Purling Oaks

Happy 4th!

I've been busy!  As one would hope......... since months have passed since my last blog post!  

In late May, I traveled to Eagleville, MO to celebrate the life of my Great-Aunt Madolyn Richardson Jones.  The Angeline carved in the granite pictured above was her grandmother and one of the women I'm named for.  I am happy I made the trip south and that I had the company of my cousin, Vicky, for the drive.  We had some great conversations.  The country was lovely and although we had a bit of rain, the weather was outstanding--especially for the service that took place on a hilltop in lush northern Missouri.  Aunt Madolyn was an inspiring woman who lived to the age of 98 and one-half years.  She was such a positve influence in our family and she was active her entire life until the last month or three.   I know she will continue to shape my life.  Reconnecting (and connecting) with family was marvelous despite the cause of the gathering.  Madolyn's daughter, Cathy, is a weaver and we shared some good times talking about weaving.

There's been some weaving!  The blue is a length of wool in plain weave that may become a garment (of some sort) some day.  It was the first project on the Norwood.  I do love to weave.  I just need to be faster at warping and more constant at being in the studio.

A second weaving!  A shawl in Cascade 220 that feels quite cushy, which was my goal.  There's more 220 where that came from, so don't be shocked to see another one.

I'm also taking an online tapestry course that I need to catch up with!  Weaving, weaving!

The cats are all fine and love to hang out with me when they're not chasing rodents or enjoying the sunshine.  Dan says they're all "mama babies" since I retired.  What can I say?  :D  

My collection of good recipes continues to expand, as has my waist.  Disappointing that last bit, but it can be addressed with some effort and movement - I hope.  I've learned that retirement is great but it didn't magically eliminate my stress-eating.  I imagine somebody could have told me that.  Ha.

Have a safe and relaxing holiday long-weekend.  I know I'll endeavor to do just that.

 

Getting the broom out and....

*Brushing away the blog cobwebs.....*

I've found that getting adjusted to a new travel schedule, setting up and moving to POE, and a seemingly heavier work schedule took some, well, adjusting.  More adjusting than I thought but after a few weeks the schedule has been smoothing out and the psychic adjustments that DH and I have had to make are also smoothing out.  We are continuing to make changes and find more time together, quality time.  Maybe more than before, which is nice.  We didn't know we were missing that.  Anyway, I thought I would check out the blog and show you a few things that are interesting at Purling Oaks Central this weekend.

Lamb's ear has spread around my garden.  I've been harsher with it this year to contain it but I still love it for the texture and color of the leaves and the pretty lavender flowers.  

Lime thyme is flowering....along with all the other thymes.  This one does have a citrus aroma, leaning toward lime, but I think the color of the leaves may have as much to do with the name of "lime" as the fragrance.

 The black raspberries are just beginning to ripen.  Fortunately for berry production, we've been getting rain.  As I type this it is raining---of course, I am also wondering what the rain will do to my flight schedule today.  No big worries though.  I'm reading Nora Roberts' Kindred in Death in paperback and have a book or two available on the iPad.  

Yes, iPad.  I gave in to my inner geek and bought one with 32 gig - wifi only.  I really like it and found that I don't miss having the 3GS service.  My back up plan, should I need constant wireless access, is to buy one of the wireless access points I can carry in my purse or pocket so it can be used for multiple devices.  I'm not at that point yet.  I like that the screen is large enough to actually *see* something and I can stream Netflix over the wireless at the apartment.  

Blue on the Rock on an early summer Wisconsin day:

 

Have a great Sunday and a very good week!

 

  

BigRock beauties

It is another beautiful morning at Purling Oaks--sunny but coolish with a light breeze. I find mornings like this very soothing but inspiring. They are a gift to enjoy in this moment and to remember when I'm in a less perfect time and place. I'm still recovering from the yuck, so this must be a "get well soon" moment from the powers that be.

There is a lot of blooming going on in the wilds of the BigRock garden. Here is a very interesting flowering bush/plant (?) that showed up this year. I enjoy the lemon-lime color of the foliage, which contrasts brightly with the darker greens of the other plants. This garden yields so many interesting flowers that I'm hesitant to try to bring it into some sort of order. Unfortunately, the beauty of indivdual plants is lost in the jungle of this garden patch. BigRock garden will have to be on my summer project list for when I'm working closer to home and have a tad more time for myself and my projects.

Of course, this cold/cough is certainly making me take time now.....flat on my back or sitting on the couch time. It has given me, though, thinking-time to think about me, which hasn't seemingly been available lately. Time to think about what direction I want to give myself and what influences I want to accept or to discard. It is a never-ending process, of course, but I feel I'm re-positioning myself after being bumped out of alignment by recent life events.

Here are a few more of the beauties from BigRock.