Stopping by to wish all of the fathers out there a very happy day. I hope everyone has been enjoying this day with their families.
I've been astonishingly busy with mundane things since coming home from my mini-vacation. I have finally managed to pull a few photos to share. This trip was mostly about my dog Rusty. Since he has cancer and only a limited amount of time left on this planet, I decided he needed some time in the mountains. Even though I haven't lived there for years, the Sierras are still the place I feel most at home and at peace. And what better place for a dog to enjoy hiking, canoeing, wading, rock climbing? It had been too long since we'd had the opportunity for such things. All of us benefitted from the fresh air, cool, crisp water, brief rainstorms, and lazy afternoons with the sound of aspens in the breeze...
Stump & Roots, Lake Mary
Twin Lakes, Mammoth Lakes, California
Serene Lake, Rock Creek Canyon
Serene Lake, Rock Creek Canyon
"I want that piece of bark, but I don't want to get wet..."
"I can almost taste it!"
"Mommy, this is rather nice..."
The Memorial Day tradition on my mom's side of the family is to make floral arrangements for each of our family members in the Goleta Cemetery. My grandmother used to do it, and when she was no longer able to, my mom took over. When my brother moved to Bali and we began to admire some of their customs, we started placing incense at each grave as well. I personally love the quiet, casual way we go about it—like stopping by someone's house for a friendly visit. It's not sad or somber or serious—that wouldn't fit our family's personality or style.
We don't have a lot of family traditions, so it means a lot to me that we do have this one. I like to remember my grandparents and wonder about the other personalities who share the space with them. What were my great-grandparents and other ancestors like as individuals? What traits of theirs do I carry? I think it's important to have days like this to remember and honor our family connections.
These photos were taken by my husband in 2001, with, of all things, an old Polaroid camera. Instant gratification before digital, but a little lacking in size and quality.
Mom doesn't seem to be interested in doing anything very productive today, so we all spent some time outside for a little while. It's SUCH a nice day. Rusty was just daydreaming (he's pretty boring), but I was busy in the bushes keeping an eye on what the lizards were up to. They're sneaky.
I decided I'd better see what Mom was up to. Seemed as if Rusty was getting way too much attention! What about ME?
Isn't this fun? Aren't I cute?
We hope you're goofing off today too.
Woof!
Sadie
It's hard to believe, but our precious Sadie is 11 years old today! Seems like only yesterday she was chewing up socks and cunningly escaping out the front door. Alas, time flies. But she's still racing around the backyard like a crazed maniac and striking all those "aren't-I-cute?" poses to make sure our full attention is where it should be—on The Princess!—so it seems she's not planning on aging too fast.
So, Sadie, Happy Birthday and thank you for making us giggle every day.
It's my most special one-and-only niece Cintya's fourth birthday! She is officially the grand old age of four. In order to properly commmemorate the day and honor her artistic endeavors, I thought I would share a few of the photos she has taken recently with her daddy's camera.
My brother is of course American, but his wife is Balinese and Cintya seems to have ended up with plenty of those artistic Balinese genes. I hope you enjoy her vision of Bali.
One of the magical elements of photography is that it captures and records moments in our ongoing histories, so it helps us comprehend the passage of time much more clearly than we can by relying only our memories. It's a wonderful tool for verifying our very personal perception of reality. Case in point...
My sweetheart dog Rusty has bladder cancer, diagnosed in January. Naturally, there's a whole story there. But my point is about visual changes that we can sense, but cannot fully appreciate until we see them on "film" (on screen), side by side.
Some combination of Rusty's cancer and associated changes and additions in medications caused him to lose a lot of his hair; much of his outer coat of longer, coarser, red hair, and most of his undercoat of soft, downy, cream-colored hair. But in the past month, he's been regaining his undercoat. It's thick and creamy, tinged with light cinnamon. I've been calling him my little teddy bear because he's so abnormally soft and fuzzy. And I've been thinking that he looks very different, but feeling unsure of that perception (true to form, my husband hasn't noticed much change).
On Friday our veterinarian giggled the minute we walked in, delighted by Rusty's new coat. She said, "It looks like he's been dusted with powdered sugar!" So, I now have a sugar-coated teddy bear!
What's marvelous is that this afternoon I was able to compare photographs to confirm that our perceptions are accurate. It's not just a mom's imagination that her beloved child has changed. You can see the metamorphosis... red dog at the end of February... sugar-coated teddy bear today (fresh out of the bath just hours ago, no less). Magic! 
Note: I realize this may appear to simply be a difference in the lighting and saturation of colors in the photos themselves, but that actually has much more to do with two very different patios—pigmented earth-tone cement vs. old grey cement.
This photo is one of my favorites. Not only because of the content, but because of the event surrounding it. My brother lives in Bali and is married to a local, so I have a half-Balinese niece. The occasion of this photo was her three-month ceremony. It was a typical Balinese ceremony with offerings, music, entertainment, and food for family and friends. I was fascinated by the spread of tools and offerings that were set upon the platform from which the priestess officiated. Everything had its purpose, and was also very finely crafted and beautiful. The priestess had obtained her position when her husband died; she assisted him in his duties as priest for years, and so when he died she simply assumed his role. Here's a photo of the priestess herself, in the midst of the ceremony:
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