Kindred Spirits

I have always loved reading and from way back had my favorites that I would re-read often. One of those in my adolescence was Anne of Green Gables. I was thinking about that awkward and sometimes ill-fated young girl recently. There are some beautiful lessons in that book that very possibly helped to shape my own views of the world -- including a feeling of optimism in times of difficulty. Though my concepts of a pre- or post-existence to this world are scant, I love her belief in "kindred spirits", people with whom you have an instant connection as if you've know them all your life -- or perhaps in another life. I feel sure there are kindred spirits in my life -- people whom I trust easily, with whom I share unspoken understanding, who give just the right amount of love and comfort when needed without coddling. Some of these kindred spirits go way back. Like my dear friend Celia, whom I've known for over 50 years. Some of these kindred spirits drift into our lives only briefly and drift out again.

I enjoy and appreciate all kinds of people and have very few personal conflicts with individuals. But I am well aware that once in awhile you meet a person who resonates with you somehow, and you feel a certain non-physical (so, therefore, spiritual?) connection with that person.

I read that women are sensitive to the subtle energies emanated by other people simply due to the fact that our bodies are so closely tied to the rhythms of the earth, the tides, the moon, making us more receptive to such energies. Maybe so, I don't know. I only know I have a sense sometimes of something more when I meet someone, and I go back to that kindred spirit idea. I am lucky to have such kindred spirits around me. They lend me strength and courage, comfort and kindness, and a feeliing of never being of alone.

Monday Morning

Well, I managed to finished planting all the bulbs after all. Things are nearly ready for winter now and I can start focusing on indoor projects. Spent a really lovely afternoon yesterday. Old friend, Pat and her husband, Mark, had an elegant wine and cheese at their beautiful home. It was relaxing and nice to have a chance to visit at length with new and old friends.

My body is still on daylight savings time. Just couldn't stay awake after 9 p.m., but woke up much too early. Played some guitar just for fun, and then played piano and finally felt like sleeping again.

I'll be working in the office this week. I have major problems with the new computer and it may require a total reformat of the hard drive. Ugh. Luckily I have everything backed up. Not so sure I'm liking Vista after all.

A near perfect Saturday

Well, after planting exactly 113 bulbs, I picked up ReNae for lunch. As we drove down the hill, a four-point buck crossed in front of us. We stopped and watched him until he wandered out of our view. We had a great lunch at Barbacoa and walked around the 9th and 9th neighborhood before heading home. THEN, I did something I've been wanting to do for a long time. I bought a beautiful, new acoustic guitar from Acoustic Music in Salt Lake. What a great shop and what a wonderful guitar is it. Then I visited the game store and picked up some games I've been wanting. Squeezed in some time to drop off at DI some clothes that are now two and three sizes too large. Recycled the newspapers. Then came home and played my guitar for an hour. My fingertips are numb, but what a pleasure. I was thinking of planting the remaining bulbs before sundown, but it's been a full day. Let's save something for tomorrow. I still have my walk ahead of me.

And could this weather be any better for a day in November?!

Planting Bulbs, Having Hope

Is there anything more hopeful that planting dry little orbs in the cold ground, expecting something really lovely to come of it months later? Today I will put 150 of the little things in the ground - oh, why did I buy so many?! Some new varieties I've never planted before. I remember the lovely color early this spring - until the deer enjoyed them too. So in hopes of a bright, cheerful spring, I'm putting these in the ground now. Spring is a long ways off. We will have winter and snow first--cold, holidays, shoveling the walks, warm firesides, friends and family close by. Life cycles on.

This morning listening to 50's oldies on Sirius radio on TV (sometimes listening is better that watching actual programs). They're playing such good tunes this morning, it's going to be hard to tear myself away and go outside. But those bulbs are not going to get themselves into the ground. Ah.

Update: 10:30 a.m. Finished 100 bulbs. Will save the rest for tomorrow. Heading out now for a little weekend fun.

