When someone comes to call in Alaska

There are two types of visitors that come to call in Alaska. The locals and then the out-of-staters... I will explain. Sunday we had both of those coming. The first one came just across from my house. We will call her Mrs Moose because being called a Cow doesn't sound as nice even if you are one... Junior was in the bushes not far from Mom but out of my lens allowance. Our neighborhood doesn't get Moose very often. Twice a year in the Spring and in the Fall they will migrate through but never too long.

The second one came in the form of 42 women from New Zealand. Half way around the World from us. The island of the Kiwi close to Australia. So when JoAnn Grueber sent the word out that they were coming through our neighborhood I was sure I was going to be there for welcoming them properly. They were on a cruise from Vancouver to Seward and on their way to Denali and Fairbanks. The usual tourist corridor. After getting lost in Eagle River for 45mn... the bus containing the precious quilters from on the side of down under finally parked in front of Dina's Cozy Cabin quilt shop and the fun began. Such a site to see the shop fill up with smiling happy ladies with gorgeous British accent marveling at the fabric, their prices, the books etc. There was a nice cake and refreshments for everyone. Our guild had made a nice appearance with about 20 of us. So nice. The editor of the New Zealand Quilters Magazine presented our Librarian with copies to add to our Library. We had a little show and tell. So overall it was a very well spent time. Quilting has no frontier.

Sometimes locals blend with out-of-towners...Tonight was "Wed. at Pat's". A gathering of artists at Pat Sims' house. An event that happens every six weeks year round. Always inspiring. You never know who will show up. We enjoy each other's company by sharing food, beverage and conversation, then, a Show and Tell. Tonight was no exception and we had some really tasty food. A blend of vegetarian dishes, homemade almond ice cream, rice pudding and mango sauce for dessert. Fran Reed was there as well as George Taylor who brought a friend visiting from Virginia, Stevii Graves, who had just helped juried quilts for the APNQ show in Seattle. See Jack Dalton fly. He presented his new Raven costume and brought a friend that collaborated on a political art presentation. Deb Hardmann was there showing her fun felted quilts. I had nothing to show and very little to tell. I have not worked since December. Toooooo long...! Anyway it was a very pleasant evening. Linda Weatherwax (what a fabulous name, especially when you do batik...) showed a wonderful reupholstered chair with her own batik fabric. George showed us his very extensive fast pace collection of work he has accumulated from a class he is taking from Gail Harker in Oak Harbor, WA. Nancy who is a weaver asked about ways to reach out to new venues for her yardage pieces that she is working on right now. Janie Smith showed us her new visor(Cincinatti Reds) that she covered with the traditional red, black and white colors of the Haida blankets. She is planning on wearing it to Juneau where a large concentration of Alaskan native communities are coming for a festival. She can wear it proudly.

It's back at home

I went to the Anchorage Museum to pick up "Outside With Francis Bacon" which had been traveling for a year with the "Earth, Fire, Fibre" exhibit. I was glad that it didn't sale like the other two ("Bee Charmer" and "Jean Dans la Lune") because it is part of a serie that I hope to show all together sometime, somewhere, where it is appropriate. Anyway here it is in all it's splendor...tee hee hee. I might as well show the others that accompany the number one... By the way it is not suppose to be pretty. It is a weird, shocking and crazy serie that makes a lot of raising of the eyebrow. I am proud of it though... There is a number four but is not finished. Then there will be a number 5 that is not even in the making yet. That is all for now!

