Renewed

I often peruse the books, blogs and articles of different writers and photographers. Although I love reading what they have to write or taking a look at spectacular and interesting images, there are times when I what I'm really interested in finding out is what they have to say about their own successes or failures. To learn what inspires and motivates them. To collect thoughts about the creative process. To gather advice about what one does with a  fuzzy and overly-tapped creative portion of the brain......when nothing worth placing on either a computer screen or fine piece of paper rises to the top with enough clarity to pursue. What I consistently find.......and what I already know......is that in order to come up with something interesting enough to share, you must also at least attempt to live a life that is interesting to you.  And that it is important to become aware of the ratio of work vs. play that allows and encourages you to produce what is most important to you to produce. This makes sense to me not only as a creative person, but in the rest of my life as well.


There is a quote I refer to often that is attributed to Benjamin Franklin: 

"Either write something worth reading or do something worth writing". 

Another favorite from Abraham Lincoln is:

"Whatever you are....be a good one."

What I have personally found is that in order to 'write something worth reading', take a meaningful photograph or make a 'good' attempt at anything, I need some balance in my life and that means getting enough of a few important things: 


Enough time spent with close family and friends. Enough opportunities to meet new ones. Enough time spent watching and observing. Enough connecting with the natural world. Enough physical activity. Enough time spent doing things I love simply for the sheer enjoyment of doing them.


These activities and relationships encourage, inspire and restore. They remind me that I am connected to, and part of, something much larger than myself. They allow me to rejuvenate in order to work and think and process and produce. 


And so, this is how I spent the past week: I checked out of my regular daily routine and spent time in a small mountain community. I walked into town with Marc for breakfast and a bit of looking around. I hiked along a foaming aqua stream, watched a black bear amble along a high ridge......(a safe but still thrilling distance away) and purposely put my fly rod down in order to gaze at the river flow along the winding path that it took years to create. I tasted new food, toasted good friends and hung out with my dear husband and parents. I found a place on the beach to watch the sun tuck the lake in for the night and then left our window open in order to fall asleep to the sound of a train chugging and whistling along its tracks. I looked forward to waking to the early morning busy-ness of  the birds.


And now.....I am renewed.


Wishing you a wonderful week ahead.


Warmly, Margaret

13.1

I've always loved to walk out of doors. It is a low stress activity. It releases any tension I may be carrying around. It is fresh air and discovery. It is purposeful movement and unexpected moments. It encourages both acute observation and becoming lost in thought at the same time. The repetitive motion puts my world in perspective. It is good for me. 


Throughout my twenties, I took long walks around Greenlake in Seattle several times a week. With my earphones on and my Walkman (it was the 80's) tuned to the classical station, I made my way around the 3 mile path (often more than once) and watched it change with the seasons. At the time I worked in  a hospital lab......a fairly precise and uncreative way to spend 8-10 hours a day......but on the path around the lake, bird calls, breezes and a multitude of instruments provided background music that highlighted the movement and drama of nature.


At some point, as they say, 'life happened'. My walks became fewer and farther in-between, and since I no longer lived close enough, were rarely around the lake. Now and again I've picked it back up, but other responsibilities regularly began to take precedence over the time I used to give myself.  Sometimes I have stopped for weeks or months or ended up walking only when I was either out of town or on vacation. 


This fall a few friends and I decided to meet up twice a week to walk. We had the same goals in mind:  fresh air, exercise,  friendship,  fun. I love that I've made a commitment to show up, not only for myself but for the others as well, and that we spend time out of doors rain or shine. One of the women is a realtor, which translates into the fact that she knows just about every steep hill in the area. We push and/or wait for each other. We encourage and support each other. 


Early on we set a goal of walking the Seattle Rock 'n Roll Half Marathon together and on Saturday we did it.  Although we had planned to keep a somewhat slower pace than normal......for some reason no one did. In fact, I think we all walked faster! We strode past shops, the Public Market, sports stadiums, industrial areas, neighborhoods, schools and parks. We walked into and out of two tunnels, across a couple of over-passes and along the shore of Lake Washington. It was a beautiful and priceless opportunity to view our city in a way we never have before. And......although it had been pouring rain for the couple days previously......and although rain was predicted to fall on that day......the sun came out and there was not a drop that fell on us during the entire 13.1 miles.


