Entering Other Worlds

Yesterday Jeff and I volunteered at one of my favorite elementary schools for their once-every-two-year Ohlone Indian simulation. One, unusual little girl about seven years old had quite the series of back-to-back conversations with Jeff:

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Girl (G): Who ARE you?
Jeff (J): Jeff
G: How OLD are you?
J: 50 (fibbing slightly)
G: No. You're two.

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J: Which station was your favorite so far?
G: The one out on the field.
J: Oh, why?
G: Because my mom was out there.
J: Ohhhh, is she one of the teachers?
G: My mom is dead.
J: Oh, I am SO sorry.
G: My mom is not dead.
J: Oh.
G: But she's dead. But she's not dead. She's dead.

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G: Did you eat breakfast this morning?
J: Yes.
G: What did you have?
J: Oatmeal, cranberries, yogurt.
G: That's VERY inbalanced.
J: Why are you asking what I had for breakfast?
G: Well, you're so SKINNY.
J: Well, what did you have for breakfast?
G: Chocolate cake.

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ARTnic

I had two of these this weekend. On the second ARTnic, I was so relaxed I didn't bothering pulling out my camera to document our monthly pARTy in the park.



But, oh, Elizabeth. I couldn't resist photographing her: surrogate daughter/niece, junior bridesmaid, bringer of joy and beauty.

Painting Edges

My art teacher keeps telling me to pay attention to my edges. I'm not sure I get it. I feel like she's steering me toward straight edges, but straight edges aren't me. Here's a piece by Annie Kammerer Butrus from her Peach Tree Trail series that makes me smile. I love the colors, the simplicity and the energy.

What does this piece say about edges?

Remodeling got me out of the habit of blogging. I have a hundred posts with pictures still living in my camera. I'm still one of those people who takes forever to get her photos downloaded.

More Vintage Books & Sacred Arts of Bhutan

The Asian Art Museum is right next to the SF main library. So when we were on our way to the Bhutanese exhibit on Wednesday, I was lucky enough to stumble upon the library's annual book sale. Everything was a $1, so I scooped up 10-12 vintage books and lugged them to the coat check at the museum.

Here are a few pages from the first book I picked up, Master Guide to Physical Perfection.


Caption reads: "A Back Exercise and Test of Strength. This picture is introduced to show what power can be built in a man of seventy-one by eating natural foods daily and systematically exercising. The author can support 180 lbs. on his abdomen with his head on one chair, heels on another. Try it!"

Here plow is called an abdominal exercise.


"Lie on the back with the arms stretched beside the body. Throw the legs over the head till the toes touch the bed, at the same time holding arms firmly to bed. Repeat this five to fifteen times."

Look at her outfit. Copyright, 1929:



The Bhutanese exhibit was fantastic on so many different levels. This is the first time these sacred arts have left Bhutan. The curator lived in Bhutan for three years to trek up the stairs of many monasteries to inventory Bhutan's arts. The agreement was to allow these arts to leave the country in exchange for help conserving the arts in decay. These arts are not meant for visual pleasure. They are aids to enlightenment. Part of the reason the government agreed to share their arts is that they believe that just by viewing these sacred items you will receive blessings. They thought only good could come from sharing their blessings with the world.

Did I feel the blessings? I felt my feet throughout this exhibit. Whenever I can so deeply inhabit my body, I count that as a blessing.

The exhibit traveled to Honolulu first, New York second, and is now in San Francisco through Sunday, May 10. After that it will travel to Paris and a few other European cities and then return to Bhutan.

Bhutan is a fascinating place. Here's a 10-15 minute film about Bhutan, Lost in Democracy. Jeff and I saw this film Current TV several months ago. It's well worth viewing.

New Pipes & Art Class

My contractor wanted me to notice the beautiful soldering work on our new pipes. I appreciate a good craftsman even if it's work buried in the walls.

This week we've have a constant stream of 5-6 workmen here re-piping our entire house. On Sunday afternoon we decided to also re-tile both bathrooms as part of the re-pipe. Our contractor gave us such a good deal that it seemed like a no-brainer to get some more value out of this house as we get ready to sell it. He's happy to keep his guys working these days even if they're practically giving away work.

After a job interview on Monday, Jeff and I put on our interior design hats and went out to select tile and fixtures. I like to make these decisions slowly, but we had to play beat-the-clock to get the tile by the end of the re-pipe and get the plumber the new valve before they sealed the walls. I had to learn about the differences between a chicken-wire tile installation and a wall float and how the method and materials impact whether you need quarter-round finishing or bullnose. Not exactly what I expected to be learning this week.

Needless to say there has been no time for five minutes of art here and there. I did start my art class on Saturday, Painting and Mixed Media, and really like it. One warm-up exercise that I got a lot out of was moving my markers to music she selected. I learned a lot about where I'm headed with my vision. Afterward, we played show and tell, and got even clearer about what I want to create. I have a lot of confidence about where I'm headed, and the class is helping me learn a lot of technique that I'm missing.

Today I'm headed to the city with Joc & Debra to see The Dragon's Gift: Sacred Arts of Bhutan before it leaves town.

It's Feeling Like 1999 in Kim's World

I saw this fountain at Starbucks of all places. I love it.

Recession? Sure Jeff and I were both laid off within 1 1/2 weeks of one another, but for me, it's starting to feel like what 1999 was supposed to feel like.

In 1999 the economy was booming, and my consulting business was starting to build, but was nowhere close to booming. In 2002 in the midst of the dot.com bomb, my business hit its peak (and I was serving dot commers). After 14 years, I'm done with consulting (yes, Kay Zimmer, I'm purposefully using "done" instead of "finished"). And, what da you know. So far it looks like I've got a bounty of job choices coming my way. A couple of these jobs REALLY excite me.

But will they support my living closer to nature? Will they support a lifestyle of having time to make stuff? I have a feeling that I have one of those defining moments coming that will force me to clarify my top values.

I wonder if I'll surprise myself.