Riding the Pooka

Cancer: tightrope, time bomb, or agent of freedom?

There is a tightrope walked by folks after a cancering diagnosis. On one end of the rope is the diagnosis, on the other is death. A diagnosis changes your perception of how long that rope might be. Whereas prior to diagnosis most folks imagine themselves living to a ripe old age while dandling smiling great grand babies on…

Red Tent Project

This is a page about a project I have been working on in my studio to celebrate the divine feminine in my life. Here is a story of the Maiden, Mother and Crone I once entered a dark realm where I looked death in the face. I was stripped of everything that I thought made…

Chemo Brain and Object Permanence

Long time no post people. I am still here, and theoretically not cancering. Part One is about Chemo Brain, and Part Two is an update of sorts… Part 1 : Chemical Brain Remodeling So, the Brain, what is up with the brain? If I know anything it is that the cancering treatment experience resulted in…

Ten tips to free yourself of the Clutter Catch 22

Sometimes it feels like forces in this world are actively working against inner peace and joy. Our modern world inflicts too much chaos and overwhelm upon us. Let’s face it our lives are inundated with mayhem not of our own making, which may lead to us creating mayhem of our own making. Of the modern afflictions…

Tornadoes and other Motivations

Growing up there were tornados, and there was the Cold War. Constant threat of catastrophic death in one form or another. I lived in a sleepy farming community and did not fear random acts of violence – unless you consider farm accidents, single car crashes and hunting fatalities as random acts of violence. Once during…

First Love Yourself

“And what do I risk to tell you this, which is all I know? Love yourself. Then forget it. Then, love the world.” Mary Oliver Joe keeps coming back to the quote from Mary Oliver from the poem, To Begin With, the Sweet Grass, that is really resonating with him right now. “And what do I…

Neuropathy: the numbing down of cancering folk.

Neuropathy is a side effect of many cancering drugs. It can have long lasting, and even permanent impact. Balancing effectiveness with neurotoxic side effects is the job of the oncologist. I for one would not want to be in the driver’s seat for that one. Especially with a rubric where weight and age are the…

A.C.K. Goes to Kamp!

Yup. I’m going to Kamp! I mean camp. I leave Saturday for five days to Whidbey Island in the Puget Sound. I am taking a class about natural dyes and botanical printing on cloth from Israeli artist Iris Dulman. Last week at this time I knew nothing of my impending departure. Last Wednesday on a…

Letting down my guard.

Which wolf do you want to feed? Fear, hate and loathing on one side, compassion and joy on the other. Which wolf do you want to be stronger? What you feed grows stronger. These days my focus in life is shifting – I am looking for ways to feed the loving wolf. It could be…

Invaders! Scotch Broom & Hadrian’s Wall

Originally posted on Dream Bird Studio:
Scotch Broom along the Columbia Some plants get a bad rap. For instance, Scotch Broom, Cytisus scoparius, has a terrible reputation in these parts. There is an ongoing concerted effort to rid the wild spaces of the Northwest of it, including in my neighborhood. But I have to say I…

Cha-Cha-Cha Changes

Have you ever come across a missive from an earlier version of yourself? A note or writing or creative project long forgotten that upon discovery doesn’t inspire any rekindling of memory? It seems like a small miracle- finding such a small snippet. As if the younger smarter me had it all figured out, and left…

Eating well in the age of cancer.

“One cannot think well, love well, sleep well, if one has not dined well.” -Virginia Woolf At this very moment, mothers the world over are asking their children these questions. “What did you have for breakfast?” and “What have you eaten today?” Food intimately links us to life. The first action of a baby after being born…