the cocktail recipe

for those who missed the most important part of the talk i gave at Surface Design
here it is

the recipe for my new cocktail - invented out of necessity when the tonic tide was ebbing after store hours -
and for which i still have to dream up an appropriate name -
more on that later

in a chilled glass
slosh a bit of Bombay gin
add
a healthy splash of Concord Grape Juice [sugar free, of course]
squeeze in a wedge of fresh lime
and then drop the squozed bit into the glass as well
throw in a few rocks
top up with tonic [Schweppes for preference]
muddle a bit
and
enjoy

feel free to contribute to naming suggestions...

making the most of what your accommodation has to offer

i bought a piece of silk from a non-Beautiful Silks vendor

but

in my defence

i'm a long way from home

and

i hadn't tried silk broadcloth before 

[Marion, if you're reading this, i'm bringing you a sample]

at a confluence

quite a few people from elsewhere are meeting in Minneapolis at the moment
for the Surface Design conference
16 very nice ones [from all over the US, Canada and even Norway]
kindly joined me for a five day journey

our windfall walks were a little limited
as
it was extremely hot outside [mid 90s]
but that didn't break our stride for a moment

Deidre Adams has written about the class here
and you can visit her website here

happiness

walked old haunts gathering splendid windfalls

followed trails and found amusing and useful treasure

went to favourite caff for a sit down

and because it has nice big tables where you can spread out and do stuff

made bundles while sipping at africanos

had amusing conversations with other patrons

then

a guitarist wanders in, gets coffee, begins to warm up his guitar

minutes later he is joined by friend with ukelele

[i twitch, not, in general, being enamoured of ukelele]

the two begin to play

and it is like heaven

their repertoire is B I G

mostly they play swing with a haunting gypsy lilt to it

presently the ukelele player takes the lead

improvises exquisitely on Gershwin's "embraceable you"

the woman working on her laptop to my left

begins to sing sotto voce

i wish she would sing louder

she has the voice of an angel

my inner hyperactive mutters about spending time indoors

when outside there are things to be done

i tell the inner voice to be quiet and stay listening

they play for an hour and a bit

i take another walk

much later

at sunset

i sit in a favourite spot 

out of the wind on those lovely steps in the aquatic park

and make more bundles

somewhere up behind me

someone begins to blow a tenor sax

very, very beautifully.

my cup runneth over 

and then when i think it really doesn't get much better than this

i find a heart

in San Francisco

if you lost one*, let me know

[or just sing it in the shower]

*like this one, i mean

[i hung it on a glass for the snap...was too dark in the park]

walking down on market street and feeling my heart skip a beat

after a vile flight full of screaming babies whose bewiddled parents simply gazed at them while they screamed rather than [a] changing the nappy [b] helping the burp to the surface - think how gas expands at higher altitudes, it's no wonder they are uncomfortable [c] giving the child something to suck on

i have landed once again in San Francisco

must have walked ten miles today, jumping in puddles on memory lane
have another solo day tomorrow
and then it's onward to Minneapolis - St Paul

here are a few fleeting impressions

[tweaked by infinicam]

in
no
particular
order

when too much is too much

i sometimes sense an air of disbelief when telling students that there is such a thing as "too much" and that string-making is one of the solutions

the piece above was my travel companion during the recent European pilgrimage

it was stitched and dyed in various places

hidden in the surface are prints from hazelnut leaves in France

tulips in London

walnut leaves in Switzerland

but

the last immersion at home was simply too much

so

it will become either pockets on an apron

or

string

if it's not one cat, it's another

here i am working like a dog to fulfill a pile of promises before i skip across the next ocean and certain felines are having a splendid time chasing leaves or trying to shred cloth. keep telling them i don't need to make string right now but nobody is listening

results

at work