Monday, April 05, 2021 (21 days until April’s full “Pink Moon”)

Last night, I watched the original movie, “My Fair Lady”. Without much that interested me on television (I don’t subscribe to cable), I turned to Netflix. That site just had added the movie.

I’m a Hepburn fan, but resisted the movie, “My Fair Lady”, because I’m also a Julie Andrews fan. Andrews created on Broadway the leading role of Eliza, and the onstage musical ran for years. Back when “Lady” was about to become a movie, Audrey Hepburn’s onscreen fame was enormous. She badly wanted Eliza’s role, and got it. I was among the Julie Andrews fans angry that she who had created Eliza onstage didn’t get the movie part.

Both actresses, British born, understand how to create a cockney role. Aside from that, the all-musical movie role requires dancing and singing. Hepburn once was trained as a classical dancer but wasn’t fully capable. Her singing voice was small and its range limited. In the movie, she lip syncs to singing by soprano Marni Nixon, who often performed as “ghost singer” for non-singing actresses.

I boycotted the movie then and since.

Last night, it turned into a wonderful reintroduction to the marvelous Rex Harrison, as Professor Henry Higgins. (Harrison created the role on Broadway, co-staring with Julie Andrews.) The movie is beautiful in every way, cinematically, visually, and musically. Hepburn as Eliza is charming, and of course after Harrison has turned her into a swan, simply is gorgeous. These many years later, the movie comes together nicely, even if one still has reasons to resist its charms.

An original poster to today’s header photo, because it’s so lovely, hung for years in my Kansas City apartment. Sure wish I still had it today, probably a collector’s item.

Dear Friends: Much depends on politics, timing, opportunity. Second chances may alter appreciation. Diana

Sunday, April 04, 2021 (In 23 days, April’s full “Pink Moon”)

Spring cleaning! I’m working in the RV garage. It’s been storing hay. Now, needing more space I’m examining stuff in there long-forgotten, tossing the unused and unwanted.

Suddenly, a surprise. A box holds a set of books purchased years ago that I’ve assumed were lost. It’s a collection that sends me back by half-a-lifetime. These books have to do with the American poet, Emily Dickenson, once my special interest and long time study project.

These hardcover books are a variety. Some contain all her known poems, including special volumes that contain all her poems in handwritten facsimiles. These demonstrate how her handwriting changed over the years.

Yes, I was that much into Dickinson.

There are biographical works, most by recognized Dickinson experts, all finely researched and written. Besides this unexpected opportunity to re-read Dickinson’s great poems, rediscovering her returns a significant bit of my personal history. Remembering amazes me.

I knew Dickenson’s poetry well before becoming assigned to a business trip in NYC. Afterwards with free time, I rented a car and drove to Amherst, the environment of that great writer. After touring the Dickinson home and visiting the college, I drove to the Harvard Library to see its Dickinson collection and purchased the now newly-found volumes to pursue studies more.

After retiring and moving to Oregon, my interests turned to new directions. I got a couple of horses, and as an almost complete novice, had to learn quickly as much as possible about equine housing, training, and tack. I loved having horses and became consumed. Many books in my active library testify to these interests.

Now, in a sort of rebirth, I’ll re-find Dickinson and re-experience a learning curve on rediscovering her greatness.

Dear Friends: Among trash in a largely ignored space, found jewels will re-enliven a kindred mind. Diana

Saturday, April 03, 2021 (23 days before April’s full “Pink Moon”)

A couple days ago I happened upon my cat Max as he began working on a baby bunny. My discovery came too late to rescue baby but that warned, “baby bunny season” has arrived. Now it’s time to start keeping my cat inside.

Through today and many ensuing, Max will be an unhappy pain in my neck. He’ll brush against my legs, circle figure eights in front of my steps, position himself in my blind spots. Before taking a step, I’ll have to search and avoid landing on him. For us both, it’ll be awful before getting easier.

