happy friday

this weekend:

• the buddhas, ganeshas, marys, lakshmis, kwan yins and jesuses in the gypsy hill multidenominational living room peace summit altar are getting bathed.  the buddha heads were the first (here they are, posing pretty after their bath). this is a huge job that needs to be completed in stages as there are nearly thirty members waiting in line at the kar(ma) wash.  :)

• i want to make something in the kitchen that i've never made before.  i don't know what it is yet.  i'm going to let the farmer's market and the karma garden inform the decision.

• there is a meditation center, the bodhi path, in the mountains not far from our house.  we are planning our first visit on sunday.  also, there is a classic diner nearby.  pancakes and spirituality go nicely together.  this reminds me of the time i was browsing through an omega catalog and saw an ayurvedic panchakarma retreat listing and my brain read it as "pancake-a-rama".  

• i am a great starter.  i have a constant stream of new ideas that i like to kick into existence.  trouble is, i lose steam quickly and am on to the next amazing idea or project.  so a bit of incomplete exists on gypsy hill.  this weekend i will be finishing projects i started last month, last winter, last summer, three years ago.  

i hope you are planning (or not planning, if spontaneity works for you this weekend) all kinds of goodness and fun and togetherness.

the perfect summer weekend

this weekend was

1. lazy
2. slow
3. cool(ish)
4. not too humid
5. free of obligation
6. full of gifts from the earth

after saturday morning yoga, we took a beautiful drive to a peach orchard and picked a peck.

we shared a peach milkshake under the orchard canopy.  isn't this just lovely?  i wish i would have planned ahead and prepared a proper picnic.

but i suppose "no planning required" was another thing that made this weekend perfect.

our karma garden is giving us so much goodness this year.  the abundance of cucumbers and dill informed our choice for sunday supper:  cold cucumber soup.

cooking straight from the garden is something i'm getting better at as the summers roll by.

this is the perfect summer supper:  fresh, cooling, light.

c u c u m b e r  s o u p  with  h e r b s  and  p e t a l s

ingredients

•  3 large cucumbers
• 1 1/2 cup plain greek yogurt 
• 2 or 3 garlic cloves, finely minced
• zest of one lemon
• juice of half the lemon
• handful fresh dill
• handful fresh parsley
• sea salt
• course ground black pepper
• herbs and edible flowers for garnish (i used the dill blooms, oregano flowers, nasturtiums and calendula)
• olive oil

preparation

• if you prefer your soup smooth, peel all three cucumbers, scrape out the seeds and give a rough chop
• *if you prefer your soup a bit rustic (as shown), leave one of the cucumbers unpeeled and add it to the soup after the soup has been processed
• put cucumbers, yogurt, finely minced garlic, lemon juice, lemon zest, dill and parsley in food processor and pulse to desired consistency
• salt and pepper to taste
• move soup to alternate glass container
• *if you prefer the rustic version, process the third unpeeled cucumber to a rough consistency now and add to the soup
• place in fridge and let it chill for at least one hour
• when it's time to serve, garnish with more fresh herbs, flowers and more course ground black pepper; drizzle with olive oil
• serve with toasted baguette or croutons

as an introvert, a perfect weekend for me always involves some quiet alone time.  i took a walk away from the crowd and stumbled upon this secret lotus pond.  there was one giant white bloom, a few perfect buds and a corps de ballet of electric blue and black dragonflies dancing about.

a serendipitous and magical prize for a solitary meander.

thank you weekend.  thank you summer.  thank you life.

