Just finished reading a tragical Cat Power tell-all book my brother gave me for Christmas and have had this song stuck in my head for days...
Also, didn't get the job I interviewed for the other day, but things are looking up because the boyfriend scored a mid-year replacement teaching job -- starting Monday! Awright!
Moving on...
Saipua and Martha Stewart have finally gotten to me on the urn side of things. I wanna see this piled high with bright spring and summer fruit on my counter!
(Wah! Just saw it got sold out from under me! Will be on the lookout for something similar.)
Lately all I've been doing is dreaming about taking a road trip to Santa Fe via Arizona. Actually, I've been thinking about it for about 2 years straight at this point, but in the past few weeks I've been checking out more books about Navajo weaving, pre Columbian art and adobe decor that have further whetted my already ravenous appetite.
No idea when I will actually make it there, but I have a feeling I will pass out with joy when I finally reach the promised land of the Museum of International Folk Art, Santa Fe Indian Market and cliff dwellings, among a billion other special and sweet things.
I read about something that sounds totally amazing today: The Hubbell Trading Post. It's in northeastern Arizona and is the oldest continuously operating Navajo trading post, now operated by the National Park Services. Definitely will be on my list of stops along the way!
Have I mentioned I am totally over my so-called "career," mostly cause I can't make enough money to actually live, even with 2 jobs? I'm open to suggestions...I don't really know what to do with myself at this point aside from run away to Santa Fe.
I grew up in a nature-fascinated family that was always picking up treasures everywhere we went. We were collectors. Shells, pinecones, rocks, feathers, and of course, driftwood. I have always had a very soft spot for all natural things and it carries over to the jewelry I wear and the collections I still tend to.
One of the most amazing things to happen to me this year was meeting local artist Ruth Kneass. I saw her extraordinary work, similar to the necklaces above, at Gravel and Gold, one of the best shops in SF. And then for months, I couldn't get it out of my head -- the delicacy of it, the gravity of it, how much time it must take first of all to find the right driftwood to use as the focal point of a piece, and then to create something so intricate and gorgeous from it.
I emailed Ruth on a whim and asked about the necklaces and she sent me the pic below -- what was available. I chose the most simple one, third from the right. She told me the wood came from Gualala, up north, and ironically one of my family's cherished hangouts of olde. It made the piece even more special to me. Meeting Ruth in person to pick it up was so awesome and inspiring -- she's the kind of earth mama and creative soul you only hope can still afford to live here in the Bay Area. If you want to know more about Ruth and her work, visit her website here.
When I wear the necklace around town it feels like the perfect talisman of my past, present and future. Thank you, Ruth.
