Thankful

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We’ve had a LOT of rain here in the past few months. You know I’m always thankful for rain.
As a gardener, rain is a gift-especially in a drought prone desert like Southern California. But the rain got the best of my 102 year old house and its 37 year old cedar shake roof. We celebrate a new roof that has just been completed! So YAY!! Such a process- the demolition noise, dirt, and mess. I really could not function well while this was all going on. But it is done now and we are very grateful. As if to test it out, the roof was completed on Friday and it rained significantly both Saturday and Sunday. The test was successfully completed!

Old houses are a task in many ways and next week the original electric breaker box will be replaced. Always something that needs work but the breaker box is essential. I’m grateful the house hasn’t burned down with that old thing. I will be relieved when it is replaced. The thing is dated 1920!

Other maintenance items such as fences and deck refinishing have been completed by us here as well (special thanks to my son for his help) and I’m looking forward to enjoying a lovely summer in the outdoor spaces here (outside of the ongoing insane flight school training you might have read me complaining about previously). We anticipate the heat of summer and remember days when the setting sun is a relief and the cool evening backyard is our sanctuary.

I can finally get my studio workspace back, cleaned and organized for a ribbon order heading off to France soon, and a weekend indigo shibori workshop at the Japanese American National Museum this weekend. I spent the last two days curating fabrics for the group and am satisfied with the collection. You read my previous post on the preparation that goes into a workshop and that is what consumes my mind and time at the moment.

In the middle of all this I had my 4 year old grandson here for a week. We had a marvelous wonderful time. (No photos but trust me… ) He’s a cat boy and was immediately adopted by Kitty Meow. We read Pooh stories, ate good stuff, took fun jacuzzi baths, played in the garden and ART of course! He lost his own Dharma kitty a couple of weeks ago from old (20) age and we processed it (all living things live their whole entire life, some lives are longer than others).

I want to suggest a book that I just purchased by author Melissa Kwansy. I featured her here once in the past for her book, Putting on the Dog: The Animal Origins of What We Wear. Melissa accompanied us on a Silk Study Tour to Japan in 2015 as a research trip for her book. Melissa is mainly a poet, and her latest book is of great interest to many of us who are aging and seeing our parents and friends age and pass away. She also lingers on the environmental decline we see around us and connects us to it.

Melissa Kwasny writes the poetry I want to read as the world ends. Complicating the boundaries between love and grief, abundance and scarcity, these stunning poems help us navigate our shared 21st century catastrophes. Despite her skepticism (or because of it) Kwasny’s “faith in the intellectual supremacy/of earth” gives her the courage to linger in life’s difficult truths. She reports back to us in a sparkling syntax and breathtaking clarity that only deepens our gratitude for what the earth provides, then takes away. “Redeemed by proximity to these last of religious signs,” Kwasny writes, “if I believed in priests, I would confess to the pines. – Rob Schlegel

Evocative and wrenching, The Cloud Path compels us to consider the whole of living and dying. A beautifully measured interweaving of personal and planetary loss, these keen and tender poems teach us to see afresh in the lateness of things.

So give it a look. I think you will enjoy it.

In shibori world, like I said, I’m working on a ribbon order for France. Additionally. I’ve been participating in an online shibori workshop by Awonoyoh. One of the recent techniques covered there is a focus for the upcoming workshop. It’s always interesting to see how others present shibori. We all have our own way. I like this workshop as it’s affordable and covers various traditional techniques one per month. One thing about traditional techniques is that they are great for inspiration and adaptation to your own style. Great practice as well. Here’s a few of my samples of the techniques recently covered:

The car is all loaded for the weekend workshop and I can enjoy a little garden time. Here’s a little glimpse of what is out there…

And to my surprise today, while loading the car I came upon a whole bunch of swallowtail caterpillars. They are so beautiful! I had almost come to tearing out the over abundance of fennel since i never had seen the swallowtail butterflies or caterpillars on them. That was my main reason for planting them several years ago.

I’m still contemplating this months moons but did get a couple of things into the vat yesterday while packing up- one was a pair of pants to wear while dyeing (indigo duh! can’t tell if they are already blue!) and a very old small quilt sample I made over 30 years ago. It had hung in a bathroom with lots of light and became quite faded. It’s now overdyed with indigo and will make a nice placemat!