Good-bye to my friend

Just when you start to feel a little steadier on your feet, life gives you a shove. It was fun having someone special in my life again after years of a truly terrible ordeal. But it wasn't meant to last, or it would have - lasted, that is. That's not to say I don't feel sad to see it end. But I'm smart enough to know that it was a rebound for both of us and there was not enough substance to sustain us. So I'm being pragmatic. But I'll go a little slower the next time around.

There ain't no good guys. There ain't no bad guys. There's only you and me, and we just disagree.

When the truth is found to be lies

Why do people lie when the truth serves just as well? For some reason I never stop believing people are basically honest -- and then some people continue proving me wrong.

I'm assuming the divorce will, at last, be final this week. The delay has been ridiculous. But this week has been the end of a chapter in many ways. I finally met my ex's new love and we had a long conversation. I actually like this person in spite of myself. Not that I want to interact socially. And clearly my help is still needed to help my ex get back on track. I find myself in a strange situation even more so than in the past. But I will help.

I've neglected the yard too long, and I will return to that place of comfort this week and get it ready for winter.

The Beatles "Love"

Ron gave me a CD, The Beatles "Love". He knows I love the Beatles, but neither of us knew the background of the CD. So I listened and was completely enthralled. I immediately recognized it was some sort of remix of original recordings and not simply other recordings of the Fab Four songs. Ron had listened first and he commented to me how impressed he was with the "transitions". I thought he was mocking me for an earlier statement I had made wherein I had told him how songs in albums are arranged according to key transitions. But when I then listened, I realized what he meant. Perhaps the loveliest would be Gnik Nus moving into Something. Just try not to get goosebumps.

We went to Las Vegas for a conference last weekend where Ron had to give a presentation. Our stay was so short, there was no time for shows, but I saw that my Beatles album is a Cirque de Soleil show at the Mirage hotel. One day I will see that show, though at over $100 per seat, I'd better start saving now.

Ron left a huge collection of CDs for me to listen to, but I keep going back to Love. It is amazing to hear the mix of bass from one tune with the melody of another -- so apparent to a fan like me who has dissected the Beatles' music and listens to all the individual instruments and voices. It starts out with Because in simple a cappella, showcasing the perfect pitch and harmony of the group. It continues from one tune to the next, with variations not only in the mix of two or more tunes, but adding pauses, or bringing up the volume to accentuate a certain part more.

I finally read the booklet that accompanied the album and learned the idea was conceived by George Harrison and his friend, Guy Laliberte, the founder of Cirque de Soleil and fellow racing fan with George. They selected former Beatles arranger George Martin to produce the music. He brought on board his son, Giles Martin. Apple decided from the start that the music would be only from original recordings. The one exception ended up being an arrangement for strings by George Martin for Harrison's While My Guitar Gently Weeps. And it is truly special, I miss George when I hear it.

The album was finished first and then the Cirque de Soleil acts were developed around it. It is a work of genius, taking those wonderful old Beatles songs and weaving something totally new, fresh and intriguing,

Checking In

Busy is not the word for it. Between family events, work, the yard, and my new favorite friend, I've had no time for blogging. Right now I just want to get the yard ready for winter. I'm getting ready to tackle some indoor projects, but must finish up outside first. Still planting, hope to get more bulbs in in the coming weeks. Still waiting for the leaves to drop. I'll be back.

Hurry - these won't last long

I made a trip to Cache Valley via the ever lovely Sardine Canyon on Saturday. At around 8:30 a.m. the canyon was so breathtakingly lovely, I could scarcely keep my eyes on the road. The mountainsides are literally awash in autumn colors.

This was before all the rain, and I don't know what effect that may have had now, but if you want a real autumn treat, take a little drive to Cache Valley. If you're smarter than I, you'll take a camera.

Thyme Marches On

Stumbled across a sale of perennials, 3 plants (gallon-size) for $10. I picked up eight woolley thyme and one pink chintz thyme (I think). The pots were so full, they were easily divided into three plugs each. That's 30 starts for $30- excellent! I managed to place them all between my checkerboard-arranged patio tiles that cover part of my back yard. They will do fine there and will fill the blank spots between the tiles. I already have pink chintz elsewhere and just one year of growth can fill each spot. Perhaps eventually I'll remove the tiles and have a complete lawn of thyme, soft lush, low water required, and no mowing. We'll see. For now I'm happy just to have them in the ground.

