Forest & The Sling

Meet Forest. Not the trees and flora but my friend who came by the Luck Cabin for a visit. A true local mountain guy who is the spawn of Appalachian people of many generations past ---> and who was super sweet enough to make me my own handmade sling (like the girl uses to hunt with in Clan Of The Cave Bear!) He made the sling from upcycled leather of an old wallet and hemp twine, woven so tightly it has a spring to it.

Forest brought his sling too and showed me how to use mine...
Only issue was, I smashed my finger (on my right hand) last week between two huge rocks I was moving around to make a garden bed --- so he had to teach me how to sling rocks with my left hand.
It wasn't all that easy, but the hardest part really is to not be afraid to peg the other human standing nearby with a fast flying rock. Since it is a weapon that can actually kill things/break things.... mine did not exactly the sound barrier and making whipping noises though like Forest's did...
But I did get the hang of it, and slung a few straight shots!
Then with a little team effort we took apart the back of my GMC Jimmy because the back hatch wasn't closing anymore, and i was being choked out with car exhaust when driving....... (freaking gross) --- we didn't fix it 100% but we got the hatch to close again! yay.
AND we looked at plants around the cabin and in the woods. Remember how last week I saw this plant and asked if it might be a type of trillium... it's definitely not.
But it's "Spanish Plantain".
This next one looks just like mint! I think it might be the native mountain mint but it has a real strong herb smell similar to more of a bergamot, oregano type scent... Forest ate some of it and said it had a mint after taste. But I am pretty sure I saw him spit some out after ;)
Thanks Forest for coming to visit me ova' here in Luck, it was fun!!!

PS- btw, I can't believe how short tall people make me look.... ;)
xoxoxo

Showing Daniel (more on why visitors f-en rock...)

That's my friend Daniel... a guy who's living in the city & was needing a nature fix.... something I can provide in endless quantities. We went for a walk along the creek beginning at my cabin and following the road. In the picture above that may look like a creek he is crossing but actually it is the road to my driveway - the creek that crosses it is kinda big in one spot.

We saw some cool things today, beginning with low flying turkey vultures circling over head...
Neat trees, so many i wish i knew what they were, what their purpose is. Can anyone identify what the tree below is by it's bark? It was quite large and I don't recognize it. That is Daniel in the background next to it , he was throwing big rocks into the water - boys like to throw and breaks things, and sometimes so do I.
There are some beautiful signs of spring happening now - tiny flowers and the succulents are varying their colors and getting more lively and plump. Purple is my favorite color... so these awed me...
Water does magical things to trees- weather, decay, rain, shaping it's dead wood into something sculptural, something i want to wear as a mask, or crawl into and live.
I don't know how I did it, but i totally match the moss in the background. My decorator mom would be proud. ;) (BTW, those are mardi gras beads I am wearing that where my Mimi's, she'd used for a flapper costume... i was feeling her spirit today!)
Thanks so much Daniel for coming to visit me & letting me show you my pieces of nature, even if I am a spazzy recluse. At least I am less dangerous then a brown recluse.
PS- a real live video... not my usual slide show but a moving picture video will be coming soon thanks to my friend Daniel and his cool camera! Ya'll will love it.

XoXoxox