And I’m featuring a couple of things in the shop for shipping next week:

-Indigo Yardage in Three Shades
–T akaramono Fabric Packs
–Card Sets

Have a peaceful weekend
Glennis

糸 ito… a thread that runs through

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I took a chance on presenting a new workshop at the Japanese American National Museum this past weekend.

I wanted to build appreciation for Japanese textiles by getting a nice selection of vintage cloth in the hands of the potential participants. I wanted to see if people would be interested and how they would react to the material presented. I was very pleasantly surprised the workshop filled quickly (& with a waitlist) upon being listed.

I wanted to go over and above for the participants! I wanted to fill their minds with thoughts and stories of the importance of fabrics and of keeping them alive. I wanted to introduce them to materials and techniques, to broaden their knowledge, while inspiring and feeding their creativity.

I kept all these ideals in MY mind as I spent the entire last week selecting and preparing the fabrics for the material packs. As I ironed, cut and arranged the cloth, I thought of my dialog, the stories I would relate, the images and samples I would share.
In my mind, I put myself in the room, pinning up the samples, deciding where the moon table would be, the book selection, the ironing station, the thread collection, extra scraps…all of it. I was creating an experience.
I imagined them walking into the room, what they might notice first, finding a seat and seeing their handouts and material packs.
I prepared everything and had it all packed and loaded into the car midday Friday. I didn’t want to be rushed in my thoughts or in my time. I wanted a calm focus as I believe that frame of mind would be transferred to the participants.

I gave myself plenty of time to arrive early and set up in that same calm mood. I don’t receive the list of participants ahead of time (although a few emailed or messaged me to say they had signed up) so it’s always fun to see who trusts me with a whole weekend of their time. It was great to see several people who had not been to a workshop prior to Covid shut downs. A few others had taken a shibori workshop more recently. It’s always a big thrill to see that about half were completely new faces-often taking their first workshop at the JANM. JANM also has put large air purifiers in each of the event rooms. Thoughtful.
But to everyone, this workshop was a first time event. SO much went on over the two days- I can’t say it all here, but I’ll give a few highlights from my perspective.

I started out by playing a slideshow from photos I had taken from my past visits to the incomparable Amuse Boro Museum in Asakusa, Tokyo, Japan. Sadly, the museum is no longer there but parts of the collection continue to tour worldwide.
Participants were particularly touched by some of the sentiments expressed in the object title cards I had photographedat the museum. Sentiments and stories about the importance of cloth scraps, of passing on textiles, and how much they meant to the keeper and the greater community were shown.
It was a great surprise to learn that there was a mother and daughter in the group and they had brought some old kasuri scraps passed to them by the mother’s mother as well as the grandmother-we decided that four generations were with us there! She expressed that she gained a new appreciation for what these scraps meant to her mother and grandmother and why they had been passed down to her from watching the slideshow.

The material packs consisted mostly of cottons, kasuri, katazome, shibori, stripes, and solids in various indigo shades. They learned how to identify each type of cloth. Most of these pieces were between 50-100 years old. They felt their thickness, their texture, studied the edges, selvedges and the imperfections of each cloth.

The aim was to create a collage like cloth (indigo dyed backing cloth was also provided) and stitch the pieces creatively together forming a whole and practical cloth, giving life to a whole new object. Suggestions and samples provided uses such as a lap quilt, bag, pillow sham, wall piece, garment insert, and more.

At first, the slideshow hindered them from wanting to take scissors to any of the pieces and many did not, choosing instead to use them as they were received. All passed by the moon table to choose a moon or two, the thread table to choose sashiko threads in a variety of colors and thicknesses, and some made use of the book collection for additional inspiration. Sashiko pattern tracing supplies were available and demonstrated. Individual help was just a few steps away as I circled the room. I had brought a sewing machine in case anyone wanted to use it, but it went untouched the entire weekend. Many had not done any substantial hand sewing, yet all seemed to enjoy it and learned a new appreciation for the “needle in hand” approach. Slowing down, considering, seeing, and feeling were sentiments stitched into each piece. Each was unique. Stories and conversations around the room as they sewed added to the experience.

Participants were young and older(20’s thru near 90!). A special shoutout to Margaret who turns 88 (!) this week- so great to see you again and Happy Birthday Blessings to you! Wow! There were friends, couples, family- so great to see. This is the blessing of in-person workshops.

