This by way of a test run...
The photo is my small collection of masks in my tiny entry hall. The 3 on the far right are ceramic ones that I made and the gold beaky one is a Mardi Gras mask from my daughter's high school French class(we made it together). The big black and white one was brought from Venice by my brother.
I was just thinking about things that I find important and things that I probably could call obsessive behavior...like my collection of cookbooks, cooking magazines and recipes from the internet and from long since vanished magazines. I always have this feeling that if I throw out recipes that I will eventually need them. I go through them periodically and find them endlessly fascinating and keep making promises to make any number of them. I used to keep a mental list of 5 cookbooks that I would grab if I had to leave the house suddenly. That list has never really changed, although there are probably 5 more I could easily add. I try to put trip photos into albums. It pares down what you keep and would make it easier to take with you in an emergency.
I guess what I am asking is what do you consider of such value that you would grab it if you had to get out FAST? I know that, ultimately, I could certainly do without most of what I have, but I find it comforting to have those things around me. We live in earthquake country and could have a disaster without warning. Fire and flood are much less an issue, although with last summer's fires, anything is possible. I just think of the people that lose everything in fires, tornados, hurricanes and floods, and wonder if I could just step back from everything and feel a sense sense of freedom from all these THINGS. I would hope that I could if it ever came down to that.
6 comments:
Ok...Woo Hoo...it worked! 'nother glass of wine for a win against the computer. I am so pissed because I lost my beautiful Provençal poppy field image on my desktop...GRRRR...I tried to put it back in and apparently I need to resize the image but can't figure out the proceedure. My daughter did it for me oinks ago and I have no bloody clue. The only good news is that I found the photo again on Google images...I REALLY hate being so stupid! Plus, I am commenting on my own blog posting...this is seriously sad.
PMT...you be such a bad boy on the other corner! You may get spanked again! TSK, TSK....
I emailed C.C. a Wayne R. Williams xword this morning and still haven't heard back???? At this point I have no frickin' clue if she even got it...nothing is even going to settled with this computer until I get the new memory thingy. I am starting to consider WH's iPhone as a concept...have to go finish up supper...see y'all.
Oh...and The Importance of Being Ernest" was hysterical...at least THAT I get...LMAO through the whole play...the guy next to me didn't have a clue or was apparently deaf...Jeez, I love Oscar Wilde!
Rich and I are of a mind when it comes to instructions for the 'baby' sitter when we travel: The animals are never to be physically punished or even verbally chastised. If one of them should, somehow, set the house on fire, the top priority is to get them to safety. In our absence, the only thing that ultimately matters is them. They are priceless ... the rest are just things.
That being said, if there was a fire and the animals were all safe and sound, first and foremost, I would want my flute . My flute is a tool that I use for meditating, both passively and actively. Through it I am able to actively seek the quietude and, contrarily, to passively express all of the many not-so-quiet emotions that are common to all humans. That may sound like a contradiction. How can one be active while seeking to be inactive (quiet) and how can one be passive while expressing emotions like anger or elation?
It works like this: After my morning yoga and skate, I go down into the mangrove forest. It takes a while to get there. It's about a half hour drive and then another half hour to hike to 'my little spot'. That trip, especially the hike, gives me time to focus. By the time I am on my last leg of the hike, the birds all see me coming (they know me well by now) and I see them. When I get to my little spot, I unpack my backpack and set up shop. After finally assembling my flute I do a few deep breathing exercises and get ready to play 'long tones'. All of this is 'active'. I actively pursue the quietude. I play long tones for anywhere from one half hour to one hour, to get my breath flowing, to get my mind slowing. Eventually, my mind does slow and I reach a turning point. I realize that, finally, I am no longer working at it. It is just happening. That is when I open up the study books and work on technical exercises. I work them until I begin to sense a slight frustration on my part, then I put them away and allow myself to indulge in merely making music. Sometimes I just improvise. Sometimes I read a chart and then, invariably, ... improvise. Either way, I am in the moment. I am not thinking, not really trying ... just allowing myself full reign. I allow myself to express all of the anger, sorrow, frustration, guilt, love, passion, greed ... anything ... anything at all. I am simply alive and the whole experience is ultimately 'passive'. Everything that has flowed into me over all the years flows out of me.
An art teacher of mine was fond of saying, "The artist ain't nuthin' but a secretary!" I understood what he meant innately. At those moments, I ain't nothing but a secretary taking dictation from the cosmos.
Other than that, I'd like to save my books and CD's.
WM, What would we grab in a last minute dash out of the house? Now's that's an interesting subject. I'm not thinking about the practical things like deeds, passports, birth certificates, wills and even the computer. Sensibly, those would have to be the first things, and then just like most people I would get the photo albums.
But other than those sensible things, what would it be that would be most precious items I would take before all others? I'm sitting here, mentally scanning the closets, cabinets and drawers trying to come up with something.
There are maybe 10 books I would be sorry to lose. They are old friends that I've reread several times. But they could be replaced with a little effort. The same thing goes for all the other books and CD's. If I lost them, I would be angry and aggravated, not really sorrowful.
