Taking The Long Way Home

On a trip through the south a few years ago, we were staying in a campground with our grouchy, suspicious rescued dog, Lucy. She barked at everyone, and we felt bad about it, but there wasn't much we could do. She had a lot of "past life" stuff to work through. At some point, a cheery looking woman walked by, said hello to us, and then directly to Lucy said, "Ya'll be sweet now!" It was one of the dearest things I've ever heard anyone say, and we've adopted it as our own. We've had Lucy for almost 10 years now, and she's much happier than she used to be. I still don't trust her with kids, but she generally warms up to new people pretty quickly now, as long as they go slow and let her come to them. Her past life, whatever it was, seems to have faded in the distance, and we're more of a happy family than I ever would have imagined. I'm a firm believer in adopting animals from shelters. I'm also a firm believer in sweetness.

I started out with the intention of posting this entry on PositivelyVegan , but then realized it might not quite come across as "positive" to a lot of people. Bear with me. Nobody ever said positivity was easy. Positive steps forward sometimes take us through some difficult terrain, but that doesn't mean we should avoid those steps. Walk with me here... or skip over it if you want to.  I don't think of myself as an Animal Rights Activist. I adopt dogs who need homes, I save my vegetable scraps for my neighbor's chickens, I don't buy clothes or shoes that are made out of animals, and I certainly don't eat animals. I try not to be too much of a Vegan Evangelist about it, although sometimes I just can't help myself. We all learn at our own pace, and I know a lot of people just don't want to know the realities behind the food they eat. It's easier to maintain the disconnect between ourselves and the animals. It's easier not to think about it.

There's something I assumed everybody knew, but many were choosing to ignore. You see it everywhere. Emails and forwards sent to large groups of people, or even entire mailing lists, with everyone's address exposed and naked in the glow of the computer screen. In addition to this, there are often several chunks of addresses and other gunk to scroll through before you even get to the message you may or may not be interested in reading. I get a lot of email, so I get a lot of forwarded stuff, and to be honest, I usually delete these without reading them, especially if they're sent in a sloppy manner. As I said, I assumed everyone knew how to send a group email, but more than one friend has asked me how to do this recently, so I began to wonder. I have very smart friends, so if they didn't know, it follows that a lot of other people also don't know. I can help. First of all, please stop forwarding email warnings of Terrible Things. They're almost always hoaxes,

Taos is an art town. Everywhere you go, you see art, hear about art, and meet artists of all kinds. It's a beautiful and inspiring place that attracts some very special people, and encourages those who come here to see the world in new ways. After all my time here, I still love to go outside and just look around. It's constantly changing from moment to moment, and day to day. And over time, my eyes are learning to see even the most ordinary things as art. I would spend a lot more time in my kitchen if I could, and I imagine that someday I will. There was a time when I dreamed of beads and what I would make the next day in the studio. Now I dream of beautiful food that wants to be created. This is not to say that beads are "over" in any way, but they do have some serious competition for my affections and creative energy. My focus is shifting, and certainly my artistic medium is shifting with it. I go to the farmers market, or any given produce department, and see work

The following is the note I sent out to my VIB Lounge Mailing List this morning. I'm posting it here because I think there are some of you who might be interested in beads, but don't want to be on a regular mailing list. I get it! I regularly remove myself from lists, because too much email is just too hard to keep up with... Good Morning, and Happy Monday! I know... some of you don't like Mondays. I do. It's a fresh week, with lots to be done, and fun to be had... if you look at it that way! I have lots of gorgeous new beads posted for you in the  BeadShop , and am attempting to kick myself into high gear to get ready for the Holidays. And now for the  Payment News ... I've been noticing a lot of people feeling squeamish about using credit cards and online payments. More and more people are even taking their money out of banks altogether, and moving to a cash basis on almost everything. As the world changes, we either adjust or freak out. I like the idea of