The red silk that was provided in the workshop came from Rumiko Hirata. The last time we were together she gave me her scraps that she had collected. I keep and use them in her memory. As I facilitated this workshop, I worked on this piece as a sample of ideas for the participants. Using her red silk to repair tears in the cloth. I added one strip of red to the fringe. The fringe is made using torn stips of cloth that were saved from various kimono and jackets that were disassembled but were too small to utilize in other ways. Rumiko shared her interest in kintsugi with me and I have taken the idea to cloth by using red silk kimono lining as a repair fabric. I think she would have liked the idea! The hexagons represent kikko a turtle shell-long life and longevity. The stitched kanji is ito, or thread. It connects us all.

Thanks to everyone who came this past weekend, to the Japanese American National Museum, to the makers, dyers, and weavers of the cloth we used and to those who saved it for us,

Spring and so forth

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I’m in the middle of prepping for a workshop at JANM but it’s dark now and cold and wet outside so…will catch up with another blog post and see if I can get this one done without too much fuss.
(Picking this up where I left off, so no, I did not get it done!) Honestly, it used to be quiet in the mornings when I liked to write but these days we have planes overhead every 2-3 minutes between 9 am and noon (and at altitudes between 350-750 feet”!). It’s too infuriating- I just can’t concentrate- even with noise cancelling headphones. We now have a GoFundMe for hiring legal counsel. Wish us luck! After the recent storms, we need a new roof and I’m very tempted to put a two tone shingled message up there for all the pilot nutcases that tell us to “just move if you don’t like it!”. I’m taking suggestions…

First, did I mention I dug up the madder bed? Guess I should go back and see. BRB…
OK…I mentioned it in a photo. A little more detail is in order. It’s been about 3 years since I relocated it to it’s current location. Time to check it out and see… It had recently rained so the ground was friendly and easy to dig. Lots of ginko leaves fall here and has added to create the nice loamy dirt. I collected quite a pile of roots and if you have ever dug madder, you know that the fresh roots are very fragile and break easily. It must be hell to get them out of hard soil. I collected them and washed them off, putting them on a windowscreen to dry. Then it rained for several days. Eventually, after a couple of rainstorms here they dried out to a fair degree. I saw online my dyer friend Deb McClintok was doing some tests with roasting and steaming her madder root so I watched and waited on her results. She is much more scientific than I- roasting at various temps, with and without steaming. She keeps copious records. I admire that from afar. The one thing I did like about the roasting was that it allows the root to be ground and broken up much easier than simply drying the roots. At present time, I have a small batch soaking and I hope to dye some cotton with it tomorrow.

Getting back to the madder… all the rain slowed down the drying process and delayed further madder dyeing for now. I was going to impress you with a photo of the difference between the madder on cotton vs silk but couldn’t find the silk piece I dyed. Then I remembered I cut it up and sent it out in the moon circle with the madder and cochineal moons for January. You’ll just have to trust me. The silk was like FIRE! The cotton, not so much. I’ll devote the rest of the madder to silk as it was SO beautiful! Will get back to this soon.

In the meantime, I’m prepping for a new workshop at the Japanese American National Museum. Two actually. But the first one is March 9 & 10 (tickets located here). I’m looking forward to this one as it is all about making whole cloth with scraps. I called it Practical Cloth Making. As many of my workshops, it’s open-ended in that you get to choose what you make with the cloth and each one will be unique. I will have many samples and the kits for this will be very fun. The other day I was going to a movie at a local outdoor mall here and walked by a Levi’s store. In the window they had posters of sashiko stitched indigo cloth patchwork all across the front windows. Also in the front there was a space with sewing machines. We went in and asked what this was all about and the gal there said that they do customizations – such as alterations, hems, distressing, patching, altered logos and so forth. They had a small notebook with examples. I asked what the poster was about and she said that previously they had some table coverings with that boro like sashiko (though she didn’t know the terms) for display purposes and people were always asking if they could cut them up for customizing their jeans. They couldn’t as she said they were very expensive but they were told (or told to say IDK) that they would be getting some fabric like this in stock in the future (no known timeframe). Just thought it was interesting…

Anyway, we will have great fun making whole cloth. Maybe you can join us! This is a workshop to relax, stitch, create and wonder. Spend some worry free time, playfully wondering with us!

In the garden, weeds abound but the color of the moment is YELLOW! A sign of things to come. Of sunshine after rain, of happiness, of Springtime!

