Last night, for the first time in over a year, I actually went out on the town  !    Who knows, perhaps I’ll try it again in another year or so .  About an hour away from here is a cool little artsy folksy place that has live music and serves coffee and dessert.  I feared it might be more crowded and noisy, but there were only about 20 people there, the music wasn’t too loud, and there was no alcohol or smoking, all to the good as far as I’m concerned.  There were a bunch of friends and acquaintances there I hadn’t seen in ages, some for 2 years, and they made a big fuss about how remarkable it was that I’d finally ventured out again .  I felt anxious, awkward, and lonely amidst the crowd at times, and had a few spells of feeling disconnected and surreal, but there were also a few folks that I really enjoyed seeing, as well as a few songs I really enjoyed hearing.  By the end of the first set I was feeling pretty drained and exhausted by it all and decided to head home.  I was proud of myself  for venturing out, and I was very happy to return to my little sanctuary.  As soon as I was back enveloped by this forest I felt myself relax and even felt refreshed  !

This peachy-pink caterpillar was resting on the piece of firewood I grabbed off my stack yesterday, and I took a picture before moving it to spot it should be safer.  I love when some fascinating aspect of nature catches my eye.  It feels so good to stop whatever I am doing and marvel at the beauty and diversity of life.  Seeing this colorful creature lifted my spirits and made me smile!

I’m also finding great inspiration from Rosa Parks, a truly remarkable person.

Water!  Until a few weeks ago, I did not have a water source here at the cabin.  For 2 years I obtained my water from a neighborhood well a half mile away, hauling it home in 7 gallon jugs which weighed about 50 lbs.  This kept me in good shape!  I usually filled 5 of these jugs at a time, and that 35 gallons would last me a surprisingly long while.  I had set up an improvised dishwashing station set up outside which involved my squatting (or sitting on a milk crate for longer sessions) atop a platform of paving stones in front of one of the jugs set up on its side in front of me, with dishpans below for washing and rinsing.  I would also fill one gallon jugs from the big container to bring into the kitchen for drinking and cooking.  I used one bowl and one spoon for almost all my meals (or ate out of the pot), and found other ways to limit the number of dishes to wash.  During those 2 years I felt a deep sense of kinship with the countless other people who do now or once did go without the luxury of potable running water at their home, never taking the water for granted, and never using more than necessary.  As inconvenient as it was, it was a really valuable experience for me.

When I received my lumpsum for my disability backpay, I decided to invest in a well for the cabin.  The actual well and plumbing installation has been a very interesting process, which I might describe another time.  But, the crux of it is that I now have an officially functional actual kitchen sink with RUNNING WATER, inside the cabin no less!  I have a 2 gallon water heater inside the cupboard under the sink, which means I even HOT running water!  This is tremendously exciting for me.  As much as I benefited from experiencing 2 years without, I am enjoying more than I ever would have before the LUXURY of it all!  Initially I kept catching myself going outside to wash my hands and brush my teeth, and still using only 1 bowl and 1 spoon for all my meals, not yet accustomed to this lifestyle change, but as time goes on I’m adapting quite well!  I got quite discouraged when the initial well water test revealed contamination from coliforms, and it took a week before I felt up to dealing with it.  But, I did finally, and today the well person came and added a bunch of chlorine tablets for the requisite disinfection stage.  Hopefully after this stage (and the subsequent water testing), I will even have POTABLE hot and cold running water in here!  Maybe one day I’ll even build a bathroom and have an indoor shower and tub, the ultimate in luxury living!!   

Well, waiting on a front brake job occupied the bulk of the day today, as my favorite mechanic happens to be in the big (relatively speaking) city which is an hour away.  I brought some reading material but wasn’t able to concentrate with all the comings and goings and bustling activity.  I did though watch tv for a bit which I don’t do at home, and enjoyed the grace and skill of a high level soccer game and when that ended changed the channel.  I found myself laughing out loud several times at America’s Funniest Videos.  That felt really good, to laugh like that, I don’t experience that enough!  Even so, I found being there very draining and was eager to get back to the peace of the woods here.  Eek!  I just remembered I have to go feed my neighbors’ animals and tuck their chickens in for the night!  Off I go, cluck cluck for now!