{ f O l k }

we spent the most glorious of saturdays at the folklife festival at foxie morgan's pharsalia plantation.

nelson county, virginia is one of the most beautiful places on earth, still mostly undiscovered (although i predict it will be the next napa valley), and inhabited by a diverse and oddly harmonious population of founding families, winemakers, beer brewers, farm-to-table chefs, friendly locals who drive old trucks with a couple of hounds in the back, artists, organic farmers and appalachian trail hikers.

the gardens at pharsalia are incredible.  foxie works a flower farm on the property.  i've never seen so many peony bushes in one place.   this is the herb garden.

there were several plein air artists scattered about capturing the beauty.

lovely chicken whisperer.

earth medicine.

the blue ridge was flaunting her magnificence on this day.

forager, flower-wearer, wild salad maker.

i had a cup of blood orange/turmeric/clove kombucha and it was amazing.

the early-season flower farm.  i'm taking one of foxie's flower arranging workshops in a few weeks and i can't wait to see how the gardens change between now and then.

shuttlecock catcher.

i am so grateful for this land and these people so near to home.

(not shown:  fiddlers, dancing children, giant bunnies, bagpipers and more.)

more about the festival here and a bit about nelson county's highway 151 (or as this california native calls it, "the 151") amazingness here.

a soft and cozy weekend

we all need one every now and then.

the (non) agenda includes:

• sleeping in
• quiet voices
• reading
• soup
• candles
• hot baths
• journaling
• art
• love

a good day

for me a good saturday almost always involves learning how to make something.  today was a good saturday:  there was a wellness fair at my local health food store and i learned how to make natural vapo-rub.

one-half cup olive or coconut oil
20 drops each peppermint and eucalyptus essential oils
10 drops clove oil
two tablespoons beeswax pastilles

• mix essential oils and clove oil with olive oil or melted coconut oil in a pyrex glass measuring cup
• add beeswax pastilles
• place pyrex in a pan of water on the stove top and heat slowly, double-boiler-style, continually stirring
• once beeswax has melted, pour into small glass jar (with lid) and cool

rub on tummies and chests and backs and under noses and be well.

where i belong

this place, where seekers of adventure and discovery and space come together.

where the forest floor is carpeted with ferns.

where balance is achieved without effort.

and effort is rewarded with this:

where a daring dog becomes legend ("in all my hiking days, i've never seen a corgi on the trails."  said one sweet hiker.)

where we are back to basics.

this place, where there are wild blackberries, cool breezes, butterfly ballet, golden yarrow, nice folks, blue mountains, blue skies, a blue heron (!) and the footprints of thousands made one at a time.

this is where i belong.

happy weekend friends

it's been a month since i left my job and i'm in no hurry to return to busyness.  sometimes i feel like i need to be doing more, earning money, taking more responsibility.  the pressure to be productive gets to me.  people keep asking me what's next?  any interviews?  (i'm not actively job searching.)  what do you want to do?  we get really nervous about someone doing nothing.

this is what i want to do:  i want to be happy.  i want to figure out what it is i came here to do.  i want to clear out the stress, the pressure, the ridiculousness of the past (work) decade. 

if that's not productive, i don't know what is. 

this is my agenda:

• homemade chai
• finding a meadow
• reading love story (i've never read it or seen the movie)
• watching gymnastics and feeling like eleven-year-old me falling in love with nadia
• planning a camp trip
• wondering if i can make my own tent
• letting go and trusting
• a mad collection of delightful imagery
• laughing hysterically
• shakespeare
• birthday cake

happy long weekend

in the states, we celebrate memorial day to remember those who made sacrifices for us. 

we also mark it as the official beginning of summer!

this weekend, i plan to make a ginormous list of things i want to do this summer.  i already know that gardening is on the list (wee tomatoes are popping out).  beautiful salad creating and eating of beautiful salads naturally follows.

also:  rollercoasters.

what's on your summer list?

winterlove {№6}

four days away from the office. 

four days to check off the goodness on this list:

