Worth the time

Last night was the auction finale for Makindu Children’s Center. As you might recall, I donated a hand made Gingko Leaf lamp. That little lamp stirred up quite a flurry of bidding, topping out at the second highest amount in the auction. The lamp went for over double the normal retail price! I was shocked and so happy that it could raise that sort of funding for those kids. I’m looking forward to mailing it once I receive the address!

The season has certainly shifted bringing a chill to the air! This morning we had a light dusting of frost on rooftops and railings, which probably means the garden was touched as well. Monday, the plumeria plants took a crazy journey up the hill and were deposited in the garage for the winter with supplemental heat (no greenhouse this year). I’ve spent several days dismantling both garden boxes: yielding 10 pounds of green tomatoes (to be turned into salsa), green beans, cukes and peppers which are now tucked into the refrigerator. Yesterday I cooked up another big batch of applesauce destined for the freezer and there’s still another 10+ pounds remaining!

Other things to note: the vultures have migrated south! I keep track of when I last see those big black birds knowing the clean-up crew won’t be back until late February. Moby killed another possum almost 2 weeks ago and we hoped it might entice a vulture to pick apart the remains. The cameras were aimed and ready! Unfortunately, the birds weren’t interested and only looked from above. They must not have needed extra calories. See you next year vultures!

An artist friend and member of the Calapooia Gallery started pushing for me to apply for membership. I’m impressed at her tenacity to keep prodding, since this has been ongoing for several years! It’s a beautiful space located in historic downtown Albany and super close to home. The current members are all very lovely people who create amazing work. However, I think they want me to submit the lighted creations and I’m kind of on the fence with that line. It takes me weeks, rather than days, to create a lamp. Psoriatic arthritis hasn’t been kind with my finger joints. Hence the reason I’ve been exploring other creative ideas like wool. Hopefully our paths will cross during the Saturday Market so we can have yet another talk. So much to think about. In the meantime, I have received a lamp commission. Time to pull out the paper again! I thought I was done with lamps and papercutting????

Thanks for reading to the end. My body is doing better this week for those who emailed and called. I stopped eating large amounts of tomatoes. Yes, tomatoes can increase inflammation. Kind of hard when one loves the flavor of a big summer tomatoes! The tomatoes are gone so life can become less puffy… maybe?

Have a good weekend everyone! Remember to wear those masks and wash you hands!