my day at the market

my day at the market in the glorious rain
wind
and spatterings/smatterings of sun the slid in
quite noticed and welcome

birthday celebrations for sis and I have already begun
and this market visit was just part
of the plans
set in motion
fun

get a little flustered in the gut when i eat this favorite fall meal treat
all the more reason to laugh at the gila monster
he speaks my brussel sprout truth
ouch!
i willingly endure pain for the privilege of eating these mothers

a rose by any other name, except when grown in a cabbage patch
but still beautiful in a bouquet
and quietly residing in my bedroom now
festooning a dresser
and reminding me of birthday wishes
given by sis

message for the blogosphere:
someone comes swiftly, head the change of wind and the plowing through old ways to new destinations. not a time for relying on staid and true methods - creative new winds are in gale force, and you'd best hold on for the ride commences... now

meandering back into the room

i wandered off and left for awhile
i don't like showing up without direction
just because
those days should be over at this stage of my life
should be

full into fall
sometimes blustery, leaf ridden days of cool
or sunshine forced through layers of reds and golds
welcomed with ease and the barest bit of surprise
and a sense of reprieve

this is my and my sister's birth month
don't hold our sultry and deep Scorpio side against us
we're just loyal to a fault
and acerbic in tongue when on the wrong side of the bed
or issue
sensuous and sometimes serious
but way fun

the scarf slash stole is handknit by big sis me, for my little sis for her day of birth
sweet remembrances
and the bench
is where i have been mentally these days
reconsidering life
my craft (s)
and wondering what it all means
to be
me

love reading what my longtime friend and astrologer, Molly Hall has to say
and the great link to author Elizabeth Gilbert, author of "Eat,Drink Pray, Love" that really rocked my boat yesterday


If you wouldn't mind - can you tell me why you come to visit my blog? what is it that makes a trip here worthwhile for you? i have had creator's/bloggers block - and i would love to know what i might be bringing to the table
for all of you

i spy some more halloween pie

such a funfilled time of autumnal cool
and deep russet sighs
warming the kitchen and
stirring your internal pot

witchy warrior women
brew up trouble
and take to the skies

lattes come spiced
cinnamon, cardamon and nutmeg
cling to the rim of porcelain
and lips

oh Great Pumpkin
rise
and bless the weary, wonderful
and eternally hopeful
send orange marmalade manna
and crisp crunch footfall
smooth over what the wind
has shaken loose and sometimes
broken

what i saw today

the colors are bursting all over
saturation of deep and vibrant tones
i look and fall in love with fall

just what did i "fall" into?

where do i go when it's fall and the skies never dry?
hibernation with a pair of knitting needles
and a slew of good movies
stir in a good book or two
chased down with a cup of hot tea
heaven on earth

doing stuff to pay the bills
making stuff to put under december's tree
writing a second blog about my town
can take a girl right away from the blog she loves best

wet woods
darker skies
shorter days
woollies and toes warmers
battling bugs that come back around and again
sending summer cottons scooting to the back of the clothing den

hooting owls
shot last winter
encased in hand painted frames
and knit i-cord and fallen twigs
i haven't been lazy, you see
just jumbled up in the changing of the season guard
confused by the fading sun
still reinventing my wheel
and, well, hibernating

Message to the Blogosphere:
what better time than now to perfect your craft, whatever that may be
enjoy the solace of your own endeavors. cobble together hours of elaborate, creative fun or just simply feed your mind with threads of thought that tug at your imagination and soul
sheesh - what are you waiting for? this hear is your invitation to explore

halloween can make you happy

here is my wee little holiday bag
that brings in the halloween cheer
and adds the right amount of dash
to every autumn outfit

here is the cupcake that i ate
it was a gift
fresh from the baker's hands
and went straight to my tummy
via the camera lens
and then, really, went straight into my tummy

a jack o'lantern toothy grin
for all who believe in the pumpkin patch
the tooth fairy
and a good sweet tooth
whose craving was blessedly filled
today

i'm a knit alien

i feel like an alien
lost slightly in a world that seems strangely familiar
but the road map went missing

i am good at blending in
everyone believes i belong
and that nothing is amiss
but i truly am green and gooey on the inside, where it counts

so if i seem a little aloof
take it as sign
that i am deep in thought
or just very confused

leaves flutter to the ground
and they have seen their cycle
met their purpose

winter winds herald hibernation and snow
the cover the creeps to still your mind
swallow the ground
slow things down

golden treasures
if only we knew where to dig

topsy turvey alien knitwit
bemused
bewildered
still

pumpkins and little knits

i have been away in my little hidey hole
most of the time, sleeping and mending
then
in front of the cable tv at me mum's
knitting like a mad woman, living on tea and movies
felt like college vacations all over again
minus the boy angst and bad hair choices

incredibly, this pumpkin patch is just in my little corner of life
gourds inscribed with the names of sweet children who live
a mere stone's throw away from this,
the neighborhood pumpkin patch

i am a handcrafter of gifts from way back
winter solstice and christmas
the theme of giving is so resonant with my heart
this little gansey inspired sweater with hat
will be squirreled away until December
for my wee niece of two years

i lived in San Francisco for a decade
and would gladly travel miles to see
the Great Pumpkin rise from the pumpkin patch
now i get to see the round, orange orbs daily
and smell the loamy earth beneath their vines
as they worm across the grounds
seeking sustenance


i am a little bit crazed with impatience
to create a gift for all the loved ones
in time for the holidays
so that i might not spend every night before christmas
laboring away like an elf on amphetamines

on the one hand
life is gloriously rich
full of treasures from my friend's "p" patch
the generous cooking we share with one another
my wealth of local camaraderie
and the art materials i still find in my closet

on the other
my fight for employment of the general persusasion
continues on like a droning voice of frustration
as i cobble together my pennies to make dollars
and my dollars to make sense of things


today, i bask in blue skies, crisp turned up collars
the return of knitwear to the dressing schematic
and the energy to walk a couple of miles
a fresh pot of soup on the range
and a renewed vigor in my step

hello all - i am back

fall has laid me low this day

"Tell me, what is it
you plan to do with
your one wild
and precious life?
A ship is safe in port
but that is not what
ships are for"

Mary Oliver

madly creative begs your indulgence - we are off sick, and will catch up more with you another fine day.

a world of plums

plum delicious
that's plumtastic
it's a plum job, and i don't mind saying so
plum, and ripe for the picking

my goodness, but don't you look plum rich
done with great aplum
plums and berries, nature's treasures

pounds and pounds of plumbs
i am slow roasting them in a 200 degree oven, cut in half, a quick breeze of butter on their backs for 4 hours in the oven
i am making orangette's plum crumble with hints of ginger (photo above - and serving it to me friends)
i am freezing them for days when i am plumless and pitiful
i am hoarding recipes, like this one at a new blog find, imby & itchy
still harvesting my lovely, free fruits and vegetable finds
for days when the sky is a little bleak
the harvest all gone
and i want a ray of summer fruit shine to light the day