Category: things I like

  • journey (and a giveaway)

    Jana and Heather ArmstrongBack in August when I spoke on a panel with Heather Armstrong, many people asked me about the necklace that I was wearing. It was a hippy-ish strand of turquoise beads with a tree pendant in the center. I’d come across this necklace awhile before when I was looking on etsy.com for a handmade pendant with a ‘pilgrim’ or a ‘journey’ theme. I’d found a great “journey” necklace in this shop (perfect for a pilgrimgirl, I’d say), but then decided to purchase the tree necklace instead (if you know me, you will know that I have this “thing” for trees and will often carry on conversations with them).

    Anyways…

    So this seller is having a giveaway on her blog this week and it just so happens that she’s offering one of her “Journey” necklaces to the lucky winner. Of course I entered right away, and suspect that you’ll want to do the same! (note: leave your comment on her blogpost and not mine!)

    Photo by John

  • fyi…

    Dear Sting:
    Not your best look, my friend. Even though we do all love the Gorton Fisherman….

  • trains and tears

    I didn’t get teary-eyed today until I saw this. Trains+Obama=magic!!
    (Do you know just how thrilled I am that his train took some of that same route that we went on just a few short weeks ago and I won’t even take the time to whine about the woman who sat in the windowseat and prevented me from taking any pics as we passed through 4 states (sheesh)!)

  • cemetery


    marble cemetery, NYC, originally uploaded by pilgrimgirl.

    John knows that I find cemeteries fascinating, and along with the requisite train ride, I think a cemetery visit is a must when I/we travel. This one was rather forlorn and I couldn’t get any close-ups because the gates were locked (as was the case with all the NYC cemeteries that we happened upon). It had the most vigorous squirrel population I’ve ever seen–the ground was crawling with them.

  • there is no blue…


    Jana Composition., originally uploaded by mind on fire.

    “There is no blue without yellow and without orange.”
    ~Vincent Van Gogh

    My craving for sky blue (as if I don’t get enough of it outside every day) inspired me to paint the wall behind our bed this lovely color (and it helped that I scored the paint on Freecycle, too).

    It’s really amazing how much peace the blue has brought to our bedroom space.

    However despite my fondness for blue, I’ve also been craving orange–I love how warm and alive it feels. Each morning I burn a small orange candle for my morning meditation and I love wearing orange, too.

    Alicante

    Une orange sur la table
    Ta robe sur le tapis
    Et toi dans mon lit
    Doux présent de la présent
    Fraîcheur de la nuit
    Chaleur de ma vie
    ~Jacques Prevert

  • For the love of you…

    Cross-posted on The Exponent.
    mon cheri

    I really needed this poem today. So for the love of you, I share it here, along with a few recent garden pictures. :)

    For the love of a tree, she went out on a limb.
    For the love of the sea, she rocked the boat
    For the love of the earth, she dug deeper.
    For the love of community, she mended fences.
    For the love of the stars, she let her light shine.
    For the love of spirit, she nurtured her soul.
    For the love of a good time, she sowed seeds of happiness.
    For the love of the Goddess, she drew down the moon.
    For the love of a good meal, she gave thanks.
    For the love of family, she reconciled differences.
    For the love of creativity, she entertained new possibilities.
    For the love of her enemies, she suspended judgment.
    For the love of herself, she acknowledged her worth.
    And the world was richer for her…..

    ~ Charlotte Tall Mountain

    butterfly on <br />heliotrope” /></a></p> <p><span style=Photos: Top photo is a close-up pic of a deep pink and red rose. Bottom pic is a closeup of an orange and black butterfly with wings spread, sitting on a helitrope bush with bright green leaves and purple flowers.

  • things I like

    I’d totally give up beer for Wi-Fi. I have little patience for cafes, libraries, or university spaces that aren’t connected.

    On a totally unrelated note, below is a pic of a wee bluebird sewn by the skilled artist of Purple Petunia. I met her while I was in Boston and became smitten with her work. She gave me some supplies and tips on getting CatGirl making her own tiny felted creatures. CG, of course, was ecstatic when I shared them with her. :)

    bluebird
    (to get a sense of scale…this bird is smaller than a walnut)

  • watch this

    stars, trains, and shadow puppets. groovy music. you won’t be disappointed, I promise. :)

    H/T omondieu

  • another kind of desk job


    another archive photo, originally uploaded by pilgrimgirl.

    See me, sitting in the back in black? This is what I do. Sitting in an archive, searching through a scrapbook of newspaper articles about the Santa Monica Veterans’ Home.

    The time passes so quickly when I’m in the archive, lunchtime slipped by and before I knew it, it was time to head home.

    My archival ‘partner in crime,’ K, snapped this little pic–knowing how much fun it is to show others what we do in the ‘inner-sanctums’ of the research facilities. Today, for example, before entering this facility I had to go through a search that’s every bit as thorough as if I were boarding a jetliner.
    :)

  • an important announcement

    Thanks to a dear friend, I now have the American version of Ticket to Ride again. And I broke it in last night, winning both of its first two games.

    Yes, I do rock (just in case you didn’t know that already).

  • guess what I’m getting for Valentine’s Day?

    bleeding hearts
    This is a hint.
    Oh, and here’s another and another…

    :)

  • it was over 80 degrees here today