DH 2 Travelers

Welcome to 2012

2012-01-09T09:42:00.000-08:00

Happy new year, friends of DH 2 Travelers. We traveled so much in 2011 that I neglected my blog ... I only hope that I can win back your interest and following with what I have in store for this glorious new year.

All the best to you and yours for a blessed, healthy, happy, fun- and adventure-filled 2012!

~ Davielle

Nostalgia .. My trip down Memory Lane

2011-08-24T09:13:00.000-07:00

Several things have happened lately that all seem determined to make me face, resolve, and heal from things that happened decades ago ... and I just have to blog about it this morning. And it's gonna be a long blog post, so grab your beverage of choice and settle in if you're game enough to read this one!

Lately, I've heard a lot of Fleetwood Mac on the radio. And those songs take me back to my 9th and 10th grade years in a hurry. My best friend Candi {photo, left, 2005} and I wore out our FM albums (yes, albums. how old school is that?).

So what song do you hear, what scent do you encounter, what old photograph ~ takes you back to decades ago, and you're R.I.G.H.T. there, where you were?   PLEASE LEAVE COMMENTS.

And which part of your life do you most often "return" to via those flashback memories?

For me, it's high school and a few years after.

THE MUSIC: when I hear the term "oldies" as it pertains to music, I think ... 50s and 60s (even though when I was in high school, we listened to music from the 60s - mostly the Beach Boys - and it didn't seem all so old).   Nowadays, music from my entire young-and-younger listening years is already ... an oldie. I'm an 80's music freak, and when I do the math, I can't believe those songs are already 30 years old. THIRTY YEARS OLD.    But when I hear a song that I loved in high school, and realize it's 35 years old - yikes. How old does that make me, then? Never mind.

The music that takes me back most often has to be from the 1980's, because it makes me happy.        They were fun years, great years, and even as a single mom, they were incredible years ~ due in large part to meeting my soul-sister / best friend Lori Vallas Falk. {photo, left: Mother's Day 1987, La Valencia Hotel}

But those aren't the old days that keep hitting me in waves lately.  It's the music from my high school years. And those were awkward years.   I meet people who say "oh, to be in high school again" and I cringe. Those were shy, challenging, confusing, unsettled, angst-filled years for me. I did develop some beautiful friendships then, but they too came with a price.

Anyway. Music I listened to a lot of in high school (that would be the early/mid-70's) ... Fleetwood Mac. Dave Mason. ZZ Top. David Bowie. Carole King. Steely Dan. Derek and the Dominos. Cat Stevens. Elton John. Chicago and Bread (yes, even them). America. BTO. ELO. Allman Brothers. Foghat.   Edgar Winter Group, and Rick Deringer. Neil Young (SO much Neil Young). The Rolling Stones. Stealer's Wheel. Steve Miller. Jethro Tull. Humble Pie. Grand Funk Railroad.   Carly Simon. Golden Earring. The Eagles. Rod Stewart. Paul McCartney & Wings. Loggins & Messina (the first concert I ever went to - they opened for The Allman Brothers, who were followed by B.B. King - and I had no clue who BB was!).

I could go on longer, but as you can see, I had a wide range of musical favorites. Back then, I couldn't go an hour without music.

There were the party songs, the ones we danced to. Then there were the "party-ing" songs, the ones we, well, partied to (it WAS high school, after all).   And there were the "i am a filled with love angst" songs, the ones we listened to over and over, ad nauseum, because they made us feel ... sentimental and emotional and mellow. And sad. I went for sad a lot - hence all that Neil Young.   I only dated 3 guys in high school; one was killed in a car accident. He's the one that set the bar high for how to treat a girl, and I didn't appreciate him enough.

So to take me back to High School most often, it has to be ... Fleetwood Mac, and Foghat, and Steve Miller. And driving through El Cajon, passing my high school (El Cajon Valley) and the high school that many of my friends, including my boyfriend, attended (Granite Hills). Passing old friends' houses. Missing Baker's (the best burgers and shakes ever).

After I graduated from high school, I was a mother. I still loved music. There were still 4 years left of the 70's. The music changed, and I had changed.   Although still awkward, and probably more confused and unsure of myself than ever before - I started to experience a confidence that came with being a mother and having to earn a living to support my daughter.

And the music that I favored from 1976 to 1979 was more along the lines of Earth, Wind and Fire; The Knack; Pat Traverse; more ZZ Top; more David Bowie; Pablo Cruise; Boz Scaggs; Linda Ronstadt; more Rod Stewart; and yes, The Commodores.

My sister-of-my-heart, Sherri Garman DeMink {photo, me and Sherri, 12-31-76}, introduced me to so much music, and we listened to it for hours together.

Whenever I hear "My Sharona", or "After the Love is Gone", or "Lady Love" by Lou Rawls ... I am smack dab in the middle of 1979.   Those songs, and the smell of a hot day, the car windows rolled down, and the air conditioning full-blast. And the perfume I wore then, Halston.   One incredible relationship stands out, I'm right there, and then the pain of its demise hits. Still.

So what is the point of today's blog post?   It's this: when we have something tugging at us, quietly or loudly, that feels like we want to 'make it right', or resolve it, or face up to it ~ but we are afraid, or we don't know how ~ it's time to courage-up and just do it.   If the person is gone or un-reachable, write a note and get it off your heart and mind. Let it go.   And if the person is available to talk to, or meet up with, do it.

Say whatever you feel needs to be said. Forgive them for whatever they may have done to hurt or confuse you. Ask for forgiveness for whatever you may have done to leave them wondering "why did that happen? was it me?". In other words, clean it up so you can breathe easier when those flashbacks hit (and they will), and then you can sit back and really enjoy the memories of those times.

From my experience: In the past 2 years, I have had 2 people tell me they were sorry for things that happened in high school. Call me crazy, but such an emotional sense of peace came over me, both times. And I could sit back, remember, and smile. Finally. What a gift they gave me.

And I deeply regret that at my 30th high school reunion, when I had the opportunity to apologize to someone that I had been cold to, and hurt, in the 9th grade, I missed it. I attended that reunion for two reason. One, to make an amend. The moment was interrupted by the call for a photo of the group {that photo, at left}, and when I turned around, he was gone. It still haunts me. Because just before the call for photos, he looked at me and said "isn't it funny how something that happened 30 years ago can still affect us today?". And the other reason I attended was because my closest friend from those years .. asked me to go with her {me, 2nd from left; and Candi, far right in blue}.

Think on this: "Nostalgia: A device that removes the ruts and potholes from memory lane." ~ Doug Larson

And this: "What was hard to bear is sweet to remember." ~ Portugese proverb

And one final quote on the topic: "The heart's memory eliminates the bad and magnifies the good; and thanks to this artifice we manage to endure the burdens of the past." ~ Gabriel Garcia Marquez {author of 'Love in the Time of Cholera'}

I want to pave over those potholes, and I want to sweetly remember those years. Don't you?

~ Davielle

P.S. By the way, FaceBook is a remarkable tool for re-connecting with people.

BLOGGING 101: Blog to the Rescue!

2011-06-26T11:43:00.000-07:00

Friends, I know I haven't blogged here since March (yes, March!) and I have to say - I miss my blogging time.

But when I received an e-mail this week from an old family friend, and my beautiful CAbi consultant, Rebecca Oostra, it hit me:   a BLOG (and a blog post) can come to the rescue when you least expect it!

First, let me share this with you all:

Recently I've done a lot of soul-searching and question-asking, as in ...

"why did I begin my (2) blogs in the first place?"
"what did I hope to accomplish - personally or globally - with these blogs?"
"did I enjoy putting blog posts together?" ...

And I had the following answers:

"why did I begin my (2) blogs in the first place?"
BECAUSE I wanted to stay in touch with friends & family, and in the case of the first blog (this one, DH2travelers), share snippets & images of trips we have taken or hope to take some day, etc. And in the case of my second blog, http://iamprincessmagpie.blogspot.com my intent was to share my love of mixed media art - the artists, the techniques, the results - with others of like mind.    IN BOTH CASES, the blog became a vehicle for me to speak my mind - to share what I liked and believed and found meaningful & beautiful ... that was the driving force behind my venture into the world of blogging.

"what did I hope to accomplish - personally or globally - with these blogs?"
TO speak up - and out - about things that matter to me, or that I found helpful or amusing or soulful or meaningful or heartbreaking or amazing. And in some cases, all of the above.   I also wanted to share beauty and good information with others - my passion for plein air art has been featured on DH2travelers many times, as has fashion and film, recipes and bits about our family.

I had also hoped that I would meet and befriend people all over not just the US, but the world, "meeting" people who stumbled across my blog/s just as I had stumbled upon theirs in searches, link-trekking (I think I just coined a phrase there!), referrals from friends who blog and follow blogs, etc.

"did I enjoy putting blog posts together?" ...
Easy, this one: a resounding and emphatic YES YES YES.   I loved the time I took to follow my own train of thought(s), to gather images or links to embellish the topic, and the putting it all together.   I would hear something on NPR (national public radio) and it would stir up an idea, and there I'd be, at the computer, linking not only to the NPR coverage of whatever it was, but adding a link to - where the book or music could be found, what I thought about it, etc.  {of course, things I found intriguing on NPR often cost me a bit of money, because I'd find myself pulling into Barnes & Noble to 'just pick that one up'. ha!}

In the case of Princess Magpie's blog, the answer was equally crystal clear: YES! I find mixed media art to be - intriguing, mysterious, simple and clean, busy and complicated, freeing, child-like and yet mature, and for me, mixed media art is an answer to my creative prayers. God listened when I told Him that I missed - the creative process.   As a (then) retired interior designer, it was December 2008 when I began searching for "mixed media art classes in San Diego", and happened across an old acquaintance, Jane LaFazio. Come January 2009, I was enrolled in my first (of eventually, four!) multi-week series with Jane and the rest is history!   (but all that's been covered in another blog post, over at http://iamprincessmagpie.blogspot.com/2010/08/everythings-coming-up-mixed-media.html)

AND NOW, to the impetus for today's post. This is the note I received from Rebecca via e-mail this week:

"Hi Davi,

I sent Olivia off to the post office today with about 5 priority mailing envelopes with CAbi samples in them. She asked me if the postage was taken care of (which it is about 99% of the time, since I am sending something back to CAbi with a postage paid label). I said, "Yes" and off she went. I was a little distracted.

A couple of hours later I get a phone call: "Hi Rebecca. This is Sandy from the post office......." Well, Olivia dropped off the packages but never looked at them (okay, that is something I would do). Sandy must have been busy, otherwise she would have informed Olivia.

So, before the packages were picked up by the driver, Sandy noticed that none of my packages had postage. She didn't have my phone number.

She googled my name and found a 2 year old blog (by you); the one where you talked about cleaning out your closet). You added a link to my CAbi web site and Sandy went there and found my phone number.

THAT'S service!! To say the least.

Sandy and I laughed about it. I told her to keep me on speed dial.

Well, what do I say? Isn't that wonderful? Thank you for mentioning me. You are an angel.

REBECCA OOSTRA • CAbi Fashion Consultant "

{you can link directly to Rebecca's CAbi webpage by clicking right here:   www.rebeccaoostra.cabionline.com }

Even CAbi has a blog, and I love getting their link in my e-mail:
http://cabicanary.com/?m=2011&w=25

{and you can read the blog post from 2009 that led Sandy to Rebecca right here: http://dh2travelers.blogspot.com/2009/03/simple-abundance-for-your-closet.html }

And that, my lovely friends, is another good reason to blog. And when you blog, be sure to LABEL anyone and everyone that you've mentioned in that post, so that in querying someone's name or business, they have a chance to be discovered, like Rebecca was.

In closing, I have to thank my dear friend, ANN DEAKERS

{ http://www.adeakers.blogspot.com/ }, for encouraging & inspiring me to blog in the first place. She told me it would be easy-peasy and she was right (but then, Ann's always right!). Thank you, Ann. I'm sure Rebecca thanks you, too :-) !!!

~ Davielle

And for anyone interested in blogging in a big, beautiful way, I highly recommend you pick up a copy of ARTFUL BLOGGING, published by Stampington ... http://www.stampington.com/artfulblogging/

"March Morning - Montecito"

2011-03-15T10:10:00.000-07:00

A few of our favorite things ...

plein air art ...
the California coast ...
Montecito, where we celebrated our wedding dinner ...
early California artist John Marshall Gamble (1863-1957 Santa Barbara, CA) ...

And as of this morning, this painting: 'March Morning - Montecito'.

This breathtaking work by Gamble will be on auction at John Moran Auctioneers (Altadena, California) and will go for an estimated $70,000/90,000. And, in my opinion, worth every penny.

If money were no object, and if I didn't need a new car ... well, the first being the most necessary bit :-) ... this would hang where I could see it every single day for the rest of my life.

Visit John Moran Auctioneers on-line at http://www.johnmoran.com/ to see more - they also auction estate jewelry and antique furniture. Incredible, delicious things.

~~ Davielle

the amazing TRACY PORTER bag giveaway !!!

2011-02-27T10:36:00.000-08:00

oooh, you have to SEE the bag, right? check it out:

wanna see the inside? here you go:

And here's just one reason why I'm crazy for this purse:

... because it reminds me of the blooming California poppies in our yard, posed in front of our blue-trimmed garage windows. LOVE LOVE LOVE IT -- don't you ???

Visit Tracy's blog to enter to win this gorgeous purse.

~ Davielle

P.S. can you even believe I'm posting about this? doesn't that dilute MY chances for a win?! :-)

Tracy Porter One-of-a-Kind Bag Giveaway

2011-02-27T10:29:00.000-08:00

I had to post this today - can you imagine a more magnificent bag to take when traveling? Talk about eye-popping color and style !!! Enter the giveaway over on the Tracy Porter blog (click the link, my pretties) and post your comment. Tracy will announce the winner on her blog TUESDAY, March 1st. Good luck to you all.

Tracy Porter One-of-a-Kind Bag Giveaway

~~ Davielle

Followers, followers, oh where art thou Followers?

2011-02-04T16:43:00.000-08:00

Okay, so I haven't been a faithful blogger for quite a long time now. I admit it, right up front.

But I know that I used to have more followers ... and now, I'm down to just three. THREE.

Should my feelings be hurt, or should I just take it as the LESSON. IT. IS. This is what happens when one doesn't love and care for their blog.

I do apologize for not being "here" all this time. I am back, I am back, I really am.

Won't YOU come back now?

~~ Davielle

even MORE techno difficulties today ...

2011-02-01T16:52:00.000-08:00

Aaarrrggghhhh ....

Not only am I having a few little glitches getting my new blog background to look just right over on Princess Magpie ... ( http://iamprincessmagpie.blogspot.com ) but now I'm having issues here. Right here.

I wanted to freshen up THIS blog's background, too - and I always rely on the amazing "cute 'n cool backgrounds" for the best of all backgrounds.

So for THIS blog, I found a cool, funky background -- and when I copy it's code into my blog, it makes it FLASH on the page for a blip of a moment - and then it reverts back to ... what you'll see here now.

Go figure. And if you DO figure, would you let me know?

Yours in getting this figured out,

~~ Davielle

Eye Candy - early California plein air art ...

2011-02-01T16:00:00.000-08:00

Fellow Travelers,

Mark and I have been enchanted by (okay, obsessed with) Early California Art for about a decade now. Maybe a tad longer. (what is a "tad", anyway?)

