Now that I've finally finished with the craziness that was my first semester of graduate school, I've got a little time to feel festive. Love this beautiful wreath from the British store, Cox & Cox. Via dress design decor and {frolic!}.

Green Rooms

I don't know about you, but my life has been moving at 500milesperhour these days. Must get to sleep early. And stop drinking so much coffee. And exercise. And eat right and get all my work done and be a nice person. You see what I mean? So for tonight, I'm going to fall asleep imagining that I'm lollygagging around in one of these lush gardens designed by Deborah Nevins. If you want to see more of her work, be sure to check out a feature in the latest Vogue.

Shades of Green

Here are some pics from the quickie backpacking trip in the Santa Cruz Mountains. that I did this weekend. The redwood forest was a gorgeous and I was surprised by just how lush the vegetation is. And completely mesmerized by the variations of green. Yay for nature and fresh air.

I used to live here

I used to live here. And I used to drive to work everyday and look at that. Sometime I miss it so much it hurts, but it sure does help to look at Shaun Horne's beautiful plein air oil paintings.

Whoa.

The universe is truly amazing. And any time I forgot that I'm going to keep looking at this photography. Get lost in it, and have a wonderful weekend everyone! {via A Cup of Jo and Unruly Things}

Night and Day

wild poppies

There are wild poppies that grow outside my front door. They make me smile each and every time I leave the house. Everything is just beautiful around here right now. So green and bright, the trees are full and heavy with buoyant limbs that bounce in the breeze. The windows are wide open, and even long after the sun has set and it is dark. I love summer darkness. It's mysterious and ripe. I like to listen to Coleman Hawkins' sexy smooth sax and close my eyes. It amazes me, as though I've never seen this not quite spring not quite summer before. Damn, Colorado, why you gotta be putting on the charm, right before I leave you? I can feel my heart tearing a little.

The Elephant in the Room

Elephant Drinking, Amboseli, 2007 by Nick Brandt

Did any of you catch the feature on the David Sheldrick Wildlife Trust on 60 Minutes last night? I have long been interested in this amazing elephant orphanage, and it visiting it is high on my list of things to do in this lifetime. Elephants are the most incredible creatures -- and my favorite animal. They are highly emotional, loving and friendly and never loose their memory, so much so that a baby elephant who has witnessed the murder of his mother is in jeopardy of dying from grief. It shocks and saddens me that elephants are still being killed for their ivory. To donate to the trust click here. Click on the 60 Minutes link above to watch the 10 minute long piece. My favorite part is seeing the elephants playing their favorite game: soccer!

Ode to the New

photo

I'm not quite sure why it comes as such a discovery, but I'm just realizing how much I love Spring. Maybe it's because I've spent much of my twenties in places where spring doesn't really exist. Up in the mountains spring is raw and wet and wild, which usually means that it snows and snows and snows until June. But down here in the foothills, spring is showing its glorious self. And it's all about rebirth. The mornings are cool and quiet, except for the birds happily rejoicing in the sunshine. The earth smells fragrant, as if all the fresh air in the world had just been recycled into something sweet. Overnight, a million different shades of green have revealed themselves. It's brilliant, and it makes me very, very happy.

Andy Goldsworthy and Impermanence

photos

Because it's Earth Day, I wanted to write about the brilliance of Scottish sculptor and photographer, Andy Goldsworthy. He is one of my favorite artists of all time. He uses all natural objects to create delicate sculptures of incredible beauty. But, as with all things beautiful they do not last; either the tides, the winds, the rain or the snow will destroy them. What faith it must take to spend so much time creating something whose ephemeralness and transience cannot be denied. Many traditional Japanese artists have believed that it is the very idea of an object's impermanence is that which makes something beautiful.

Equinox

Saw these photos of dutch tulips on Oh Happy Day and couldn't resist posting them. So amazing! They look like French striped fabric.

palm trees make me happy

a dog day afternoon

It feels like spring or summer around here these days. Today it was in the high 60s! This afternoon I went and got an ice cream cone and then headed to the park.

poem of the day--(it's about snow)

It sifts from leaden sieves, It powders all the wood, It fills with alabaster wool The wrinkles of the road. It makes an even face Of mountain and of plain, -- Unbroken forehead from the east Unto the east again. It reaches to the fence, It wraps it, rail by rail, Till it is lost in fleeces; It flings a crystal veil On stump and stack and stem, -- The summer's empty room, Acres of seams where harvests were, Recordless, but for them. It ruffles wrists of posts, As ankles of a queen, -- Then stills its artisans like ghosts, Denying they have been. Emily Dickenson

the ocean

a brown winter

seaweed, goleta beach

global warming in the house

photo from here

I'm a little confused. Do I live in L.A. or Colorado? Colorado or L.A.? The weather is downright schizophrenic. It's been so hot here the past few days. I'm talking HOT. My car read 76 degrees yesterday afternoon. This morning at 8 am it was 58 degrees. On my run yesterday I saw some green grass growing. But last Thursday it snowed. I'm confused...

guess what?

It snowed last night!!! Yippee!

photo from Creativity + Timothy K. Hamilton

let it snow let it snow!

The skies are heavy and gray today. A. and I spent all weekend raking the leaves that have piled into every nook and cranny of our yard. We raked them into piles and bagged them, and then drove them to the community garden fifty feet down the road and dumped our bags into an enormous pile that will be used as compost. Today I woke up and wished for snow. Our yard is ready, our plants are ready, our trees are ready. I'm ready for the quiet and white and for hot chocolate and for skiing. You see, when you live in the mountains, you like cold weather and you want it to snow.

photo by noah wilson

last few moments of light

blowin' in the wind

photo from sandra

photo from simple lovely

Last night I was woken up by the chinook winds. A. is out of town so I'm by myself and the rattling and roaring kind of startled me. When I woke up today the leaves on two of my neighbors' trees were on the ground instead of glowing on the branches like they were yesterday. Is it just me or is fall going by way too fast?

the garden of earthly delights

Was just catching up on some reading and I wanted to share these gorgeous pictures from the New York Times T Magazine. They were shot in Olympic National Park in Washington and I love how ethereal they are. Will have to check the park out for myself some day. Probably not wearing such beautiful clothes, though. That's too bad.