Okay, so one more thing…  May was making such a ruckus out there that I went out with my flashlight, and sure enough, there was an armadillo rooting around!  They strike me as such funny creatures.  They are not very graceful, and often sort of crash around the underbrush, and seeing those shielding plates shift on one another as they move is just wild.  They really do look like armored tanks!  And they are so bulky in the middle but narrow greatly at each end, the long tail and the long face with the adorable ears, small eyes, and pink nose, and their legs hardly show at all.  Their eyesight is somewhat lacking and they often bump into things, especially in the dark.  I managed to photograph this one just now:

Okay, now I really am done for the night!

Beautiful beautiful day here today, sunny and it must have reached 70 at least!  I went in to the city today for my weekly DBT group where we discussed interpersonal effectiveness.  I find that group helpful, and I enjoy seeing the same faces there each week.  When I got back home I used my handsaw to cut up some of the firewood I’d gathered yesterday, enjoying the balmy weather.  I really enjoy it when we have warm spells in between cold snaps here.  Little Abie (the cat) is in his usual spot curled up on my lap as I type this.  May (the dog) is patrolling outside the armadillos and possoms that frequently forage out there in the evenings.  All for now, I’m worn out! 

Voted this morning.  Dismayed once again to note the right-wing dominance in this region, and the number of candidates (and voters!) who are anti-choice and anti-gay.  I forget this from time to time because the circles I travel in here are unusually liberal or open minded, including both locals and transplants.  This keeps me hopeful that greater acceptance and tolerance might continue to spread.

While I was in town after voting I stopped by the wonderful used book store that opened in this little town last year.  I’m glad I did, because I got the good news that two of my photographs on display there had sold!  I’m very pleased too that the bookstore seems to be flourishing.  I spent a good couple hours browsing and found some interesting books to add to my collection.

I heat my cabin with a woodstove, and this afternoon I spent collecting firewood from the woods nearby and carrying it back home a bit at a time.  I am now sore and satisfied.  There is something so primal to me about gathering firewood.  I find it to be both meditative and soothing.

I went for a walk down the trail from my cabin today, and saw a brilliant orange spider that was totally stunning.  It was on the dark brown trunk of an oak tree and really stood out.  I ran back for my camera, but alas, it had moved on by the time I returned!  I did a search on the net and found a picture of one:

This is Photo#8396 from http://bugguide.net/node/view/8396/bgpage of a Marbled Orb Weaver (Araneus marmoreus).  Apparently they are not uncommon, but I’d never spotted one before.  If it hadn’t had the dark tree trunk for contrast I might have missed it amidst all the orange, tan, and brown leaves covering the forest floor.

I had a nice dinner with my neighbors tonight.  They are eccentric people and I always learn something when I am with them, about all sorts of things, including bee keeping, coal mining, historical politics, antiques, wicca and paganism, nuns, pottery, glass, ironworking, cold remedies, inventions, etc.

This morning I noticed my dog May, normally one to race in and out of her dog door quickly (if not at top speed) with her prized rawhide bone firmly in her mouth, had instead come to a complete stop – nose pressing in on the flexible door flap, but not pushing through.  Stranger still, her rawhide bone had fallen from her mouth onto the floor inside the door, which would normally be cause for scrambling to pick it back up lest that wily cat Abie finally try to steal it from her, yet she wasn’t trying to pick it back up.  In fact, she looked completely perplexed and at a loss for what to do! 

I went over to take a closer look and discovered that a Walkingstick was straddling the few inches from the bone to the door, and May couldn’t decide how to handle this novel situation!  On her behalf, I must admit that walkingsticks can be rather startling to discover.  They are remarkably well camoflaged and truly appear to be a stick, but can then start walking on its spindly legs with surprisingly strongly gripping feet.  I have myself found them slightly difficult to remove when they have found their way on to my shirt from a tree, and unlike May I have the advantage of hands.  So, I bent down and carefully removed the probably equally perplexed Walkingstick back to its natural habitat outside.  May  appeared immensly relieved and promptly pushed the rest of the way through the door into the house,  quickly reclaiming her abandoned bone, and carrying it back to her bed for safekeeping from further tresspass! 

If you might be interested in a nice article about Walkingsticks, check out :  http://www.desertmuseum.org/books/nhsd_walkingstick.html

Just learned about xanga, will see how it works!