Sunday was one of those days I needed to be in Nature. I went for a hike in our backwoods. Not having had rain for quite awhile, I wanted to see if any wildflowers had bloomed yet. Natural sculpture. Wonderful, inspirational shapes. At first, I had to look hard among the leaves and pine needles for hints of green. Gradually, I began to see buds and then bloomed flowers. Spring is emerging! Further up the trail, I hiked a little cross-county, and came upon a different find. Decided not to stay too long here... Even the decaying plants are beautiful. And the lichen. On the way back down, I visited the "gnome tree." Imagination creates all kinds of stories about this tree. Nature always puts life in perspective for me. How fortunate I am to be able to hike like this in my own backyard! I came back with renewed energy and smiling spirit. The special smell of spring is in the air. And rain is coming, which means mushrooms for dyeing, and more wildflowers. I'll be back up soon...
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While perhaps not an obsession, weaving has certainly taken hold of my life and time. I partially blame Craigslist, though I suppose I could resist checking it online every weekend... It so happens that my son, Josh, lives in a treasure-trove-of-fiber- tools region, and was willing to pick up yet another loom for me. We went hiking in our back woods to celebrate. Had to make it up to the manzanita grove, sit and listen to the wind and birds. As for weaving, I had to just admire the new loom for awhile, let it settle into it's place in my studio, and also finish a scarf on my table loom. Two weeks later and I've finally got the new (to me) Schacht Baby Wolf loom dressed for making a scarf. I'll be able to do much larger projects, but I wanted to start with something simple. So much fun! And I really do think I'm done buying fiber tools for awhile... Josh will be grateful. This is Zeke, a ram we've been trying to find a home for, exhibiting his ego. Aren't his horns marvelous? That is, until yesterday... I had thought that bad ram behavior was done for the year, but I guess I'm learning that testosterone never quits. I didn't see the head butt, but I imagine it was with Sherpa, as he had a bit of blood on his horns, too. Most people think the horns are either solid or hollow, but they are keratin covering live bone, which is fed by blood. Zeke is recovering quite well; the wound is healing fine, but he'll never have that beautiful, symmetrical, bighorn sheep look again :( This is a wildlife critter we hadn't yet seen here. Look closely, through my dirty window. Amazing how all cats look and behave alike. This bobcat is watching squirrels intently. I'd love to have her be a permanent resident near my dye garden! Moved quietly outside and tried to get a picture of her, but she decided I wasn't worthy, and moved on to better hunting grounds. |
sheep thrills
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