3 hours and 37 minutes, and lots of encouragement from bands and bystanders later, we crossed the finish line together. I've been outside walking several times this week. I have my sites set on next year.


Wishing you a wonderful week ahead.


Warmly, Margaret

Dedicated Space

Natural light. Uncluttered surfaces. Clean lines. Neutral gray. Blank walls. A dedicated space. Minimal distractions. This is the workspace I dream about.

I'm in need of a place to work and create that doesn't affect other people. Where their needs don't affect what I'm attempting to distill onto the computer screen or on paper. There are times when Marc hesitates to come downstairs if he thinks I'm in the middle of something at my spot at the kitchen table. He doesn't want to interrupt. I've asked people to turn down the TV or watch it in their room. They trip over my computer cord. I move my 'stuff' from the kitchen table then back again depending on mealtime. I've been known to write in the downstairs bathroom in order to have a little quiet, think clearly and complete a thought. 

Not fair to them. Not fair to me.

So I'm setting out to transform the tiny office upstairs. When the room was built for the former owners of this house, it apparently worked well for them and their home business, but it doesn't work at all well for me.

For one thing it's PINK. I've occasionally been described as a 'girly' girl and for a very long time my favorite color was pink. The other day, in fact, I returned home with a bright pink rain jacket to wear when I walk and was so very OK about that. Wearing it makes me feel happy and energetic......so I have nothing at all against PINK. But surround me with muted PINK cabinets and walls, PINK wall to wall counter top and a PINK toned vinyl floor and I become nothing but sleepy and distracted. Colors on my computer screen are skewed by light bouncing off the surfaces. Writing seems nearly impossible because......well......I'm surrounded by this set up. Ever since I discovered how well the natural light and backyard view from the kitchen table work for me, I've been planted there in the main center of our home, thinking that was just fine....until I realized it wasn't. 

First I've got to sift through what has found it's way into this office space. Placing things in there began with all good intentions. Important papers were kept in labeled file folders. Photo albums, baby books, journals, computer discs, owners manuals and supplies lived neatly inside cupboards. And then slowly I guess, because I don't remember ever consciously DECIDING to use the room for this....it became a place to put things that I either didn't want to deal with at the moment, or didn't have time to deal with at the moment. At some point I began to avoid opening the door......unless of course I needed to stash something I planned to get to later. Once I found my perch with the nature-view-downstairs-in-the-light, the little upstairs office became stuck in kind of a time warp. And there is the slightest chance that in the last few months, so have I. Until I saw possibility. Then I began to dig in.  

At this point there are piles in the upstairs hallway on either side of the office door. Meaningful piles. Small manageable piles that make this clean out easier to deal with. Whatever happens to be saved from the shredder, the recycling bin or the donation truck is put away for real someplace else in the house. And rather than allowing myself to become overwhelmed by this (very large and involved) task,  I can see how each pile represents an opportunity I've taken during the past few years to hang out with one of my kids, invest in some fun or to take time for some other important responsibility.

Just a few minutes of sifting through paper, photographs and books each day, that's all I'm asking of myself. It should take another week or two, and after that I'm going to give someone a call to find out what it would take to remove the cabinets, counter top and floor. If I can afford it I'll make the window larger in order to have the backyard view I love so much. I'm planning to replace the lighting, find a neutral shade of paint and put a functional desk in there. One of my sons showed me how I could add a few extra feet of workspace by eliminating the linen closet on the other side of the wall. He also helped me visualize a whole new work flow.

Really......this isn't going to be as difficult as I thought.

Wishing you a wonderful weekend!

Warmly, Margaret

A Few Things:

Evening light on a vineyard in Sonoma Valley. The wild mustard is in bloom.

A few tidbits from a busy week:

*I learned how to make rack of lamb. Lamb is something I love to order in restaurants, but for some reason have never made at home until recently. I checked out several ways to cook it, thinking it must be complicated because it tastes so good....until I found this recipe from the New York Times. Simple. It's what we're having tonight.

*I watched two movies this week that I'll recommend: Midnight In Paris and The Big Year. Both are fun, entertaining and have beautiful scenery. They had great messages and stories that made me think. (Anyone who knows me knows that I don't watch dark, violent or super-suspenseful movies.) Each of them are about pursuing something you love and finding balance in your life while you do it. I'll say no more.......

