What I need

Sometimes I feel like this! (see picture of frolicking dog below) So I put on my New Balance shoes and sunscreen and head to the tracks with Miss Roxi, who has infinite energy. I like to walk the railroad tracks near my house because the swath of land cut through the city looks like the country. You can fool yourself. I even see BIG deer tracks out there.
The point is, being away from houses, asphalt, sidewalks, people and cars feels totally different. I have to have my outside time, preferably in the country, or somewhere I can fool myself into imagining I'm in the country. Something about urbanity drains me, just sucks my essence right out, like the Skeksis did to the Gelflings in The Dark Crystal. I've been that way since I can remember, but now that I have MS it is much more pronounced.
I have to have my weekly Farm therapy at my Dad's place, and this time of year is just great because I can go tubing in the pond, my most favorite activity. Riding horses would be first If we had some young ride-able steeds. But since Sugar is so old and Whiskey is old and yet still a huge pain in the ass to try to ride I will have to wait for that particular therapy.
So as I was saying, I get out on the tracks with my dog and feel like this:

I go and go, full steam ahead or pacing myself. I like to lengthen my stride sometimes so that I step on every other rail road tie, it works different muscles and stretches my legs out at the same time. I think about how far I will go today! I imagine walking all the way to downtown, all the way to where the spider web of tracks really begins to come together. But by the time I'm behind Home Depot I know I should turn back. If I run out of steam far away from home it will be depressing drudgery getting back, so I go ahead and turn around. And the truth is I always feel defeated doing this. But it's what I have to do and by the time I get home I am exhausted. And every time I'm surprised! Every time I wonder if I'm just being a wuss, if knowing I have MS gives me some sort of excuse in the back of my mind and sets me up for giving in,
being weak,
quitting.
I intend to live away from the city, out in the country, where a sight such as this is a stone's throw behind my house, or trailer, or shanty, whichever.
I imagine what it would be like, what it will be like to wake up in the morning, get on my horse and take off with nothing but a canteen...(and maybe an mp3 player). The awesome thing about riding horses is you can go really far and when you're worn out you just let the horse walk you home. If you're too tired to haul ass over the hills and through the woods anymore that's fine, you just meander home at a leisurely pace. But don't get me wrong, bareback riding is exercise. Hop on and ride around for 15 minutes and tell me you didn't discover muscles you didn't know you had. The next day you will be feeling it.
I ask myself how I'm gonna make this happen? How is it that I am 33 and living a horseless life in the city? Never mind, I have to focus on what I will have:
a residence in the country, chickens, my dog, some cats, some tomato plants, cedar trees, gravel driveway, pond lake or creek (or all 3) and two horses. And if I'm gonna dream I may as well throw in a pier on the pond to hold the cooler of beer and some snacks, and a jambox or whatever they're called these days, and a zip line or rope swing over the water. Paradise!
This is my deepest desire,
my most extravagant dream,
my most basic necessity.
And my future reality.
I have my priorities straight.

Sneak Peek

I had a great weekend, swimming at the farm, going to a b-day party, and hangin' out with Mr. Jason.
Before that though, here is a look at a bat necklace I finished today and some rings in the final stages of being done.
Here's the bat!
I cut the bat out of antiqued silver plated copper, it has a beautiful stamped floral pattern. The ridges are worn down to the copper which gives the pattern a lovely contrast.
I am playing around with fine coated stainless cord and crimp tubes instead of chain. I like adding new materials to the mix. Also the wire is wonderful to use with beads. I used bright pumpkin orange semi precious beads with black glass beads and a black Swarovski bicone bead on a chain at the bottom.
It's never too soon to get your Halloween ON!

The rings are vintage button jb welded to old button covers upside down, turning them into poison rings! The one on the left has a vintage rhinestone in the center and the one on the right has a black skull in the middle of a gold tone rope bezel. The black skull awaits two vintage rhinestones for eyes! When I finish them I'll have better pictures.

So back to Mr. Jason; he came over to use my tools so he could make these bears. They will be pendants on necklaces; man jewelry!

Here he is showing off his creations.
After that we went to our new favorite Mexican restaurant Coco Lime. It's a yuppy/cool kid place but it's yummy. And they have a $2.50 margarita night, I need to get in on that.

It's getting awfully close to my bed time but be cool my babies,
The Halloweenstress will be back soon!

Testing, testing, 1 2 3

Oh joyous day!

I figured out how to

get my old template back!!!

If you go under Settings>Formatting>Enabling Float Alignment>NO!
And viola!

I am having a Hell of a time with this blog template these days... The pictures upload in crazy disarray and I keep running into html problems, so bear with me!