Working From Home: Part Deux

I like this so far. People are keeping in touch just fine. I am getting a lot done. I am handling rush jobs okay. When I stopped for lunch around 12:30, I walked by my patio doors, and there was a doe just five feet away. She walked down the hill by my deck where she joined the other doe and two fawns eating apples that had fallen from the tree. Working is about working, I know. But it's so much more pleasant when you can enjoy a lovely interlude with wildlife visitors. I will keep the camera handy for future visits. These four are regulars now.

Snow Flower and the Secret Fan

Title: Snow Flower and the Secret Fan
Author: Lisa See
Rating: *****

This author was recommended to me by two friends -- sisters and avid readers. It seems they actually liked another of the author's books even better, but this is the one I happened to pick up first.

The story itself is intriguing and entertaining indeed, as well as terribly tragic and sad. But I found the back story about the ancient Chinese practice of foot-binding to be fascinating. The story was told from the viewpoint of Chinese women who embraced the concept that their beauty and desireability to a man depended on the successful creation of "golden lilies" feet. The process was described in painful detail.

"As the eldest,I went first, and I was determined to show how brave I could be. Mama washed my feet and rubbed them with alum, to contract the tissue and limit the inevitable secretions of blood and pus. She cut my toenails as short as possible. During this time, my bandages were soaked so that when they dried on my skin, they would tighten even more. Next, Mama took one end of a bandage, placed it on my instep,then pulled it over my four smallest toes to begin the process of rolling them underneath my foot. From here she wrapped the bandage back around my heel. Another loop around the ankle helped to seure and stabilize the first two loops. The idea was to get my toes and heel to meet, creating the cleft, but leaving my big toe to walk on. Mama repeated these steps until the entire bandage was used. Aunt and Grandmother looked over her shoulder the entire time, making sure no wrinkles saw their way into those loops. Finally, Mama sewed the end tightly shut so the bindings would not loosen and I would not be able to work my foot free . . . by now growing daggers of pain were shooting from our feet up our legs."

This takes place when a girl is just six or seven years old. Bones are broken repeatedly and the bindings are adjusted to create the perfect lilies. The story goes on to describe life for the cultured Chinese women, doing embroidery confined most of the time to an upper room, having a husband selected for them, with very limited walking as a result of the foot deformities--and the sometimes tragic results of this practice. Apparently, Chinese men found especially erotic the cleft in the foot formed by the toes being bent back to meet the heel.

Lisa See weaves an entrancing story, beautifully written, with wonderful characters and scenes from Chinese history. Her book is well researched and is said to be quite accurate historically, though the characters themselves are fictional.

Just after I read this book, someone forwarded pictures to me that could very well have been the main character in the book in her later years. I don't know where the pictures are from or who to credit for them, but they speak for themselves.

Teleworking

As of today, I'm working from home full-time. A sudden and stunning development. But we are just out of space at the office and teleworking is a good option for some. Writers can certainly work just as well from home. Might get a little lonely, but I do like the environment. And we are connected electronically all day. And just think: no commute, no gas, no driving in snow, no lunch expense, no dress code -- today I worked in shorts and a t-shirt. I still have a small cube for when I need to be in the office for a meeting, etc., but small is fine with me. No problem. This will be a major change. May take a little getting used to.

Labor Day

It's the end of summer, time to get the yard ready for winter. Today we drove out to Farmington Bay and watched birds for awhile. Still too early for migrating flocks, but we saw a fabulous great blue heron, pelicans, Canada geese, a white-faced ibis, and a small bird we have tentatively identified as a grebe. The wetlands are peaceful. Hot today, but still so nice walking along the water's edge with someone special.

It's the end of some things and the start of some other things. The future is as uncertain as ever, but the present is lovely and it's enough.

It has taken five games, but I finally beat him at Scrabble. I think he let me win.