*A group of friends and I are working our way up to walking 13 miles......a half marathon. Yesterday we walked over five miles in a freezing snowstorm, then sipped coffee afterwards, dripping-wet and cold, at a nearby Starbucks. We stuck it out and didn't call our morning walk off due to the frigid weather (I really wanted to.....). I was proud of us (me)!

Wishing you a wonderful week ahead.

Warmly, Margaret

Here

Is it possible to be in love with a place? To have somewhere that you want to go to and be with often? Where it is YOU who shows up, YOU that is greeted on the sidewalks and coffee shops and grocery stores? Where the other versions of yourself are left behind and the essence of your person, that person who you envision yourself to be, is the only one walking around?

When I travel I am rarely the Mom, the bill payer, the grocery shopper, the cook, the planner or the organizer.  Sometimes I'm not even the writer or the photographer, although often during visits to this place my mind and schedule are cleared and I am able to be those things even more so. When those that we meet in this small town ask what I do, that is what I tell them. For some reason I can define myself more easily this way here than I can when I'm at home. Am I more brave here? Less intimidated at having to explain that being a writer and photographer doesn't always mean a paycheck? That knitting words and capturing moments and creating and making is a way of life?

When we're away, in this place that I love, I often forget about makeup and wear my hair in a ponytail. Jeans and hiking boots or snow boots feel best. I might try out different clothes and jewelry, or a look that those who know me at home aren't used to........cowboy boots or an enormous scarf made of granny squares.

I love it because I fit things into my day that I otherwise don't always make time for......like listening for the train to whistle and rumble on its tracks around the lake and how this noise echos off surrounding hills and mountains. Like sleeping in, or waking up extra early in order to see the sun color the ice on the lake or the snow on the peaks deep rose and pink and yellow. Marc and I sip coffee in a small local shop, people watch and talk about nothing.....no problem solving allowed. Walk forty-five minutes into town for breakfast at a cafe where local artists and photographers display their work on brick walls, and then back again......no hurry. Chat with the owner of a sled dog team and his friendly, eager dogs. Taste the variety of brews served up in the local brewery, and watch as boarders and skiers  fresh off the mountain, populate bar stools one by one, red faced and sharing the best parts of their day. ("I'm convinced it's not the pow that brings them up the hill....it's the sun, dude....") Sit and read or knit all day with no other agenda. No urgency to cram in a few pages or rows before being interrupted by the phone or the front door or the appointments on the calendar.

This is a town that still looks like Christmas until after their Winter Carnival in February. That hosts the Skijoring World Championships. Where shopkeepers and business owners and their employees......and many others that I meet...... live because they want to. Because they all landed here one way or the other, loved it and stayed. Because, although in this economy, it may not offer them a chance to get rich and spend money, it offers them a chance to spend time.

Do I love it because it is a place in which I can vacate the schedules and busy-ness of my daily life near a big city? Or because this is more what I would like my daily life to be.

Here there are deep breathes of icy air in the winter and warm fragrant ones in the summer. And if the boys are with us, I watch them do the same things, too. And breathe.......

Wishing you a wonderful week!

Warmly, Margaret

Ice. Warmth.

The  beautiful snow that fell earlier in the week is melting. We knew it couldn't last! There was one full day when fluffy flakes turned to freezing rain then back to flakes again. All of the precipitation, freezing and thawing turned into probably the biggest ice storm our area has ever seen. Trees became encased in ice and snapped from the weight of it all. Branches and needles were littered about. Roads were a mess. 300,000 homes, as well an abundance of businesses, were without power.

Local stations kept news broadcasts on throughout the entire day instead of switching to regular programing, highlighting constantly changing conditions and how to stay safe. Lists of roadways hampered by fallen trees and downed power lines followed the typical reports of accidents and spinouts. Weather reports contained forecasts laced with encouragement about when all of this might be over.....but not before a flood watch and wind advisory alert.

It was all a bit frightening. Trees cracked and popped. Large branches landed with huge thuds. I stopped taking the above photos and decided stayed inside for the rest of the day when I realized what was happening in our yard, then called Marc to let him know I was worried about one of our trees and to be careful on his way home.