We often receive notification from galleries of available art, and we always always pause and heave a big sigh and say "oh my, wouldn't that be perfect in our (fill in the blank) room ??".

This is one of those pieces. Maurice Braun's "Landscape with Stream", circa 1923-25.

And I'll fill in that blank for you. It would look perfect in our ... living room.

Can you hear my big sigh?

~~ Davielle

WANTING MORE THAN AVERAGE

2011-01-27T07:12:00.000-08:00

Kristina, Venice, Italy ~ July 2009

Our daughter Kristina, a student at Grossmont Community College, recently wrote an essay titled "Wanting More Than Average", which she submitted to THIS I BELIEVE: A Public Dialogue about Belief, One Essay at a Time.

I'm so proud of her - for putting her beliefs into words and then sending them out into the world.

Congratulations, honey. This is wonderful !!!

Love,
~~ Mom

I Love Books, too !!!

2011-01-21T07:50:00.000-08:00

My friend Karen Caterson ("Square-Peg People") has a lovely new post up on her blog:

I LOVE BOOKS!

In these busy days (and who doesn't 'suffer' from those?) it's often easy for me to skip reading my friends' blogs - there are so many that I often get overwhelmed and just don't visit ANY of them for weeks on end. This morning, in looking down my list of "Blogs to Read Every Day" (I had good intentions, I really did), in my "favorites", there was SQUARE PEG PEOPLE and I just knew I had to stop in.

Am I glad I did. Karen and I are so often "on the same page" (get it? the same page!) that it's way cool. She's always spot on, and I can count on Karen to comment on my blog posts, too. :-) We're just like that.

I LOVE BOOKS, too. Ask anyone - my family, my friends, my neighbors, my husband, my enemies even know it, I'm sure. I LOVE BOOKS. And yet, I rarely take the time to review them any more. Or to post about them. I've even stopped FaceBook'ing about what I'm reading.

Right now, I'm 3/4 of the way through PRAYERS FOR SALE by Sandra Dallas. A new author to me, I'm loving her style and I'm loving this book. I don't want it to end. And then I'm going to find some of her other books.

Thank you, Karen, for reminding me to share. I want to share with others.

You're the best, KC.

xo,
Davielle
(who calls this blog DH2travelers, and coming soon, the list of where we're headed this year)

Cupcake or Pie ??

2011-01-15T10:41:00.000-08:00

This story from NPR:
"Cupcakes Are Dead: Long Live The Pie!"

http://www.npr.org/2011/01/02/132477830/cupcakes-are-dead-long-live-the-pie&sc=nl&cc=es-20110109

Oh my !!!

So what is the history of the cupcake, anyway? To answer that question, I turned to Wikipedia:

A cupcake (British English: fairy cake; Australian English: patty cake or cup cake) is a small cake designed to serve one person, frequently baked in a small, thin paper or aluminum cup. As with larger cakes, frosting and other cake decorations, such as sprinkles, are common on cupcakes.

The first mention of the cupcake can be traced as far back as 1796, when a recipe notation of “a cake to be baked in small cups” was written in “American Cookery” by Amelia Simms. The earliest documentation of the term “cupcake” was in “Seventy-five Receipts for Pastry, Cakes, and Sweetmeats” in 1828 in Eliza Leslie's Receipts cookbook.

In the early 19th century, there were two different uses for the name "cup cake" or "cupcake". In previous centuries, before muffin tins were widely available, the cakes were often baked in individual pottery cups, ramekins, or molds and took their name from the cups they were baked in.

This is the use of the name that has persisted, and the name of "cupcake" is now given to any small cake that is about the size of a teacup. The name "fairy cake" is a fanciful description of its size, which would be appropriate for a party of diminutive fairies to share.

Personally, though, give me PIE over a CUPCAKE any day.

But there is a "however ..."

I must tell you - I had the most delicious Karma Cupcake on Wednesday, at the end of a committee meeting at CCI (www.cci.org) for an event I volunteer with, Balboa Barks ( http://www.kintera.org/faf/home/default.asp?ievent=450430 ).

Said Karma Cupcake was a luscious lemon flavor, and it was terrific. And the best part is that the KARMA CUPCAKE sales benefit CCI, with the flavor changing each month.

You can get your own Karma Cupcake at my friend Becky's cupcake shop, LITTLE CAKES CUPCAKES at 30 Main Street, Suite 180, in Vista, California. Call ahead for hours and the specials-of-the-day: (760) 842-5138. You can visit them on-line right here at: http://littlecakeskitchen.com/ ...

Whatever YOUR pleasure is, make the most of it.

Happy New Year ~~

Davielle

P.S. if you click on the link to the NPR story, there's even an option to hear the story ... stream it !!!

P.S.S. If you were to ask me which I would choose - I'd have to go with PIE. As the article says, "PIE can be sweet or savory", and yes, some creative cupcake folk are baking "savory cupcakes", but to me, those are just muffins in disguise.

That's not to say that I might not give a French Toast cupcake a try, but still - that's sweet, isn't it? Just don't wrap my French Toast Cupcake with .... bacon.

Now a PIE, a pie ... give me fresh blueberry or spicy pumpkin pie, oooh, and fresh peach in the summer, with crystally sugar sprinkled on the top crust.

And on the savory side, oooh, I like quiche, and that's like pie, right? And then there's Shepherd's Pie, which isn't really a pie at all, but it sounds like one, and it's got all the food groups in it; well, except for sugar! If you are a savory pie person, and you need to fill your daily sugar requirement, treat yourself to a CUPCAKE. And make sure it's from Little Cakes Cupcakes :-) !!!

Our 2010 in Pictures - my photography (and a note on Bigger Camera Envy)

2011-01-08T10:25:00.000-08:00

I may not have blogged on here for almost 90 days now, but I was busy in 2010 with my camera - I still love my Canon G9, and although I am sometimes struck with BCE (bigger camera envy), I think I'll stick right here with this little gem. Truth is, I don't really want to learn more advanced photography techniques - I like to think I'd like to learn (and use) them, but honestly - I can only handle so much. My trusty and talented Canon G9 is my idea of a great camera, it's in my comfort zone, and we're sticking together.

For any of you that care to look it up, I googled the G9 this morning and on the Canon site, discovered that because they've come up with the G12 now, the G9 is "no longer available". However, over on Amazon, you can now apparently pay TWICE what I paid for my camera new - to get one. It has been a very very popular camera, and it doesn't surprise me ...

http://www.amazon.com/Canon-PowerShot-G9-Digital-Stabilized/dp/B000V1VG5G

BACK TO THE YEAR IN REVIEW ... here it is, a review, for any of you that are interested, of what 2010 looked like for me and my loved ones:

January 2010:
I began the year in what I call a "State of Tilted Grace" ...

"You see a cow a day" - a saying in our family that was beautifully proven on Martin Luther King Jr Day 2010 as I drove home from Borrego, while Mark rode his bike home.

Sunset at Torrey Pines Start Park, January 24, 2010

February, the month of love ...

Valentine's Day 2010: My Beautiful Family .. Trevor, Cara, Kaia, Kiara, Kristina, and Mark {Cottonwood Creek Park, Encinitas}

February 2010: I LOVED taking another series of "Mixed Media with Paper & Cloth" art classes from the talented Jane LaFazio, through La Jolla Athanaeum {this is Jane}

MARCH 2010 ...

"Dark Star" ceanothus (native California lilac) - in full bloom in our yard

Mark, racing in San Dimas - late March 2010 (FYI, this is NOT a shot of him racing ... this was warmups out of the parking lot!)

APRIL 2010: we reach the end of tax season and our year officially begins!

home, home on the range ... or on the "inland bluff overlay zone", as it were

Stormy Skies - Solvang: April 2010

Manhattan Beach Pier - late April 2010

MAY 2010 - Mark's Birthday Month !!!
{my Canon g9 captures florals - beautifully ~ you can almost smell them !}

Graham Thomas Roses - from our garden

Mother's Day Bouquet ...

my husband MARK - on his birthday
{in Santa Barbara's ALICE KECK PARK GARDEN, where we were married in 1999}

JUNE 2010 ... Summer's here !!!

Rocky at Home ... so dashing !!

our grandson TREVOR with Mia ... June 2010

JULY 2010 ...

" Summertime ... and the livin' is easy ..." - Mark & Rocky, hammock'ing

AUGUST 2010 ... Montana Time!

We go to visit Mark's parents at their half-year home,
the cabin at Flathead Lake, near Bigfork, Montana
{here, Marion, Gene, and Sierra}

Marion's Echinacea in Bloom

and then there's the crown jewel of the orchard:
the CHERRIES, August 2010

SEPTEMBER 2010 {fall fruits & back to school time ...}

our friends the FULLERs took a cruise - and I got Russian Nesting Dolls !!

CREATIVE IS A VERB by Patti Digh .
my copy arrived in September from the publisher

page 63, CREATIVE IS A VERB
artwork {"Airstream in a Cornfield") by me

OCTOBER 2010: Spooky Time

my G9 photographing Cara
photographing tiny lizard with her phone ...

detail of lizard (aka, "why I love my G9")

"House Blessing" art that I created in a class by CHRIS COZEN, at Stamping Details (Halloween, 2010)

NOVEMBER 2010: giving thanks for our many blessings ...

solo cerces leaf

Family Is Everything: Thanksgiving 2010

a sunset as viewed from outside my home office window ...

can you see the rainbow? as seen from our kitchen window

DECEMBER 2010: celebrating Christmas, celebrating life

and for the best display of our Christmas Day, see my next post - which includes a Smilebox slideshow!

Happy New Year, my friends

All my best,

Davielle

2011: Color of the Year

2011-01-08T09:33:00.000-08:00

Thanks to my friend BETH NICHOLLS of England, who I was fortunate to meet at AN ARTFUL JOURNEY in February 2010 - I've discovered Pantone's Color of the Year, 2011: Honeysuckle.

At first read, you might envision a yellow color - after all, most honeysuckle blooms are yellow.

But this, THIS color - this engaging and vibrant PINK - is spot on. (or spotT on, with two t's - if your name is Lorrie, with two r's !)

And here in Southern California, I first met a to-die-for honeysuckle variety known as "Pink Lemonade" - isn't this luscious? I still "need" one in my own yard, because the colors & the scents are ... heavenly.

So I pose the question to you, as Beth did to readers of her blog, DO WHAT YOU LOVE ...

What is YOUR color for this new year, 2011?

I am adopting Pantone's HONEYSUCKLE, paired (pun intended) with a PEAR GREEN of sorts.

Coincidentally, I came across my box of these notecards ON MY DESK as I was reading Beth's blog post about color: "Nantucket" thank you notes (by Peter Pauper Press, Inc.) available at Barnes & Noble -
http://search.barnesandnoble.com/books/product.aspx?r=1&isbn=9781593591892&cm_mmc=Google%20Product%20Search-_-Q000000630-_-Nantucket%20Thank%20You%20Note%20Cards%20Set%20of%2014-_-9781593591892

I encourage you to visit Beth at her DO WHAT YOU LOVE site/blog http://dowhatyouloveforlife.com/ - I think you'll be happy you did!

Happy New Year to you all,

Davielle, aka PRINCESS MAGPIE

The Thoughts of Floyd Brandt

2010-10-16T12:23:00.000-07:00

In wanting to share an image today of a man with his mule/mules and plow, I went over to Google. The best image I found, which figuratively leapt off the screen at me and grabbed my attention, came from a blog that I would have never otherwise discovered.

www.LettersfromaPilgrim.com - the memoirs and ramblings of Floyd Brandt - has captured my heart and my attention. He shares his memories of our country going way, way back - it seems he is recording them for his children and grandchildren, and really - for all of us.

Floyd talks about the harvest season. He talks about coal-and-wood-burning stoves. Floyd shares memories the days of segregation - and the process of de-segregation.

lunch counter - Smithsonian

"On that day in 1960, the students first bought some school supplies to prove that the store would sell to them and then sat down at the Woolworth lunch counter and tried to order a hamburger which was against the law. If they bought a hamburger to eat in the store, they were required to stand in the back of the store to eat it. That day Stan, you were not quite eleven months old and Mary, you were just 35 months old, We were living in Arlington Heights, Massachusetts busy completing a doctoral dissertation and four years at Harvard and preparing to depart in four months for a stint on the faculty of Northwestern University. What follows is a mix of a little history and some family memoirs which normally produces both second rate history and family memoirs." (from LETTERS FROM A PILGRIM, a blog by Floyd Brandt)

And another excerpt from LETTERS FROM A PILGRIM:

"Dear Gail,

My memories of holidays and summers at the farm encompass about eight or ten years from approximately 1934 to 1944, the ages five to fifteen for me and nine to nineteen for Fred ending when he enlisted in the Air Force during WW II. But before I begin describing the holidays, a few words about how we traveled to “the farm.”

I hope you will pay a visit to Mr. Brandt's site. I am bookmarking him today, and hope to visit him regularly from now on. Thank you, Floyd, for your memories, your thoughts, and for the gift of prose that you share with us all via this site.

I wish we were family ...-- Davielle

keep plodding along ...

2010-10-08T19:25:00.000-07:00

Sometimes it is all we can manage to do ... to just keep plodding along.

"Normal day, let me be aware of the treasure you are. Let me learn from you, love you, bless you before depart. Let me not pass you by in quest of some rare and perfect tomorrow. Let me hold you while I mayu, for it may not always be so. One day I shall dig my nails into the earth, or bury my face in the pillow, or stretch myself taut, or raise my hands to the sky and want, more than all the world, your return."

-- Mary Jean Iron

God bless this - and every single - day.

-- Davielle

LEAVING COMMENTS on This or Any BLOG

2010-07-17T08:41:00.000-07:00

So many bloggers have the comments left on their posts set to "moderate".   I didn't, in the beginning - until I had a comment post that was inappropriate.   Ever since then, I've opted to moderate comments to this blog.

Here's my 'beef' ... when someone leaves a comment IN ANOTHER LANGUAGE, how on earth will I know what it says, IF it says anything at all, etc etc etc.   It's very frustrating for me.

If the person leaving the comment can READ my blog / blog posts, then I could assume / presume that they read and write English ... right?   So why leave a comment that I cannot read?   I find it very frustrating.

For months now, I have received "comments to be moderated" from someone who leaves them in what looks to be Japanese or Chinese ... I can't tell ... I just reject them all.    Could they be "spam" comments? They could be.   I'll never know, will I ??? It's all Greek to me, as they say.

Okay, for the sake of putting this one to bed, I copied & pasted a recent comment into Google translater - it 'detected' Chinese, and it translated it thus:

We're too old too fast, but smart too late

So was this the commenters 'original' thought, did it have any relativity to the post I had created? I'll have to go back to check.

And for curiosity's sake, I pulled up another recent comment they left ... it translated to this:

Water is always the same, but they are new every moment

These random "comments" are seem to be nothing more than Chinese sayings or proverbs. I find it discouraging that someone is choosing to comment with a non-comment to my posts, or that my blog has been chosen to be spammed. What a poop of a discovery!

So that's my BLOGGER BEEF of the day. the week. the month. I guess.

Thanks for listening.

-- Davielle

If you should find yourself in need of a good translation now and then, here's the link:

http://translate.google.com/#

The Sketchbook Project: 2011 ... will you join me?

2010-07-08T20:04:00.000-07:00

I've joined up to be a part of THE SKETCHBOOK PROJECT: 2011 ... will you join me?

For details, the scoop, the 4-1-1 -- hop over to my other blog, http://iamprincessmagpie.blogspot.com to find out more.