The garagio is drying out once again. March moons will begin soon. If you’d like to join the circle, here’s a link.
I started this post on a rainy, wet, dark day and ended it on a sunny bright and breezy one. And the recently dug madder bed is already send up shoots again!

Welcome to wonder

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I want to welcome new readers and subscribers to both this blog and to the moon circle. Seems Jude’s recent post linking to me here sent more of you my way than usual and I thank her for that! Well darn! For some reason I can’t find the exact post for the link but instead just link to her site. Thanks Jude! Seems we have been doing this for quite a while. I love that we are both still here-18 years and some of you here are still with us as others have gathered along the way! How cool is that? We have definitely gotten older together haven’t we?
For those of you who may have occasionally wandered by or are new wanderers here, irasshaimase! Welcome!

seen along the street in Kamakura welcoming visitors

If you have been here a while, you may recognize that I tend to focus on process over outcome. I love the process of creating! The trial and error of it all. I enjoy the experience of learning or creating a process- of practicing it to the point of effortlessness. This is not for everyone. I am just speaking for myself here. I rarely do something just once. When I do, I learn something from it and take it somewhere else.
In that effort, I am currently practicing yanagi (willow) shibori and variations. All the practice pieces are being used for February moons. If you are in the moon circle, you will see them when they arrive in your mailbox. I am working on controlling the amount of white vs blue space. Sometimes I may want one or the other. I’m working on the process and choosing materials and methods that I think will work best for participants in the April shibori workshop at the Japanese American National Museum where one can choose to learn this technique.

opening the wrapped yanagi shibori

For newcomers here, and something I remind myself of from time to time…

Remember the wonder of small things, do not miss the wonder! Don’t let circumstance (or people) take away your wonder. Return to wonder if you’ve been away. Rejoice in wonder! Be with wonderful people. And maybe the two most important things….
Live in and be filled with wonder! Be at the heart of wonder!

We n e e d m o r e W o n d e r i n o u r W o r l d

Now for some backyard wondering… images are annotated so I won’t say much here except that we are having a break in the rain and it is WONDERFUL! We also have a TON of weeds! We are supposed to get rain again soon but not too much, they say…

squirrelly Momma! eating the last persimmon

my mind had been elsewhere…

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Cleaning out! January is my month to clean and sort. I know many people have this same intention for the end or beginning of a year and whether you get to it or not may be another matter!. So far I have cleaned every nook and cranny of the upstairs here, and let me say that is no small thing! It’s great to have it done and hopefully stay that way for a while. One of the rooms was my boys old room that has been basically been used to store musical instruments (shocking-I know!) as well as the home base for a musician friend of ours when he is working in town so he doesn’t have to drive far only to have to return the next morning. It was due for a cleaning out. I found a few fun things-art and school work from the kids when they were young. Great fun to see that again. Now I have started on some areas downstairs and worked my way through the flower making and beading area that I had really not kept in good order. Done!
Next up is the fabric and sewing table. Sure feels nice to restore order there.

Found this while cleaning out. Early days I was using shibori and creating textile postcards to exchange. Saved this one for myself and came across it in the big clean out. I still like it.

A couple of days into the new year we received the heartbreaking news that a long time friend passed away on NYE. I met them when I was 19 and they were all about 10 years older that I was. They were good friends of my first husband-she was a dancer and he was a painter. They welcomed my young naive self into their wiser circle and helped me when my husband became ill and died. They had been married for 50 years! Our time together had not been enough recently and is much regretted. Whenever we did get together, it was as if no time had passed. They were just like that-all love. The bond was strong. He became ill suddenly and passed quickly. Phil offered to take care of the music for the memorial service which was yesterday and it was just as beautiful as it could be. A beautiful place in Topanga Canyon, filled with wonderful people, love, memories and music. There were tears, art, dancing, food, and more love. These are people who restore your faith in humanity. Who lived fully, loved dearly, and created with passion. Now she will go on separately, somehow, after more than 50 years together. I will be spending more time with her. I need more of her in my life. While I was there, I walked in the garden. It was peaceful. What a place! Our friend bought the place in complete disrepair in the early 90’s and had spent the past 40 years restoring it to grand success. The fireplace is remarkable! It has a storied Topanga Canyon history!

Goodbye for now dear Greg- in my mind, you and Brian are painting and sculpting and listening to Puccini…

Carry on…

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It is the transitional time between Christmas and the coming New Year as I write this final post for 2023. (OK so it’s now AFTER New Years and I’m hopefully getting this out today!)

