There Will Be Cucumbers

The first baby cuke and many many flowers. Woooot!! Also the first Artichoke from the new plants. Freakin' adorable.

Endorphins

Another brilliant day. All over the U-District on Lorca (that is my sweet bike's new name) doing errands, having mid-day meal at Chaco Canyon and just exploring. Wonderful, wonderful. In the middle of it all I stopped at the tattoo shop and made my body a canvas, once again. Hans, my artist, is adorable, and in my somewhat endorphined state I got a bit of a crush on him. I think it was mutual.

There were going to be more words but this place over my heart is not that big. So we had to re-think it and get more concise. I like this and it feels indescribably healing. 

The Trickster is one of my favorite mythologies/archetypes. I hold it dear to me along with Raven, Crow, and the Sacred Fool. The aspect of teacher by trick is pretty often my M.O. It's not a particularly easy way, but it's mine and seems to work fairly well. This time I'm taught to slow down, trust my Self,  listen to my heart, remember that Connection and Vulnerability are soul mates, and that the realm of the soul is rarely tidy. It's messy and not always polite, correct, or aware. And so it goes. We'll see what happens next!

Restraining Order

It's now seriously on my bucket list to order one of these drinks!!

I love Roxie's. There is a huge painting on the wall of Jewish cowboys herding cattle. The painting has a frame around it, painted, that looks like wood but it's not. Hanging from the "wood" is a pendant of a Jewish star. Wonderful!!! Now I have to go look up Jewish cowboys because I've been watching Deadwood and there is a Jew, Sol (pronounced Saul), that I adore. He's like an angel in a sea of humans only he's human too.

Oh, and I don't think that I've ever mentioned it here but I am Jewish too. I didn't find out about this until my cousin Gloria spilled the beans when I was twenty something (pretty sure even though I'm messed up with my chronological history) I grew up Catholic, my father was Jewish but he converted to Catholicism because my mom didn't know that SHE was Jewish until we found out that my great grandmother changed her name and pretty shamefully, but successfully, assimilated. At this point in my life I'm more of a born again Pagan/Sufi/Traveler which suits me just fine and I like I chose it myself. One of the best things is I don't have to go to mass every Easter or do Novenas on certain Tuesdays to guarantee that I'll not wind up in Hell. Something like that. However, there was something strangely ethereal, and almost erotic, about the things my body felt when they walked around the church with those big containers of smoking incense on a chain.  Was it the fasting? Who knows?

Sunflower Love

Here she is on a much more vibrant day bringing out the depth of the light she gathered from the sun and rain.

15 Miles

In a few minutes I am on my way to get into a hot tub for as long as it stays hot. Me and _____________ (she has yet to be named) went 15 miles today and I'm am deliriously happy and exhausted. We rode about 10 miles and came home. Then... I had the crazy idea of trying out the route to work. Oh lordy. I didn't make it up some of the hills but soon I will and on the way back, I got lost so we went who knows how much longer. It didn't matter. It was all worth it.

Sitting in front of the fan, cooling myself off, I had this satori about pain and how it would have been impossible for me to do this ride last year or have the vision of getting up the hills that I couldn't do today and feel happy, excited, and confident. Made me cry tears of joy as well as some sadness because I also realized the pain that physical pain causes. Emotional, spiritual, and all the rest. Excruciating for the ones with the pain and difficult for those close to them. My own personal teaching from this, my hope, is that I hold this awareness and always remain compassionate and non-judgmental. 

Today is a day that makes gratitude come easily! 

Just Purely Powerful

She Emerges

The sun was setting and I walked down to water the garden. What a transformation to the bud on the Sunflower. She's so elegant. Tomorrow when there is more light I'll photograph her again. She was turned away from the setting sun. Maybe she was ready to sleep. Wow. I'm amazed.

Glorious Day

In the past, the hottest days have just been draining. Beautiful but able to suck the life out of me. Today was different. Such an exquisite breeze off the canal and walking from the Studio to PCC to meet a friend was a delight. The friend was also delightful.

As supreme luck would have it, I got a call from the bike store and my beauty was ready so after lunch I went and picked her up and we went on a couple of little adventures into the U District. This, of course, was after a few trials and errors in gear but such is life and it seemed perfect for the day.

Also decided to re-create the tattoo engraved over my heart into it's evolved meaningfullness. (the computer says that's not a word but I'm not buying it) and with this edition comes a deeper gratitude for all the moments of my life. All of them. Thank you all for your blessings.