This and That

After being back for a twelve days I was still looking for my bearings. Slowly, things got back to normal. I was catching up at home. Seeing my good friends. Making little dinners. Tass our Applique Society group in Eagle River invited the members of the Anchorage group to have a Cinqo de Mayo celebration and a Show and Tell. Lots of talent in both group. I went back to Yoga classes on Tuesday night. I even went on a hike around the Westchester's lagoon. Few events happened in Anchorage: First Friday with a show at Terra Bella of Kathy Harte's Quilts. Z Denise Gallup showing at the Laughing Lotus Yoga Studio. Then the All Alaska Juried Exhibition opened at the Museum as well as Michael Joo's exhibit. Then we had a Bead Show where I found little treasures and was introduced to Vintaj This company has reproduced vintage filigrees and has interesting ways to combine them with stones and beads. Very fun and exiting. What else... Oh the weather of course. It has been pretty nice. The proof is in the mosquitoes community... healthy and hungry... On the 7th my Dad would have turned 80 years old. The leaves are pocking out but not yet unfolding. I even had lunch outside one day on the Balcony. We went to our regular Brunch at the Captain Cook for Mother's Day and Paul and Emily called me.I have spent some time in my Studio putting things away. I have eaten fresh cherries, raspberries, strawberries as big as Popsicles. I got as a present two beautiful bouquets of Tulips. I went to the Women's Show in Eagle River and won a full bag of tools just for women. I enrolled in the Alaska Club. Today I got to have lunch with Lorraine and her son Collin. We had some fun times talking and laughing and then Collin fell asleep on my arm. That's happiness! So it might have taken me 12 days to get there but I am finally home.

Home is where it is cold....

Do I sound like I am complaining...? Well somewhat I am. Here it is May 2nd and we are still having some snow patch on the ground. We arrived two days ago. (Nancy's Birthday, Happy Birthday Nancy!!!) and it was nice to be in my bed. Getting my space back. I had a great and special time for six weeks with my wonderful family and the best of friends. Some marvelous memories and those are going to be highlights in my darkest days. So even though the temperatures are still under 50 degrees F. and I am far from putting any flowers in the planters it is nice to be home. I am ready to work!!!I do have to talk about our last hike in Sedona. It was such a good ending for my trip. We went back to Cathedral Trail. Curt needed to experience this. So we stopped and got some wine, cheese, fruit, bread... The essentials for a religious experience a top a magical mountain at .... Sunset!.
We were a bit concerned about getting down from the steep hill in the dark so we had to time it right. Just after the sun disappeared behind the mountain and the sky turned all pink we went down. We arrived at the bottom by the car when we were just in darkness with a gorgeous indigo sky with one single star showing us the way we had been. The sound of a frog saying goodbye for now was chanting in the background. The earth was still warm and sweet smelling and all was at peace. I will remember that.

Oak Creek Canyon

There is a little gem of a drive between Flagstaff and Sedona. It is Oak Creek Canyon. I just like the shady trees, the filtered light, the flat red rocks at the bottom with water running gently over them, the little tucked away chalets. Lovely! We went on a hike called "West Fork Trail". It follows a branch of the stream with rocks falling right into it. What you call a riparian walk (situated or taking place along or near the bank of a river)... Very easy mostly flat walk crisscrossing the river. Wonderful. The light enters this area like a spot light in this narrow canyon so the contrasts are pretty strong between shadows and light. Such a photographers delight. The sky and the red rocks reflecting in the pools ...The new growth on the trees. So bucolic, you would think that Thoreau and Emerson were walking along with you as you remember their writings and philosophy on nature. Those moments make you feel so alive and so much part of the whole picture. My daughter informed me that I am too much.... She might have a point, then again...

Lava Tube and Phoenix Art Museum

Yikes! I went in a Lava Tube two days ago. It was spooky! The entrance of the tube is in the middle of the Coconino Forest above Flagstaff. It is at elevation 8000 feet so pretty cold still this time of year. The mouth is encapsulated with shear ice over the rocks which make the descent into the tube a bit challenging. It is dark. You need a head lamp or a good flash light. You need good shoes and be fully clothes. It's about 40 degrees F. down in the warmer spot. I had enough space to stand up most of the time. I am 5 feet.... Most people would have to scoot down in parts. The ground is covered with fallen rocks from the roof of the cave. And so you are wondering.... How often are those falling? is it about to crush my skull any minute? the breathing is a bit uncomfortable because the dust generated by the dust. They have bats, porcupines, squirrels.... I was glad not to see any of them. When you turn of your light there it is darker than dark. You are wondering if you eyes are opened or closed? You would be incapable to go back in the dark to the opening. Are you scared yet? So we were in there for more than I would have liked but I didn't panic. I was glad I experienced it, I am glad I won't have to ever do that again....

