And we meet again…

It has almost been a full year, dangerously close to the annual measuring up date otherwise known as your birthday…So I find that when that date nears I tend to suddenly want to do everything I ever wanted to accomplish Right Now!!! Or attempt to, I have changed jobs recently & being closer to home is delightful. I get to go to yoga 2-5 times a week which is just the activity that fulfills clearing my mind as well as providing me with exercise, stretching, & a boost to my immunity system. I love yoga especially since I dislike the gym. Its amazing how as the birthday pass the steep benefits of exercise & wellness become so clear.
         I am doing my best to be aware of where my food comes from & even more aware of how that information can change my life and the lives of those around me. My partner & I would like to have at least one child & we want to be smart about all that that tremendous opportunity & responsibility brings us and how our choices impact all of us.

Until next time

Farm Tour

The farm tour is this Saturday….can only hope to create a beautiful garden like this one in the first two images one day that my Father-in-Law has worked tirelessly for decades. We always are so impressed he seems to have an uncanny ability to grow anything.

Netherland Art Exchange Pure Joy!

<img src="https://stephanielagravinese.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/

So delightful to share in the wonderful world of Instagram and the people that we meet through this social media site. I never thought I would meet so many wonderful people willing to share so much of themselves it has really been a pleasure. I am always surprised by how wonderful the community continues to be as it opens so many doors. The lovely talented Giova Brusatin from the Netherlands has a delightful blog called one bunting away you should definitely check it out! Giova makes a variety of handmade gifts and beautiful things and shares them with the world. Thank you so much Giova for sending me such a wonderful thoughtful packet.

Farm Blues

So far my “How to be a farmer” research has concluded that I will also have to be a Vet to cure all animals ills, a Nurse to cure us (from thinking we’re crazy enough to do this, a Meteorologist to predict growth of crops & animals, a Mechanic to fix all farm equipment & cars, a Bookkeeper to keep tabs on all of this, a handy-woman to fix all that breaks, & perhaps a Psychic to see that I might make it through. Well I’m exhausted and all I did was type what I’ve so far learned. Definitely hard work, not for the wreary, lazy, or ill-equipped. We shall see what our next lesson brings.

Blogging

I stumbled upon a blog today pinkpistachio.com which was delightful. I think at times I end up comparing myself, but really everyone has their own stories, and different ways of telling them so I must get out of my own way! Pink Pistachio is a fantastic blog blog though it was love at first image. I think that when people share themselves they really give the world something important and that is enough.

              This morning I also stumbled upon The “Ship’s Hole” farm in Smithtown, NY on Long Island which offers farm tours. They are chemical free and raise sheep, pigs, chickens, and are self-sufficient. My Partner Lucy And I have always talked about the possibility of chucking it all for farm life. We’re unsure of where to start (hint) so if anyone has any ideas of input they’d like to share we’re game. We know it’d be difficult but as we watch the years go by in jobs that are just that jobs we wonder why we haven’t walked the plank & taken a risk that hopefully could leave us more fulfilled hard working people. 

Perhaps one day we’ll even have one of these! Tractor image taken in Sayville, NY Long Island. 

Grandmother’s Things Art Installation

The small glass bird to the lower right was a gift I had given my Grandmother one year for the holidays. She always kept it hanging in the window where she washed countless dishes while gazing out the window at the neighbors. Smile

Grandmother’s Things Art Installation

I know I said next post would be about Dad but I felt the need to post this. I have been finding myself thinking about my Grandparents a lot lately. This art installation for my sculpture class at Queens college was created a few years ago, but it was and still remains an important piece to me. Although difficult to store (which is a problem I believe many of us artists run into) I adore this piece. It took me much time & some stepping it up I think mentally & physically I had to push to complete it because it was so personal. The chair was something I had acquired at the garage sale that was beautiful but came to have a life when I transformed it to honor my Grandmother. Her name was Virginia (Ginny) Christiansen. She passed in 2003. On the wall is her muffin pan and a blue & white Currier and Ives plate. The rocking chair which has some Gothic design is painstakingly wrapped with shaded blue colored yarns for the back & lower seat areas. Her knitting bag is perched on the seat with some of her unfinished squares on either side. The knitting bag is opened & invites viewers to reach in and gently look through a small handmade photo album of images documenting her life in chronological order. Her rosary beads adorn the left arm of the chair while my Grandparents wedding photo sits silently on the chair back like an image on a wall. The were married during wartime WWII which is why the are dressed simply in dress clothes rather than typical wedding attire. There is also a small bag from the pain patches placed on my Grandmother skin when she was close to death & we thought she might be in pain but could not communicate it to us. She had cancer in the end…pancreatic

People who touch your lives

Grandparents:

My grandparents gave us so much that I find one or two words about them to be insufficient. They gave their support & time, things so valuable, no money could buy. By providing us all my parents, my Sister, and I with a foundation like that we became more capable than I believe we would have been otherwise. There is always more work to be done, but I feel that they were pillars of strength for us to lean against. My Mother….my Grandparents first born was born on October 4th,1949, at that time childbirth was safe, but still had it’s pitfalls. She was born with the umbilical cord wrapped around her neck, preventing oxygen to her brain for a time that resulted in brain damage, epilepsy, and cerebral palsy. She was capable of walking with braces and was educated a special school that somewhat adapted to the needs of a high functioning brain damaged children with physical limitations. Of course advancement in our schools has come a long way from teaching daily skills to those whom cannot attend regular schools or who can but in separate settings. From what I understand she did not graduate, but learned enough to function well enough on her own. My Father….at my next post….

Giving & Accepting

We can only give what we have….and at times that may not be much. We can choose to accept this or not. Our expectations can stand in the way of seeing this, but awareness can allow more growth for our paths to lead us further. Opportunities are all around us, if we can see & perhaps be able to seize them.