hello friends! i thought it was about time i sent out a smoke signal to let you know that i am doing well here at moss cottage. it’s day 5 of social distancing which isn’t that different from life as usual for me, except school has been cancelled until march 30, but that will probably stretch out longer. gavin newsom, the governor of our great state just gave parents warning that schools are unlikely to reopen this school year at all. if that comes to pass it would be bittersweet indeed. i’ll save my reaction about that news for another day.
intellectually, i’m aware that there is a serious global pandemic underway which has the potential to take lives and cause major societal disruptions. yet, when i make my morning and evening rounds through the garden and around the trees, the plant kingdom seems oblivious, joyous even. filled with life and color. march has been WET. gigantic clouds can be seen marching back and forth across the sky. sweeping in from the north and west, rolling out to the south and east. maybe heading in your direction. be on the lookout. they are strange and wonderful.
i drift from window to window, up to my usual work – reading, writing, recording, observing, breathing. rummaging through my bookcases for a book i thought i had, but can’t find. finding another i thought i lost, but in fact still have; ordering an old edition of one i’m sure i will need. back outside day and night to check the status of the sky and the planets.
huntington gardens have closed to all visitors, but so far descanso is still open. i am glad to still have access to the oak woodland and camelia forests. today i am venturing off to my favorite empty beach to walk by the shore and see what beach treasure has tumbled onto the sand in the night.
on my bookshelf
i just finished my favorite book of the last decade. DRIVE YOUR PLOW OVER THE BONES OF THE DEAD. it was a pleasure to read. an existential, animal-centered, treatise on the heartbreaking beauty of the world and the noble animals and eccentric humans that inhabit it. starring a marvelous old woman with Ailments. animal lover, astrologer, translator of william blake. solving crimes and getting to the bottom of things on a vast plateau in the wilds of poland, very near the czech republic. i can’t say enough good things about it. engrossing from beginning to end. the quote from the book below is unlikely to draw most potential readers in, but from my point of view, it will lure the RIGHT ones inside the pages. and once you are there you’re unlikely to get much of anything else done. not to worry though! we’ve all got plenty of time these days don’t we?
using the libby app from the public library i enjoyed both reading and listening to this book. the audio version is not to be missed – the narration, superb. i read parts of the book at home, then listened over to the same parts in my car. a unique pleasure.
promise me you will let me know what you think when you’re finished reading/listening. the hold was quite lengthy, but so worth it!
i’m now reading another olga tokarczuk book – FLIGHTS.
My Venus is damaged, or in exile. That’s what you say of a planet that can’t be found in the sign where it should be. What’s more, Pluto is in a negative aspect to Venus, and in my case Pluto rules the ascendant. The result of this situation is that I have, as I see it, a Lazy Venus syndrome. That’s what I call this conformity. In this case we’re dealing with a person whom fortune has gifted generously, but who has entirely failed to use their potential. Such people are bright and intelligent, but don’t apply themselves to their studies, and use their intelligence to play card games or patience instead. They have beautiful bodies, but they destroy them through neglect, poison themselves with harmful substances, and ignore doctors and dentists. This Venus induces a strange kind of laziness – lifetime opportunities are missed, because you overslept, because you didn’t feel like going, because you were late, because you were neglectful. It’s a tendency to be sybaritic, to live in a state of mild semiconsciousness, to fritter your life away on petty pleasures, to dislike effort and be devoid of any penchant for competition. Long mornings, unopened letters, things put off for later, abandoned projects. A dislike of any authority and a refusal to submit to it, going your own way in a taciturn, idle manner…
Sister!!!! Lets go to Holland and see the tulip fields, and wear wooden shoes, maybe someone would set up a tent for us right in the middle of all of them and we can just sit and look at them. All. Day. Long.
Your posts always uplift me. Love your wall of potholders. A thing of beauty. I am struggling trying to figure out distance learning for 3 rd graders. Totally stressed by that. The book you mentioned sounds wonderful. Take care. I am officially on my spring break and still in my jammies.
Thank you, MaryAnn. It is good to see you here and the photos bring a much needed sense of peace.
What company do you use to make your photo books? They look yummy.
Hello. I’m so glad you’re back…again. I check your blog daily and finding one today was such a treat. Your lovely photos really lifted my spirits. Your hibiscus painting is beautiful! I’ll keep watching for more goodies and inspiration. Thank you, Mary Ann.
Distant Socialization
is my phrasing frame
my artista spin
sending out Snail Mail Art
including letters in my best cursive
red flag signal on my mailbox
Be safe
Be calm
Breathe In
Breathe Out
Well, another book to put on my list! I’ve been thinking about you and hoping you were okay and holding on. The school thing is a circus, but necessary. Do you still get paid? Just wandering around your house and yard is calming. Please continue taking care of yourself. Sending you a big hug.
yes the paychecks will keep being deposited into my account. if they should stop, which i don’t anticipate, i have loads of unused sick days which i would probably be able to use. i am thankful you better believe it!
