The statistics on sanity are that one out of every four people is suffering from a mental illness.
Look at your three best friends. If they’re okay, then it’s you.
Rita Mae Brown
Tags: Quoting
And the hills are kitted out in their beautiful best. The mood changes with the whim of the wind and scudding clouds, leaving me to shiver or coo, hood up or eyes squinting at the the warmth of the sun. How lucky I am to be wandering this neck of the woods, to traipse loudly through ankle deep leaves, to hear the squawk and chirp and cry of every manner of bird, greeting me from on high, to know a bit more of the world.
And with fall comes the shift from the snap and crunch of giant summer salads to roasted vegetables and hearty soups, the house warmly scented. I am jiving on this combination, as of late: a winter squash and red grapes, dotted with butter and flaked sea salt. On days that I remember, I toss in rosemary from the garden for the last few minutes, and everything is elevated. Mmmm, yes!
How about that smile! Last Sunday’s walking adventure to St. George’s Ukrainian Church in Brighton Heights for their Ethnic Food Festival. We devoured more hearty fall fare, Stroganoff, buttery rolls, borscht (for the hubster, I don’t do beets), mushroom barley soup, pierogies, and sausage with the best cabbage I’ve ever tasted.
The scrape of metal chairs on linoleum and a wall lined with crooked pictures of Jesus and the saints sent me straight back to childhood and the countless hours spent at Our Lady of Grace. The church where my dad was an Altar Boy, and I earned my First Communion. The church where Father Moynihan taught me, with a wink and a smile, how to shake hands properly. The church where I saw my Grandma Frances in her Sunday best, gloved hands, lipstick, and the scent of Aqua Net. Oh, nostalgia, how you blur the tedium and frustration and shine a light on all that is fine.
Good Monday, gentle reader. How are you? I am snazzy-jazzy and a wee bit tired. A good tired though, the ilk that occurs when one has mightily been heaved out of a rut and seen the glory of possibility, not unlike this shot of the sky at sunrise. This very same sky, which, on the 11th of October, held views of Venus, Mars, Jupiter, Mercury, AND the Moon, all at once! I sighed and gawped in incredulity and made numerous blurry photos because, damn, if I was too lazy to get out the tripod. BUT, if you look VERY closely, what may appear to be a speck of dust in the darker regions of the photo is actually Venus, in the final gleams of her morning glory. I tip my hat to you, miraculous Universe, every single day.
And more hat tips, of a more earthly variety, to friends, neighbors, and strangers, worthy of a shout and holler and your consideration to their proffered services and wares. In no particular order:
Block Island Organics – I mentioned my fondness for their fantastic sunscreen earlier in the year. Well, they are branching out and sent me a full size sample of their Purifying Facial Cleanser. I’ve been using it for the past month and could not be more pleased. It’s got a gentle foaming action that freshens without drying my skin. Another win! If you’d like to try it, or any of their products, actually, use the code colleens through October 25th to receive 20% off. Yippee!
Wild Card – My favorite local shop for cards and gifts: t-shirts, jewelry, all things Pittsburgh, local art, paper, every happy bit of the random and sundry.
The Dreaming Well – Ever had a weird dream that you cannot shake, but also cannot, for the life of you, divine any meaning? Maybe it was a good dream, though it might have been a nightmare, or just a puzzler. I often find myself in bland shopping malls with a lot of ramps. Weird, I know. Anyway, if you are curious about deciphering the language of your dreams, my friend Travis can help. He’s been thoughtfully exploring the dream world for more than twenty years and is very empathetic and incredibly insightful, offering group and private sessions, and helping me and others get to the bottom (pun intended!) of those ramps.
Erstwhile Mercantile – Make everything chalkboard with these multi-purpose decals!
Little Truths Studio – One of my dear Portland friends has opened a shop offering lovely watercolor cards and prints, a bit of fun and the unexpected, too.
Maren Jensen – My darlin’ Maren makes thought provoking zines and posters to keep a mind a whirling…
Good L’Oven – Giant cookie love right here in Bellevue. A hop, skip, and a jump from our house to deliciousness of all stripes. Danger, Will Robinson! Danger! Dee, the kindly wizard baker and owner also sells a plethora of locally made goods: soaps, honey, cleansers, nuts, cheeses, and more. We love this place!
