I needed a slightly smaller huge hook, but who knows where that might be. So I gave up on crochet for today.

That seemed to be a religious fabric, because it was certainly holey. Ha ha, I mentioned religion. I am afraid my giant purple knitting needles were too big. I always have to go down a couple of sizes.

This sample was with 10.5 US needles. It looks at least somewhat solid. So I keeps going with this one, enjoying the slight color changes as she changed bags. every so often she threw in a colored bag. I’m glad I made a sample, because I can tell I got more smooth at knitting with the plarn as I went along.

I’m sure future projects will have smoother edges.

I found that edge pretty ugly, but I came up with a plan to pick up along the edges. That was fun. I think this project is a MAT. It will be built up log cabin style from here on.

Note how the ugly edge is gone. Heh heh.

Maybe it will be an item for dogs at the pound or something. It would be easy to clean…

It’s hard to come up with fun things to make, because you can’t make classics like hit pads, place mats, etc. it would melt. I’ll be honest. I don’t know how practical plarn items will actually be.

Comments?

Too Much Adulting

I thought way too much about adult topics like real estate, bills, car maintenance, and such. Then I started watching two old men call each other liars with no way to verify who’s telling the truth (US Presidential Debate).

I’m done. Just done. Back to concentrating very hard on the beauty of the world around me and the goodness that’s everywhere.

Like this! Whoever thought they’d see a Great Blue Heron at the top of an electric pole!

For example, we got help with a broken air conditioning unit so fast it made my head spin. I’m ever so grateful to have caring people in my life. That’s a good part of adulting.

Halfway through the year. It’s getting hot, but still no 100° days yet.

I leave you with bunnies. I saw at least three today, but I think these photos are the same one, morning and afternoon.

Most Delicious?

What’s the most delicious thing you’ve ever eaten?

It’s funny. I have a very good memory for taste. I can remember things I ate years ago, like Judy’s squash soup served in a squash on Thanksgiving in the early 1980s.

Closest I have to a photo of squash soup on my phone

I remember the oyster sampler I had in Seattle with Melissa and Chriztine. Each oyster tasted so different.

This is actually a photo of the dish I am referring to! I found it!

Right up there among my favorites was my first boudin, spicy and freshly made in rural Cajun Louisiana. I ate so much I had no appetite for Christmas dinner.

Boudin from around here. Also delicious.

One year I made the perfect oyster cornbread dressing at Thanksgiving. So much flavor and seasoning. I also made a mushroom and rice dish with five kinds of mushrooms, butter, and garlic for my kids and me soon after their dad left. I think part of the thrill was just making whatever the heck we wanted.

No idea if these are edible, but it’s a little of mushrooms

I get the idea that umami is my favorite flavor! Also, I am fond of oysters, because my mother’s oyster stew (with fresh oysters and cream) also floated up in my taste memories.

The aftermath of me eating dozens of cluster oysters on Hilton Head island.

There have been some amazing meals in recent years, both home cooking and restaurant food. But all I can dredge up is things I ate long ago, so I am going to declare the most delicious thing I ever ate to be the coffee ice cream my boyfriend, roommate, and I made a small batch of in the trailer house in Gainesville. It was so much trouble to make that we never repeated it. But I still remember the intense coffee and cream flavor.

Some of us don’t get to have coffee. Poor Anita. I can’t believe I gave her that mug in 2017. Wow.

Ahhh.

Silly Costume Question

If you were forced to wear one outfit over and over again, what would it be?

I’m tired from four hours in today’s heat, so I hadn’t planned to blog. However, I can handle this question and want to know your answers, too. Here’s what I could wear every day:

No, my Bitmoji avatar doesn’t look much like me. But it has a red t-shirt, blue jeans, and red shoes, probably in my old age I should trade the cowboy boots for Skechers slip ons. I would accessorize with turquoise jewelry. Under it would be my extra comfy MeUndies bra-like thing and matching soft, practical undies, tie dye print. I’d be fine.

My shadow would look just like this, other than the bare foot.

What would you wear?

Otherwise I had a good day of work and helpful horse lessons. Apache is doing so well and is really becoming Mr. Reliable. Drew was a bit sore and jumpy. He got so sweaty he looked black.

Here he is indicating his opinion of moving left correctly.

I did get a few nice photos of the horses today. My favorite is Dusty and Mabel enjoying a drink together.

And here’s the whole herd wishing you the peace and abundance they have, mostly.

Spiritual Is a Loaded Word – I Stick with Love

How important is spirituality in your life?

It’s pretty common to hear people say, “I’m not religious, but I’m spiritual.” I don’t think it’s a way to avoid the hard stuff, or a convenient cop out. It’s true for many of us ruminating, pondering types who just don’t like rigid rules.

Eryngo (*Eryngium hookeri*) showed up here! I didn’t know it was native.

Organized religion is not my idea of a spirituality nurturing institution, probably because they’re institutions more than pathways to spiritual growth. Any group that thinks it has all the answers turns out not to have them.