I would have to take the paintings my grandfather, mother and sister have done. They are the only things I can think of that are sentimental AND not replaceable.
I have noticed that as the years go by, Fred and I are making a concerted effort to not collect more stuff.
Speaking of which, the boat is now a fond memory. It has gone to a good home with several children running in and out. They got an excellent deal and we got "we don't have to take care of that anymore". The money will go to replace the soon-to-be-needed new carpeting.
Oscar Wilde is wonderful. TIOBE is so funny. I love Edwardian drawing room comedies.
You are also right about PMT's naughtiness. I think he likes to shock and occasionally appall.
PMT, What an interesting morning ritual. Do you do that every morning? You are sounding more and more Buddhist by the day.
About dogs. When we got our first Dalmatian, he was a little nippy. Since we wanted to show him, we hired a professional dog trainer to help us get the puppy on the right track. On his business card, right under the business name, the trainer had his motto, "Never, Ever Hit Your Dog!". He was the guy for us. The puppy was properly trained out of his early bad habits, showed happily and well, and became the best dog we ever had. ( LOL, We say that about every dog we've ever had.)
Did I mention those are groovy masks?
No?
Well, they are.
Seriously groovy.
GROO-OO-OO-OO-OO-OO-OO-VEE-EY!!!
I had an artiste friend (OK, he was a painter and more than just a friend) who painted his entire body and then put on a thong on Halloween. After which, he skated all over Miami Beach, wearing just that thong and body paint. This was obviously before I met him. Otherwise, I would have joined him.
Anyway, the point being that I often entertain notions of going ape shit and having a blast being something or someone provocative. If I got my hands on one of your masks and a little body paint, who knows what might ensue.
PMT...I love your morning routine. Mine is not so elaborate. Coffee, crossword, latte, read the blogs, comment...then into the sunroom again...finally...to paint or draw. Sometimes I garden, and sometimes I bake in the morning.I keep thinking that I should dig out my hockey skates and get back into it...but then there is always tomorrow.
I am slowly getting back to my more normal routine after 4 months of taking care of mom...it is feeling good and the sun shines more for me. For quiet time, especially in the evenings, I crochet, needlepoint, read or sketch. I try to set one day aside each week to run errands and get them all out the way at once so I can keep the rest of the week free.
I'm glad you like the masks...I might photograph a couple individually as 2 are based on Noh mask designs. I used to be really big into Halloween and designed all kinds of Fantasy costumes that I could wear while skating...because the rink where I used to work had the best Halloween parties. There are some really great stories from that. Once I designed a costume using elements from the BEASTMASTER...Mark Singer was a hotty!
CA..I think it is interesting just to think my way through an emergency as it actually prepares you better if you ever have to act quickly. Bill and I are not as good at paring things down yet...we try, and then 2 weeks later, that thing we decided we weren't ever going use comes in useful and we shrug and say "see"!. My "stuff" is mostly books, photos and cookware. There are a lot of things I really wouldn't mourn, but I have 3 beautiful quilts that were given to me by a very good friend who is an amazing quilter...each one was made especially for me and I would not wnat to lose those...See It gets difficult to sort.
I also love French farces, especially Molière...It was just such a glorious day and it was good to laugh so much and share time with a friend...
Nite to you all. I have to get some rest so I can take on the computer again tomorrow...
ClearAyes,
No, I do not do the 'mangrove routine' routine every morning. I was going down there pretty religiously for some time. But the past couple of years my visits have dropped off from five or six days a week to an average of three. The fact is, I have not been down there in over a month now because my car is in the shop. I can take Rich's car to run errands and what, but I cannot take it for hours on end and leave him stranded. My car aside, there are other things that get in the way. From the mundane stuff that has to be dealt with periodically to the extended vacations that we are prone to take, there are always impediments to maintaining a solid routine. It's okay, though. Around the time I got my flute, we converted the front room of the house into a modest library/conservatory. I mostly play there these days. That is where I do yoga, too. I do plan to resume going back down to the mangroves on a daily basis once my car is fixed. It is easier for me to focus there. There are many distractions at the house: dogs barking, birds screaming, phones ringing, TV blaring, etc. That is why I like to sit out by the river to do the XW and read.
I am not Buddhist exactly, although I do admire Buddhism. One of the first books I read on my Kindle was the Dali Lama's book, "The Universe in a Single Atom".
I like this video. The song, "The Lotus Sutra of the Wonderful Law" was composed by Nestor Torres upon having been invited to perform at an appearance of the Dalai Lama at Florida International University in 2004.
WM,
I knew you were a Sharks fan, but I did not know that you were a fellow skater. Skating is another part of my routine that can be difficult to do regularly thanks to the rain that we get here. I skate outdoors and, while I wear good protective gear (unlike some of the bozos I see trying to skate), rain can still pose a serious hazard. I learned long ago to avoid wet leaves like the plague. They can make it really easy to wipe out. Water is also very bad for the wheel bearings. Anyway ...
Mark Singer was alright, but I think Dolph Lundgren showed him up.
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