Camamu – I’ve been using my friend Lori’s soap for more than a decade now, and it never disappoints. She and her talented team make every kind: soothe your hands, your scalp, your pooch, even the bum of a newborn babe. My latest favorite is the Fisherman Anise, sooo good! Portlanders can buy it at her lovely shop in Sellwood, at Powell’s and New Seasons, too. I did a big happy dance when I found it at the Cranberry TJ Maxx, but EVERYONE can buy it at the online shop. It’s worth every penny!
…she began to stand around the gate and expect things. What things? She didn’t know exactly. Her breath was gusty and short. She knew things that nobody ever told her. For instance, the words of the trees and the wind… She knew the world was a stallion rolling in the blue pasture of ether. She knew that God tore down the old world every evening and built a new one by sun-up. It was wonderful to see it take form with the sun and emerge from the grey dust of its making.
Zora Neale Hurston
Tags: Quoting
Good Hair – the crazy things women, and a few men, do to and for (?) our hair, myself included. Once a year, from the age of eleven to sixteen, I got a home perm, my mom spending well over an hour rolling what seemed like a million pink and turquoise curlers at the dining room table, my eyes and scalp burning, and me, save the very LAST time, wholly disappointed at the results.
In this documentary, Chris Rock travels the globe to reveal the secrets and truths behind black hair and its care – relaxers, wigs, weaves, the whole shebang. Frightening, serious, and sad, the film brings up interesting questions on the value of hair, and how the majority of what is perceived to be “good” by the black community is far from its natural state. Sodium hydroxide, the primary chemical used for straightening, completely dissolves an aluminum can in about an hour, yet people put it on the heads of girls as young as three and often continue the practice over a lifetime. It’s a nine BILLION dollar a year industry that keeps a lot of mom and pop shops in business and poor women in debt, with weaves and wigs, good ones, at least, starting at $1,000, and many women spending thousands each year to keep it all up. The saddest part is the fact that many black women look down upon those with natural hair, saying they aren’t as serious or professional for forgoing the chemical processes. I happen to love it when a black woman rocks an afro, and after this bit of education will be even more hearty in my compliments to them!
Rush: Beyond the Lighted Stage – Never a big Rush fan, though I can sing along to more than I would have guessed, I started this documentary with the intention of watching it for five minutes, just until I saw what they looked like. An hour and a half later, I found myself at the end, happy and weeping at a quintessential underdog band story. Largely misunderstood by critics and the general public, but with a cult following, the trio play with passion and curiosity, to their hearts, their fans, and each other. Bravo.
Frank – this movie explores the odd and surprisingly lonely world of being in a band of angry misfits: the thrills, disappointments, and often painful work of leading a truly creative life, oh and having a leader who wears a fake head at all times.
Welcome to Me – Alice (brilliantly played by Kristen Wiig) suffers from borderline personality disorder and spends the majority of her time in her apartment watching television. She wins the lottery and decides, a la her idol Oprah, to create a show that revolves entirely around her. Sooo good!
The Paper Chase – Explore the highs and lows of being a first year Harvard Law student in this classic movie from 1973. Super handsome Timothy Bottoms and that hair! Lindsay Wagner before she was the Bionic Woman! John Houseman! The story ain’t too shabby, either.
Get Low – A hermit with a mysterious past arrives in town to arrange a funeral party while still alive, raising fists and riling imaginations. The truth is never as bad as we think.
Obvious Child – Oh, golly. A young comic struggling from a break-up and the loss of her job discovers she is pregnant after a one night stand. Though the decision to have an abortion comes easily to her, the repercussions are lasting. Wherever you stand on the issue (I find the practice abhorrent and laws dictating what I do with my body equally so), the film is a thoughtful examination, often times tender and funny, of one woman’s handling of her unplanned pregnancy.
The Broken Circle Breakdown – Love at first sight. Tattoos. Singing and guitar picking. A love for America. A difference of faith and one couple’s struggle to reconcile a loving world with a child who becomes gravely ill. This is a stunner and a heartbreaker with a fantastic soundtrack.
What If – A fun romantic comedy with some very lovely animation. Enough said.
Laggies – An aimless woman in a stifling relationship escapes to the home of a new teenage friend in hopes of reassessing her life. Fun and thoughtful, with Sam Rockwell, one of my favorite actors. The man’s never made an indie movie I didn’t like. Word.
Tags: Movies
