new, new.

Life is chugging steadily along. I never cease to be amazed at how much goes on in this small little town. I've been here 12 days or so, and it seems like it's been months. Some highlights have been helping out with 2nd and 3rd grade girls basketball, singing at Open Mic and the town Variety Show, working on a new song, Bunco night with the ladies of Palouse, snowshoe adventures and my first moose sighting, Winter Olympics watching at the Tavern, and most recently farm sitting over the weekend. Mary and I were asked to feed some cows and stay at a farm nearby that has been in the family since the 1800's. It's funny to move into a small town where people have so much history and families go back for decades. And, it also feels like an honor to be accepted in by them all. It's incredible how many wonderful and interesting people I get to know by living here.

I continue to remain calm and collected during this transition, and I continue to remain surprised by that. I usually brace myself for at least a couple weeks of feeling crazy during the process of shifting. My brain almost feels like it went into some sort of shop and got patched up and fixed. I just feel a certain amount of steadiness and positive momentum that I haven't felt in a while. I'm trying to keep lots of projects on my palette, which is filling up pretty quickly. I've decided to turn the majority of my apartment into an installation. Why wait for gallery space when I've got plenty of empty white walls right here? Another project about to commence is a series of window installations beginning with my apartment and the thrift store, and eventually (hopefully) spreading down Main Street. Nik, Mary, and I are entering full swing on the publication we are putting together for Open Engagement, a conference we were accepted to be part of in May. So much to think about! No time for being sad anymore.

(couch donated by friends Nik and Jeanne. It belonged to Jeanne's Grandmother. She warned me that her Grandmother might move in with the couch....haven't seen her yet.)

(Beginnings of installation...)
(New favorite shoes)

(on the farm)
(borrowing the farmer's overalls)
(and the perfect portrait stump)

No Country for Old Typewriters

If karma can't arrange a meeting with Cormac, I'd at least like his typewriter.
,

grab your bag and grab your coat

After a long and stressful drive, we have landed in Palouse and are settling in. My car was on the verge of overheating for the entire trip, which was both a blessing and a curse. The blessing being that it kept me alert and able to drive 23 hours straight. Not planning to do that again anytime soon though.




So far, I have a strange calmness about being here, and I don't know if that is real or just me suppressing some other more anxious feelings. One of the best things about Palouse is that there is always something going on or something to take part in. Mary's friend Lisa is in town and she has been making a film during the 5 weeks she's been here. Waldo was lucky enough to play a small role wearing a white cape and running through the wintery wheat fields.

Detour

A few photos from my three hour detour yesterday. [Woodland Park -> Sedalia, via Deckers. Not exactly the quickest route, but not altogether out of the way either, you'll be glad to know].

It was long, but it reminded me how much I love the feeling of going.

2010 Begin Again

Well, hello Wonder Net, I've missed you. I don't know if there are any readers out there anymore...but you will serve as a means of communication between Claire and I yet again. I shouldn't have started this post right now, seeing as though it's late and I'm tired, but I had a hankering for a post. Current location: Flagstaff, AZ. Waldo, my mom, and I are down here for work/family visit. I'm making a painting for my aunt and uncle (photos upon completion), Waldo goes wherever I go, and my mom came to visit with family. Spending the early part of the week in Phoenix made me realize that someday, someday soon, I could be alright giving up winter. It's hard to beat leaves, green grass, and flowers in January.

More reflective writing to come, there is plenty of reflecting to do as I change directions and locations yet again. Waldo and I are Washington bound and we'll have landed in Palouse by the middle of next week (just in time for open mic!) One thing I know for sure already, is I feel like I can breathe again.

a new day, a new idea

Alright, let's be honest...Wonder Net has been less than enthralling lately. Most of the blame can likely be put on the fact that Claire and I are now room mates, and it feels sort of silly to be corresponding in the same fashion that we did when we were states away.

But don't fret, you one, two, maybe three? readers out there. We are not dropping out we are just changing things up. In the event of any sort of major cleaning or moving it's nearly impossible to avoid reading all the old journals and letters (boxes and boxes of letters) you come across in the process. Claire and I have both been doing a bit of that lately and have been surprised at our own thoughts which have been stashed away on paper. Sometimes we are surprised by the hilarity, sometimes we are surprised by a shocking bit of wisdom. So, from day to day we will be posting snippets from these findings.

I'll kick things of with something light-hearted from this past summer in Carbondale:

"At dinner, Scarlett holds a fetal barn swallow in her hand. Yesterday she pooped in the front yard. I rode Stitch bareback during early dusk, trotting through clover up to his belly. True joy. Waldo tags along, and Sopris smiles. These are my days in this place and this summer."

we should proably join the society

The other day I found myself with sometime to kill on the internet so I thought I would see what the latest is with old Cormac. Turns out there is an entire society.Not only can you learn so much about this beefcake from the website, but they even hold retreats dedicated to talking about him and his writing. Maybe we should split the dues and get in on that sh@*t.