Spider VS Ladybug

LADY BUG in the right corner.....

SPIDER in the left corner....
My first inclination is always to save the suffering one... i think poor little ladybug is about to get eaten. But then i think about the spider, if he doesnt get food then he'll be starving to death and suffering too. So making a choice to save one and interfere with another is kind of a judgment based on personal preference more then the natural processes of life.
So shit - which would you choose? I chose to watch.
The spider moved down to the ladybug, who would periodically spread her wings in defense. A defense that seemed to work pretty good. That is unless the spider is jus' totally tired of eating ladybugs all winter...
Several times the spider came down and touched her, but never attacked. He went back to his corner to hide motionless for more victims.
Eventually the ladybug must have shaken herself free cause when i looked back, she was gone. Or maybe.........

XoXo

We are Living in a Technological World

We headed into Central London yesterday morning and as the train rolled down the tracks I looked around me. Okay, the day wasn't perfect, there were some rain drops falling, but at this moment the sky was clear, the sun was shining, everything looked lush and green, a few blooms along the way showing that Spring could be on its way...

Everyone in our car section was talking away or sitting silently, concentration furrowing their brow. They weren't talking to each other though or concentrating on reading a book; they were all, every single one of them with a phone in hand. Even my adorable red-head, was finishing off a game before he tucked it away to talk to me.

I could just feel the bangle, diamond, dripping lace cladded Madonna singing "We are Living in a Material World", however I am not a Material Girl. I say this with a grain of salt because I know that I am a Blogger. But, I have my limits. Here was a perfectly beautiful day, the train was on time (sometimes a rarity) and not one soul was talking to each other or looking out the window.

Have we become so technologically advanced in this world we feel we don't need anyone else, that we can shut ourselves off from everyone by hiding behind our technology? Now, I know I could talk the hind legs of a mule, but I am quite happy in silence, just watching, just observing. I hope that I never become so technologically advanced that I forget to look around me, to take in the sights, sounds and smells. To just sit quietly or talking hand-in-hand with my man as we ride on down the rails.

On a happier and less ranting note, Cath Kidston had the gorgeous material I have been after and so I stocked up on some, I have great plans for this: I am making a yoga mat bag, if I can bring myself to bring my scissors anywhere near this sweet pattern.


And we visited a store we have yet to discover, I LOVE this about London, no matter how long I have lived here and how well I know my way around the big streets, the side streets, the cut-throughs, there are still things to discover. We found La Fromagerie and I am in LOVE. Gorgeous cheese, Poilane bread, beautiful white bowls filled with candied fruits, fresh produce.

We slid back the heavy glass barn door to enter the cheese room, it was just everything you would have wanted! Walking in there was heaven! I could have just sat down right there on the floor with my fresh Poilane bread in hand, a knife to smear on goats cheese and lived in happiness for eternity.

(The image used was only an example, I have nothing against Apple, I am a Mac girl through and through, thanks to my husband, I have left the world of PCs and gone to the Dark Side...the images of La Fromagerie are copyright to them, since we forget the camera)

P.S. It must have been a truly foxy kind of week, because while entering Anthropologie and heading upstairs I found this vintage children's playing card made into a greeting card and he decided he wanted to come home with me, so he did....

Oh Deer! Part 2

Here is a lil' story...
I was standing in my room with Bort when he says "Look out the window, quick quick, look!"
I lean over to see a gray furry kitty cat running outside - it ran right up onto the porch and then straight up the pathway towards the silo (uphill). When I looked upward to it's destination I saw something else move, something large but like a brown shadow. I told Bort "something else is up there I saw something move behind the weeds..." Right then the gray kitty freaks out, hauls ass back down the hill, making one stop from the bottom to look back to see if the shadow was chasing it, then disappeared into the bamboo forest. Me and Bort went outside to look around from the porch, to find the shadow animal but nothing was moving around... and the chance that it was a coyote was enough to keep either of us from going up there to find out. But a few minutes later the shadow appeared in the shape of 3 deer grazing in the open pasture.
I like these deer pictures even though they are blurry, it reminds me of those 3-d pics you have to stare at forever to see what shape it takes... also, it reminds me of the reality of when our eyes are moving and everything kinda blends together. That is how deers camouflage themselves in the forest... mostly by our lack of noticing them. It's the way nature planned it.
After the deers left, I went in the setting sun, semi-dark to find some tracks where they'd been standing.
There were some muddy hoof prints, mostly sketchy dents in the ground, not completely distinct.
Also, the sign of a hoof freshly slipping in the wet mud while going uphill.
Pretty freaking cool, huh!?!!
PS ---> in the very top pic, can ya see all 3 deer? Two of them are hiding. :)
XoXo

All The Therapy You Need

There are so many things in nature which have saved my life, physically and emotionally. Nature doesn't choose by personal preferance, it chooses by survival. And while this may seem cruel at one turn, there is nothing cruel about it, it is simply part of the natural process of life on earth.
I suppose at one time I used to watch nature do it's thing and just be amazed by the beauty, then as I submerged myself into it 24/7 I saw that there was as much destruction as there was creation, there was value in every living and dieing thing - and most of all there were these simple therapeutic messages in the way eco systems function. Messages so simple and strong, they changed my life to one that was more tolerable inside my chattering mind, a life more accepting and at peace. No, I didn't get totally buddha and enlightened... just less miserable with better skills of coping.