I hope you'll sign on with me for this incredible journey.

Together we can have fun, and make the project a wild success.

:-)

-- Davielle

le Tour de Disgrace ???

2010-07-03T09:37:00.000-07:00

Advance Warning: you might not like what I have to say when it comes to this particular blog post. If that's the case, DO leave a comment. If you happen to agree with me, DO leave a comment. If you have questions regarding WHY I feel like this ... please, please, please ... LEAVE A COMMENT.

So yesterday over on FaceBook I posted a comment about my "status". I said "doping be damned, I'm watching this year's Tour de France".

That's right.   You heard me. {although in retrospect it may sound flippant, given today's WSJ story outlining more & more details about the accusations against Lance Armstrong, et al.}

I am so tired of the hypocrisy in sports when it comes to doping. And so, YES, I am going to watch this year's edition of the Tour de France. Between the DVR and http://www.cyclingnews.com/, I'll get my Tour "fix" (ooh, pardon that pun) as usual this year.

Friends - there are many, many athletes that dope. Accept the fact, then make your choice accordingly.

Will you stop going to baseball games, America's Favorite Pasttime, because of stories like this one:
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=17220752

I rather doubt it.

Will you stop watching the NFL - on TV or in person - because of stuff like this: http://www.nytimes.com/2008/01/27/sports/27iht-nfl.1.9522468.html

How about basketball: http://www.nytimes.com/2009/08/07/sports/basketball/07nba.html

So let's look at CYCLING. There's not a baseball or football or basketball game in the world that can touch the stamina, endurance, fitness level, and energy needed for a 2,000 (sometimes plus) mile bike race thru hill and dale and mountain pass - over a 3-week period - with just two (yes, 2) rest days.   If you know nothing about the sport of cycling, then look into this one, friends. It's for real. It's grueling and gnarly. It's not your Sunday afternoon ride in the park. Hardly.

Take a look at the map of the 2006 Tour de France course ... how could anyone compete well and strong in an event like this ... without doping?   I'm just asking out of curiosity.   Does that make doping-in-cycling "right"? No way. But the race organizers, if they truly want the sport CLEAN, must stop creating these monstrous races and be reasonable. It just can't be humanly possible, not in my humble opinion, to race a course like this one - clean.

Now, I admit - I used to be offended or disgusted or disappointed if a rider / team was caught doping. Remember the Festina affair back in 1998? here's a link: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Festina_affair     I might not have been a Richard Virenque fan - but hey, it made me sad for him and his team - that they would "resort to doping".   I was that naive - back then.

I will also say that having a grandson heavily into sports - mostly baseball, with some football and basketball thrown in for good measure - the topic of DOPING IN SPORTS - frightens me. For personal reasons, of course. Doping - the products and the methods - can ruin a person, even kill them.   I am NOT in support of doping.

I am, however, not in DENIAL about the reality of it. What I really, really, really object to is the BLATANT HYPOCRISY of it all. The "oh my goodness, he's a cheater. how could he?!" comments.

When a cyclist goes around blabbing that he's "against doping and will never dope", I now listen with a jaded ear. Eventually, it could - and probably will - come out that they, too - those vocally vociferous anti-doping guys - were, in fact, doping. It does seem to be the reality of the game. Methinks they protesteth ... overly much.

I'm really on a rant this morning, and I'm just getting started - so grab your coffee & muffin, then settle back into this.

{Or like they say at the bottom of a forwarded-a-gazillion-times e-mail: IF YOU DON'T CARE ABOUT HAVING BAD LUCK FOR THE NEXT 382 YEARS, HIT 'DELETE'.}

So the big story in the WALL STREET JOURNAL went like this:
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748704911704575326753200584006.html?mod=WSJ_hpp_LEADNewsCollection

In all fairness to Mr. Lance Armstrong, here's the link to his reaction to the accusations that continue to be lobbed at him by Mr. Floyd Landis:
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748703881504575344550619265416.html

I am all about giving both sides a chance to speak their mind, their version of their truth.

Landis's credibility has been under fire since the news of his email revelations broke. Until now, he had categorically denied the use of performance enhancing drugs and penned a book entitled "Positively False: The Real Story of How I Won the Tour de France". The book described the cycling world as "a place where athletes are subject to the antiquated science, flawed interpretive protocols, and draconian legal processes of the anti-doping agencies".

Armstrong fired back before the start of yesterday's Tour of California stage saying, "With regards to the specific allegations, the specific claims, they're not even worth getting into it. I'm not going to waste my time or your time".

"We have nothing to hide. We have nothing to run from. It's our word against his word," Armstrong said . "I like our word. We like our credibility."

Hincapie also commented on the matter in a statement yesterday that said, "I have been a professional on the circuit for 17 years – which is one of the longest careers in the peloton. During that time, I have earned the respect of my peers and a reputation for working hard, honestly and honorably. I'm really disappointed to hear these accusations."

Ah, George. Really? You're disappointed to "hear these accusations"? What? Because you've never heard them ... before? Is this the first time for you? Give me a break.

"Landis is part of a long list of former Armstrong teammates and former U.S. Postal Service riders who have either acknowledged or been caught doping.

Frankie Andreu has said he used EPO while preparing for the Tour de France on Armstrong’s team in the late 1990s. Olympic gold medalist Tyler Hamilton tested positive after the 2004 Athens Games, kept his medal on what amounted to a technicality, then retired last year after telling the AP he knowingly took a banned steroid. Roberto Heras was stripped of his win at the Spanish Vuelta in 2005 and Spanish rider Manuel Beltran was kicked out of the Tour de France, both found to have used EPO." {excerpt from article by By Tim Reynolds, Associated Press, updated 8:02 p.m. PT, Thurs., May 20, 2010}

And if anyone believes that George Hincapie hasn't heard this kind of allegation before, well then, I offer up this link: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Frankie_Andreu   Granted, Wikipedia wouldn't be my first choice for having all the facts quite right. So I'll include a link to an interview done on NPR that addresses this same situation concerning previous doping habits of Mr. Lance Armstrong:
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=5516287

If George Hincapie was "disappointed", then I'd have to dub him "out of touch" ... it's nothing new to the sport, George, these accusations and allegations. If George is any kind of professional athlete, then I'd bet my last nickel he stays in close touch with ALL these stories. Disappointed? Maybe because all those years of hard work could be tarnished if there's something true about the Lance story accusations.I find it interesting that an esteemed publication like the WALL STREET JOURNAL chose to run with this story - talk about credibility! My money's on the WSJ when it comes to "credibility", Mr. Armstrong. Way way back when Floyd was charged with using testosterone in the 2006 TdF, and ultimately had the title of TdF Champion stripped from him - the Journal was taking the hard road - they were (then) questioning Floyd's credibility.

Interesting, then, that the WSJ is not questioning his credibility now? Rather, they're now questioning Lance Armstrong's credibility?

I will, at this point, remind you all that I posted to this blog earlier this year - a daily reading published in Living Faith (a Catholic magazine that Mark and I read each morning) - written by Mr. Lance Armstrong's ex-wife, Kristin.

I have a lot of respect and admiration for Kristin Armstrong. If you didn't read that blog post I created - here's the link:
http://dh2travelers.blogspot.com/2010/05/removing-falsehood.html

Maybe I read too much into Kristin's writing. Maybe she wasn't trying to purge herself of the deceitful life her ex-husband was (now allegedly) leading "back in the days" of their marriage.   Maybe those of us who love cycling would be the only ones that would make a connection between what she wrote - and the news that's hitting the world's newstands this morning. Maybe, maybe, maybe. {read: blah, blah, blah}

Personally, for all you naysayers out there, I have this to say - in my opinion, the powers that be in cycling and in sport will have a tough decision to make: do we take Armstrong down if it can be proven he's been doping? or do sweep this under the rug, because Armstrong has done such a good job promoting the "cancer recovery is possible for anyone - if I can do it, so can you" message ??? Hmmm?

Think about it: what is going to be "better" for the world's cancer patients - just diagnosed, in treatment, in remission, cured - to have the "hope and inspiration" of a Lance Armstrong dangling out there for them to believe in? Or the truth about doping in cycling coming to light?

{back when I was a believer in the possibility of 'clean cycling'. Floyd's first season with USPS and Lance ... that's us with Floyd AND Lance. do you think I want all this to be true? to be happening? just because I am now a believer that many cyclists dope, doesn't make me happy about it. au contraire.}

My money's on this: It's going to come down to a bit of a moral dilemma, don't you think? A "we should consider the greater good / we should do damage control on this for the good of all the cancer patients out there in the world, who look to Lance for the answer they all want".

And who in their right mind would take all that away from a cancer patient ??? Lance has done a magnificent job of building his empire, my friends.

I COULD GO ON AND ON FOR DAYS, here. I'll leave it at this, though:

Before I hear you all railing against Floyd Landis for deceiving the public about any doping he might have done during his career as a pro cyclist, let me suggest to you: there probably isn't a person in this world that hasn't lied at one time or another. To save a relationship, to save a job, to save their reputation, to protect someone or something so dear and precious to them that they "just had to". Admit it. So please don't get all high and mighty and overly-moral over this one. Just because Floyd's deceit was on an international level, doesn't make it any worse than what you and I have probably done, day in and day out, sooner or later, somewhere along our life's path.

It's no secret: my heart and support go to Floyd on this one, friends. How could it not? {This photo of Mark and I, Floyd and Amber, was taken on the Champs Elysees in Paris - at the conclusion of Floyd's very first Tour de France: 2002.}

Some will say that I am 'biased'.   Believe me, I am not. Anyone who knows me, knows that I consider all angles before taking a stand. Some will even say that I "knew" something all along. Again, not true. Really, doesn't knowledge of an action come down to the person - and their God? They either know what they've done, or others might also know because they witnessed it.   Without having witnessed anything relative to this doping matter, what could I have possibly 'known' ???

And my heart and support goes out to any and all cancer patients in the world who looked up to Lance for their inspiration, for their "kick some ass, Lance, kick it good and hard for US, Lance" attitude. They were lifted up by that hope.

Now that the 'Emperor' might have just stepped naked out of the team bus into the world - I pray that anyone who looked up to Armstrong will put their faith in something a little more 'not of this world' - after all, we are ALL only human.

And let me add this to my say-so on the topic.   I don't want ANY of these athletes to be guilty of doping. But if it IS the reality, then let's shed the light, for everyone's sake, and do what we can to support CLEAN SPORTS going forward. And let's not have one set of rules for most athletes, and an edited version of those rules for the more 'powerful' athletes. That's all I want.

Whether or not Lance is found guilty of doping, I want those patients to find their hope, their inspiration in something less 'human'.   Get my meaning?

-- Davielle

and if anyone's got a rebuttal, please, let's start the conversation. I am, after all, about hearing all sides and opinions ...

FLYING LESSONS underway

2010-06-05T07:20:00.000-07:00

Friends, I am not about to let my dream for MAGPIE'S ART NEST be put on the back burner, as they say, and so I have (a week late) signed up for Kelly Rae Robert's online class, FLYING LESSONS: Tips + Tricks to Help Your Creative Business Soar ...

{above, Kelly Rae teaching us at An Artful Journey - February 2010}

In case you don't know what Magpie's Art Nest is all about, you can visit my other blog at http://iamprincessmagpie.blogspot.com for further details.

I think e-courses are truly the way to go when you want content that you can really ponder. It's online, you can re-visit the information, and if the instructor has made it accessible for printing, you'll have that hard copy that so many of us appreciate months down the road when we need a refresher.

Kelly Rae and her friend Mati Rose (McDonough) were co-instructors for the workshop I took earlier this year with my friend, Ann Deakers ... we made our own FUNKY CHUNKY COFFEE TABLE BOOK and what a keepsake it is! Cynthia organized the most amazing Art Retreat (An Artful Journey) I can imagine, and Los Gatos was a beautiful setting. Just far enough away from home that we could really feel we got away, and driveable, too.

But back to FLYING LESSONS. I've never had a desire to fly an airplane, but these are the kind of flying lessons I can really aspire to.

If you are so inclined, I invite you to join me on this journey.

Visit Kelly Rae's website by clicking on the title of this blog post - it will take you there in a flash! (or just click on the FLYING LESSONS button on my sidebar ...)

-- Davielle

REMOVING FALSEHOOD

2010-05-21T07:42:00.000-07:00

Last month, I came across a daily reading in our LIVING FAITH (Daily Catholic Devotions) that struck me as ... very heartfelt. As if it were written by someone with ... experience on the topic.

It was written by Kristin Armstrong, "mother of three, a writer and a runner. Her fourth book is WORK IN PROGRESS: An Unfinished Woman's Guide to Grace." Click here to see what her other books are ... and to read a short bio on Kristin.

http://www.hachettebookgroup.com/authors_Kristin-Armstrong-(1076472).htm

I think you'll find it (somewhat) interesting to learn that she is the former wife of cyclist Lance Armstrong.

So when I read this Living Faith "post", I bookmarked it ... and here it is, in its entirety:

REMOVING FALSEHOOD
Monday April 19
'Remove from me the way of falsehood, and favor me with your law.' Psalm 119:29

We don't make a conscious decision to turn towards the dark path of deceit. We don't wake up one day and decide that being a person of good character is overrated. We don't suddenly develop a penchant for dwelling in a pit.

No, departure from integrity is more subtle and insidious than that, more like taking a wrong turn and ending up lost -- in a bad neighborhood. It's allowing for a small deviation from the truth, rationalizing it and downplaying it, so the next indiscretion seems like no big deal -- and likewise the next and the next, until one can no longer remember how it felt to be clean. It isn't enough to try to avoid deceit; we have to actively pursue truth. We have to be intentional and diligent about seeking God's teaching and living in the light.

Lord, help me become so attuned to your teaching that a subtle tug of your Spirit is enough to turn me around.
-- Kristin Armstrong

Read what you will here, and take from it what you will. That's all I ask.

-- Davielle

Giro d' Italia 2010 - Underway

2010-05-13T06:53:00.000-07:00

Or should I say ... underwear?

On day 2 / Stage 2 of this year's Giro d' Italia (tour of Italy - first of the year's three Grand Tours - Italy, France, Spain), Mark and I were horrified (although not surprised) at the number of (rather spectacular) crashes. What a day in the saddle for these guys.

Of particular "interest" to both of us were the two NAKED RIDERS that got back on their bikes after one crash in particular -- both were from Team FOOTON-SERVETTO-FUJI, and we couldn't believe how their "kits" just blew apart in the crash. What a downer, right?

If you want to know what I'm talkng about, click on the link to a YouTube clip of Stage Two's CRASHES (in the title of this post) ... it's in Italian, so enjoy the language, first of all. Next, watch closely at about 2:56 into the clip -- that's where the crash happens, and although the TV coverage was better - you will get a glimpse of these two poor riders. (what's left of their kit is black ...)

{and by the way, in this same clip, a rather heartbreaking crash - three guys off the side of the road - never let it be believed that crashing in grass is any better than on the asphalt - this happens at 7:07 in the video}

Back to naked guys on bikes. Right? Isn't that what we're here for, after all ???

So back up a bit, to 5:13 - 5:40 in this clip ... this is the crash that Mark and I just couldn't believe. Okay, so in THIS clip, the close-ups reveal ... somewhat LESS than we could see from a helicopter overhead view, thereby leading us to believe that this guy was HALF NAKED. {Imagine my delight !!!} What you're looking for here is rider # 101 ...