These days, I love this time of year when I can enjoy a bit of down time, reflecting on the past, considering the future, but being present now. Quiet time.

In the past, this time of year was taken up with much busyness-getting ready for January trade shows, getting new product into production, and end of year financial paperwork and more. I think back on those times and I can appreciate them while at the same time I’m glad I no longer have those responsibilities.

Concerns these days are more centered around home, health, and family.

Around home, the old girl turned one hundred this year! 2024 will find her in need of some repairs which will keep her in good stead in the coming decades( one hopes!).

As for health, osteoporosis and skin cancer are my two main issues-currently both manageable. I’m thankful for not having anything more serious other than age related aches and pains. “Keep it movin’ girl” is what I say to myself.

Family-Phil, sons, their wives and my grandson are all healthy and I’m so very grateful for that. Sister and her family are well too. Icelandic and New Zealand family are also well. We know that these things can change at any moment so we accept that possibility from day to day.

The dogs here are aging-(11 & 14) and we attend to them like the family they are. A pet is a commitment to their lifetime and we are here for them. The gaggle of felines here grows and changes as neighbors add to their animal families. We welcome them all! (Even the one who sat peacefully on my lap this morning while I petted her before suddenly turning and biting me quite hard before I slapped her off my lap! No permanent damage it appears.)

Thinking further, and more universally, 2023 seemed chaotic to me. The world seems more unstable, environmentally and politically. In this new year, I want to be of more service to those I am connected to locally as well as virtually. At the same time, I must choose wisely how to spend the time and energy I have. It’s easy to let things take over your life and mind. It’s harder to say no and to pace yourself.

I will continue to create textile work and to hold workshops. I will continue to garden and repair. I will continue to love and care for family and friends. I will contribute to my local community. I will collect rainwater, make compost and separate my recyclables. I will savor every moment with my grandson, now four.

I made more fabulous friends this year as a result of the Silk Study Tour to Japan and I treasure each of you. Workshops in person resumed in my outdoor space this year and many were mini reunions where we all reconnected. So wonderful. It’s really great to see participants hone and practice their skills and bring their knowledge with them to share. I feel my practice has changed, improved, and refocused these past couple of years where I see myself more as a conduit and facilitator of creative energy than as a teacher of any one thing in particular.

May 2024 bring us more solutions than problems, more peace than war, more unity than division.

Wondering, considering, imagining…carry on!
Love to you all.
Glennis

making cloth whole

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As October turns to fall, we head into shorter, cooler days and more darkness. The cycle of seasons demands us to participate in changes, which in the end is a good thing. It keeps us from being too static and unchanging. It reminds us we are not in control of things that perhaps we thought we were. CHANGE is going to happen whether we agree with it or like it. It’s all in how we interact with it, how we respond to it, how we accept it. Nature is an excellent teacher. I’ll leave it at that for the moment. October moons are on their way for the moon circle! One is a Spooky Moon!

Making cloth whole out of various scraps, I thought I would reupholster a couple of chairs I have that needed it. My scrap box overfloweth! As I made the cloth larger and larger, I wondered if I might do something else with it. Who knows- I may change my mind…but I like the possibilities! I am using the sewing machine on this since my idea was to use it for upholstery-but we’ll see. There is something totally satisfying putting together bits of beautiful cloth together for something useful. I remember each piece, where it came from, the technique, or when I dyed it. Memory cloth in a way.

In October, I also revived and finished a couple of projects that had been set aside for a bit. One was a pillow sham that was mostly finished-I had almost forgotten about it. I love the egasuri bird image in front of a crescent moon, the partial mon, and the red silk “kintsugi” patches. When I started this some time back, I wanted to do a crazy quilt inspired piece with feather stitches. That was the main idea and it grew from there. (I can see I need to take the tape roller to it to remove the lint and animal hair). It’s an envelope style sham and I am looking for a couple of buttons for the back.

The other piece is a wall hanging that features a collage approach and various shibori -stitched and clamped. This one is all hand stitched. There was no pre-planning on this really. Just pick the background fabric (indigo ombre dyed cotton), then choose the other fabrics and arrange. These were stitched in place before the circles were stitched. I just went with what moved me in the moment.

