Five Ridge Prairie
March 12, 2012 § 1 Comment
Saturday was so, so balmy in Iowa. Eerily warm for March, maybe – but we took off jackets and went short-sleeved with spring giddiness.
It is hard to find nature-walk places in this part of the state, I am sorry to say. We drove 24 miles to get to Fox Ridge Prairie, 790 acres that “exemplifies the northern loess bluffs of western Iowa with a mixture of oak timbered valleys, native prairie ridge tops and west facing slopes.” (mycountyparks.com)
The term “loess” refers to silt deposits laid down by wind activity. “Loess” is German for “loose or crumbly.” The Loess Hills in Western Iowa are fragile, easily eroded, and beautiful. Loess itself is not that unusual, but the size of the hills in Iowa – up to 200 feet thick of loess – is an uncommon geological occurrance. To learn more about the Loess Hills in Iowa – click here.
Tassie did not get to come (I wasn’t sure what the dog policy was, but based on the number of paw prints we saw, plus one black Lab, they do seem to be allowed). Mom and Dad and Craig and I went with a backpack full of egg salad sandwiches, string cheese, and apples.
I settled in to the tall grasses. I have always liked having them all around me.
It was one of those calm, outside, together times.
Mosaic
March 7, 2012 § Leave a comment
On Saturday, my family and I went to the Minneapolis Institute of Art. This mosaic, which hangs in a hallway and which we almost sauntered right past, was created in Syria around 4 or 5 A.D. In another room we saw a statue from several centuries B.C. I have been to many museums and marveled at much art. Still these things sort of stop me in my tracks. First: it is amazing that they are so very old, and have somehow managed to last until today, and even found homes in the Midwestern United States. Second: it is a wonderful thing that art in itself is so timeless, so instinctive, and so intrinsic to humanity. That in all times and cultures it has sprung forth. Yes. Art matters.
A little novel excerpt
March 6, 2012 § Leave a comment
My book proof for Riding the Neighbors’ Horses is sitting on a shelf in my (temporary) bedroom. I’m sorry to say that in paging through it I found mistakes noticeable enough that I can’t overlook them, so we’re a few steps back in the editing/reviewing process. I’m hoping the book will be available in the next couple of weeks. Meanwhile, it is the funniest feeling to have a physical copy of this novel in my hands. I finished the first draft almost seven years ago. Followed up with lots of off-and-on revisions. Ignored it completely. Decided to do something about it. The book looks shiny and professional and it has my name on the front. Wheee!
For now, here is a small excerpt. Our narrator and protagonist, Susan Abbot, is about to get her first riding lesson from her neighbor, and new friend, Nan Whiting.
Horse’s hooves clopped against wood as Nan led a tall bay from its stall. “This is Bet,” she said. “The first time I rode her I was two, or probably even younger. Hold this a second.” Nan dropped a line of rope in my hand and darted around the corner before I could protest. I toyed with the end of the rope, following its white weave up to the halter of the horse. Bet stood near enough that I could feel the heat from her body and smell her scent—a blend of hay and wood, earth and sweat. She studied me with eyes so dark I couldn’t tell where the pupil ended and the iris began, and I wondered what I might read in those eyes if only I knew how.
Let the dogs out
February 28, 2012 § 1 Comment
The nice thing about rural areas? Hardly-traveled dirt roads. Ditches and fields. Places for dogs to be off the darn leash without all sorts of regulations.
Miss T. loves it out here. Even if the other two are best buds and she is the old girl who stays closer (and listens when you call).
Let ’em play.
Home, family, and traveling
February 28, 2012 § 1 Comment
Do you want to hear some good news? I am getting interviews!
Yesterday my mom and I drove to Cedar Rapids to pick up a truck – a red Chevy Silverado! – for my dad. We had our usual fervent discussions about life, faith, art, careers, personality types, travel, and the future. In the midst of this my phone rang and Interview #3 has been scheduled for the week. None of these jobs may pan out, but then, one of them might! I smiled for five minutes. Finally, the resume is doing what it was designed to do.
Iowa is brown, flat, hilly, barn-speckled. We drove through many tired-looking small towns. They fascinate me with their combination of rustic-ness and run-down-ness. Sometimes I like them in their familiarity. Other times I want to give them a good New-England-style overhaul. I like small towns, but I’m more of a quaint village kind of girl. Things can be small AND pretty.
(European countryside. Yes.)
One day when I settle down in my semi-remote (or maybe not remote?) wherever, it’s going to be lots of fun to consider how I can help make my nearby town (or neighborhood) veer towards quaintness. If they let me. Once they learn to like me. I’ll give it the good ol’ stubborn Dutch girl try.
So, anyway, I will be rambling around for the rest of the week. I aim to take a few photographs to show you some of these places. The fun thing about getting into photography is how you take on this mission to find things that are beautiful and interesting wherever you go. In unexpected places. From otherwise unconsidered vantage points. It gives one a new sense of purpose.
Around here, in the log-house-that’s-for-sale, we have been taking walks with the dogs, planning future books, planning future Etsy shops, baking, cooking, sweating in the sauna, trying out new hairstyles, and writing down to-do lists both ordinary and ambitious. I have ordered a proof of my novel, which will soon be available in paperback! Today is one of those days when opportunity seems within reach. Despite the gray skies and the ice that fell all night long. Despite getting home in the wee small hours of the morning and waking up later than industrious girls ought to do. Despite this tangle of hair on my head and the laundry waiting to be folded.
I have a Pinterest board full of dreams, and seed catalogs in the cupboard.
What is happening in your world?
Warm thoughts
February 24, 2012 § Leave a comment
“One can enjoy a wood fire worthily only when he warms his thoughts by it as well as his hands and feet.” -Odell Shepherd
Kinds of Honey 