Earth Day After

Suddenly I open up.
Everything settles down,
This blade of grass I call myself
Roots in the sounds
Honking geese, silence
Ticking clock
Incense smoke
Fading light
Wonderfully full.
I am a blade of grass,
Rooted here tonight
Grounded in these moments
Of wild bird flight.
It's here I claim my origin
And like a blade of grass
I bend and twist and live and die
In all that rushes past
Sun, stars
Pleasure, pain
Darkness, light
And on it goes with all of life.

Hetty Baiz

Wordless Wednesday

Make Art Not War

Here is another of my son's girlfriend's paintings. It's called "Something Amiss'.

Somethin' Real, Somethin' To Feel

Another one by my wonder-son's talented girlfriend

Another art-enhanced post seemed like the way to go today. Did anyone else see Neil Young play an all-out crazy version of 'A Day in the Life' on Farm Aid yesterday? Holy Toledo!

Just attempting to hold on, and make it to November 4th. My inner foolish optimist says that the result of that election will propel (many of) us into an extended period of public celebration and general shenanigans. I struggle with this sort of naivety from time-to-time. Hey, it beats dwelling on the stark reality of the vastly misinformed voter. That is crazy-making.

'I'm beggin' please darlin' put my mind at rest'...

Patriarch Pointing

Christmas Eve, 2007. My dad, pointing. Not sure why. (Maybe some wine instructions?) I covet the painting behind him. Always have. It's been in our family for decades. I think it's somewhere in the Tehachapi Mountains. We all had good fun. A bit subdued this year. Go figure. Being around my children made my holiday happy indeed.


For the first time ever, not a single gift was unwrapped. My father talked with us all beforehand about celebrating without the usual gift-frenzy this year. It felt so right. Not Christmas shopping was refreshing. A first. Family members exchanged cards and pleasantries. The children/grand children's cards contained money and/or gift cards. There was much more time to talk, laugh, and be together. Something that rarely occurs. Since my dad declared that cards were o.k., my silly man thought it might be funny to give each family member a deck of playing cards. We did. (I guess we did shop for those.) He has a strange sense of humor, which is only one of hundreds of reasons I love him. We supplied dessert again this year. He made the apple pies with our own Granny Smith apples. I made: fudge with and without pecans, gingerbread, sugar cookies-decorated-by-younger-daughter, and shortbread cookies with pine nuts, our own fresh rosemary, and Meyer Lemon zest. Never made the rum balls, but maybe they'll be New Year's rum balls. I am enjoying my holiday time-off immensely. No work until the 3rd of January. No school until the 7th. If I can only manage to NOT look at too much bad news, this break may provide a much-needed vacation for my raw psyche. More hot baths, less news. That's the way. Uh-huh.


Meanwhile, back at the Crawford Ranch...
Bush Signs $555 Billion Spending Bill I read a comment today about this latest expenditure. It stated that Bush must be held accountable, as should anyone who cast a vote in his favor.

Peter Max 2007

Here is a close-up of the banner on stage, taken by my Aiko brother's wonder-son. The performer is Essra Mohawk, who had the good fortune to play music with Frank Zappa and the Mothers of Invention in the late 1960's.

Deep Purple

6/27/07

(Near the) DeYoung Museum

Golden Gate Park

Photo: J.R.


"We do not have to visit a madhouse to find disordered minds; our planet is the mental institution of the universe."
Goethe

Ice Ice Baby

Diamond Encrusted Skull
N.Y.T. article on Damien Hirst's latest creation.

I'm not a diamond-kind-of-gal. The only one I've ever owned was from my second husband. Ironically, it fell out of it's setting one day, when our union was in it's downward spiral to the hellish depths. (Never to be found.) I wear my maternal great-grandmother's garnet engagement ring on my left hand. It's well-over a hundred years old. I do not wear a wedding ring.

Mr. Cozy and I have lived in non-wedded bliss for about eight years now. He's never married anyone. I tried it twice, and failed miserably. We have no intention of procreating, and we're not religious in any way, so it's really nice just like this. Maybe if we have a big pile of money sitting around some day, we will throw a gargantuan party and get married. Without the diamonds.


What are your thoughts on marriage?

Escapism

This was taken from our hotel room on the 12th floor, at about 8 p.m. A massive group of bicyclists went by. We guessed there were about 500-1000 on racing bikes. I was imagining it had something to do with Tour of California, but am not certain of that. It looks like the riders would have been closer to Southern California on that date.

Though you can't see the actual cyclists, they're those swirly, colorful neon things in the photo. Youngest daughter took it. That's a pool, about six floors below us. A bit chilly for an outdoor swim. We did see one pair of kids jump in and right back out.

My long and lean son checks out the art. Those are 78 records with mannequin's hands.


Older daughter* and a painting by Charles Demuth.

(Yes, Z... I did note the match in this color scheme, and it makes complete sense
that you did too!)



"Penelope" in buttery-looking marble. My bro is snapping his own photos, to the right. Older daughter in the background.




The girls and I left town on Friday, for a quick visit to San Francisco. It felt excellent, escaping.
We patronized the Holiday Inn on Van Ness Avenue, and played tourist. Something about my hometown always soothes me, despite it's frenetic pace.

On Saturday, we picked up my son at his place. It felt so damn good to see his face again. The four of us then headed over to my Aiko Bro's apartment, and we spent a few hours at the
de Young Museum. Older daughter and I had visited previously, but younger daughter and the son hadn't seen it yet. My dear brother is a museum member, so he has been there many times, and is the best tour guide ever. It was a splendid afternoon.

Afterwards, we stopped and picked up french bread, salami, smoked turkey, assorted cheeses, olives, and fruit, to take back to bro's house. This made for a delicious late lunch, and the adults shared a bottle of bubbly. Both my bro and his sweetheart were gracious hosts, like they always are. I love them more than words can tell.

After our luncheon and visit we took my son back to his apartment. The girls and I then headed north across the Golden Gate Bridge, toward home. The break was just what we needed, and the man was glad to welcome us all home. He gets lonesome, especially without his feline pal.


More pictures forthcoming, when my brother-friend sends some. His camera's quality far exceeds mine, and he got some great shots of all three of my children and the art.
In other news, Obama had a great turnout at a rally in Austin the other day. And shrub is still the president.

Friday At Ocii

This is the poster for tonight's performance in Amsterdam, at Ocii.

(Nostalgic, yes?)

You can check out this venue and what goes on there by clicking here.