After days of torrential rain and strong wind and even a little glorious thunder the sun is shining again and the clothes on the line are finally getting a chance to dry. The plants got a good soaking and are taking in the rays and I am sitting in the back yard taking it all in. The colors are vivid, the birds are singing and it is still, still, still - after all that drama, it feels very still. It did me a world of good.
I loved those rainy days … cozy and exciting and satisfying … good days for sewing and housekeeping and watching movies and eating mashed potatoes with garlic … lingering over strong cups of coffee and lazing around with my guy.
The beach was beautiful during the storm, wild and rough and windy. The dogs raced on the rainy beach and dug for crabs and we all came home soaked to the bone, happy.
Of course all that rain and wind left a mess … bougainvillea carpet the patio, soggy hibiscus litter the ground and leaves are everywhere … everywhere. It is a beautiful mess, to be sure, but a mess all the same.
During the rain I dealt with another mess - my studio - I cleaned and organized and rearranged. Now I know where everything is … Tossed a jumbo sized trash bag filled with things I had been stuffing on shelves all season … Looked at fabric I had forgotten I had and made two new bags that I love. The rain energized me. I feel refreshed and brimming with ideas.
Thank you rain!!
so it’s been hard … to connect, to post, to stay in touch, to watch, to listen, to write … via the computer that is. And, here from Mexico it is how I do so much - talk with my kids, my family, write, stay in contact with so many people and things I enjoy. It is amazing, really, how much I depend on this thing! And, I lost everything when my hard drive died the big death - EVERY phone number and email and street address (send me yours, I have nothing!), all my music and a couple of movies I was looking forward to … sigh … BUT, I am back and here typing on my sweet new ibook and it feels so good.
A very special thank you to Mary Jordan for hosting a wonderful gathering here in Puerto Morelos! Mary opened her lovely home for my Trunk Show … Tasty things to eat, a fantastic group of people and a showcase for my work. Thanks to everyone who came and bought and visited and for all your support and kind words! It was so much fun! I have to admit to being nervous the night before … sewing last minute yoga mat bags and going over everything with my scissors looking for those pesky little wisps of thread that I might have missed …
Congratulations to Kelly and Don who won the door prizes … Kelly got the tee shirt and Don a shoulder to shoulder baseball cap - I will be delivering them tomorrow!
I found out that the Frieda fabric was a favorite and look forward to seeing those of you who will be stopping by to look at my fabric and placing orders for that special bag or apron that I will be making for you before you leave! Fun!!
Here in Puerto Morelos, as in many places in Mexico, there are a lot of street dogs, beach dogs … dogs that have lived on their own most or all of their lives. They are usually savvy, sometimes very dear, sometimes scared and often hungry … Every now and then a dog will choose someone to attach themselves to. Here, it seems, the dogs adopt the person, rather than the other way around. All this to say that we have been adopted and it is official and this is our dog, Sweetie. We love her and Buddy thinks she is okay, too.
My sewing machine has been broken - or something … out of whack - Maybe it’s the humidity here in Mexico and the salt in the air that lands on everything, everyday … salt and sand that is blown constantly in my direction from the sea. Hard on things like sewing machines and computers and printers and fruit trees. The fruit trees I spray every day or so with water, giving them a shower of fresh water and letting them breath, but the sewing machine is another story. After the frustration of dealing with it’s crazy behavior, and ruining more fabric than I want to mention, I took the thing apart and cleaned it out, reset everything and now I think - hope- I’m good to go. I am brimming with ideas and plans … yoga mat bags, kids aprons, a new bag made with this absolutely awesome fabric I bought from Purl Soho … echino oilcloth … so much fun.
Holbox with Anne and Dennis
My lime tree is budding … beautiful little white flowers that are the sign of tart sweet limes to come … the first from this small tree.
The way the jasmine flowers smell at night.
Dogs that come visiting.
Making paper beads.
The way the birds sound in the morning, right outside my window in the top of the Coco Palm, and the surf in the distance.
Lying on the roof at night, taking in the show of stars and moon, and listening to the surf in the distance a dull roar behind the special noise that the geckos make at night, and thinking nothing at all except for how lucky I am.
Friends stopping by.
Family Day … Sundays … cochineta from the man down the street if you get up early enough … reading a good book on the beach and watching Frederick fish and throw the ball for Buddy … a nap in the afternoon … locking the gate and turning off the cell phone … Seeing all the families on the beach with their tables and mountains of good food and kids and grandmothers and dogs and lots of laughter. Popcorn and an episode of Madmen before bedtime.
Sewing aprons with wildly beautiful fabric.
Getting my hands dirty in the garden and believing that talking to the plants really does make them happy and fruitful.
My children’s voices on the other end of the line.
Dreaming. Organizing. Smiling. Tasting.
Taking it all in.
Our Christmas dinner … outside under the palapa!
