Poems

Good writing is like balm to my soul. So is a good plum.

To a Poor Old Woman
by William Carlos Williams

munching a plum on
the street a paper bag 

of them in her hand 

They taste good to her 

They taste good   

to her. They taste 

good to her 

You can see it by 

the way she gives herself 

to the one half 

sucked out in her hand 

Comforted
a solace of ripe plums 

seeming to fill the air 

They taste good to her

A Strange New Cottage in Berkley

by Allen Ginsberg

     All afternoon cutting bramble blackberries off a tottering brown
fence
     under a low branch with its rotten old apricots miscellaneous under
the leaves,
     fixing the drip in the intricate gut machinery of a new toilet;
     found a good coffeepot in the vines by the porch, rolled a big tire out
of the scarlet bushes, hid my marijuana;
     wet the flowers, playing the sunlit water each to each, returning for 
godly extra drops for the stringbeans and daisies;
     three times walked round the grass and sighed absently:
     my reward, when the garden fed me its plums from the form of a
small tree in the corner,
     an angel thoughtful of my stomach, and my dry and lovelorn tongue.

More Projects...

I don't think I would realize how many projects I'm trying to simultaneously work if it wasn't for this blog! This weekend I took on two more projects, and so far they have been the most fulfilling to date.

First, on Saturday my mom and I attended a Hmong needlework project class offered through the library. As part of the four week class, Hmong women teach community members (half Hmong women and half white women) the principles and techniques of traditional Hmong cross-stitch. Each member of the class will complete two cross stitch blocks, one of which will be sewn onto a pillow for the person to take home, and the other will be sewn into a quilt that will be hung in the library. Incredibly awesome, right?

The women leading and participating are, of course, all so kind and sweet and fun. I completely loved every minute of sitting there, learning about Hmong culture and also how to cross-stitch, chatting with the other ladies, being part of something that is truly bridging culture and creating community. It's like a dream. And it makes me want to be part of something like this ongoing. I could even see myself leading a community embroidery/quilting group like this some day -- to create public art made by the community. Needless to say, I am so inspired and have been working diligently on my first square!

The second big project of the weekend was our raised bed. We decided on a 5' x 3' garden and used 12" x 2" cedar planks to construct it. The weather was gorgeous, the cedar smelled amazing and overall, thanks to the help of my father-in-law, it only took a few hours to get the supplies, build it, and fill it with soil. In a few months it will (hopefully) contain tomatoes, lettuce, arugula, spinach, scallions and herbs.

Project Post

Here is a photo list of recent and current projects...

my first "flying geese" attempt - love the look of it

Ongoing flower embroidery

flannel "split rail" quilt for SB's uncle 

growing seeds indoors (green onions, garlic chives, parsley, and lettuce);
we will be building a raised bed for our backyard in the next few weeks!

loving spring -- sunshine, a good book and a beer

FREE

It is Friday and I am taking Monday and Tuesday off next week while SB is on spring break. And my last meeting this afternoon will end just before my usual workday, at a tea shop no less. In short, it is going to be a good day.

This song by Cat Power is fitting my mood this morning:

Also, have you been reading LENNY? I am a fan of the new feminist publication/website from Lena Dunham.