While society teaches us to take everything personally, nature says don't sweat it... it wasn't thinking of you when it made that hurricane, tsunami, earthquake, thunderstorm, or big wind come your way.
Basically if you have a question about your life, take a moment to go outside and watch how things function outside the modern human realm, and there is an solution. One so simple, usually we don't like it.

Watch dis' video below... cause the ants say it betta' ...



XoXo

Turkey Vulture In The Grey Sky

Every time i see one of these big turkey vultures I usually mistake it for a hawk. And for all I know, I may be now mistaking a hawk for a turkey vulture... but i don't think so. As much as people don't like vultures close up (people don't seem to think they are as beautiful a bird as they really are), from a distance these large birds have as much intense graceful presence as other birds of prey. Turkey vultures carry a huge windspan, as wide as an eagle!
This turkey vulture pictured here- let's call him Larry, was swooping really low to the ground above my head, which is highly unusual. I usually see these birds in groups of 2 to 4, swaying, gliding, and circling overhead. Larry though was all alone, and I almost could swear once he saw me taking pictures he began showing off... you know in a really dark, goth kind of way (as not to totally ruin his Edgar Allen Poe style reputation.)

From Enature.com:::
"Soaring for hours over woodland and nearby open country, the Turkey Vulture searches for carcasses, locating them at least partly by means of its acute sense of smell. As they soar, these "buzzards" ride on rising columns of warm air called thermals to save energy as they cover miles of territory. The importance of this energy saving is clear from the fact that we seldom see a Turkey Vulture on a windless day, when thermals do not form. Turkey Vultures are valuable for their removal of garbage and disease-causing carrion.
Nesting: 2 whitish eggs, heavily marked with dark brown, placed without nest or lining in a crevice in rocks, in a hollow tree, or in a fallen hollow log."
XoXo

Reynard the Fox

At times I am an insomniac, I lay my head down on my pillow and it is as if there is a little electric spark that shoots into me and the wheels in my mind begin to rapidly turn. Last night was one of those nights.

As I lay in bed my sweet redhead asleep beside me I heard an awful screaming noise. So at 2 something in the morning I got up and went to the window. I was afraid it was a muntjac that was caught in the fence across the road. The screeching sounded like one of their calls.

As I peered out into the night, I saw nothing and all was still. But, I caught a glimpse of something in the parking lot across the street, something that just glistened as a a tree sprinkled the light around from the street lamp above.  It was my fox, my Reynard.

I wrote my Master's thesis on the medieval depictions of Reynard imagery as a teaching/morality tool in both the secular and nonsecular worlds.  I have always had a soft spot for the fellow.  There he was, wandering around, I watched him, he didn't seem to be in any distress, so I still didn't know where the noise had come from. I have been lucky enough to see him a few times over the years. I am always struck by the fact that in front of me is something truly wild, strolling down the main street that by day is crowded with people and cars.

He walked to the fence, but the shiny dark green painted bars were too close together for him to slip through, so he jogged gracefully over to the parking lot entrance, I wanted so badly to run downstairs and get my camera, but I couldn't, I didn't want to miss him, I was grounded to this spot.

He disappeared for a moment behind some hedges and then suddenly there he was just standing at the entrance, looking majestic, his long tail billowing out from behind him, the wind brushing his fur around.  He looked up; he looked at me, as if he knew all along I had secretly been watching him from my bedroom window. We just watched each other for I am sure what were mere seconds, but felt like long minutes. He was beautiful.

Then, he turned right and headed down deeper into the neighborhood and vanished into the darkness.  I have no pictures to show for it, but that makes it even sweeter, it was our secret, our moment, when the rest of the world was sleeping.

Over a lengthy period

The Bull

Today I got a warning from Bort...
"Hey Leslie, don't go into Aubry's field, the bull is out."
Being the sassy trespasser that I am I was like "How do ya know?"
Bort: "He's got a huge ring in his nose with a chain hanging from it."
Me: "Oh, shit."