 And on that very day.......and I just have to say, against my better judgement......Joey and his friend insisted on making their way back to Missoula across three mountain passes and two states with severe weather issues of their own.

I will also say that once again I was reminded there is goodness and wonder everywhere. Ice crystals formed beautiful shapes around clusters of pine needles. The local grocery store and Starbucks......the only ones open and with power for miles......teamed with friendly people. All chattering and shaking their heads. Sharing their stories. Good friends sent texts and worried about my boy with me. Another offered to take care of our dog if the place we intended to board him was still without power on the day we planned to leave town. Several facebook friends who had not lost power offered to share a warm meal and place to stay with those in need.

It's good to be reminded about the power of nature. The power of friendship. The goodness of those in our lives.

Wishing you a warm, safe and wonderful weekend.

Warmly, Margaret

This Time of Year

I have ended up at this most picturesque shopping village a couple of different times this week. Once to pick up an extra ball of yarn, and once for lunch at the Boarding House during an errand filled Saturday with Marc. The Boarding House is a place I've been stopping for a bite to eat ever since I first moved to Seattle. Back then, it seemed like quite a drive out of the city and was where I used to meet my mom for lunch on her way out of town after a visit. My favorite combo......and the one I've been ordering for years......is the avocado-veggie sandwich on whole grain bread paired with a bowl of potato-dill soup. I think I've had it every single time I've eaten there. They are well known for that soup, as well as for their apple crisp, which you can purchase by the 9 x 13 pan, should you want/need that amount.

The sorry fact about today is that I have come down with one of the many bugs that are being passed around at this time of year. I missed meeting up with my walking group this morning......just couldn't do it as we tend to walk fast and choose steep hills and long distances......but I'm hoping to be much better by the next time we meet. Don't want to lag too far behind! The rest of the day will most likely spent on the couch with hot chocolate, knitting and a favorite heavy blanket. The dinner I had planned may be put off until another night in favor of a pot of soup.

Enjoy your week!

Warmly,

Margaret

Seattle

Seattle was where I moved after college in order to complete an internship and was where I decided to take my first job. It is where Marc and I met, dated, fell in love, were married and began life with our boys.

Although we've lived in a small town east of the city for a number of years, there are days when I miss it. Days in which I feel the need to touch base with this part of my/our history. Every once in awhile we make the drive in......for a concert, a sporting event, for dinner. Every so often we feel the need to revisit places that we know and love, or to try out something new.

A couple of days ago it was time.......for a walk around Greenlake and a bowl of clam chowder at Duke's across the street.

Still Me

This past year I've spent some time catching up with a couple of good friends. The three of us studied at the same university, moved to the same city afterward and eventually shared a house for a period of time. We saw each other through jobs, job changes, new cars and boyfriends, and went on a couple of vacations together. We each got married, had children and eventually two of us moved out of the city where we had participated in each others lives on such a regular basis. We've managed to see each other occasionally during the past few years, but it all depended on schedules......and rarely included the three of us in the same place at the same time.

About a year ago......at the request of one of the women, we met up for another vacation. No husbands, no kids, just the three of us for a week in a condo on an island. I have to say that for as much as we had all kept up via cards and Christmas letters and the occasional phone call, email or visit, I was just a little nervous to spend an entire week in the same space after twenty-something years. What if we were different? What if they had changed? What if I had changed and the friendships that worked well for me in my twenties no longer did? But I went.

We clicked quickly back into easy conversation. After reminding one another about some old stories and then working through the details of our own personal new stories, we moved on.......to having fun together where we are now. Since then, we've met up for a couple of short stints, the most recent being last Saturday.

Reconnecting has caused me to give some thought to my twenty-something year old self. The 'me' in my post college years when I was truly on my own, making choices and decisions about how to spend my time and who to spend it with. Learning to identify my skills and interests, and to prioritize the use of what limited resources I had. 

And what I found was this: I am still basically the same person, still prioritizing the same things. Choosing friends and who I spend my time with for the same reasons; spending hours in ways I find meaningful. I still have a pet that is a wonderful companion (although back then it was a big orange tabby) and think that belonging to a family is a pretty good deal. Still love to cook up a good pasta dish. Write down my thoughts. Carry a camera. Still enjoy spending an afternoon reading or baking or knitting. Walking is still my favorite exercise; Fall my favorite season......although I might just say that about each season as it comes along.

