north by north west

i didn't take many pictures in San Francisco this time

too busy

listening to the sounds of the city

the glory of foghorns

parrots around t-hill

the whirr of humming birds' wings

the slow drift of the fog

the espresso machine as it unleashes my Africano into the glass

at Cafe Trieste

where

two older men address each other lovingly in Italian

i sipped my coffee

and

thought about friendship

and how much certain friendships mean to me

while reading "World enough and Time"

a book i was introduced to by my friends John + Patsy Sangster

on Lopez Island.

i think

i may make this book compulsory reading

for all workshop attendees.

after coffee i headed north.

i could simply have driven up the Interstate 5

but

it doesn't go anywhere near the edge.

i love the edge

so

i took the 101

which took me through Fortuna

and past this magical old cinema

i took this photo for my friend Shelley

i wanted to build a fort for her

but

it was really really cold.

so i went wandering instead

while wandering

i began to fill my pockets with stones

having a vague plan in my mind

to use them in Portland

+

looking down at my pinny

with its bulging pockets

i remembered that somebody

[contemporary of Virginia Woolf ? or other rejected lover somewhere?]

sewed stones into her dress

and then walked into a river

it would be so easy to do in a place like this

in the fog

where

footprints would soon be awash

and

the continental shelf drops away in moments

however

that was not something i was about to do

the water was far too cold

and i am enjoying the wild ride of this adventure we call 'life'

far too much

 

+

 

then a figure emerged from the fog

wandered over, making greeting noises

showed me a handful of exquisite polished stones 

pulled from a pocket

fished one out

and gave it to me saying

"take this one, it's a lovely amber colour and have a good day"

 

the stone looked like a piece of cold honey

reminding me of the eyes of a friend

[they are like those of a wolf]

honey coloured unless sparkling with excitement

when they suddenly turn green

 

 i was already having a good day

but that reminder made it even better

+

later i saw mollis azaleas

growing right beside the ocean

in Australia these plants are mollycoddled

and protected. otherwise they shrivel in the hot north winds.

here they grow like weeds. sigh.

wandering further north

i found evidence of my people

so

i left a mark of my own

 

and now i am in Portland

for six weeks.

bliss.