So the shoes in my last post were fun, but certainly not practical - in Taos, or in my lifestyle. I can just see myself tottering along in the gravel and mud trying not to damage my cute shoes. I do have some cute shoes, mind you, but they patiently wait in the closet for a night on the town, or out of town, when there's more pavement than sagebrush. As I wander through my days, I notice things that make things easier and happier. Like Oprah, I have an ever-growing list of Favorite Things. The difference in our lists is that mine is mostly practical, and almost always inexpensive. You wouldn't be all that excited to be on my "show" the day I'm giving away all my Favorite Things. No big TVs or cars or spa vacations. Heck, I'd like to win some of those things! But in your own life, without all the lights and cameras, I think you might enjoy some of my finds as much as I do. So I'm going to start sharing them with you, one at a time, as I notice them or dis

The question is not, But where will I wear them? The question is, Which ones to choose first? Most of my clothes are black, so my options are wide open here. Must be another symptom of this crazy Fall-Spring Fever... I'm particularly drawn to the skully designs, probably because I live in New Mexico, and because it's October and Dia de Los Muertos is coming up fast. I really think I need the proper shoes for the occasion. Get your own wild shoe fix from Iron Fist at Polyvore.com .  And yes, of course they are genuine not-leather.   ~~~  Today on PositivelyVegan , Nut Cheese !

I've got to get serious about making some beads. I will. Today. Later. I feel like I have spring fever in the fall. I can't concentrate on my "work." I just want to play and cook and do anything but go to the studio. I know it's time for a new career, but I don't want to abandon beads completely. There's some balancing to be done, and it can only be done day by day, or even moment by moment. I went to an art opening the other night, for a show called SEED . It's inspired by the book Seeds , by Rob Kesseler and Wolfgang Stuppy. Look at the cover. This is so beautiful. Today I want this book. I want it to magically appear at my studio door, and I want to sit with it for the afternoon, in a sunny window, with many cups of earl grey tea. I want the images of all those wondrous, mysterious seeds to work their way into my subconscious, and sprout as new ideas and inspirations. I want to make brightly colored beads with spikes and thorns and knobs. Impra

The wind is blowing from a strange direction that looks and sounds more like all directions. It scares me. It's the kind of wind that knocks trees down, or just breaks them in half, and I'm glad Rick cut down the dead trees in our driveway this summer. At least now they won't fall on my car. I have to go out later today. I don't want to. I've spent most of the morning so far hiding in my office/closet, which is a lovely room in the center of the house, with no windows other than skylights. I feel safe in there when the crazy wind blows. Adobe houses don't shake or creak much with the wind, so if I just go in the office and play some music, I can almost ignore what's going on outside. It's not my fault, this fear of wind. I used to love to go out walking on a blustery fall day. It must be a post traumatic something-something, from when the wind knocked me down right after we moved to Taos, ripping my arm out of the socket in the process, and breaking

We are so darn popular all of a sudden. Unexpected, but welcome guests are dropping in this afternoon, so my day is different than I'd planned. Oh yeah - make a plan, and plan to change it. I'm going to tidy up the house and make some cupcakes. And rather than try to write two full blogs today, I'll stop here and send you over to PositivelyVegan , for a nice little recipe for Sweet Potato Dog Treats . Heidi & Lucy love 'em!

The more I have to do something, the more I don't want to. I really, really need to make some beads for the upcoming show, so what have I been doing? Cooking, of course. I was almost-invited to cook for a small group of vegans attending a conference this week, at the hotel Rick works for. The owner decided to do it herself though, which I think might be a mistake, since she's not veg-inclined herself, and the main restaurant on the property is a steak house. I worry that she'll do something like cook a veggie burger on the same greasy grill as a cheeseburger. Eeewww. I don't even know these people, but I want them to be well fed, and well cared for. It's silly, and there's nothing I can do about it, so I'm letting it go. Besides, the hotel owner will learn some great things while she tends to these people. As always, I'm sure it's all working out perfectly. But when the idea first came up, I had a dream about some lovely red bell peppers stuffed

It was a fun and busy weekend, with friends and family visiting, lots of cooking and eating, sight seeing and shopping, and not enough sleeping. I'm taking today slowly, doing one thing, and then the next thing, with no particular plan or goal. What gets done gets done. I think there will be a nap in the mix. And I'm ever so grateful that I don't have to figure out what to do with this mutant zucchini we met at the farmers market on Saturday... And for Meatless Monday, check out my of Miso Happy Soup on Positively Vegan !