All right, so after another day of watching the Giro action, we discovered that this team has a "kit" that LOOKS like the guys are half-naked. Honestly. I'm not kidding. It's like the sponsors wanted them to show off ... all their "goods", and I'm not talking about the names of the sponsors.

Last night, watching Stage 4 of the Giro, I finally caught the name of the team in the unusual uniforms.

Footon-Servetto-Fuji. This morning, I Googled them. Lo and behold, I found photographs of the Team "unveiling" the 2010 kits, and just have to share with you all:

the approach to the unveiling ... notice the one poor guy, with his head hung in ... I don't know, what do YOU think is going through his mind just about now?

and here they are - unveiled for all the world to see. See what, you might ask? Gee ... you tell me.

Call me juvenile, but when I see a guy in a revealing pair of bike shorts, I can't help but ... stare. There, I've admitted it. Our cycling friends (well, the women anyway ) well recall the early days, when I was a newbie to all this ... I had a particular favorite (and I'm serious, here): Jaan Kirsipuu, the Estonian sprinter. The highlight of my very first Tour de France (2002, after his stage 5 win in Rouen) was standing up close to Jaan himself. And I have the photos to prove it. Those, and his autograph.

If you'd like to see the mighty Kirsipuu for yourself, I'm including some of my fave images here ...

his winning style ...

and his winning smile ...

his humility ... when he took a second instead of a win ...

oh, and lest we forget, the overall Jaan .. it's his podium shots I love the best !!!

But back to this year's Giro d'Italia ... if you, too, would like to follow the 2010 race, it's being covered daily on Universal Sports (television), and the km by km coverage I like the best is still at www.cyclingnews.com .

If you'd like to know more about Footon-Servetto-Fuji's 2010 cycling team, click here http://footon-servetto-fuji.com/en/home/id/1/

-- Davielle

Ornithology 101

2010-04-26T17:36:00.000-07:00

So Rule No. 1 of bird-watching is this: ONE MUST BE PATIENT.

Rule No. 2: One should always have binoculars and/or their camera AT HAND.

Rule No. 3: One should always proceed S.L.O.W.L.Y. in areas where they usually see ... BIRDS.

So I'm following all the rules today. I hit the big-time score. First, I followed Rule No. 3 ... when I got home this afternoon from running all kinds of errands, I drove up our drive ... slowly. I usually do. There's either birds in the birdbath or bunnies in the open spaces, or at the very least, I can delay putting things away for just that much longer.

Second, I spy a ****load of birds splashing in our Misty Birdbath. I slow the car even more. I realize that I am now able to say that I followed Rule No. 2 -- my camera was right next to me ('cause I took Kristi and her friend Jen out to breakfast this morning, and wanted to take photos of them).

And next: Rule No. 1. PATIENCE. It's a virtue, you know.

So. I sit in the car, radio off and a/c turned way down, foot on the brake. I put the camera on "sport" setting and I zoom in as much as I can, still unaware of what a goldmine I've just struck. Still, I'm thinking to myself, "hmm, those birds look rather ... large ..." ???

Lo and behold -- it was a FLOCK of Cedar Waxwings. OMG, I just scored big-time! I begin very calmly freaking out.

I quickly called Mark on his cell to tell him to fly (get it? fly?!) down the driveway, but no answer. Meanwhile, I'm snapping away and once I realized what I had, there wasn't any way I was taking time to call anyone else to come see.

So look up Cedar Waxwing if you don't know what they are ... Bombycilla cedorum is their Latin name. WAY cool birds.

IF YOU CLICK ON THE LINK BENEATH THIS POST'S TITLE,

you'll be re-directed to a site for Sibley's bird guides.

So while I'm snap snap snapping away -- click, click, click -- I try to inch the car a little closer. They're SO on to me, though, that they flitter up into the nearby trees. Trying to blend in. Right, guys. So I keep snapping. I turn the car off. {you can see how Rule No. 1 is really key here ...}

But wait. It gets better. OMG, a small crew of ... oh, they're just house finches. Anyway, too cute, they fly in and bathe and the Waxwings - whether they didn't want to cross-pollinate with the other "lowly" birds, or if I was making them cautious -- the Waxwings just sat up above, PATIENTly waiting for an empty bath OR for me to leave. You see, patience works both ways.

At left, a House Finch, a White-Crowned Sparrow, a lone Waxwing (all in the lower bath) and up above, one of these cute podgy baby birds and ... hmmm ... something rather brightly colored.

So as I sit there, super-duper PATIENTLY waiting for some more Waxwing action ... HOLY COW, some flash of brilliant color flits into view. OMG, it's the first Western Tanager (Piranga ludoviciana) of the season. RIGHT into the bath. "Nobody's gonna believe this", I thought to myself.

PATIENCE pays off, my ornithological friends. Get this:

The next flash of color that flies in ... a Hooded Oriole (Icterus cucullatus). Yup, you got it ... the first sighting of them for the season, too.

As if it could get any better ... in pops a hummingbird to the bath. Yeah, sitting right there. I'm going to guess that this was a Rufous Hummingbird (Selasphorus rufus), although I am not certain. We have LOTS of hummingbirds on the property, and I know this is one of our year-round varieties, but I'm not so good at ID'ing the hummers.

Whew. What a day.

OH, but wait. One of the most darling bathers this afternoon were these podgy baby birds - and I have no idea what they are, although I might guess they are baby House Sparrows (?) - if someone can enlighten me, I can go to sleep easily tonight.

Ah, now where are our elusive Western Bluebirds? I ask you. Is it too much to ask for them to come back and nest on our property this year? We had them here, one year. Too lovely for words. Oh, and of course, that was the same year that a flock of Indigo Buntings flew on through for a weekend.

Bliss for Birders, 101.

Yours in Ornithological Ecstasy ...

Davielle

(oh, and by the way ... all photos in this post -

by Moi. Yup, all my own shots. Sigh.)

Reader's Digest Version {or, Davi needs to create shorter blog posts!}

2010-04-06T11:28:00.000-07:00

I just went through some of my recent blog posts and WOW, I am embarassed to admit ... I tend to write
REEEEAAAALLLLLYYYY LLLOOONNNGGGGGG .... posts. I do apologize.

I think I've said this before, but I'll say it again, right here and right now.

I will do my utmost to condense, refine, and shorten - said posts. Going forward, anyway.

Yours in brevity,

Davielle

Jane LaFazio - interviewed on RUNNING WITH SCISSORS STUDIO's blog

2010-04-05T13:51:00.000-07:00

You've all heard me rave about local {San Diego County} mixed media artist, Jane LaFazio. I've been fortunate to be able to have taken three of her multi-session workshops, MIXED MEDIA WITH PAPER AND CLOTH - the beauty of them is that she never repeats a lesson / technique {unless by special request}. I've enjoyed the most incredible 16 months of mixed media "arting", and it's mostly due to the fabulous Jane ...

Graffiti Kimono - Jane La Fazio

I just discovered that Jane has been interviewed on a blog called RUNNING WITH SCISSORS STUDIO {isn't that a great name?!} and I invite you all to visit it -- the interview is terrific, and they've posted many images of Jane's work for you to enjoy.

http://runningwithscissorsstudio.blogspot.com/

Happy Easter Monday !!!

-- Davielle

Avoiding the Speed Bumps and Good Key Karma

2010-03-17T12:29:00.000-07:00

My friend and blogging mentor {and a frequent "you won't believe how amazing she is!" topic on this blog and my other blog}, Ann Deakers, gave me some advice this morning that I found quite good: "You can avoid the speed bumps ..."

Let me tell you the context: we were leaving our morning workout at the YMCA and as we got into our cars, Ann said "you know, if you go out the north exit of the parking lot, you can avoid the speed bumps."

It was that simple.

But as I got in the car, I was struck with the wisdom of her simple advice.

"you can avoid the speed bumps."

Wouldn't we all like to avoid the speed bumps? Literally and figuratively? Life is beautiful, yes, but it can be a challenge, we can endure plenty of pain and suffering, there will always be hiccups along the way. SPEED BUMPS, if you will.

I know that I am not the first person {and I'd venture to say, I won't be the last} to compare actual speed bumps with figurative / life-occurences-related speed bumps. But I just had to share that with you all today.

Listen to your friends. ALWAYS listen to your friends. For the most part, our friendships survive and thrive precisely because ... they help us work through or avoid ... life's speed bumps.

There. I've got that out of my system for today!

Oh, and speaking of cars and bumps ... I want to say that I had the most excellent key karma lately ... not just once, but twice. In one month. Here's how that went for me:

The first incident was that I parked outside a Michael's (arts and crafts supplies) a few weeks ago, on a drizzly morning, and as I got out of the car, I noticed I had parked next to a storm drain. You know the kind with the stencilled dolphin that says "I live downstream" ??? As I shut the car door, my keys fell to the ground. One single inch away from that drain. On a slanted surface. I bent down very carefully, very slowly ... and got the keys. What a relief!

The second incident was even more unbelievable. Last week, my daughter came over to run an errand with me. We parked both our cars (at home, in the driveway) at the same time and ran into the house to do a couple of things (like, say, going to the bathroom!). When we went back outside, I couldn't find my car keys, and I was driving. I quick grabbed the spare keys and off we went. 40 miles and 40 minutes later, we pulled back into my driveway. She got out, went inside ... as I got out of the car, something caught my eye. Yes, I had driven all that way, for all that time, up hill and down dale ... with those keys ON THE TOP OF MY VOLVO. Thank God, there is a slender channel that runs the length of the top of the car. One key had wedged itself into that; otherwise, they would have been oh-so-long-gone. If you don't believe me, I think I took a picture of it.

so looking at it again, I see that it wasn't really a key that held them all in place ...

rather, it was the little bone-shaped Harrod's "charm" on the keychain, a memento from our 2008 trip to London ... that saved my bacon !!!

And that's all I have to say today about SPEED BUMPS and GREAT KEY KARMA ...

--- Davi

Worthiness: Part Deux

2010-03-17T08:19:00.000-07:00

I shouldn't have been surprised when I happened into another serendipitous moment last week ... they just keep coming.

My delightful mother-in-law Marion called to invite me to a women's spiritual retreat April 30 - May 2 here in the hills of East San Diego county, at Whispering Winds { http://www.whisperingwinds.org/index.html } ... the same retreat that Mark and I will attend {separately} in October when we make our Cursillo { http://www.cursillosd.org/ } retreat/s.

{photo of Sycamore tree, Leo Carrillo State Park, CA - by me - December 2009}

I was really interested when she told me who the Retreat speaker / leader will be: Sister Macrina Weiderkehr, O.S.B. who I read quite often in our daily "Living Faith" book ... { http://www.livingfaith.com/ } which is a "daily Catholic devotional".   And get this: Sr. Macrina has a BLOG. How could I not want to attend a Retreat with a Sister who blogs? Really !!!   { http://macrina-underthesycamoretree.blogspot.com/ }

You may have read my last blog post, HUSTLING FOR WORTHINESS. I hope you did, anyway.

So Marion invites me to this Retreat, I tell her I'd love to attend, and then I run upstairs to look at some of Sister's writings ... lo and behold, Sister Macrina's meditation for Sunday, March 14 ... A PARTY FOR THE UNWORTHY ... jumped out at me.   Worthiness? Unworthy people?    Now that is just plain more than mere coincidence, don't you agree?

I'd like to "lift" that reading in its entirety here for you all to consider:

taken from LIVING FAITH, 2010:

A PARTY FOR THE UNWORTHY / March 14 / Fourth Sunday of Lent
" But now we must celebrate and rejoice ..."   Luke 15:32

Embarassing as it is to acknowledge this, I often feel like the Prodigal Son's older brother. I completely understand his sentiments. He was not able to rejoice over another's good fortune because he was focusing on whether the recipient of his father's love was truly deserving. He was also wallowing in his own imagined neglect: I've been faithful all these years, and no one even noticed. Poor me!   This gospel offers marvelous material for prayer and reflection for each of us. Are we able to rejoice with another when because of some good gift they've received whether it be a material gift, a promotion or new opportunity, an affirmation or reward? Or has our fountain of joy dried up because we are foundering in our own misery? Look deep within your heart to see if there may be a bit of rejoicing you are withholding. Practice being glad because of another's good fortune.

Oh most merciful One, teach me to throw a party for the unworthy, knowing that I may be the guest of honor.   ~~ Sr. Macrina Weiderkehr, O.S.B.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Do we judge others to be "unworthy"? Do we judge ourselves as being "unworthy" ???

Let's follow Christ's example and find EVERY ONE OF US ... worthy ... of our respect, our kindness, our generosity, our joy in their gifts ... let us be gentle with ourselves and others.

And by the way, when I also discovered that my most favorite art teacher, Chris Cozen, will be in town again on the exact same dates as the Retreat, I had a moment, a twinge, of "oh, no, this can't be ..."   Until I realized that I most need to be at this women's spiritual retreat at this point in not just my life, but in my art-walk as well.   {but for those interested in taking the spot I would have filled at Chris' classes, you can visit Stamping Details at http://www.stampingdetails.com/ for class details; with my blessing!}

-- Davielle

The Hustle of Worthiness ... Exploring the Power of Love, Belonging, and Being Enough - with Dr. Brene Brown

2010-03-09T08:40:00.000-08:00

One of my favorite people in the whole world is the wholehearted DR. BRENE BROWN ... a researcher, writer, and professor at the University of Houston Graduate College of Social Work.

Brene has spent the last decade studying a concept she calls Wholeheartedness, posing the question: "How do we cultivate a life defined by authenticity, love and belonging, joy and gratitude, and a resilient spirit, and what gets in the way?"

Wouldn't we all like to have the answer/s to that question? I know I would ...

Last year, Brene offered an on-line READ-ALONG with her book, "I Thought It Was Just Me (but it isn't)" , which I blogged about ... and participated in ...

This year, we are waiting with baited breath {what does that mean, really, anyway?! "baited breath". hmmm} for the release of her new book, "The Gifts of Imperfection: Let Go of Who You Think You're Supposed to Be and Embrace Who You Are" . Due out in April 2010, this promises to be more wonderful work along the lines of "ITIWJM(bii)".

This week, however, we are celebrating the release of a new DVD by Brene, "THE HUSTLE OF WORTHINESS: Exploring the Power of Love, Belonging, and Being Enough".

In the post about the release of her new DVD, author Brown notes: "Our lives are a collection of stories -- truths about who we are, what we believe, what we come from, how we struggle, and how we are strong. When we can let go of what people think, and own our story, we gain access to our worthiness -- the feeling that we are enough just as we are, and that we are worthy of love and belonging."

How powerful is THAT?!

So what is this word, WORTHY, anyway? Just what does WORTHINESS mean to you? to me? I turned to Webster's {my trusty 1956, leather-bound edition that my mother Edith used for decades}:

WORTH: that quality or sum of qualities of a thing rendering it valuable or useful; value; hence, often, value as expressed in a standard, as money; moral or personal excellence, merit; wealth, riches.

Webster's goes on to add:

Worth: the quality of being useful, important, excellent, or the like.

and they define WORTHY ... "Having worth; valuable; estimable. Having adequate merit. 'A person of eminent worth.'

And isn't that what each and every single one of us are? WORTHY? Having worth. Of value and importance and useful ???

Being a lover of quotes, I found some very poignant ones that speak to me of the word and the concept of WORTH ...