So, of course I had to go look! No way am I crazy enough to go into the field but I walked down the road along the fence line, to where the cattle's pile of hay usually sits, and found the ring nosed beast right away.
That jewelry makes him look fierce, and not in the hawt mess kind of way, but in the stampeding, kill you kind of way. Bort told me the chain was to keep the Bull from attacking you and that if it decided to plow down the fence and trample me, to grab onto the chain and keep walking it in circles. Luckily this Bull was feeling mellow, cool, and shy. He not only didn't come towards me, but he tried to avoid me - hiding behind his ladies. Then slipped off over the hill.
How emo...
XOXoxoxo

The Hungry Caterpillar

I loved this story when I was little. I continue to give it to friends for their children. I am the book gift giver. I think books are very important, especially instilling the love of reading in a child at an early age. My parents always read to us.

We loved being read this story when we were little, sticking our fingers through the little fruit holes and wiggling them around like we were the tiny caterpillar munching away.

I especially loved the picture where has was fat. He looked adorable.

While looking on Etsy (I need to really work on setting up my shop soon!) I came across Sara Carr, who is a beautiful knitter.

And, as I was scrolling I saw "Kevin the Caterpillar" and I could only think of being little. He is adorable! This alone would make you want children to be able to dress them in little caterpillar scarves! I am crazy, I know. He is just too cute!! Check out her Etsy page, she has a lot of other amazing little animals she has created as well!

There is even a plush Kevin with little knitted caterpillar legs!

Rug Love

I have been obsessed with this Matthew Williamson rug from The Rug Company for a little while. I would love one of these for our new house but I think it will definitely be way out of our price range. The colours used are divine and I just love the pattern. Doesn't it look beautiful with that pink sofa and I especially like it placed on the white painted timber floors!

Did I tell Ya'll I'm Moving?

...to this tiny cabin in Hot Springs, NC (in the pic below). During my time spent in Western North Carolina (almost 9 years) I have moved over 12 times - which is why I tend to be called a gypsy, someone who can't settle down, someone who can't commit, but also someone who likes adventure and can make a home where ever I end up. Out of those 12 moves, only two were close into a small town, the other ten were always at the end of some rural road, in the middle of nowhere... all by chance, and a little choice.
Once again I am summoning my inner gypsy to make another move, and at the same time giving her a re-assignment to stop the physical moving, and just keep that shit spiritual... ya know?

Big thanks to my Mom & Dad who are helping me make this happen!

PS - I won't be leaving Big Sandy Mush for a few weeks... I sure will miss it.




XoXo

Animal Tracking: Wild Turkeys In The Snow

Look at the size of those feet!!! I know my hand might be a little bit small (and all gnarly cajun looking) but I had no idea a turkey track would be so huge and when I first walked upon this big foot, it stopped me dead in my own tracks... while I mouthed out "who in the hell?"
When I looked ahead further I saw a few more, and thought about the wild turkeys, while still considering other large birds of prey. (This is my first encounter with a large bird print.)
But as I made it over the small hill to see tons of intersecting prints and remembered hearing the turkeys earlier in the morning I knew it had to be them. (I am actually hearing them again right now as I write this post!)
EVEN more..... a whole section of the hill was just solid tracks. One of the coolest things I have ever seen. So many patterns, so much energy, frenzy, evidence, stories untold.
The proof is in the pudding though... and when I found a track with poop (scat) in it, I knew it was a group of turkeys for sure. :)
PS - you can learn about animal tracks in your own zip code on Enature.com's mammal tracking guide. It's way awesome and easier to use then most guides!

XoXo

Set of Vintage Plates

A pretty set of plates are available on Vintage by Lou Lou's Ebay store as above. Don't they look wonderful hung on that aqua wall?!

I See Dead Things

It's not everyday I walk into something like this in the woods, but there was obviously a frenzy of activity up there beneath the trees ... tracks everywhere, holes dug, scat and then I walked almost right on top this fresh skull and jaw bone. Still partly red with blood, still pink flesh hanging off the bone, preserved in the icy snow.
My guess is it's a opossum or raccoon skull. Maybe groundhog or feline too?
Made me think I should stop making those jokes about a coyote possibly eating my face off... which I jest about after hearing them howl nearly 5 night a week now.
XoXo

Composting Toilet: Potty Assist

Imagine this: Two men hanging up a grey sheet and placing a small square box underneath, then lifting a composting toilet in a big hug to place it up on the grey pedestal created and shooting some hawt photos of it.