I can't figure out how to type between the next pictures, so just imagine it's all lined up in a neat little row, which is how I like it. Grr!!
Dad was at the big gun show this weekend and Bran was at home with sick kids so Roxi & I had the Farm all to ourselves. I swam and tubed, walked around taking pictures (and maybe getting a touch of poison ivy) and got back in the water. It was a gorgeous day.The honey suckle is going strong, it's my favorite summer time flower. The Springhouse is looking festive in all it's dilapidated glory, beer cans scattered across the front porch. The water is still clear and gorgeous and when Roxi makes laps around me she churns up COLD water, it's Heaven.
I harvested some brass from around the shooting bench down at the range. "I got me a idea can't nobody touch" about a shell necklace...I will keep you posted with pics as that develops!
I am going to try to figure out this html situation...wish me luck!

Trancendantday a.k.a.Tuesday

It is a beautiful, cool, rainy Tuesday here on Commonwealth Ave. This is the view from my workbench. I keep the windows open for as long throughout the year as possible and today all I hear is the hypnotic sound of spring rain dripping to the ground, patting all the leaves on its way down. It is trance inducing.

To make matters trancier I'm listening to The Deftones new album Diamond Eyes. A few tracks are very dreamy and beautifully narrate my day in this dimension of rainy, sleepy, ethereal, eternal relaxing.
Days like these are a gift from the Weather Gods, meant to force one to be still, chill, snuggle, enjoy; a pause from the repetitious shuffling to and fro that makes up so many days.
Today I am living in the present moment...
            ...which is divine.

Cinco De Mayo

I don't know what is up with this template, but excuse the mixed up placement of the pictures for now...

So confusing!!!
Anyhow above is what I made for Cinco De Mayo dinner; brown & jasmine rice, avocado slices, tomato slices and sauteed chicken breast with lemon juice & paprika, oh and a random Mexican beer someone left in my fridge. Yum! I am totally exhausted and didn't want to cook but it was worth it.
I've been pickin' away at rearranging things for more work space in the house. The back room is now an official studio. I got this spectacular 1940s office desk to use as a workbench last weekend for twenty bucks! It was made in High Point NC and they did some fine work. It is all hardwood construction with beautiful brass plated bin pulls on the drawer and gorgeous walnut veneer. It's in fantastic shape too, I just need to remove all the packing tape gunk from the front and maybe do a wipe on varnish on the top.
It is getting hot here in NC and I am enjoying it before it gets unbearable. I have windows and doors open and fans ON.
They honey suckle is in bloom all over the place and everything is beautiful and green. We are at the end of spring, summer will come rolling in with its sweltering heat, swimming pools and ponds, sunburns, beer drinkin' on the porch, grilling, and air conditioning rattling good times.
I love the changing seasons, so glad I live where I get to experience all four!

Recovery

I am still recovering from an unusually hectic couple of weeks.

The number one best way for me to unwind and recharge is in the pond at the Farm where I spent every weekend as a kid. It's my Dad's place and it is Holy ground for all of us at "Those Sorry Old Pearson's" as we always fancied ourselves.

Here is Ellie disembarking after four hours of swimming and floating and goofing off in an exceptionally clear, cold and clean pond. Back when I was growing up it was an extremely clean and pristine pond where we swam, fished, netted, and took the horses swimming. Then there was a LONG period of about fifteen years when the entire ecosystem changed and it was covered in duck weed. There were other changes too.

The big bass that were once plentiful (as is evidenced by all the taxidermied 10 punders on the walls in the house) seemed to disappear along with the arrival of a thriving otter & beaver population. If we'd had those animals as kids we would have undoubtedly raised a few "orphaned" otter and beaver babies.
Sadly one of the biggest losses yet to recover is the near total disappearance of the once abundant bullfrogs, leopard frogs and tree frogs. These days you can still find tree frogs, although not as many. I'm still mourning the loss of the proud bullfrog. I Believe they will make a comeback, if memory serves me I have seen their tadpoles earlier in the spring.
Now after some trees being cut at the edge, and colder winters due to climate change the pond is making a big comeback! Last summer was the first year we could swim in it in about 15 years, and this year there is still as yet no sign of duckweed this late in the spring, a great sign!!!
I took Ellie & Danny out there Sunday while Bran & Jim were coming home from PA and the Halloween convention. Cassie had spent the whole weekend at the Farm with Dooda and I'm proud to say she is a master of all farm activities! We were all in the pond including Vanessa & Flossie who drove out to swim. Flossie and Roxi are dog best friends and they were both in the water nearly the entire time. 
A good time was had by all! There's so much more to write, but I'm just plum tuckered and I'll have to save it for next time.
Soon...
In the mean time I'm counting the days to the next Big Pond swim day!