Max, about fifteen years old, has been with me since he was about two. He originally was an outside-only kitty and stayed that way a few years, living in the barn and ridding (supposedly) the mice. One day on finding him with a swelling wound, I took him to our vet who discovered a small puncture apparently from a cat fight. The fight meant that Max had to avoid contact with other cats a couple months, until his wound aged so he could be tested for kitty aids. That day Max moved into my house.

After an initial confusion, Max loved being inside. Finally, after testing negative, he became an inside-outside guy. In mornings, I must navigate around his figure-eight weavings, and avoid stepping backwards onto his parked body. My happy morning moment is pushing him outside for the day. Usually Max reappears before darkness and comes inside. The exception is baby bunny season when he shows up outside my bedroom window at 2 a.m., or doesn’t appear at all.

Last spring, a teeny bunny hopping near my backdoor probably was from a litter nested under the haystack in my barn. I decided to let that baby grow and kept Max inside. The cat was unhappy but the growing bunny pleased me. Our baby grew more strong and alert while eating my hay and living safely under the barn floorboard.

Max had been inside for a couple of months before other cats began prowling his territory. That’s when my cat again went outside, and right away, discovered our bunny in the barn. Max tried to get the little one, but bunny survived, grew up, now and then became visible, and still nests under the barn. Recently, another bunny hopping with ours suggested maybe soon babies.

Today Max and I will restart our dancing act. He’ll languish during the weeks of safety growing babies need. My cat and I will watch bunnies through a window, staying alert for invading other cats. When it’s appropriate, my cat again will be outside and free.

Dear Friends: I loved Speedo, a domestic cottontail rescued on my property (another story). Diana

Friday, April 02. 2021

Well, I did it and got the ball rolling, to phase myself out of a long-held part-time job. Starting in two weeks, I’ll work one day weekly and only for short hours.

Whew! For weeks I’ve been thinking about doing this.

I’ve worked as a sample-server in the local Costco since 2007. Well, on and off. Long ago I got fired and after a couple of years rehired. That taught me how working again can be pleasant after a hiatus. That’s why I returned to work last fall, after a stretch of pandemic-caused unemployment. I wanted again to be among people.

But the times have changed and so has my work. These days I’m ready to retreat, increase my free time. It would be easy to rattle off a number of reasons. The reality is my wishing to focus on pursuing other interests. This seems the right time to explore many things more.

I’m grateful for having the wherewithal and freedom to make such a choice. It will be fun to find where my interests may take me. I’m expecting to learn lots, so stay tuned.

Dear Friends: Relinquishing a habit that tires increases one’s sense of strength and freedom. Diana

Thursday, April 01, 2021

Last evening purely by accident and soon delighted, I watched three hours of video tracking America’s historical Women’s Movement.

It introduced me to the talent and achievements of one Carrie Chapmen Catt. During the late 18th and early 19th Centuries, she was a key mover in achieving the 19th Amendment. Following its radification, Catt founded the League of Women Voters. Her skills for organizing and leading were exceptional.

Another video reviewed the later Women’s Movement during my lifetime, a reminder of much I witnessed over the years, renewing both delight and worries. The world’s work, becoming ever more technical, opens paths for newcomers to the workforce, but leaves out those who don’t lead with their brains. Fortunately, President Biden’s infrastructure bill will open physical jobs. Many who feel left behind in job opportunities will be provided the satisfactions of earning wages and being productive.

A third video introduced me for the first time to an amazing singer/songwriter, Holly Near. She was as talented, distinctive, and influential as Janis Joplin, and I totally missed knowing about her. Fortunately, she was able to adapt to fame and the times without becoming self-destructive.

What a trip, those three hours of video! They’re so worth watching. Catch them if available for streaming on PBS or other cable services.

Shifting topics slightly, but still on streaming, don’t miss these examples of outstanding film art: “My Octopus Teacher”, “The Life Ahead”, and “Nomandland. One captures the beauty and intelligence of octopuses, another the still-wonderful presence of Sophia Loren, and in the third, the enormous talent of actor Francis McDormand.