Also new in the fields is Soft Goldaster (*Bradburia pilosa*)

So, I draw my spirituality from the life spirit around me, in the rocks, trees, wind, animals, and ineffable sparks of realities just beyond my perception. You know, like viruses used to be for humans. A tradition I once followed mentioned an interconnected web of life. My spiritual practice honors that.

Yes, I’m connected to the Prairie Boopie

I also try to express my connections to all around me in how I live my life. I get most of my ideas from teachers like the Buddha, Jesus, and Starhawk, but I’ve received guidance from many other teachers, some of whom didn’t end up with a religion purporting to represent them. Pay attention and you’ll find the wisdom to lead you to peace and clarity in all sorts of unexpected places from surprising messengers. Some may be horses or dogs.

Speaking of them, I do find that the presence of my animal companions fills a void I experience in even wonderful periods of travel. I’m so glad to be back to feel Goldie’s giant, rough paw on my face or Mabel’s warm, curious breath from so much higher than Dusty’s even-tempered nudges.

Home is where you ground yourself, and I have finally reached a point where the Hermits’ Rest centers me almost as much as my hometown in Florida did. My spiritual center needs that grounding. I spent half my life without it! It’s good to have a home again. Yes. Now my love for all existence can grow and be shared freely.

Scruffy but lovable house. The land is home!

Right now the ranch has been taken over by cicadas. I’m glad we only got one eruption here and that they won’t be here too long. Maybe I managed to miss two weeks of them by leaving! I can barely hear birds!

On the other hand, it’s easy to meditate around them. It’s like singing bowls, only more grating.

Self Care Begins at Home

How do you practice self-care?

Oh, there’s so much I do to maintain my tranquility. Daily meditation, yoga/stretches, my antidepressant, hanging out with horses, sleeping enough, and plenty of exercise, outdoors. With nature.

Happily, we made it home today, so I can get back to my usual routine. I did plenty of self care when we were traveling, though, including connecting with friends. We got to see my friend Steve again before we left, so I could get a picture.

I also needed to pick up two bags of plarn, yarn made from plastic bags. I sure hope I can make his cousin proud by making something for a charity out of it. I happen to know the stuff is hard to knit and crochet with. Maybe I’ll weave it? We will see.

It was great to get back to central Texas. It’s so green here (thanks to rain), and it’s nice to see creeks and ponds with water in them. I used to make fun of one of my professors who said he was moved emotionally when he first saw corn upon returning to Illinois. Well, I was moved to see my first corn growing in Texas. I should apologize to Jerry, ha ha.

It was good to pet all the the dogs and hug the heck out of Apache. Even Buttercup the chicken was glad to see me.

I was too busy hugging or petting the rest of the animals to get photos.

I’m remembering that my self care is mostly internal, but the little physical things you do for yourself matter a lot. Hmm. It may be time to take a dip in the pool, one of the best self-care things I do.

Chocolate Bars – Really?

Describe your dream chocolate bar.

Who thought of this question? But since I’m tired I’ll answer it.

My dream chocolate bar has milk chocolate, thick, covering it. The interior is a Dulce de leche caramel. Around that is cashews and juicy raisins. The end.

In real life, I love the salted caramel Milky Way.

Other than that, life is good. We celebrated my son’s birthday from last week at our usual Mexican restaurant and it was a lovely evening. It’s so amazing to see us all doing well and happy with our lives.

Life is good, at least at the Hermits’ Rest.

New Grass Is Delightful

It was a fun day for both Lee and our equine buddies. Lee got to shred (that means mow using a shredder pulled behind a tractor) the two pastures the horses haven’t been on, since the grass has seeded.

Ready to shred (no, the hay forks have nothing to do with shredding)

It was time for the horses and Fiona to switch pastures anyway, and I wanted the extra annoying giant cockleburs mowed down before they made seeds this year. I’ve learned a lesson with them! Lee loves to shred, so once he got help attaching the shredder, off he went.

To get there, I had to open the gate, do of course everyone went out to see their old pasture with new grass in it.

Where the round bales had been, lots and lots of Johnson grass had grown up (indicating that was not the greatest hay). It was taller than Dusty!

Dusty demonstrates the height of Johnson grass. Note that all horses look fat.

Everyone started to go to town on that dang grass, but I knew it wouldn’t be there long enough to hurt anyone, because Lee was shredding away.

He says at first, every time he went by the horses they’d run around and kick up their heels. By the fourth time he had to encourage them to move. Typical!

It’s funny but after the initial thrill of seeing their hill and the hay bale locations, they went back to normal. By feeding time they were all in their pens looking for their feed and supplements.

Vlassic says he also appreciates regular meals.

Other than that, today’s excitement included seeing a bobcat cross the road right in front of me (my son saw it in the same spot last week, holding a rabbit), watching barn swallow fledglings on their first flights, and being visited by some purple martins while we were sitting by our pool. Their song is so lovely—I can see why my friend Donna loves them so much.