"No one can make you feel inferior without your consent." -- Eleanor Roosevelt

"Do not let your peace depend on the hearts of men; whatever they say about you, good or bad, you are not because of it another man, for as you are, you are." -- Thomas a' Kempis

"The worst loneliness is not to be comfortable with yourself." -- Mark Twain

and to bookend the quote from Eleanor ...

"I care not what others think of what I do, but I care very much about what I think of what I do. That is character!" -- Theodore Roosevelt

But I think that the quote speaking to me loud and clear this morning is this:

"Women's work is always toward wholeness." -- May Sarton

While women do not have the market cornered on issues of worth/unworthiness and being whole vs. being "broken", I do feel that women strive their whole lives, from the cradle to the grave, for that feeling of wholeness, completion, worthiness ... that Brene addresses.

Do we struggle with body image issues? education issues? career or family or community issues? {if you answered YES to any of those questions, then you are in excellent company ... because who among us has NOT struggled with those issues, and more?}

Do we ever truly feel that we "stack up" well against our family members, our friends, our neighbors? {if you answered "YES" to the stacking up well question, then YOU need to be writing a blogpost on this topic yourself!}

I personally battle body-image and health-challenge issues all the time. From the time I could talk and reason, I wondered "what did I do to deserve these headaches?" and I always wanted to know "why did I get the belly-fat gene in the family?!" I continue struggling with body image / self-worth issues to this day.

My friend Karen Caterson, who I met through the read-along last year and have grown to love because she is such a beautiful person, caring and giving and open-hearted ... she spends a lot of time addressing body-image concerns that we women face. Her work CHOOSING ME: Finding Comfort, Joy and Beauty in the Me I am NOW is fantastic! { http://squarepegpeople.typepad.com/choosing_me }.

I know that we each have our WORTHINESS issues to face ... I invite you to see what Brene has to say about the subject via her new DVD. And please, please do leave a comment ON MY BLOG ... your comments do mean so much to me, as they do to all bloggers, and gee, it just might give my FEELING WORTHY quotient the boost it needs to ... take the next step. Or not! You see, no pressure.

As Brene says, "join me and some of my favorite bloggers this week as we take to the streets to celebrate our messy, imperfect, wild, stretch-marked, wonderful, heartbreaking, grace-filled, and joyful lives!"

Visit Brene at http://www.ordinarycourage.com to read more about her incredible studies.

-- Davielle

Still gathering AN ARTFUL JOURNEY post-Retreat thoughts ...

2010-03-09T07:21:00.000-08:00

there WILL be more, including photos ... I promise!

I've been caught up in Google/E-Blogger world for a few days now, trying to create a NEW blog -- an offshoot to "I Am Princess Magpie", and in so doing, I made a little mess of which e-mail address goes with which blog log-in !!!

Help!

Hoping that Ann, my blogging mentor, can help me straighten it all out ...

:-)
Davi

I'm still in RETREAT mode ... and that's a good thing

2010-02-28T20:19:00.000-08:00

I have had a handful of friends asking me ... "when are you going to blog about An Artful Journey?" and ... "when can we see the pictures from An Artful Journey?" ... and "what did you think of An Artful Journey?" ... I mean, really, I could hear Kelly drumming her fingertips next to her keyboard, just jonesing for my first words. :-) {thanks, Kelly - I'm glad you want to read what I thought of AAJ.}

Well, to be honest, I've been hoarding the experience ... the memories, the newfound friendships, the sights and scents and sounds, The Presentation Center, and for said hoarding, I do apologize. I need to - no, I want to share it all, with you all. Really, I do. But you have to remember: Magpies are Hoarders Extraordinaire, and so in this instance, I'm going to really take on the magpie's persona and say "that is what I was doing ..." Forgive me.

So. I cannot possibly put into words just how it went for me. I have a feeling there are plenty of other AAJ participants that are still processing just what happened, just what we all experienced {and while it was unique to us all as individuals, there must be some commonalities to what happened for us all - am I right, ladies?}. I will TRY, though, to give it a shot {putting it into words, that is}. It may take several blog posts to get it all out, and to try and get it just right.

Here goes:

It was amazing. It was eye-opening. It was warm, and welcoming, and beyond my wildest expectations. That's saying a lot, 'cause I have a most vivid imagination, and I often have great expectations. AAJ organizer and "mother" Cindy O'Leary did a spectacular job putting all this together ... from the location (The Presentation Center) ... to the instructors - which read like a "who's who" in Mixed Media:
Albie Smith http://albie-smith.blogspot.com/ ,
DJ Pettit http://djpettitt.typepad.com/djpettitt/ ,
Leslie Riley http://www.lesleyriley.com/index.php ,
Nina Bagley http://www.ornamental.typepad.com/ ,
and of course, Kelly Rae Roberts http://kellyraeroberts.com/
& Mati Rose McDonough http://www.matirose.com/index.html )

... to the beautifully quilted and embellished and filled with ephemera "Welcome" packets ... to the activities ... and between Cindy and Stephanie, we all felt well cared for and well managed.

"Managed?" you might ask. Imagine if you can: 100+ women (and a few brave-soul husbands!) gathered all together. At times, it had to feel like herding cats .. and yet, Cindy could get our rapt attention with a quick "ladies ???" and a little "ahem". Worked like magic, every time.

It was magical. It was perfect. It was a new concept in Art Retreating, far as I know .. we each registered to spend the ENTIRE workshop (starting Friday night to breakfast Monday morning) in ONE workshop, with ONE instructor (except for those of us with the Dynamic Duo of Kelly Rae and Mati Rose) ... which meant that we had to fill just ONE supply list, and UNLOAD our supplies into just ONE classroom - for the duration of our stay. Can you imagine that?   It SOOOO worked, I don't know why this concept hasn't been tried before. I loved it!

AN ARTFUL JOURNEY was my very first art retreat experience -- and I'm thinking I just might be spoiled by it. Guess we'll just have to rally 'round Cindy to make that FIRST ANNUAL REUNION happen in February 2011 - same place, same time, same participants. Wouldn't THAT be magical, ladies?

So I don't know how much more I can say tonight. Mark just returned from a three-day bike race in Vegas; I am coming off a three-classes-in-a-row Chris Cozen "high" {at the gracious-as-always Stamping Details in Poway, CA}, and I'm looking forward to my Monday morning class with Jane LaFazio and all my friends in there.

I've got so much art on the brain, I even woke up at 4:20 am on Saturday - and could NOT go back to sleep. And again, it was an early Sunday morning for me - I had to wake Rocky up, if you can believe that !!!

I am so tired, I can't even post a few random photos to whet your appetite for more blog posts about MY experience of AN ARTFUL JOURNEY.    Well, okay. Here is ONE:

this is how my work space looked Friday morning, right after we finished our GROUP SWAP - we each made little swap goodie bags for everyone in the group. And COOL TREASURES we all received! Our workshop had the distinct pleasure of including the 2 AAJ ladies who traveled the furthest to join us: Beth from the UK, and Cathy all the way from Australia. Can you believe that?!

And let me just end it like this for now: what AN ARTFUL JOURNEY opened up for me is such an exciting place inside, I'm guarding it like a newborn. The dream I have long held to actually "work" in the art field is blossoming, and I am hatching (there's that magpie reference again!) a plan. And there has been a virtual flock of ideas flowing today that just can't be stopped. It's so fun! Wait - did I just use another magpie (bird) reference? Oh my!

Speaking of winged creatures ... one of my guardian angels, my mother Edith, passed away six years ago today. It was a Sunday then, too (Leap Year).

I am ever grateful for a couple of things about her journey to her better place:

One - she died the day before our daughter Kristina had a horrific car accident - and yet, Kristi walked away with only a few (large and severe) hematomas to her torso. She had just left work, it was late and dark, and she was thinking of her Grandma Edie and praying that Grandma was at peace ... when it happened. The policeman who first arrived on the scene told her he could not believe his eyes when he found out SHE was the driver of THAT vehicle. THAT, my friends, was my mother, protecting her grandchild from harm.

and

Two - I inherited my spirit and my creative talents, if you will, from my mother. I also inherited these traits from my father's side of the family - every single one of my auntie's had such great taste & style - truly, they did. But it is to my mother that I owe the most - she encouraged my artistic tendencies, and she always always always believed in me. When I returned to school to study Interior Design - at the ripe old age of 38, Mom was my biggest supporter. Thanks, Mom, for that.

And so I believe that all these new ideas, this new DREAM that is forming, is due, in large part, to my mother - who continues to make her presence known to us, the family she left behind six years ago today. I doubt that this is a coincidence.

I love you, Mom.

-- Davielle

Living Clutter Free ...

2010-02-28T12:19:00.000-08:00

This one isn't going to require much in the way of an intro ... if you know me, you know I tend to clutter. Anywhere, any time, for any and all excuses (um, Christina is calling them "seemingly logical reasons" ... could she be on to something here?!).

Let's dive right in, shall we? {do you see how I'm stalling here? I'm asking for your commitment to join me!} . And then, THEN, once I hit "publish post" ... I am heading OUT of my office, AWAY from this computer, and TACKLING some of the clutter I now have major ISSUES with ... LOL.   Awww, come on: laugh with me here, friends. {photo shows my desk, 2009 - it does have a much smaller stack now, but still, a stack, nonetheless.}

-- Davielle

SO HERE GOES {with my random comments included, in this color right here ... dark charcoal gray ... am I procrastinating, or what?!} :
9 Seemingly Logical Reasons We Cling to Clutter

by Christine Kane

"Perfection is not when there is no more to add, but no more to take away."   – Antoine de Saint-Exupery

A retired man once told me he loved going camping with his wife because camping showed her how simple life can be "without all that bloomin' stuff she keeps everywhere!"

He's right!

Our lives are meant to be simple. Our intuition and creativity thrive when given freedom and space. Clutter is a disease. {I was afraid of that ...} Each moment we ignore the reasons we hold on to things we don't want, those things rob us of energy, health, and clarity.

If you're a clutter-clinger, be kind to yourself. {oh, good, she's giving me permission to cut myself some slack & be kind to me. }Begin with an awareness of your thoughts and excuses. For starters, read over this list to see if you can find YOUR excuse!

Clutter Excuse #1: "I'd be a bad mean horrible person if I…"

Guilt is heavy gooey energy that convinces us we're bad people if we let go of heirlooms, knick-knacks, unwanted clothing, or unwanted gifts.

These items clutter up our lives and keep us in a comfortable – but draining – place. And conveniently, we never have to decide what we actually do want in our environment. We become environmental victims. Often, that spreads out into other parts of our lives too!

Clutter Excuse #2 - "I spent so much on it!"

Do you punish yourself for having made a bad choice by keeping the item around? Or convince yourself that you're going to get your money's worth – even if it drains the hell out of you?

You won't. And it will.

We've all done stupid things. And we've all had to let them go. Now it's your turn.

Clutter Excuse #3 - "I might need this someday."

I often wonder how many idle telephone cords exist in the world. Way in the back of old desk drawers. Stuffed on closet shelves. They can't be gotten rid of.

Why?

Because we might need them some day.

Evidently, some day - in spite of technological progress - you're going to need that particular grey phone cord that came in the box with a phone you bought in 1989. {I know, but ... oh, okay. point well taken!}

Throw it out. Now.

Same thing goes for: The broken fax machine, switch plates from your first house, and every glass flower vase that came with deliveries. {uh, oh, guilty as charged here.}

Clutter Excuse #4 - "I might do this someday."

I know. I know. {see, she knows me - she really really knows me.}

Someday you'll take those broken pieces of china you've collected and create a beautiful mosaic birdbath. {Oh my goodness, Christine knows about my broken pieces of china box - the one I "intend" to have Karyl help me make into a beautiful mosaic birdbath someday?!   And you think I'm kidding here, right? NOT. } And you'll go through those stacks of magazines and make that collage for your sister's 30th birthday party. (She's 51 now.)

Now – I don't mean to deny you your plans and dreams. However, I urge you to consider experiencing the infinite relief that appears when you let old project ideas go. {consider the possibilities !!!}

Call your sister and tell her the collage ain't gonna happen. Buy a mosaic birdbath from an artist who makes her living from creating such treasures.

And then, make space for what you want to do. Don't fill your space with what you should do.

Clutter Excuse #5 - "I gotta look good to my guests."

CD's. Books. DVD's. Are these items treasured? Or are they simply a prop so your guests will be impressed by your intelligence and diverse tastes? {and here I thought I wanted them because I wanted to impress MYSELF with my eclectic music and movie taste ... dang, Christine's good at calling our bluff, huh?}

Remember this: we are motivated by two things: Fear or Love. Which of these keeps you clinging to items because of appearances?

Clutter Excuse #6 - "I Don't Know Where It Goes."

When items don't have a home, it's harder to determine whether or not they are clutter. Some things may seem like clutter - like the cute card that your daughter made that floats around from drawer to drawer - but they're not clutter.

They're homeless.

Once you start defining spaces for items, then it's easier to see when something doesn't fit anywhere and should just get tossed.

Clutter Excuse #7 - "My thoughts don't have any power. Do they?"

Everything has energy. The thoughts you have about the things in your home CREATE energy. If you are surrounded by stuff you keep out of guilt, then your environment holds guilt. If you hang on to stuff given to you by your ex, and you still feel bitter – then there is bitterness in your home.

Get it? {getting it, getting it, getting it ...}

It's either fueling you, or draining you. Some things might be neutral, of course. But if anything triggers you, then that is your barometer. Let it go.

Clutter Excuse #8 - "But I never wore it!"

See Clutter Excuse #2.

Clutter Excuse #9 - "There's too much stuff!"
{isn't that the whole point here ???}

Overwhelm can stop us in our tracks. {I once learned, in a Wendy Freer workshop called CLUTTER CLEARING, that "perfectionist" usually means one who is often overwhelmed by the task ahead simply because they SO want to "get it done right." Fear of doing it "imperfectly" or "incompletely" can stop us - yes, I said US - cold. And all this time, I thought that being a perfectionist meant one who always does things perfectly! NOT.} If this article makes you aware that there are lots of items in your life you don't like, then go slow. Schedule small chunks of time each day. It takes time to be clutter-free! But the newfound clarity and lightness are worth it!

WANT TO USE THIS ARTICLE IN YOUR E-ZINE OR WEB SITE? {yes, very much ... }

Please do! Just be sure to include this complete blurb with it:

Performer, songwriter, and creativity consultant Christine Kane publishes her 'LiveCreative' weekly ezine with more than 11,000 subscribers. If you want to be the artist of your life and create authentic and lasting success, you can sign up for a FREE subscription to LiveCreative at http://www.christinekane.com/ .

WANT TO SEE HUNDREDS MORE ARTICLES LIKE THIS ONE?

See Christine's blog - Be Creative. Be Conscious. Be Courageous - at www.ChristineKane.com/blog .

Thank you, Christine. I needed this more today than any other day this week.

To learn more about WENNDI FREER, with whom I once took a 2-day CLUTTER CLEARING workshop right here in Encinitas, California, you can find it here:

http://www.spaceclearing.com/html/practitioners/north-and-south-america/sobi2Details/North-and-South-America/Wenndi_Freer

Just As I Am

2010-02-28T11:25:00.000-08:00

Take a quick trip over to my other blog, I AM PRINCESS MAGPIE http://iamprincessmagpie.blogspot.com to see a great post (borrowed from Andrea Schroeder) ...

It says a lot, A LOT, about body image.

-- Davielle

Going on Retreat ... AN ARTFUL JOURNEY, here we come !!!