• mad hunt for new boots.  i want gold boots.  is it weird to want gold boots?
• also:  black quinoa to make a delicious winter version of this with blood oranges and pom seeds in place of the peaches
• locate the perfect spot in la casa for ginormous metal and lightbulb peace sign
• haircut.  you may ask why a haircut is on a goodness list?  it's because my stylist rocks!  she is hilarious and truly an artist of the hair.  also, scalp massage.
• i need a new good book.  any suggestions?
• cuddle time.  i love my man and his new yoga body is nice to look at. 
• sunday morning yoga.  it's my church.
• whole foods trip.  it's odd i know, but i really like strolling the aisles of whole foods.  it inspires me to be my healthiest best.
• also strolling said store with hot yoga man and gold boots would really make me smile.

what's on your list for the weekend lovelies?

december views {№3}

welcome:

• winter sunshine
• eclipse magic
• weekend mischief
• paint and paste and other goo
• holiday cocktail taste tests
• rest and movement

the long weekend

enjoy every second of it.

holy moly

what a crazy week!  complete with clowns, bells and whistles, a dog and pony show and being bumped around a bit.  game over.

for the weekend, i'm keeping it simple:  making paletas (tamarind? watermelon? blackberry?), hunting for my next good read, yoga and lots and lots of quiet.

i hope yours is lovely and full of summer fun.

i ♥ honeysuckle

and weekends.

and gazpacho.

and these words (from my june horoscope):  "go to a place where your knowledge is valued."

happy weekend friends!  i hope you feel loved and valued.

eating closer to the ground

a sunny saturday.  a strawberry farm.  the most perfect luscious berries on the earth.  i'm reinspired to eat as close to the original source as possible.

a day trip roaming between the small farms around (my new favorite town) crozet, virginia put me in a really good space.  the boundaries are marked with honeysuckle-covered fences instead of vague passive-aggressive remarks.  there are lots of goats.  no one talks about oprah.  i'm in heaven.

happy weekend

here is what i'll doing for certain:

capturing color

working on a painting project

staying in my own neighborhood to avoid the traffic associated with four college graduations on the same weekend

laundry

working on the crazy-lady-trip-binder for our upcoming journey to san francisco

inhaling the sultry scent of the jasmine and honeysuckle who are magically participating in synchronized blooming in my backyard

here is what i hope i'll fit in:

a petite picnic

two afternoon naps

tivo'd episodes of gossip girl and vampire diaries and oprah and sarah's house

more planting

general weekend lollygagging

what are your plans?

see you on monday for color week!

on an ordinary sunday

once the paper is read and the coffee pot is empty, she contemplates the list of tasks she must complete before another work week begins. there are clothes to sort (keep/toss/donate), dogs to bathe, dirt to move, bills to pay, floors to mop, grass to mow. he looks at her and suggests, "let's go on an adventure." she feels that edge of anxiety move in because, of course, there has been no planning, no research, no agenda prepared.

they drive toward the west and disappear in the blue ridge mountains, under a nearly violet sky. they pass fields of yellow wildflowers and stop to meet a family of goats. she likes the feel of the white bristly top of their heads and the emergent growth of horn, warriors in training. they are noisy and pushy and funny and obstinate. she thinks goats get a bad rap and loves them all the more for it.

they climb to the origin of a magnificent waterfall and she wonders how many more hikes will there be in my life? she asks this type of question a lot lately: how many more dances? how many more opportunities to learn something new? to write that book? how many more summers can i dream of barcelona and paris and london and prague and allow something to come up that thwarts my journeys? she is passed on the right by an elf of a woman easily in her seventies, cheerfully plowing through with her rainbow wood walking stick and dreads. she smiles in admiration.

later that afternoon, they picnic on a paisley quilt spread out over a small clearing of grass that overlooks the valley below. she lies back to let the sun work its magic with heavy warmth and blurry color spots she can see through her closed lids. she wonders why there are no birds here. the stillness overcomes her. she opens her eyes to the majestic live oak flanked by dogwoods in full bloom. and just when she thinks that the absolute silence of the clearing is the most beautiful sound she has ever heard, the man she loves begins to read steinbeck aloud and takes the prize.