Looking back at the threads that have run so consistently through my life......I find it comforting. They are my roots and structure and foundation. Although there have been years when I could not give them as much time or attention as I may have wanted, I have not let them go. They are 'me'.

Wishing you a wonderful weekend!

Warmly,

Margaret

Home Again

A short piece I wrote about adjusting to the fact that my children are now adults was published at www.mamalode.com yesterday, which was kind of funny timing.  It was posted on the day we were returning to a newly 'emptied nest' after a trip to Missoula to visit Peter and Joey. The day a moving van picked up the rest of Patrick's things, and that he boarded a plane to go live in Indianapolis 'for good'. Timing......

Here is the link. Hope you will check it out:

http://www.mamalode.com/blog/2011/10/17/almost-there/#more-7647

After a couple stops, one at Hudson's Hamburgers in Coeur D'Alene for lunch and one to visit with my parents, we returned home tired, but happy nonetheless. It was a great trip but good to be home. The dog was so happy to see us.

We have heard mention of Hudson's quite a few times and have often talked about stopping in to try one of their famous burgers. On this trip, however, we were actually hungry at the same time we passed through! 

If you decide to stop in, this is what you will get: an uncomplicated menu, a good burger and 104 years of family tradition. There are few choices and I believe the current menu is the same as the original. Hamburgers, cheeseburgers, and egg or ham and egg sandwiches. Burger patties are formed and cooked, and pickles and onions sliced on the other side of the counter......the only seating in this small place. I loved it. The cook was the original owner's great grandson.

Good. Simple. Family.

The drive home from start to finish was beautiful. Fall colors on both Lolo and Fourth of July Passes were stunning. Aspen shimmered and glowed golden, and underbrush flamed shades of red and orange. At this point, the larch are barely beginning to turn......just a few shades lighter......but by next week the hillsides should look like a massive a quilt of green and gold.

Once we hit central Washington, the sunset seemed to last forever. The trees, old barns, horses, cattle and farmland that we passed were set against a backdrop of deep blue and pink. Long wisps of clouds looked painted onto the evening sky and we watched the foreground turn into black silhouettes against it.  No time to stop for pictures,  just enjoying the memory.

Wishing you a wonderful week ahead......

Warmly,

Margaret

The Way It Goes

We're planning a Road Trip to Missoula to visit Peter and Joey. Life has been somewhat of a whirlwind these days as far as our family is concerned.....our front door seemingly in constant motion with all of the comings and goings. No longer is the time we spend with each other predictable. Gone are the days with schedules; knowing what time the boys will get up, leave or come home on a daily basis. When I know exactly when or if  they will be able to show up. Jobs, school, opportunities......It's a different stage of life and any attempts at predictability are futile..

We see each other when it's possible with no expectations. Each visit will be made the best of.  As it turns out, the one who now lives the farthest away will be home for a few days while we are in a different state visiting his brothers. When we return, we'll see him for just a few minutes, if at all.

We're home, they're not. They're home.....we're not. Our relationships are about love, priorities and timing. Appreciating each visit for what it is. Being thankful that we live in an age where long distance communication is fast, inexpensive and easy. 

And that's the way it goes......

Wishing you a wonderful weekend!

XO, Margaret

PS. You can read about my love of a good Road Trip , specifically our trips to Missoula MT, here!

More Fall Color

I love that I can get in the car, head east for a few minutes and find myself driving on two lane roads through small towns and past farms and farm stands. Today I went in search of pumpkins still in their fields, but when I found them there wasn't a place to pull over that wouldn't put me in a ditch and so I wasn't able to get out to take pictures. The fields were just as I had imagined, however, with dozens of pumpkinheads resting atop deep brown soil or peeking out from behind tangles of fading vines. I drove past rows of nodding sunflowers, heavy with seed and colorful dahlia and zinnias. Cows and tractors moved slowly behind see-through fences and blue peaks partially shrouded with clouds stood in the background. It was the perfect way for me to spend an hour today. Just what I needed.