Dear Friends: It’s awe inspiring: all that’s been done, what’s being done, and what the future may offer. Diana

Wednesday, March 31, 2021

Tomorrow, it’s April Fool’s Day. Not something I think much about, but while “fooling around” on Facebook found reminders that it’s approaching. Already a bit going around is that Volkswagen has been renamed “Voltswagen”. The company admits putting that out as an early April Fools joke.

In general, I’ve little interest in April Fool’s, but the day does conjure memories from my school days. April One was a day to be aware of, to practice caution. I remember just about every kid in my school trying to fool others. One couldn’t believe anything.

An awareness of April Fools Day is worldwide. Finding the fool is more fun than becoming the fool, and the efforts of finding have occurred for hundreds of years. It’s more than in-school, kid-play kinds of fun. The “adult world” finds newspapers and advertisers getting into the act. Ergo, “Voltswagen”!

Tomorrow, wisdom will mean being cautious of new information from any source. For me, a self-reminder, as in the morning as I read online newspapers. It might be that some stiff-back editorial types will decide to add humor to their editorials. Anything’s possible.

Dear Friends: April Fool’s can glimpse “The Far Side” as did the cartoonist himself. Diana

Tuesday, March 30, 2021

Prior to a story in today’s New York Times about Augusta Savage, I didn’t know of that fine artist. I began reading casually about her, and found myself blown away by images of her sculpture, “Lift Every Voice and Sing”. I searched for others of her works, finding them all of high quality, and most of all, full of compassion.

Savage was a mostly self-taught artist and worked during the Harlem Renaissance period. She was born in 1892, in Florida, the seventh of fourteen children, and grew up in poverty. Throughout her childhood, she created art. She married early, had a child and was divorced before her arrival in Harlem in 1921. At that time, Cooper Union offered free tuition. She enrolled and completed a four-year art course in three years.

Her story and her personal grit are compelling. I’ll add a link to the NYT story later in this article. Here, I want to focus on her absolutely wonderful sculpture, “Lift Every Voice and Sing”.

She receive a commission in 1937 to create a sculpture for the 1939 New York World’s Fair. She was the single Black artist, to receive a commission from the fair. She created, “Lift Every Voice and Sing”, a 16-foot sculpture cast in plaster.

The Fair organizers renamed Savage’s work, “The Harp”, and displayed her sculpture among others by world famous artists like Willem de Kooning and Salvador Dalí. Her piece was well-received by visitors, and reportedly became the most photographed image in the Fair’s sculpture exhibit.

This is a link to a brief video of “Harp” taken by a Fair visitor. Way beyond words, the visual reveals the special qualities of Savage’s work. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ILpqM0cYZgE

This brilliant artist’s story has its high points and plenty of sadness. To me, what’s saddest of all is explained in The Times. It’s that, “…when the World’s Fair ended, Savage could not afford to cast “The Harp” in bronze, or even pay for the plaster version to be shipped or stored, so her monumental work, like many temporary works on display at the Fair, was destroyed.”

Think of the loss!

The historian, Jill Lepore, has a new book coming this spring, entitled, “Joe Gould’s Teeth”. The heroine of Lepore’s story is the artist then known as Miss Savage. Joe Gould, an art reviewer, fell in love with Savage and harassed her. In her writing plan, Lepore intended to focus on Gould, but instead became fascinated by Savage’s escape from his attentions and harassments. In Lepore’s telling, Savage is a heroine.

I hope you enjoy more of Augusta Savage’s life and talent in the Times article: https://www.nytimes.com/2016/03/25/arts/design/augusta-savages-rural-escape-and-clementine-hunters-murals.html?action=click&module=RelatedLinks&pgtype=Article

Dear Friends: Her “Harp” sculpture makes me, too, wish to lift my head and sing. Diana

Monday, March 29, 2021

Background

Yesterday, March’s Super Moon was scheduled to be nearest to earth that evening and at its fullest. The “Worm Moon” appears every March, and this time interested both me and my adventurer friend, Susie. She proposed that we drive east into the desert to see more clearly the rising full moon. We’d meet in early evening and drive to the desert high country, to enjoy the special moonrise.