2010-02-17T10:30:00.000-08:00

{If you click on the link / title above, you will be taken right to the page that introduces the Retreat I am going to with Ann Deakers, February 18 - 22, 2010. Although OUR Retreat has been sold out for months & months & months :-), there is also AN ARTFUL JOURNEY Retreat scheduled for July 18 - 22, 2010 -- and registration for that Retreat is now OPEN.}

SO ... what does this mean, exactly? We've all heard the word "retreat", and in several contexts. Right?

I found it interesting, and a bit shocking, that the definition that I usually attach to the word RETREAT is ... barely defined by Webster's {my mother's old Webster's is the one I use, dated 1956 and bound in leather} ... I define RETREAT as a ... getaway to a place where one is focused intently on ... relaxing, or learning something new, or spending time doing something we love to do -- as in "a spiritual retreat", or "an art retreat" ... I even think of "a board retreat", as in ... when an organization's Board of Directors meets annually "on retreat" so they can be intently focused on ... their Mission.

Isn't that what most of us think these days, when we hear the word RETREAT ???

I would venture to say, though, that my father, Frank - a World War II veteran -- would automatically think of ... the "real" definition of the word Retreat:

"to withdraw; 1. act of retiring, or withdrawing, as from what is difficult, dangerous, or disagreeable. 2. a place of seclusion, privacy, safety, or resort; a refuge; asylum; hiding place; den. 3. an asylum for insane persons, inebriates, etc. 4. (had to do with aeronautics) 5. The withdrawal, esp. when forced, of troops from the presence of an enemy."

THOSE are the definitions that I think ANY military veteran would ascribe to the word "retreat".

I, however, did find one last, almost hidden, definition in Webster's that I can work with:

"To make a retreat; to withdraw."

AND THAT, my friends, is what an ART RETREAT means to me {as would a spiritual retreat}. For one to "make a retreat" {ie, to leave behind their everyday life for a period of time, to just get away}. To "withdraw", certainly, from our everyday responsibilities, and worries, and life.

Ann and I are about to "withdraw" from our lives in San Diego to spend 3 full and artful days with artists KELLY RAE ROBERTS { http://kellyraeroberts.com/ }

{ Kelly Rae ... and Kelly's hands .. from her blog }

and MATI ROSE McDONOUGH { http://www.matirose.blogspot.com/ }, who are co-teaching our workshop at AN ARTFUL JOURNEY, where we will create a "Funky, Chunky Coffee Table Book". You can imagine my excitement to actually, finally, be taking a workshop from the mixed media artist that started me on this mixed media "adventure" I have been on: Kelly Rae. I have art in my home from both Kelly Rae and Mati Rose, and it inspires me daily.

{ my "whole-hearted" elephant from Mati Rose McDonough ... 2009}

For me, an ART RETREAT means ... focused and relaxed time with like-minded friends where we just ... get & stay CREATIVE, where it's expected that we will get MESSY, where we are sure to have fun, and for me, it's a place where I find a lot of grounding, and even spiritual growth ... because my passion for art and creativity is something that comes from my SOUL. I have found that the friendships created in art classes or workshops are some of the most amazing in my life. ART is the common denominator that brings us together, and no matter how disparate the rest of our lives might be from each other's, it just Does. Not. Matter.

The beauty of AN ARTFUL JOURNEY, for me, is that it is being held on a "campus" known as THE PRESENTATION CENTER ...

in Los Gatos, California. Click here to see what I'm talking about: http://www.anartfuljourney.com/retreats/presentationcenter.html

And I would be remiss if I did not mention CINDY O'LEARY, the fearless organizer of AN ARTFUL JOURNEY. All her hard work is about to come to fruition, and I know that I speak for all the Retreat-ants when I say "thank you, Cindy".

What I am especially looking forward to, besides the art and the new friendships to be forged over the time we all spend together, is that it seems that The Presentation Center ... is mainly used for SPIRITUAL retreats -- a place of serenity, beauty, stillness, and plenty of Mother Nature. The history of THE PRESENTATION CENTER can be found via this link:
http://www.presentationcenter.org/About%20Us/history.html

Right there on their website, is this comment:
"Escape from the hustle and bustle of everyday life. Take time to communicate more clearly and deeply with your colleagues."

And that, my friends, is exactly what the word RETREAT means to me.

I dedicate this post to my beautiful friend Ann, to whom I am ever grateful for the gift of her friendship, for the role she has played in my ... blogging; in my discovery of mixed media; and for encouraging me all along the way of my Creative Discovery Journey. I love you, Ann, and I think you are the most amazing woman!

We'll be back on Monday evening .. you can expect a mighty long post after I return, with plenty plenty plenty of "visuals".

-- Davielle

the Garth man cometh ...

2010-02-04T07:49:00.000-08:00

... to Warwick's Books in La Jolla.

That's right, friends. Garth Stein, author of THE ART OF RACING IN THE RAIN (starring Enzo, the narrating dog), was in town.

Six of us that enjoy Bunco together (this is our 4th year already!) decided to pay Garth and Warwick's a visit and were we ever treated to an incredible evening.

Garth treated us to plenty of humor, some poignant moments, and three (yes, 3) separate readings from the book. ENZO came to life for me in a way I had not expected ... although just reading the book, I thought, made Enzo very "real" to me. Somehow, when an author really BREATHES his work, and BELIEVES in his character/s, it makes a huge difference.

{photo: CCI pup-in-program FRANCIE, with her co-raisers Lyn Comunale and Vickie Stone - and Garth Stein}

If you don't know ENZO yet, run right out - RIGHT OUT - and grab a copy of THE ART OF RACING IN THE RAIN. Seriously. It's a NOT-TO-BE-MISSED book. Trust me. {or just click on the link here to head over to Amazon}

Hands down, the very best author reading/signing I have ever attended. Bar none!

Woof! Woof! ('cause "2 barks mean FASTER" !!!)

-- Davielle

A Beautiful Day

2010-02-02T13:04:00.000-08:00

There is an old Japanese saying ...

"Let the past drift away with the water."

A couple of Sundays ago, Mark and I took a late-afternoon hike at Torrey Pines State Park. I have been visiting TPSP since I was a very very little girl.

{sister Francia, brother Jay, and a young Davielle}

I have fond memories of hiking through a trail that has been closed for years & years now ... it was known as "Fat Man's Misery", and with good reason. Anyone out there remember that trail?!

Fortunately, Mark and I have made our life right here in Encinitas - just a few freeway exits north of my hometown of Del Mar ... so Torrey Pines is still just about 12 minutes away from home. We are also blessed to have our red & cream sandstone canyon here on our property, with some wonderful Torrey Pine (tree) specimens of our very own.

{one of several Torrey Pines in our canyon}

But when we need a relaxing and mind-altering hike, we always head to Torrey Pines, the State Park ... the real deal.

If you're visiting from out of town, I can assure you, with all certainty, you do not want to miss TORREY PINES. Even better - invite me to join you there and we can have a new memory to share!

The photo below was taken on 1/24/10 by me, at Torrey Pines State Park, and when I read the quote about letting the past drift away with the water ... I flashed on this image ... you can just feel the power of the ocean, and you just KNOW inside that your worries can be taken out on the tide.

It sure gives me a very peaceful feeling ...

-- Davielle

National Handwriting Day - Oh My !!!

2010-01-23T09:41:00.000-08:00

Wow, who knew? Not me, that's for sure. But thanks to the PAPER SOURCE calendar pages that I inserted into my beautiful Kelly Rae Roberts 2010 ORGANIZER, I now know ...

Today is, apparently, NATIONAL HANDWRITING DAY. I just had to look that up, being a lover of words, and a lover of things handwritten. And having recently enjoyed perusing a vintage AUTOGRAPH BOOK that my friend Ann Deakers now owns ... it's full of charm.

So I GOOGLED it and here's what I found:

National Handwriting Day is "celebrated" on John Hancock's birthday, "to encourage more legible handwriting". Problem is, there are some (quite reliable) sources that place John Hancock's birthday on January 12 (1737), and not on the 23rd, but let's not quibble.

Here's a quick reminder of just how lovely & legible the old John Hancock signature really was:

The signature of John Hancock on the Declaration of Independence is the most flamboyant and easily recognizable of all. It is, then, no surprise that the story of his part in the revolution is equally engaging. Few figures were more well known or more popular than John Hancock. (courtesy of www.ushistory.org )

Pentel of America is celebrating National Handwriting Day 2010 with a CONTEST ... Describe how you declare your independence, what independence means to you, in 500 or less handwritten characters and submit to Pentel of America. Five (5) people will be chosen by Pentel and given their own Independence Day. See Pentel's website for contest rules and information:

http://pentel.com/handwriting_day_rules.php !

And here's a link to the FOUNTAIN PEN NETWORK (again, I never knew such a thing existed; did you?!):

http://www.fountainpennetwork.com/forum/index.php?showtopic=5152&pid=252256&start=&st=#entry252256

The FOUNTAIN PEN NETWORK site has links to cool handwriting stuff.

If you want to have a little fun with this whole handwriting business, you can visit an online HANDWRITING ANALYSIS site, such as:

http://www.handwritingwizard.com ... they offer a free "personality analysis". Hmmm.

http://www.handbehindtheword.com/SelfEval.shtml

And last but not least, these fun ideas for how YOU and your CHILDREN can celebrate National Handwriting Day, courtesy of www.ehow.com ...

Bake a Cake for JOHN HANCOCK and share it. Have everyone SIGN THEIR NAME with frosting on top first !!!

Check out a book from the LIBRARY on handwriting and have fun analyzing your friend's signatures, as well as your own.

Learn a little bit about John Hancock and the Declaration of Independence.

Have everyone you know and love sign a page for your scrapbook. If you have an old-fashioned AUTOGRAPH BOOK, all the better !!!

Handwrite a letter to someone you love who lives far away (or even just around the corner) and sign it with a big beautiful signature !!!

Enjoy National Handwriting Day, everyone, and remember:

"Never believe that any document you sign

your name to is unimportant."

-- Davielle

HAPPY NEW YEAR ... and a note about my Sabbatical

2010-01-23T09:36:00.000-08:00

Friends ...

yes, I have been LONG absent from my blogs ... this one, and also my Princess Magpie blog. I consider it as "taking a sabbatical", but I do apologize for not posting my intention to do just that.

Most of you know that I struggled with near-daily MIGRAINE in 2009 ... roughly 70% of my time was spent battling one, medicating one, sleeping one off, or wandering about in a bit of a daze from the effects of one. It was, needless to say, a ROUGH year.

With the continuous help of a good neurologist group, and my rheumatologist as well, we seem to be making progress ... I'm down to about 50% of the time with Migraine, which is a huge improvement. But we're not going to stop until it's well in hand, as they say. (although I'm still not sure, after 51 years, just who "they" really are ... LOL)

All that said -- I thank you for your love, your support, your prayers, your encouragement, and for those of you who have said that you actually MISS my blog posts ... my gratitude, my appreciation, and my love to you all.

I'm back -- at least, that is my intention.

Happy New Year, and I hope you'll visit my blogs regularly as I become engaged once more with a means of communication that I think is amazing -- the world of blogging.

Your --

Davielle

My New Look

2009-11-02T11:17:00.000-08:00

Hey, everyone - I figured the Pink Carnations design was good for October, it being Breast Cancer Awareness Month and all -- but I wanted to change the look of my blog up a bit as we head into November. I almost chose a shabby EGG design, but opted for this, the BIRD instead. What do you think?

I am so far behind in BLOGGING that there's no way, really, to "catch up". All I can do is move forward from where I am and just go for it. So that's the plan for November!

-- Davielle

Life with Breast Cancer: a visit with author ANNE MARIE BENNETT

2009-10-29T10:45:00.000-07:00

Grab your cocoa, coffee or tea, faithful readers ... and settle in to read an account of MY experience reading BRIGHT SIDE OF THE ROAD: A Spiritual Journey Through Breast Cancer, by author and seven-year breast cancer survivor Anne Marie Bennett.

I first "met" Anne Marie about 10 days ago, while visiting my friend Karen's blog, Square-Peg Reflections ( http://squarepegpeople.typepad.com/squarepeg_reflections/ ) ... and I immediately sent Anne Marie an e-mail, asking if I could host her on my blog for a virtual BLOG TOUR. {You, too, can host Anne Marie on YOUR blog ... check her site for all the details !!}

So, everyone, "meet"Anne Marie:

So here's the deal: Anne Marie journaled her way through her breast cancer - diagnosis, two surgeries, twelve weeks of chemotherapy, and forty-two radiation treatments. As Anne Marie says so poignantly in her book, "Holy Mother of God. Cancer. The C word. I've known this all along, but suddenly the realization creeps up on me and wham! I am startled into amazement whenever I think of it this way."

Starting with her diagnosis; as she sits in the waiting room of the clinic where she's been sent for a follow-up to her routine mammogram, this is what she goes through:

"One by one the four other women are given the thumbs-up-you-can-go-home-now sign from the older woman behind the counter. One by one, I watch them leave. I close the magazine and think of statistics. What is it, one woman in eight that ends up with breast cancer? Or is it one woman in ten? Six? I can't remember. But how many women do I know who have had breast cancer? Absolutely none. The odds are not in my favor. This realization dawns on me slowly as I lay the magazine down on the table beside me and look around at the empty waiting room. What if today, I am the woman who doesn't get the thumbs-up sign?".

And then there's the biopsy. And the waiting that comes after. And then, the conversation with her doctor. Followed by ...

"Dazed and disoriented, I manage to steer myself through the lobby to the ladies room where I sit on the floor of the handicapped stall and cry quietly into my hands. I'm wondering why Dr. Karp didn't say 'You Have Cancer' instead of 'There Were Cancerous Cells in Your Biopsy'. Because no matter how it's phrased, it all boils down to the fact that I have cancer. I. Have. Cancer."

Then there's the wondering that we all go through when something bad happens to us or to a loved one:

"Have I made myself sick? Have I brought this on myself? But how? Feelings not spoken? Bitterness and resentments simmering beneath the surface? Ancient grief buried within my body?"

Who among us has NOT asked those very same, or similar, questions. "what have I done to make this happen?" It's a popular refrain, and a very common reaction to news we don't want to live with. Can you all name a time in YOUR life when you asked those same questions? And if not those, then "why me? why my father? why my child?" ...

I do so love that Anne Marie found encouragement and inspiration from Olivia Newton-John who asked, basically, "why NOT me?" when she walked her own cancer journey.

As a patient myself with plenty of other maladies, I could so totally relate to this journal entry from Anne Marie:

"This gown, this perennial object of hospital fashion, takes away some of my identity, my uniqueness, and instantly labels me 'patient'. I don't like this feeling at all. It puts me at a distinct disadvantage in this day full of doctors."

So - how are you all doing so far? Is this hitting close to home for some of you? TOO close to home for some, I expect. It sure grabbed me and kept me engaged all the way through. Like so many people who love and care for and support those who are living with a cancer diagnosis, I feel mostly helpless in the face of such a foe. Cancer. with that capital C. you know, don't you, that the abbreviation for "cancer" is simply CA ? I've lived my entire life in California, and you all know that CA is also the abbreviation for my home state. I don't much care for them using CA to denote cancer in a patient's chart. Be that as it may, because now I am digressing ...