On the way home I stopped in at a market I had passed earlier. Fruits and vegetables were piled into boxes and baskets outside, each with a handmade sign telling where they came from and other such information. I discovered a couple varieties of apples that I haven't yet heard of and because of their description, brought home ten of each. There were several notices interspersed amongst the fruit reminding customers that 'Bees like fruit too".  I think I've mentioned in the past how, although I appreciate them ever so much...... I am slightly terrified of bees, so after imagining a couple of pies or an apple crisp, I tried hard to ignore the buzzing and counted the apples quickly into my bags. Looking out at the rain this afternoon, I'm thinking the risk was worth it.....a warm bite of something baked with apples is definitely in my future.

Hope you enjoy your week!

Warmly, Margaret

PS. I am playing around with my blogs format. I kind of like this one because I think it shows the photos a little better. I also appreciate that if you click on the down arrow next to the word 'Classic' and choose 'Magazine' on the home page you will be able to read a short preview of the rest of each post, then simply click on the title and the entire post will come up. You can utilize the forward or back arrows on the upper left, or the X on the upper right to close it and return to the home page. If you would like to subscribe, use the button on the far upper right on the home page. I still haven't completely decided whether to use this format or the old one so feel free to let me know what you think!

Perspective

We'll be getting a new fence this week. The old one will be torn down and carted away. New posts will be set in cement, allowed to stabilize and then all in one day (or so we're told) boards nailed into place and with the exception of a short new section, we'll have what we had before. Except that it won't be rotting in certain places, supporting lichen or held together with wire, and hopefully won't need to be repaired as often after a windstorm. I can't wait for that structure to look fresh. I think it will feel like getting a new haircut or an updated room of furniture. It's something we see from nearly every window in our house and I didn't realize until now how often I thought or worried about it falling down. It's time.

While it's absent, for the first time since we've lived here I'll look into the back yard and see something different. Until now I've been snuggled in here pretty cozily, comfortable within those six foot planks of cedar. The very minute we passed through the front door of this house, both of us headed straight to the back yard, and shortly after knew it was the kind of setting we wanted for our home. The fence acts like an enormous picture frame surrounding native fern, berry bushes and salal that crowd and crawl around small boulders and a couple of tree stumps. It holds jewel toned moss that refreshes its color each spring and grows on trunks and branches and rocks. It wraps around the huge and ancient maples that serve as colorful barometers of seasons when they change. It is a peaceful retreat from a busy and sometimes too noisy world and was a great place for kids and dogs to play.

For a few days I'll see into our neighbors yards....and they into ours...which I think is kind of a good thing since they are both fairly new to the area. It will give us a chance to exchange a few more waves and maybe chat more than we have. Our families are at pretty different stages, but still, this makes me realize I should make more of an effort in that regard. They'll probably notice the garden area which, although I keep it fenced off and weeded, contains empty raised beds full of dirt, waiting for the day or the year I make time to plant more than rhubarb. The couple azaleas I want to dig up and give to someone who will appreciate them more than I do. The cottage I once thought would be my writing space but ended up as a pool hall instead. The empty strip where apples trees used to be, that I plan to replace as soon as a new fence is built. The patio we had put in.

It's interesting what you notice when a barrier is removed, or notice again or see a bit differently.

Have a wonderful week,
Margaret

Fishing

This weekend we went fishing on a small lake outside of Kalispell, Montana, just Peter, Marc and I. The other two boys had to work. Typically we choose a driftboat on a river to cast our fly rods from, but they are running high and muddy this year in western Montana, so we found a nearby lake instead. The mosquitoes were thick, hungry and ready to bite outside of our car, but as soon as we hit the water they stopped and the fish started and kept us busy for quite a few hours. Always a friendly competition in our family in which we are required to practice skill and patience. It follows this general pattern: Cast, wait, wait, cast again and again, wait some more, set the hook if you're lucky, eyeball length and weight, release and keep track. Do I have to say who won? (Not me....)

What a peaceful, billowy cloud and blue sky day. A bit breezy and the perfect temperature. So much quiet broken only by the cast of a rod, the creak of an oar, water lapping against the boat, the occasional  fish surfacing and the haunting calls of the loon on the lake.

I appreciate and know the value of this time. We've fished together since the boys were pretty young. Soaking in the simplicity of our surroundings. Focusing on the spot where the line meets the water. Enjoying each others presence. Talking or not.