Yesterday Emily and I headed to Phoenix early in the day. Curt was arriving around 9pm so we decided to do some "Exploring in the big city". It was about 95 degrees. Hot and Dry! We decided to have lunch in an Ethiopian Restaurant (Cafe Lalibela). Very nice food. The plate came covered with a crepe like bread that is called Enjera. The stews that they put on top (Vegetarian or meat lover ones) were called "Wat". You said what? Wat, that's what!...hahahahah Never mind... Emily had a herb iced tea. (Tasted like thyme herb tea and looked like lemon verbena) mine was a regular iced tea. You eat with your right hand using the Enjera to gather your food, folding it as you go. Very nice. I would do that again. The restaurant is in the ASU district in Tempe. Fun area full of students. We did some cruising around by foot at some point in the day.

Another thing we did for about two hours was to visit the Phoenix Art Museum. They had a special exhibit called: "Monet, Matisse and More". It was an interesting way of presenting well known pieces. They had selected twelve artists and showed repeated images of sketches of the same painting showing how the artist ended up with the final image. You had an audio system to lead you and lecturing you through. It was informative but not thorough and really superficial at times leaving some real key information out. There was two things that made the visit to the museum worth it. One was a Fashion Exhibit of Chado Ralph Ruci. A contemporary American Designer. His garments were exquisite. The quality of the design, materials, details, stitching. Waou! Because it was a traveling exhibit you were not allowed to photograph any of it... I didn't know! I was "told" by the guard that I had done a bad thing and should delete the images immediately and in front of him. Which I did of course and I apologized.

The other really incredible experience for me was: a Faith Ringgold's Quilt. I have been an admirer of Ms Ringgold forever. I own every book ever made on her or by her. I have studied her narrative quilts. I had never had seen one in person. That was such a thrill. I was not disappointed.

The rest of the Museum is alright. Great space, poor lighting of the artwork. They have a Frida Kahlo painting, a Diego Rivera, one Chagall. They were showing a special exhibit called "Passport to Europe: Six Century of treasures from Museo del Arte de Ponce" (Puerto Rico). Which had a serie of noteworthy Sleeping beauty paintings by Edward Coley Burne-Jones . Also a painting by British painter Rossetti and French Painter Gustave Moreau. Also I had been told that I was then allowed to photograph the artwork that belongs to the museum but not the on loan ones. Well when I was in the Philip Curtis Gallery that is a "permanent Collection Gallery" a guard appeared and "told" me that I had been watched and I had to make sure (which I was at that point, one humiliation is enough for me....) to photograph only the Museum's artwork.... I was not happy at all. Why are they not banning photography all together so there are no confusion whatsoever? That would make it simple for the visitor. I couldn't believe it. On top of it I was being careful about it. Anyway I won't go back to this Museum again. Things are becoming weirder and weirder with the copyright laws... etc. Also the Museum closes at 5pm... on a Saturday!!!

We then proceeded to the Desert Botanical Garden for a nice visit at sunset.... Well that was closing at 4pm that day for a special auction. I did captured a couple of pictures of a nice cactus and some willow installation by a outdoor artist Patrick Dougherty: Childhood Dreams. I was introduced to his work in Tacoma at the Museum of Glass where he had giant jugs outside near the pool. It was magical. I have been in love with his stuff since. There is so much talent around. I love to have those visceral moments when something is new and refreshing and beautiful or moving at the same time.

So here we are having some down time this morning. Emily is making me a "flan patissier" (she loves me!) and Curt is checking out the anchorage daily news online. We had a nice coffee this morning with a young cute french guy "Aurelien" from Paris (Always nice to see a "compatriote") friend of Brittney.

This afternoon we are heading for Sedona. Yeahhhhh! more red rocks.