Anne Marie's story continues:

"I stand on the front porch for a moment and breathe in the fresh air. It's been an entire week since I've stepped out of the house, so this new freedom feels delightfully delicious to me. I go to the bank, to the corner cafe for some chai, and to the grocery store for ingredients for dinner. These errands take only thirty minutes, but I'm completely exhausted, so I climb back into bed and sit for a long time in the silence, first with my journal, and then with a new novel."

Distractions as well as QUIET TIME proved to be quite soothing and healing for Anne Marie, as I assume they would be for me in her situation. I treasure quiet time, and I do like a good distraction from my worries. I really related to her journal entries, too, about just needing to ... nap.

And on my other blog, http://iamprincessmagpie.blogspot.com I intend to also do a blog post (tonight, I hope) about how Anne Marie loves being creative, and the role that art and writing played in her journey, and how they continue to help her heal ... herself, and others.

On life with chemo: "By 1:15 it's over and I'm giddy with relief. I can't believe how normal I feel. It's almost as if nothing's happened at all. I know they told me most people don't throw up during chemo, but I never quite believed them."

On on-line support groups / friends: "I've forgotten how long it takes to bond with people emotionally in 'real time' as opposed to cyberspace, where I bonded with Dawn and Elizabeth so quickly due to the speed and immediate intimacy of email."

So when Anne Marie journals about her oncologist asking her how her SPIRIT is doing, I fall in love with him. "I am in awe that he has asked me this ..." she says. Towards the end of this amazing book, we are reminded to ask anyone we might be supporting through cancer how THEIR spirit is doing ...

And I'm going to end this post with a very eye-opening entry by Anne Marie ... one that I can also relate to, but had probably not thought of in the context of OTHERS feeling this way, too:

"I'm not exactly ashamed of having breast cancer, but I am quite sick of talking about it all the time. No, that's not it exactly. What I'm tired of is worrying about how much the other person already knows, and how much I should tell them, and how they're going to take the news, and how I need to reassure them that I'm going to be all right. I find this exhausting."

I could excerpt the day away, but I am not going to. I want you to visit Anne Marie's site and I want you to order her book. If not for yourself, then for someone who might need to read it.

Anne Marie can be found at: http://annemariebennett.com and you can order her book right there on her website! It's going to be the best $14.95 you've spent in ages, I promise you that. It's full of her candor and insight and her PERSONAL journey with breast cancer. It also provides helpful lists at the end of the book for resources, for support, and for affirmations to see you through - whether you are the patient, the family member, the friend, or the caregiver.

Thank you for joining me today on this journey with a breast cancer survivor.

I dedicate today's post to my girlfriends, Marsha and Lori, who are shining inspirational examples for me of how to live graciously with breast cancer. And in loving memory of our friend, Lorraine, who lost her battle with breast cancer ... I think of her all the time.

-- Davielle

MAKE MINE PINK

2009-10-09T16:50:00.000-07:00

As we continue on through the month of OCTOBER, let's remember that it is, after all, BREAST CANCER AWARENESS MONTH and let's do what we can to "think PINK" ...

I was reminded today as I cruised a website { www.candylights.net } that there's a great 'clearinghouse' for all things PINK and PINK-MINDED known as "Make Mine Pink" ... visit them here:

http://www.makeminepink.com/

"Girly Finds" is a Friday feature over at MAKE MINE PINK

So many delicious vendors to visit can be found there !!!

And as I visited my friend Karen Caterson's web pages this afternoon, I came across a book on her "bedside book stack" list, that I think must be worth sharing with you all {although I have to say, I have never thumbed thru this book in person, I SO trust Karen's review of it that I am going out on a limb here and sharing it with all of you} ...

Bright Side of the Road: A Spiritual Journey Through Breast Cancer

by Anne Marie Bennett

You can click here on this link to see the book via Amazon:

{ http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/1442173882/squarepegpeop-20 }

And if you have even one similar interest to me, you will likely enjoy Karen's writings over on her Square-Peg Reflections site:

http://squarepegpeople.typepad.com/squarepeg_reflections/

To tie Karen and her writings in to Breast Cancer Awareness Month, I want to give a shout-out and a big "plug" to Karen's "CHOOSING ME: Finding Comfort, Joy and Beauty in the Me I am NOW". As Karen so poignantly asks: "Would you rather fly a copper kite in a thunderstorm than talk about (or even think about) body-image?" Oh, boy, could I relate to that! If you answered "yes!" to her clever question, this is a link you MUST visit:

http://squarepegpeople.typepad.com/choosing_me/

I personally have sent Karen a (very long) "testimonial" about her CHOOSING ME piece -- I have the CD right where I can listen to it when I take a bath, or am in the car and want to give my self-esteem and body-image self a serious TALKING TO !!! Karen deals with BODY IMAGE (eek!) issues in a caring, compassionate, humorous way that really made a world of difference to me.

If you take that thought process out just a tiny bit - not even much of a stretch - you will realize that women who are dealing with breast cancer are even more likely to have a "body image issue" at some point in their journey. Right? Let's take a moment to ponder that thought ... there are so many aspects of BREAST CANCER that I had never been made aware of, nor thought of, that I am facing right now as my dear friend Lori takes her own BC "walk", if you will. Treatment options, including surgery ... post-op treatment choices to be made, reconstruction options to consider, lifestyle alterations that can enhance (or detract from) one's personal healing process, etc.

SO many details, SO much to learn, SO much of that "unknown" that when one receives a diagnosis like "breast cancer", one is then forced to research and absorb and integrate into a life that will never after be quite the same ...

I have been blessed to have dear friends who were willing to share their experience with me: Lorraine, Melba, Marsha, Rita, Lori ... It is a GIFT to us all when these brave women SHARE THEIR STORY with others.

If you or a friend/loved one are in need of healing words ... please visit BONE SIGH ARTS, the site of talented and soulful TERRI ST. CLOUD ... { www.bonesigharts.com }

because we ALL matter ...

And one other amazing woman that gets a shout-out from me this Friday afternoon: author and shame researcher, DR. BRENE BROWN. She is a skilled speaker, who SPEAKS to "shame" issues and "self-esteem" issues ... you name it, if you can claim it, Brene can address it !!!

I found her "I THOUGHT IT WAS JUST ME (but it isn't)" book {and readalong} to be immensely insightful and helpful earlier this year.

So ... lighting a candle for all women who are living with breast cancer, and in honor of those who are fighting the good fight (visit the Susan G. Komen Foundation website to help out), in memory of those who lost their breast cancer fight (sweet Lorraine, the beautiful Margerita, and the most brave Erika), and just so GRATEFUL to all those who care for those with breast cancer ...

And with a special "praise God!" for the most excellent news that my friend Lori received this week, post surgery ... all clear margins, no cancerous lymph nodes, and that a 'satellite' tumor was found during her mastectomy that would not have been found if they had done a lumpectomy instead. God is good, and His hand was all over her terrific outcome. PRAYER REQUESTS going out to all of you, please, for continued and perfect HEALING for Lori as she takes her next steps ...

I remain - humbled -

-- Davielle

October is NATIONAL BREAST CANCER AWARENESS MONTH

2009-10-01T10:12:00.000-07:00

That's right, friends. Today is OCTOBER 1, 2009, and October is officially BREAST CANCER AWARENESS MONTH.

How will YOU recognize this critical health issue in October? Will you wear PINK every day? Will you color your hair PINK, like my friend Suzi's dog GIGI has done? Will you sport your PINK "breast cancer support" rubber wristband/s all month? Will you buy PINK products, or products that give a portion of sales to Breast Cancer Research? Will you eat PINK yogurt for breakfast, and will you order a PINK strawberry shake at the drive-thru? Will you carry a PINK purse, or wear PINK shoes, or a PINK hair clip? Maybe paint your finger or toe nails PINK ???

More importantly, will you talk to your daughters, sisters, mothers, aunts, cousins, neighbors, friends -- all the women you know -- to tell them what YOU know and what YOU have experienced when it comes to BREAST CANCER ?????

Do you have a relative or friend who has lost their battle with breast cancer? I do.

Do you have a relative or friend who is currently fighting for a full recovery, after finding out recently that they have breast cancer? I do.

Do you have relative or friend who has fought the fight and won, and is now all clear of her breast cancer? I do.

Do you have a relative or friend who participates in Races, Walks, and other Fundraisers on behalf of ... the American Cancer Society, the Susan G. Komen Foundation, or any one of the many organizations that fund cancer research? I do.

In 2008, we celebrated the 25th anniversary of the Susan G. Komen Race for the Cure, the largest series of 5K runs/fitness walks in the world, with well over one million participants since 2005. The Komen Race for the Cure Series raises significant funds and awareness for the fight against breast cancer, celebrates breast cancer survivorship, and honors those who have lost their battle with the disease. To find out more about the Susan G. Komen Race for the Cure, and to find a race near you -- click here: http://ww5.komen.org/findarace.aspx

Here is the link for National Breast Cancer Awareness Month (the organization), with links there for patients and health care providers and caregivers, for those who have just been diagnosed, or for those who have a friend who has just been diagnosed ... this site offers the full gamut of resources:
http://nbcam.org/index.cfm

And an organization that has been around as long as I can remember, the AMERICAN CANCER SOCIETY has a long history of raising cancer awareness: Beginning in 1946 with $1 million, the Society’s research program has invested about $3 billion in cancer research. The Society has funded 42 Nobel Prize winners early in their careers.

The American Cancer Society is the nationwide community-based voluntary health organization dedicated to eliminating cancer as a major health problem by preventing cancer, saving lives, and diminishing suffering from cancer through research, education, advocacy, and service. With more than two million volunteers nationwide, the American Cancer Society is one of the oldest and largest voluntary health agencies in the United States.

Click here to find out more about what the American Cancer Society is doing in the fight against breast cancer:
http://www.cancer.org/docroot/CRI/content/CRI_2_6x_National_Breast_Cancer_Awareness_Month.asp

And with regards to PREVENTION, here's a link to the American Cancer Society's page on lowering your breast cancer risk, and celebrating breast cancer survivors: http://www.cancer.org/docroot/SPC/SPC_0.0.asp

This may seem unnecessary, but the President of the United States, Barack Obama, has formally proclaimed October 2009 as "Breast Cancer Awareness Month" -- I don't know if each President has done this, year in and year out, but here's the link to said proclamation in case you're interested:
http://www.whitehouse.gov/the_press_office/Presidential-Proclamation-National-Breast-Cancer-Awareness-Month/

And yet another resource ... the National Breast Cancer Foundation, Inc. ... find them here:
http://www.nationalbreastcancer.org/

And here's an easy one: just click on this link and then CLICK TO GIVE so that free mammograms can be provided ... to those who need them.
http://www.nationalbreastcancer.org/

Whatever you do, please please please do something - anything - to help increase awareness of this critical health issue ... and remember ... women are not the only ones to be diagnosed with breast cancer. The American Cancer Society covers that topic here: ttp://www.cancer.org/docroot/CRI/content/CRI_2_4_1X_What_is_male_breast_cancer_28.asp

I wish you all an enlightened and informed OCTOBER, and I thank you for reading through this long post this morning.

-- Davielle

Trees

2009-09-27T10:46:00.001-07:00

"The best time to plant a tree was twenty years ago.

The second best time, is today."

-- Chinese Proverb

Jen Lee on Being the Oldest Child

2009-09-10T19:14:00.000-07:00

I give much thanks to author Dr. Brene Brown (she wrote I THOUGHT IT WAS JUST ME (but it isn't) - you may recall that earlier this year, I did a 3-month "read-along" with Brene and I don't know, maybe 200 other individuals ... it was quite an adventure and I sure hope Brene does another web-based READ ALONG in the future, with any and all of her new works.

So today, I re-visited Brene's website ( www.ordinarycourage.com ) to get a bit caught up with what's happening in her world, and I was treated to a very special interview that Brene did with New Yorker JEN LEE ... who is a most gifted storyteller.

You might also recall that at some point or another, I have blogged about Jen Lee's CD; it's called SOLSTICE: Stories of Dark into Light. It's fabulous. So here I am, a fan already of the amazing Jen, and this interview and the VIDEO CLIP that Brene offered up, was a real treat.

See for yourself, but as Brene noted to us on her site ...
Before you start - they cut off the very first line and last line. The first line is, "As an oldest child..." The last line is, "the whole world seems to be made of china, and the people in it of some frail, fragile glass."

http://vimeo.com/5176499

So, what did you think?! I might not be an oldest child, but I am married to an oldest son (with just one older sibling, his sister; and 7 younger sibs that followed) ... so I could totally see the truth in what Jen tells us in this story. It pulled at my heartstrings.

Our stories are POWERFUL, friends, just powerful. What I really liked in the interview that Brene held with Jen was when Jen said that her writing keeps her "true" ... To read the interview, click here to go right to it: http://www.ordinarycourage.com/

-- Davielle

"Adventuring In Home Living"

2009-09-09T09:30:00.000-07:00

I am so excited, I can hardly contain my self ... last week, while spending 1/2 a day with my amazing friend Nancy, I came across a book that has me all a-twitter !!! {no, not THAT Twitter, not the social networking Twitter ... the kind of a-twitter that has one's heart pounding and one's knees quaking - THAT kind of being all a-twitter}.

So ... what is this $1 gem that I couldn't go home without?!

ADVENTURING IN HOME LIVING, Book 1 {oh my, does this mean there are MORE such volumes out there for me to find?! be still my heart !!!} -- a textbook by one Hazel M. Hatcher and one Mildred E. Andrews; with charming illustrations by Alice Freeman. You can't believe how incredible this handy dandy textbook was for the students of it's day.

It's day, by the way, was 1954. Yes, it was published by D.C Heath and Company of Boston.

So the premise was this, as their PREFACE so distinctly states it:

"Adventuring in Home Living, Book 1, a basal beginning text for young adolescents in homemaking education, has been developed in terms of three goals which the authors have attempted to achieve -- to write a book that students will enjoy, to exemplify teaching procedures which are educationally sound, and to write at the reading level of young teen agers."

I highly recommend you find a copy of this gem for your very self.

For now, though, I'll include some TEASER PAGES on the matter of ... Pressing. Or, as some of us call it today, Ironing. {Really, if one uses an IRON to get the wrinkles out, then where does "pressing" come in to play?} Anyway ...

I love this book, I love this book !!!

-- Davielle

PLEASE VOTE: Show Us Your America Contest from Aaron Bros.

2009-09-08T16:34:00.000-07:00

I have entered the SHOW US YOUR AMERICA contest sponsored by Aaron Brothers, and I sure would appreciate your taking a moment to click on this link, to Image # 1698, titled "And The Runner is OUT at Second" -- which I took of my grandson, Trevor, earlier this year.

(if the photo when you click on the link MATCHES the photo shown herein, then you'll know you're at the right place !!!)

http://showusyouramerica.com/uploads/1698

The more ratings the photo receives, the better my chances of ending up in the TOP TEN. The more STARS you give the photo (if, that is, you find it deserving!), the better off we'll end up, too.

Thank you for your time and your interest ... I love photography, I love baseball, I love America, and most of all ... I love my family !!!

-- Davielle

LET PEOPLE LIVE IN YOUR HEART

2009-09-01T10:22:00.000-07:00

Friends,

If you view NOTHING ELSE via YouTube, etc. the rest of this year ... DO visit Patti Digh's blog by clicking on the link I've included, just below, and VIEW ALL FIVE of the most amazing videos I think I've ever seen.

http://www.37days.com/2009/08/let-people-live-in-your-heart.html

They tell the story of a wonderful teacher in Japan, a man who has 4th grade children SHARING THEIR FEELINGS, CARING FOR EACH OTHER, PRACTICING and EXPERIENCING EMPATHY and being LOVING, WARM, OPEN, and HONEST.