Your post literally put me in tears. The beauty you see and the vision you share. Thank you. Deeply, humbly, thank you.
bowing to you emily from over here in HP
I was just thinking of you this morning. What a treat to see this posting after I came home from foraging at Walmart!! Your photos made me want to go out and look more closely at the brave flowers ready to burst forth when the sun peeks out again. Loved the cherry blossoms! This morn August Wren did a live painting demo with this blossom. I think I’ll try it to use as Easter cards for friends and family. Stay well and stay in touch MAM. You inspire us. PS. Your current reading selection isn’t my cup of tea, but I have just started Olive Kittridge!
oh you are in for a treat. olive is so fantastic and just think when you’re done you can start “olive again”
i shiver to think of the reading pleasure in front of you!
Kenneth Koch, Wishes,, Lies, and Dreams on your (too) bookshelf still! -Ah, there is hope for humanity,
he is one of the greats isn’t he?! xo
Enjoy seeing your home and lovely garden! The potholders! The book, intriguing! Going to our library website to check it out. Thanks for the smoke signal. 💕
i love the LIBBY app so much. enjoy the book. i wish i was just starting it!
A beautiful post, as usual. I love seeing the flowers – and that flower heart….swoon. San Francisco is almost completely shut down and looks like a ghost town. I am thankful I have lots of art supplies to stay busy. Take care and thanks for the lovely post.
ghost towns are the ways viruses are put out of business aren’t they?
i loved finding that great big pink camelia heart on a cloudy day recently…
waving to you up there in SF.
be safe be warm xo
Thought of you instantly when I saw the LATimes saying that LAUSD was closed. Wasn’t sure if that was good or bad news for you.
I came home a week early from Carp! A week lost. sigh. It was the thing about getting the old people off the streets. Come to find out, I’m one of those. Surprised me to find that out. Hope you’re able to go.
Your photos, as always, are beautiful. But, those hibiscus – the paintings. Those I cherish.
oh drat linda i am SO SORRY about your visit being cut short. i will still go as i’ll be alone there as i am here. i will breathe extra deep and open my eyes even wider with you in mind. xo
Thank you for all this beauty! The university where I work is on hiatus for the duration, and I am Working From Home.
Not sure if my trip to London will take place in June and I am sad.
I see you have “Queen Victoria’s Sketchbook.” Did I possibly recommend that book to you? Isn’t it wonderful?
So happy you are OK. XOXO
hmmm…well don’t despair your trip may yet happen. june is a long way off and a lot can happen in the next 12 weeks or so. fingers crossed. you may have recommended the book i can’t remember.. xo
Beautiful photos. And you’re giving a nice glimpse into solitude–that can be so full and rich, even in challenging times.
thanks pamela
“full and rich”
i like to think so…
I loved both of those books. Thank you for sharing the beauty around you.
I’d love to see a book by you, Mary Ann, entitled ‘Lessons in Contentment’ or better still perhaps, ‘MAM’s Guide to Contentment’. This would have your gentle gorgeous flower paintings on most pages and lots of descriptions like the ones in your blog.
You’re welcome!
oh chrissy how good to hear from you. there’s a book by YOU in my bookcase. brought all the way back from france many moons ago.
thank you for the update. i believe our schools may be closed for the year (in MN), but no official word yet. i appreciate your greenery and am envious of your weather! how could i not! i’m sure i will be happier when i can get out and play in the dirt. although the snow is gone right now, we may get more soon. it won’t stay long, but the ground isn’t ready to be worked on yet. so, mean while i’m happy to stitch and dye! i was going to send you a pic of my dyed vintage potholders, but don’t see how to do that. yours look great!
easy to send me a picture.. scroll to bottom to FIND ME HERE and click on the envelope icon. that will zip you over to my email. i’d love to see your potholders! v.v.v. much
Well, that excerpt made me rush to the library website to place this book on hold – the library is closed for the duration of La Contagion but it is still comforting to know that I have my reservation in! The book sounds fantastic.
I am waiting for my Schminke gouache so that I can begin your OMG course… finally. Even though enforced social distancing is not all that much different from life as usual for me, I have noticed an uptick in being organized and having “a plan” and even a wee bit of follow through on what I am calling mental health hygiene. Taking walks (with appropriate social distance), climb my 10 flights of stairs until I am no longer gasping, do yoga and some Pilates, make art, study french, cook really good (but not too much) food from my prepared for Armageddon larder and freezer. Pour moi there is apparently nothing like a catastrophe to draw the lens in closer for a clearer focus on ones life. Who knows maybe I will be in better shape and will have lost some weight when it is all over. This does not mean I am cavalier…it freaks me out how much dislocation there is in every realm, how much fear and anxiety, and how much financial distress that is happening now too. Managing all that freak out is the major part of my mental hygiene plan and there are worse ways to manage it than by embarking upon the OMG course. On so many levels I thank you Mary Ann. P.S. your paint job on Moss cottage looks so nice! Congratulations!
hi nancy,
i like your mental health hygiene practice v.v. much. THANK YOU for noticing the paint. it took so very long to complete but i wake up every day in pure white walled bliss. enjoy OMG! xo
Thanks for this post, you have inspired me once again.
hello dear barbara. so good to hear from you. i hope you’re well and happy xo