the berkshires

I finally made it to the Berkshires in MA to take some last fall foliage pictures. As soon as I arrived it started to pour rain. I held out hope all the way to Stockbridge - with the lyrics from James Taylor's Sweet Baby James stuck in my head ("now the first of December was covered with snow...and so was the turnpike from Stockbridge to Boston...") before I gave up. I drove through the town, gave a nod to Alice's Restaurant and considered checking out the Norman Rockwell Museum before I turned back. Wanting to have accomplished something I pulled over randomly and snapped this picture...just so I could say "Tania was here".

the dentist

My dentist finally figured me out.

I act like a big baby...

...so they put me in the kids room.

It made me laugh so much I insisted on taking a picture.

Such a good reminder never to take myself too seriously.

change

Anne called to say that everything was working out just as they planned. While she was excited to celebrate - she also had a nervous knot in her stomach. Everything they've been working so hard for is finally becoming real...and that is scary. I totally get it. Change is hard. Sometimes it's easier to dream than to have. There is no disappointment in the fantasy.

scrabble

I get my butt kicked E-V-E-R-Y time.

It's about the journey, right?

collard greens

she was on the phone while i prepared the collard greens

reminding me of who i used to be

who I still am.

making me laugh.

despite the time and distance

the changes in our lives, our hearts, our bodies

she is still ann. i am still me.

we are still friends

sometimes all our friends need to do is mirror us back to our selves so that we can find the strength that still lies within despite the way things may appear.

yoga toes

Amarilis was wearing these at work.

Her toes looked happy.

I bought some too.

I like them.

crazy "crooked sidewalk" mittens

My first pair of mittens.

Amy taught me to knit on my red(ish), camel(ish) back couch in Bellingham, WA. Ever since I have become a yarn snob. I find it very hard to work with anything from the chain stores. I prefer hand spun, hand dyed...high quality yarns....when I can afford them. I've decided I'd rather save up my pennies and knit one thing I really like with yarn I really love, then to have a bunch of things lying around 'just because'. Also - I like giving my money to someone who is putting their heart into handcrafting something unique. This skein of "crooked sidewalk" came from an etsy seller named Hobbledehoy. I copied a pattern out of a book on my lunch hour. Despite how many times it said to - I didn't bother to check the gauge. The thumbs look like they are on steroids. The result is very satisfying none the less.

great (great, great ?) aunt man's oatmeal bread

I read this somewhere on the internet last week

and experienced acknowledgment deep down in my soul:

“A life too easy or escapable quickly becomes meaningless.”

At the request of my cousin Jennie and friend ‘Sister Mary Catherine’, I committed to making Great Aunt Man’s homemade oatmeal bread. From start to finish, in an old – slightly rusty – hand cranked bread ‘machine’ the whole process takes about 4 hours. A quantity of time and patience that is hard to come by in our fast paced world.

I was rewarded by not taking the easy way out. Over the 4 hours my mind began to settle. I tuned into the peace of making something by hand. My body and hands felt purposeful while they cranked the bread machine and kneaded the dough. The fresh baked bread smell permeating the kitchen enveloped me in a sense of safety.

I’m going to endeavor to invest in the meandering road more often…to doing the things that require effort…and stretch me out of the comfort zone of ease and convenience.

coventry farmers' market

It was the perfect day for the farmers' market.

Blue sky, colorful Autumn leaves, fresh air.

I am so happy Shauna introduced me to it.

My newly felted bowl has a purpose.