Ya'll know how I love the humanure toilet system (simple potty in a bucket & cover with leaves and compost it), so much more then the mass scale sewage treatment plants and soil wrecking septic systems in rural areas.
In general the reason I love humanure toilets the most is you can build one for under $25 (we built one for $7 here in Big Sandy Mush) - while most other systems will cost you gobs more. In reality though many people just can't get into "roughing" it with such a homemade toilet system, and this is where the fancy composting toilet steps in. I have done quite a bit of searching, reading and observing of composting toilets that are manufactured over the years - I am the kind of nerd who would drool over the SunMar Compost toilets in the Real Goods Catalogue then look at the prices and wipe away my drool, shuffling over to my regular ole' septic toilet. I actually listened to neighborhood composting toilet gossip too "you know my friend so-n-so, he has a wife and three kids and he said the compost toilet stops working in the winter cause it gets too cold, the microbes don't work" or "you have to aim your pee cause you can't pee in the poop hole" ect...
And to be honest all this talk of having to add microbes you had to buy in a jug, and aiming pee was a big turn off for me - I just rathered the simplicity of Humanure via leaves.
Till i found this baby pictured above ::: The Nature's Head Composting Toilet.
Humanure simplicity meets composting toilet design. Yeah, I know it looks like something built for the nursing home, like some kind of potty assist chair, but in the world of composting toilets this one is looking like the freaking Taj Mahal - with it's fancy stainless steal parts meant to not rust in a wet environment, and it's almost regular toilet shape.
So here's some things I like about the Nature's Head composter...

• You can use peat moss or leaves just like in a humanure toilet (your not forced to buy microbes)
• You can add a solar vent to it and have it utterly off grid, or vent it with a fan
• It separates your solids and liquids, meaning no need to aim your pee (I know cause i wrote them and asked!)
• It's made totally in the USA
• It only needs to be bolted down, AKA you need no plumbing skills to install it
• The whole unit costs $850, which is about 1/4 of what you pay to put a septic on your land (not to mention you can put this thing in an RV, boat, or wherever you want to go from then on. Your own to-go toilet.)

Do any of ya'll have a composting toilet, and if so can your share your gossip - the design perks and flaws?!

XoXOoo

Via the Backroads - On the Open Road... Again

Five good friends from Cape Town travel the back roads of South Africa's southern coast in a 1982 model Mercedes Benz unveiling new skateboarding spots, embracing the countryside and having fun as friends. Hot days, countless beers, beautiful sceneries, endless jokes, late night camp fires and loud music in the car contributed as the foundations for another Via the Backroads trip. Presented by: Via the Backroads Song by: New Holland - Hurricane.



Here is the latest web edit of a trip we did in December. Look out for the new Session Magazine for the full length article.

Smile

This is what is making me smile this morning:

1)Gorgeous roses scattered around the house and cheering up little corners. The grocery store always has good deals and I am came home on Saturday smiling, arms laden with 3 big bunches of roses all bought for about £7, I was very happy with my little rosebud collection.

2)As my cutie pie stepped outside to head to work, we opened the door to the most gorgeous big fat flakes of SNOW, I have my fingers crossed that it keeps coming down, I wouldn't mind being snowed in for a few days....

 I hope there is something in your morning that makes you smile!

Christie Brinkley's Dining Room

I adore this image {above} of Christie Brinkley's dining room as styled by Kim Ficaro. In particular I am in-love with the April Gornik painting hanging in the background with those gorgeous silver vases filled with peonies on the dining table. Such a beautiful composition!

Love the fabric on her sofa too!!

Black Jumping Spider On Bay Leaf

From far away, jumping spiders don't look like much, but close up like this it's a freaking tarantula! Hairy. Beast. Iridescent toothed. Quick. Monster.
And he told me a little secret... he said spring is coming early jus' like the farmers almanac said, so get ready for all the insects to come out! Yay!
XoXo

Reading is a solitary pastime...

I just want to say that I hate it when people interrupt me when I'm reading. I am obviously doing something, so anything more than a comment or two is rude. Part of the fun of reading is getting imersed in the story and I can't do that if people keep interrupting me.

For example, I sit around a lot at my part-time job so I get to read when we're not busy. On one such non-busy day, I was reading in the seclusion of the gift shop when one of my coworkers kept coming in and talking to me. I don't mean to be rude, but why is it that some people cannot pick up on social cues? If I talk to someone and all they respond with is "uh huhs" and "yeahs" I just leave them alone. However, this chick did not bring her own book to read, so she preceded to walk through our book section commenting on all the ones she wanted to buy.

I try not to be too curmudgeony, but when I'm doing solitary activities, I like to be left alone. I come from a family of loners so I suppose I inherited it from my parents. Don't get me wrong, we are very chatty and social most of the time, and my family will attest to the fact that I talk a lot, but we all enjoy our alone time.


So, if you ever see me reading, and I don't respond to your comments with much enthusiasm, take that as a gentle social cue that I want to be left alone.