While I do appreciate the incremental progress on the above pieces- going slowly and persistently, I do realize something-that the issues these past two months don’t allow me to be as creative as i usually feel. I am feeling a poverty of imagination- something I don’t normally feel. It may be a combination of things, life issues, climate change news, continuing covid (just got my booster and flu shot), increasing violence, chaotic governments, -not to mention the constant airplanes overhead. I try not to dwell on it since much of it is WAY beyond my control but I do attend to the smaller things that I can do.
Even just saying that here on the blog gives me a little peace of mind about it. I know I’m not the only one who’s creativity is stifled when life gets chaotic and stressful. I am reminded of studies that made correlations between stress and creativity and why we want to reduce stress, poverty and anxiety, especially for children. We need them to be healthy and able to freely creative, wonder and imagine.

In other news:
Workshops at the Japanese American National Museum will resume in January! I will post the dates and details when all is finalized. I’m really looking forward to getting back to workshops there. In the meantime, there are still three spaces are still open for the November 11/12 workshop date. Maybe you can join us!

The yard is full of fall.

Everything is part of making life’s cloth whole.

Post interrupted…

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It’s cooled down sooner than expected this week so that’s a wonderful development. A number of unexpected positive things on the horizon. I posted up two indigo shibori workshop days on Friday- I put them in our “private” FB group for people who have taken classes with me at the museum since nothing has been scheduled there yet. I wanted to let them have the first opportunity to sign up since many there have been asking for a workshop. The other date is still open and I am posting it publicly today. I’m really looking forward to them both! You can check it out and sign up here.

I am prepping for a batch of shibori ribbon making for my own inventory here. Finally!
My own inventory has been depleted for months- really since before I went to Japan in May. It’s really my favorite kind of shibori ribbon making as I am not so concerned about making the color combinations that orders call out for. I can more freely dye and be whimsical and inspired in the moment. I can try out new color combinations and revive ones I haven’t done for a long time as they don’t get ordered often. Some of my favorite combinations are the lesser ordered colors-at least by resellers.
Don’t we all enjoy just that serendipitous moment? Let’s see where it leads…

For those of you who follow along here and have gone on the Silk Study Tour to Japan, you might have missed the latest update post from Shio (Hirata and Rumiko san’s daughter) on Rumiko’s condition. Please email me for the link of you didn’t see it. UPDATE
I put this post on hold for a few days…now resumed.

I have finally worn out my old indigo moon bag. I have patched it up and re-dyed it a couple of times and now it’s time for a complete redo. I went to a family birthday party last week and didn’t use it as it just looks so tired now and I was a wee bit dressed. I think I have been using this one pretty much every day for 3 years. As I do this, I will add a couple new ones to the shop.

A few things on this month’s list that need to get done- a fence replacement, summer garden cleanup and winter garden planting. I got a tip from a fellow gardener that there are free mealworm castings nearby so went to pick up a whole bunch of that. You can’t go wrong with free worm poop!

I’m reading a book called The Last Yakuza by Jake Adelstein. I was interested in this for a variety of reasons- one being the time my boys and myself shared a house for a week or so with what turned out to be a yakuza member and a couple of his friends. A very interesting experience.
The ginko tree out back has dropped a billion nuts! Next, the leaves will turn a beautiful gold and then drop. At that point, I will hire a tree trimmer to give this huge tree a trim!
Fall is definitely golden!

Remembering Rumiko..

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It is with much sadness I pass along the news that Rumiko Hirata has passed away nine months after being diagnosed with pancreatic cancer. Rumiko san, wife of Hirata san, mother of Shio and her brother, a sister, a grandmother, a long time member of her church, and a beloved friend to many, will be lovingly remembered for her kind and generous spirit.
Rumiko was always a great supporter and helper to Hirata san in the many, many years of the Silk Study Tour to Japan. Always ready to be a gracious host to those who traveled with us, she welcomed our group into her home every year, even to this last visit in May when it was difficult to do so. I was fortunate to also spend time with the Hiratas in their home after the tours and take trips around their beloved Kamakura for shopping, sightseeing, and dining. We even took a car trip on an off tour year -just the four of us, Rumi, Hirata, Maggie Backman, and myself to suss out new tour visit locations and hot spring hotels. It was a sad farewell this last visit as we said our goodbyes, knowing it would be the last.
Shio was able to temporarily move back to Japan as she aided her father in caretaking Rumi and spend these last precious months with her mother. I am so glad this was able to happen. During this time, Shio provided those of us who knew her and her mother with regular updates on their daily life and moments with Rumiko as her passage became imminent. In this reflective time, I send them peace and love as I sit here remembering all the wonderful memories Rumiko made possible.
Those of us who were there most recently in May of this year, visited their home and gathered in the common room where Rumi had so thoughtfully placed her collection of fabrics for everyone to take as an omiyage. She also made us all small pincushions as a memento of our visit with her. It sits on my working table.