Yesterday’s weather almost bombed our planning. That afternoon was cloudy-dark with blustering 40 mph winds. We debated the possibility of any-at-all moon visibility, but finally shrugged and decided to take our chances. We made the trip east and under a very dark sky, until suddenly, Susie pointed upward, “Look, a bit of light!”

That was so. From behind clouds, the moon created a spot of light that showed through. We pulled onto an off highway road and parked where there might be good visibility. At that very moment, and in gorgeous drama, the moon totally broke through those troubled clouds.

We exited the car, having to brace its open doors and ourselves against the high, sand-blowing winds. We lugged the cameras and worked our way in darkness up a little hill and found the sky in clear view.

Living Art

Our photos captured that moon, it’s spectacular rise, the re-disappearance behind clouds, and finally, a glorious re-emergence. Witnessing living art transported us from the Oregon desert into our worlds of imagination.

Artists At Work

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Thanks to Susie’s bold and adventuresome spirit, we found ourselves merging our collaborative sense with the dynamics of that extraordinary external event. The experience spontaneously excited our brains, setting them in sync, and enabling us to create worthwhile art.

Dear Friends: Special memories may seem enough, but preserving them with photos, Oh, my! Diana

Sunday, March 28, 2021

It tickled me to spot this Merlin falcon, an adult male, atop a high juniper and searching my territory. He’s the first I’ve been lucky to capture after several years. It was in 2014 that his ancestor and I exchanged memorable glances. Happily, my zoom lens caught that instant.

Having since not seen a Merlin, I figured the first was a chance spotting. Yesterday’s capture suggests I’ve been too lax about looking for Merlins. Starting now, my eyes will be wider for these wonderful birds.

Here, another couple of views of that 2014 Merlin.

And, another look at yesterday’s Merlin.

Both of these birds, for sizable periods, hunted while perching in one spot, and great camera targets. Now, hoping for more sightings, I intend to learn where these birds nest, and whether their appearances are often or seasonal.

Dear Friends: Sighting and photographing a special bird really makes my day. Diana

Saturday, March 27, 2021

The dogs and I headed to the forest to check trail conditions. This warm weather has begun to invite horseback riding. We found the trails fine for that. I wanted to find a path to the trails over which my horse could pull a cart. Every upward entry to paths is short, but steep and very rocky. Once having passed a rocky segment, hikers and riders meet great trails.

The challenging segments don’t contain little rocks, but partially-buried boulders. Worst, the top rocks are positioned over secondary, also-buried boulders. I examined a steep area with signs of people having attempted to clear rocks, resulting in a deep hole with more big rocks. Sigh, rockiness goes deep.

I couldn’t get a good photo of the rocky hole. It’s challenging to capture depth with a digital camera. As an illustration, here’s an uphill path. I added a red line stretching from high point to high point. Beneath that line is depth, and above the line, beyond the trail bump, are shadows indicating a deep hole. Some rocks dug from that hole lay beside it. The difficulty for a horse pulling a cart and human is evident.

Teeth-gnashing, because immediately beyond those high shadows is the perfect road that appears in the two preceding photos.

I want to drive my horses. In previous summers, I exercised the horses between driving lessons on local neighborhood streets. Since then, an inflow of homeowners has made this area more populated. New residents are increasing the traffic of cars, bicycles, and motorcycles. Newcomers often aren’t aware that, legally, horses have the right-of-way. I’ve become a little timid and an seeking alternative routes.

Meanwhile, today will be sunny, warm, and ideal for horseback riding. Yesterday, I cleaned the equines, brushed their coats, manes, and tails. On getting finished and released, each headed directly to the dirtiest spot available and rolled mightily. Ah, well.

By the way, this morning’s moon-set was more spectacular than yesterday’s. Now that earth and moon are positioned more closely together, I couldn’t resist taking another photo using approximately the same amount of zoom. Neither capture is great, but together show today’s moon, nearer, rounder, and more satisfying.

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Dear Friends: Let’s transition to spring without losing track of technological discoveries. Diana