This man says, "Let People Live In Your Heart"; he says "When People Really Listen, They Live In Your Heart Forever". Wise words.

And that is just what I gleaned from the first video. There are five.

I believe that you, like me, will be enamored of this concept, dearly wishing it could be so, right here, in wherever your hometown is, wherever your children and your children's children and your neighbor's children ... go to school.

Wouldn't this be a beautiful world if that were so?

-- Davielle

Post 310

2009-08-21T11:36:00.000-07:00

Decided to give the PHOTO UPLOAD another "go" today ... so I'm back to the Bigfork Library, fingers and ankles crossed ...

Here goes ...

welcome to Montana ... where they offer up LIVE Poker. {thank God, 'cause there's nothing I dislike more than DEAD Poker!}

Bailey, the curly-haired "nephew" I had not yet met.

my father in law GENE (left) walks the Orchard with my husband, the oldest of the Huffman boys ... MARK (right).

the topic of their discussion? WHAT ELSE but the state of the cherries.

Marky Mark, going all domestic on us ...

whole wheat banana walnut huckleberry PANCAKES, a la Stacey Huffman Thomas

{slathered in fresh sliced strawberries and a good dose of whipped cream!}

this is where Mark and I sleep when we're up here ... outdoors, under a black sky, with plenty of stars & fresh Montana mountain air to lull us to slumber ...

Just so you know, it's NOT all play for Mister Mark when we're on holiday ... here, Mark taking calls in the AM sun ...

And for now, that's about it, folks.

-- Davielle

LIFE ON THE FLATHEAD: My Longest Blog Post EVER

2009-08-20T12:55:00.000-07:00

I woke up yesterday, Wednesday, all ready to go into town and find me some internet access, so I could blog about the beginnings of our stay here at Flathead Lake with Mark’s family. I was in the perfect blog-post mood – and then I had a brief “difficult moment” with my mother in law, which made me sad and a bit sick at the stomach – I don’t deal well with confrontation. So the mood to blog passed and I just sat here sorting photographs, cropping, rubbing out red eyes, etc.
When my amazing mother in law came to me within an hour to apologize, all turned right again with my world. Life as I know and enjoy and appreciate it … was restored. No matter how often I try to convince you all that I am not as overly-sensitive as I used to be … don’t believe me! I am, I am.

So here’s how it’s been so far:

We left San Diego at 7:20 am on Sunday morning on a cute LITTLE plane that operates for Delta. Oh my! When we looked out the terminal window to see our “ride”, we simultaneously gasped (quietly). I had to take a picture, ‘cause nobody would believe how small our little plane was … the man standing next to the nose will give you a clue.

After one of the smoothest plane rides we’ve ever experienced, we landed (softly) in Salt Lake City. We claimed our carry-on bags, which, as it turned out, were TOO LARGE for such a small craft! We moved on to the gate quite a walk away, where we took off for Missoula, Montana within the hour.

We arrived in Missoula to Marion & Gene (mark’s folks) and Jerry, Marion’s brother / Mark’s uncle. What a nice welcoming committee! As all of us were rather hungry, we drove until I spied an IHOP and we lunched there; most of us on breakfast fare.

After the longer-than-usual drive to the Flathead (due to a whole lot of road construction), we arrived at the Cabin. I have not been here since the summer of 2004. Five years is a long time to be away from a place that had already become quite dear to my heart. I’m glad I took the leap of faith to return this summer. It’s been near-perfect.

Sister in law Stacey and her children, Lauren & Sean & Jonathan had spent the day at Glacier, with Jerry’s daughter Joy, her son Nick, and Jerry’s granddaughter CJ (named for Jerry’s beautiful and belove late wife, Clarice Joy). What a beautiful family! We met them for dinner at a Mexican restaurant in Bigfork, and it was great to see again those who I’d just met last year (Joy and Nick) and to meet little CJ.

Night One: Mark and I slept on the pullout couch with an added foam pad. Boy, were we sore on Monday morning!

Day Two (Monday): Marion treated us to Banana-Walnut-Huckleberry pancakes made with Krusteaz whole wheat flour. DELISH. We opted to hang loose most of the day, spending as much time as we could with Jerry, Joy, and the kids. They pulled out around 3 in the afternoon, headed for Yellowstone and Mt. Rushmore on their way back to Minnesota. Then we made our mid afternoon run into Bigfork to visit the Library, so we could have internet access. We were somewhat thwarted by the fact that the Library is not open on Mondays … however, we could get access by sitting on the little benches out front. Mark caught up with some office work, while I shopped across the street and Lauren-Sean-Jonathan used their own laptop to go online. They were not to be denied! We then walked the main street of downtown Bigfork all together, stopping in for ice cream cones to get us by until dinner. Isn’t that what aunties and uncles are for? Spoiling a kids’ meal?! And Monday night, Mark and I returned to our old at-the-cabin sleeping habit of setting up in sleeping bags out under the stars, on the grass, near the firepit and the entrance to the cherry orchard. A beautiful, crisp, clear night – plenty of stars, just about no moon, nice and dark and quiet.

Day Three (Tuesday): There just isn’t anything like waking up next to an orchard … the birds, the squirrels that resemble chipmunks, the clean air. Dew on the grass. Oh my! We had agreed to pick cherries first thing this morning, so we could pit them and dehydrate them to get us through the winter. Mark says those dried cherries are going to get him all the way to Nationals next summer, but all I can picture are cherry scones, cherry muffins, cherry cookies, cherry pancakes, and cherries in the granola. We picked … we pitted … and with the help of my father in law, Gene and our nephew Jonathan, we got them onto the trays and into the dehydrator. A bountiful crop to bring home next Tuesday.

Plenty of time Tuesday for doing LIAV-37 days “homework”, and a frustrating time of it, trying to reach my peer call buddy, Rosalie – which indicated to me that without reliable cell service here, I could not make today’s WILD & PRECIOUS LIFE conference call. I was quite disappointed, but it did open up time for me to journal quite a bit and to make new discoveries. I can’t wait to share it all with Mark!

Another gorgeous night under the stars and life goes on quite swimmingly.

Day Four (Wednesday): Another beautiful morning, albeit a smidgen marred by a little “discussion” with Marion about life and friends and being careful to not make judgment until one has the facts …. Which we resolved quite beautifully, as I noted earlier in this post. Mark and I soon welcomed our friend Robin, and her children, Skylar, Hans and Ava … it was so good to see them all again. Mark sees them each summer; since I had not come for 5 years, I was long overdue. Just hugging my very dear friend Robin, who has been a rock in my life since we met in 1987 or so, did me a world of good. We got the kids into the orchard, picking cherries with Mark, and Robin and I set out for The Raven, a bar / restaurant right on the water, close to Bigfork, to have a nice catch-up visit. A beer and a diet coke later and we realized that 2 hours had passed and we had to get back to the kids, since Skylar had soccer practice in the afternoon.

We spent the rest of the day reading, watching birds, napping … relaxing … and I spent more time on my next attempt at drawing a “goddess” girl face, a la Suzi Blu. It’s becoming less frightening for me to pick up the pencil – so long as there’s an eraser at hand, I am less fearful. I actually made a lot of progress, and even began adding color with colored pencils … she’ll have to wait for me to get home for some paint and glimmer and embellishments! ANN, I am really beginning to adore this journey … I hope you are, too.

Wednesday evening we had a nice impromptu visit from cousins Mark and Rachel St. Sauver, who live just up the road. As always, Marion and Rachel and I got into a discussion of books we have read and are about to read … books are such a wonderful conduit for friendships when one doesn’t get to see the other for long stretches of time (remember, I haven’t seen Rachel in 5 years – and how is it that she just doesn’t age?! Must be this Montana living!) So … the other random topic that came up? Rheumatological disorders; believe it or not, Rachel was diagnosed with RA a week ago, and I was tentatively diagnosed with Palindromic Rheumatism three weeks or so ago … and we are within a year in age of each other. I have always felt a kinship with Rachel … now it’s been cemented, I think.

BIRDS WE’RE SEEING UP HERE: a pileated woodpecker; evening grosbeaks; robins; nuthatches; chickadees; house finches; some kind of sparrow; oh, and although it’s not a bird – plenty of bats in the twilight. It’s way cool.

BOOKS I HAVE READ UP HERE: I started OLIVE KITTERIDGE on the airplane, and finished “her” on Tuesday. I started A THOUSAND DAYS IN VENICE on Tuesday evening, and finished “her” up this morning as I lay in my sleeping bag out on the grass. What’s next? I have a book called INTERIOR OF THE CASTLE: St Teresa of Avila – that I think I will pick up next. I have to say - I wasn't crazy about OK, but I sure fell hard for VENICE.

On the calendar for today (Thursday): a run into town so I can cut & paste this VERY LONG POST into my blog site … and then, Mark and I are heading out to explore, to poke around some thrift and antique shops, and to visit Gatiss Gardens near Kalispell.

And oh my, Stacey just read aloud to us DESIDERATA, in its entirety. First composed by Max Ehrmann in 1927, and “renewed” in 1954 by Bertha K. Ehrmann … this was a magnificent accompaniment to my morning coffee. If you haven’t (ever/lately) read DESIDERATA, here is a link: http://www.fleurdelis.com/desiderata.htm
Do visit, do take your time, do savor each separate “concept”.

That’s enough for today … we have plans to go to the RODEO on Friday evening, and you can be darn tootin’ sure I’ll be taking the camera along for that.

FORGIVE ME for this suuuuuuper long blog post, friends. The thing is, this is my “travelers” blog, and so every once in awhile … I feel I “get” to wax poetic and on & on & on, ad infinitum. Going forward, I promise to try and give you the Reader’s Digest version. {and sadly, speaking of Reader’s Digest – I heard last night that RD has filed for bankruptcy. What a loss to an icon of Americana …}

AFTER WAITING 15 MINUTES FOR FIVE PHOTOS TO "UPLOAD", I got a message saying - whatever. It just didn't work. Drat, but now I'm heading out.

Your –
Davielle

Time for a little Big Sky Country

2009-08-15T15:40:00.000-07:00

Yessirreeeeee, it's time for my hubby and I to head for the hills. Er, mountains. The Swan Range, to be exact. We're leaving (on a jet plane) in the AM, for Missoula ... where one or more of the Huffman clan will pick us up for the drive up to Flathead Lake.

Mark wakeboarding on the Flathead,

2008 (photo by Sierra)

They've had 50 degree (high) days and even chillier nights lately, and thunderstorms were in the forcast for today - but DARN IT ALL, the forcast is calling for temps in the 80's come Monday.

Mark jumping off a cliff; summer 2008 in Montana (photo by Sierra)

Either way - cold or hot - it's going to be beautiful up there. I can't wait for some of those fresh off the tree CHERRIES ...

just a tiny bit of the 2008 cherry harvest at the Huffman Orchard - Flathead Lake, 2008 (photo by Sierra)

I will try to get to the Bigfork Public Library to log on and upload pics or musings while we're away. E-mail -- not so much.

Enjoy these next ten days, my fun and faithful followers. I intend to get all charged up and rejuvenated for BLOGGING my heart and soul out upon our return.

-- Davielle

random words of wisdom ...

2009-08-10T14:11:00.000-07:00

I am so in-a-twist about how I've neglected my blog(s) for a long time now, that I just feel the need to post SOMETHING.

But I sure don't want to just POST-FOR-THE-SAKE-OF-POSTING and leave you, gentle reader, wondering what on earth I've done with the REAL Davi. You know, the interesting, insightful, encouraging, curious, unique and special Davi. That one.

So - I turned to a book that often provides good solid quotes for me to pepper one of my blogposts with -- THE BOOK OF POSITIVE QUOTATIONS, compiled and arranged by John Cook ... it's a great book ...

And just for today, I offer you this:

"If we are not responsible for the thoughts that pass our doors, we are at least responsible for those we admit and entertain."

-- Charles B. Newcomb

So let the thoughts you admit to your life TODAY be thoughts you would wish on your dearest and most beloved of family members and friends ... treat yourself with the same respect you treat those special people with, and your day will be ... better than if you don't.

With a smile,

Davielle

for my HARRY'S BAR (Venice) "friends"

2009-07-31T08:44:00.000-07:00

Oh my, I had promised this charming and adorable couple that I would post their photo on my blog - when we met in Venice, at Harrry's Bar. While my father and I were having lunch, and before the dining area became too crowded with lunch-goers, I snapped off some photos ...

And that was also before the waiter told me I could only photograph OURSELVES and FACING TOWARD OUR OWN TABLE, but NOT "outward" at other patrons. Even with their permission!

:-) So glad he did not make me erase this ... it's a great photo. I hope our "friends" do visit this blog and do find this photograph.

Ciao !!!

-- Davielle

TGIF: Trust, Gratitude, Inspiration FRIDAY

2009-07-31T07:07:00.000-07:00

I visited Brene Brown's ORDINARY COURAGE web / blog page this morning, but it must be too early yet for her weekly TGIF (Trust,Gratitude, Inspiration Friday)posting. So I decided I would just go ahead and post my TGIF musings here, on my own.

If you've never visited Brene's site, you owe it to yourself if you care at all about ... life, motherhood, shame resilience, parenting issues, etc etc etc. She's full of life & light, love & hope & encouragement for us all. www.ordinarycourage.com

Me, today, I am ...

TRUST: I am trusting that I have made the right choice in rheumatologists. It's not my way to seek a second opinion; I've always trusted my physicians, but as I get older, and as I seek clearer answers, it was suggested to me by an amazing, heart-full doctor friend, that I do just that: seek a 2nd opinion, not just from my rheumatologist, but from my neurologist. So I have done that. I am happy with my new docs, and am hopeful about our new direction.

GRATITUDE: I am grateful that I am in a position to HAVE the choice ... of physicians, of care, of medications, of hospital and lab and radiology and testing facilities ... that I do have. Many in our very own country go without health care at all. I am truly fortunate to be in this position. I am MOST grateful for my husband, Mark, who provides so well for our family ...

INSPIRATION: I am inspired by those who MAKE ART EVERY DAY. Or almost every day. It is my desire, it is my goal, it is my wish -- to be like that. {all I have to do is get beyond the mental and real voices - yes, others do say things to discourage me - that tell me "you can't make art unless your house is all in order", or "you can't make art, because you have too many other tasks to do first", or "you can't make art all the time, because you just aren't that good".) ART every day ... should be PRESCRIBED to any and all who seek it and need it and love it ... like I do ... and/or who could use ART TIME to heal.

So ... "QUIET, voices. I am going to make art today. And Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday next week. And after that ... as OFTEN as I possibly can, and I am promising myself that I will MAKE ART a priority."

I wish you all a beautiful Friday, and a beautiful weekend ...

Davielle

{photo is of a bottle I was washing out; when the bubbles got caught inside, I just had to photograph it}

Le Mont St Michel

2009-07-27T08:19:00.000-07:00

My friend Ann posted this to her blog recently, and seeing it, just took me right back to last May, when Mark and Kristina and Cara and I visited (and stayed overnight on) Le Mont St Michel.

This is an amazing photograph, posted to Flickr by one Ludovic Belchior.

I believe, if you'll pardon the oh-so-obvious-and-expected pun here, that this ROCKS.

To see the photograph, I believe you have to click on the "title" of this post to activate the link. Give that a try ...

:-)
Davielle