A few memories in no particular order… so many to choose from but I chose these that remind me of Rumi and Hirata’s kind and generous hospitality. She was often present when many photos were taken, preferring not to be the subject of the photograph. But I remember her there, like a silent presence giving strength and energy to the moment.

the usual scene at the Hirata home during a tour

Her garden was her passion and her flowers both in the yard and the ones she chose to cut and display inside were exquisite. Her grandchildren, her joy. Kamakura will always contain memories of Rumiko for me.
どもありがとうルみ！安らかに眠ってください.

heliotrope for Rumi
The heliotrope turns its “face” to follow the path of the sun, just as Clytie in greek mythology, once did. To the Victorians, the heliotrope was thus a sign of devotion and eternal love.

Quite the month…

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If I told you what I’ve been going through this past month, you would likely unsubscribe here, so we won’t go into the gruesome details at this point. It’s really not relevant to the topics I post about here on the blog. Just know that it has bitten into the time I have been able to spend here and in the studio and that it shall pass, eventually. The best I can do here for now, is to speak about it metaphorically (the last post is an example).

So I begin THIS post with some fun stuff- a squirrelly girl is back. Has been for a while. She is showing up regularly for some walnuts, fruit and water and appears to have taken up residence in the palm tree-as squirrelly girls are likely to do. I think I’d like to join her up there.

She’s been obviously nursing in the recent past but I’m guessing that at this point in the year the youngsters have all left the nest. She was seen and heard the other day from way up high in the palm tree chattering like crazy and when I went out to see what was going on, there was Kuro the cat on the garage roof pacing around. He can never outsmart a squirrel, knows it (and so do they), but it’s a fun game they play.

Here is the current front porch atmosphere with only the one up on the column being mine (Kuro). The neighbor kitties spend a lot of time here though. Some, most of their time as there is a great cool, secret garden to relax and hide out in out front. School kids stop to pet those that will allow it (mainly one of them) on their way home. I talked to one boy who always looks for them and he told me he loves cats. He can’t have one as his family is allergic so he befriends the locals. We talked a bit more and I discovered he is in the 6th grade, his name is Leo, and he plays the sax in the school band. I was instantly smitten! I’m probably the strange old cat lady to him! Ha!

It’s back in the 90’s this week but we are thankful for cool evenings. The cactus fruit high up is ripening out of reach to the delight of the birds AND squirrelly girl. BUT, we were lucky to get a first dragon fruit on the fairly new dragon fruit cactus that was grown from a small cutting gifted me a few years ago. It was so beautiful and tasty! Did I post photos of the flower here? I can’t remember so adding one here. Sometimes I forget where online I post certain things.

Here’s a little gallery that sums up certain things without going into lots of detail.

Another note, I am doing away with the old Daily Dyer site here. It renew$ later this month and I will see what might be saved and repurposed here eventually. So POOF! as Jude likes to say. There is so much available online it’s dizzying and it has served it’s purpose. It’s fun to look back on though.
HA HA- I just went over to take a break from this post and look at the settings for the Daily Dyer. I am going to remove the passwords there and you can look at it between now and then. I have to do it post by post and there are about 40 posts there. It might take me a day or two to get through it all. Looks like it renews on October 25th. I saw an option to place a banner for readers to “gift” the renewal costs ~~so if anyone wants to do that they can,~~ otherwise POOF! Read through all the posts and changed my mind about this option.
Basically the Daily Dyer blog was a paid subscription site for 6 months with about a couple of posts a week (40 total) talking about what was going on in the studio. Behind the scenes stuff. So have at it and maybe something there will resonate with you. I actually did not enjoy doing both blogs at the same time so did not continue it. It ran Dec 2020-July 2021. Not that long ago really. considering I’ve been blogging here 17 years since 2006!

Enough for now. It’s a new month and some new workshops are floating around in my mind. Will get another post up about that by Monday. Have a great weekend!