Just inside the door from our snowy patio, more gardens thrive:  one on a vintage trunk which I decoupaged with wild west art and cattle brand-type symbols, and the other on a pie crust table.  Both trunk and table were unearthed at rummage sales in Price County, Wisconsin.

The trunk features beloved African violets, overseen by a fake barrel cactus on a stool with a deer skull from our land up north.  Our friends, Mary and Bernie, found the skull so it’s theoretically theirs (finders/keepers!) but they said it didn’t fit in with their decor.  Fortunately, skulls look great anywhere we choose to put them!  (I still have a couple of cattle skulls in our northern home, for that classic Georgia O’Keeffe look.  You pay big bucks for skulls out west!)

The pie crust table provides a mini-museum for artifacts, as well as room for more indoor gardening.  Leaning against the watering can on the left, with it’s rose intact, you will notice a rather bizarre piece of work.  This gem was a Christmas gift from our grandson, Jason, and his wife, Sandy.  They “won” it at a white elephant party.  Jason and Sandy didn’t really want or need the pot, but they knew exactly what to do with their acquisition:  Give it to Grandma!  (This grandma welcomes elephants of any color!)

Resting in the shade of the spider plant, is a slab of petrified wood from (of course!) Arizona.  The white pottery mushroom behind the Native American vase was a gift from its creator, my friend Barbara.  In front of the vase, chestnuts sit in a toile box.  The nuts are part of my ever growing chestnut collection, begun years ago and replenished each autumn by the horse chestnut tree just a few yards outside our front door.  The toile box came in a nesting set, from T. J. MAX. 

The plant on the right side as you face the pie crust table is called “Candelabra”, for obvious reasons.  It’s a new kid on the plant block here.  I was attracted to it’s shape.  The plant looks like it popped off the pages of a Dr. Seuss book. 

On the floor, in a basket crafted by yours truly, you will see something very funky:  raffia paper vegies, purchased for a few cents last summer at a garage sale.  I look at the vegies and smile—not from wanting to eat them, but rather from recalling the joys of past rummages and anticipating a whole new garage season soon to begin.  (Two months, or certainly three!)

Moving from still life to live life, I finally got some snap shots of Baby Dylan, the shy one.  The sleeping beauty photo was fairly easy to procure because Dylan was zonked out on the floor.  (Like Joe and me, Dylan takes his naps seriously.)  The other picture was more fleeting.  Dylan normally hides when he sees the camera, and here I sneaked up on him; it didn’t take him long to sense the “danger” of having his picture taken and a moment later he had split!

Finally, here are some indoor friends who do not have to be watered, and do not have any paparazzi phobias.  They just sort of take life as it comes!

Margaret L. Been, ©2011

Jonathan Hayes, Rebekah Black, Kathy Jones, Jody Dean, and Bernie Mack

If it came out of Jody’s mouth, we’re frantically trying to add it here!   

We’re updating this page constantly throughout the morning, so refresh often!     

We have a few things going on this morning…     

6:10AM – We’re playing Sitar Hero for tickets to see Sitar legend, Ravi Shankar, with the Dallas Symphony Orchestra. 

6:45AM – We’re going to talk ‘Hollywood’ with Mike Evans, the Hollywood Insider.     

7AM (give or take 30 minutes) – Rebekah’s on the road with tickets to The American West exhibit at the American Airlines C.R. Smith Museum. 

7:20AM – Notes from the News     

7:50AM – They Walk Among Us   

Now on to your morning links!

1. Worst Tattoo Ever!!!

[Source: dailymail.co.uk]

2. Bears Win

[Source: espn.go.com]

3. Rangers Lost

[Source: espn.go.com]

4. Poacher Killed by Great White Shark

[Source: telegraph.co.uk]

5. Richardson Homeowners Ask City to Approve Rainwater Irrigation

[Source: dallasnews.com]

6. The Carstache

[Source: carstache.com]

7. The Best Beer in Dallas

[Source: dmagazine.com]

8. Gloria Stewart Dies at 100

[Source: modernmom.com]

9. Mike Evans

[Source: kluv.radio.com]

10. Virgin Launches Space Tourism

[Source: thefutureofthings.com]

11. Segway Company Owner Dies in Segway Accident

[Source: informationweek.com]

12. Notes from the News

[Source: kluv.radio.com]

13. The Religion Test

[Source: dallasnews.com]

14. They Walk Among Us

[Source: kluv.radio.com]

15. Don’t Tase Me…I’m Wearing Latex

[Source: shortnews.com]

Yesterday I wandered through a local art gallery, and enjoyed the creativity displayed there in paintings, textiles, and pottery.  Then I came home and wandered through our condo, and was awed once again by the ambience of home art and the fun of living in a personal ”gallery”.  Here is another mini-tour—this one focusing on some of the art and artifacts which comprise our home gallery.

Above is a shot of my Louis L’Amour bathroom.  Yes, Joe and I each have our own bathroom.  What a joy to have a loo of one’s own to pack with stuff!  I have named my bathroom after one of my favorite 20th century novelists.  Oddly enough, I do not at this point own a Louis L’Amour book but I’ve borrowed and read most of them from libraries.  Perhaps someday I’ll run across a L’Amour at a reasonable price.

Pictured are a few of my ARIZONA TEA® bottles with a Western theme.  The bottle with the cattle driving scene was a “once in a lifetime” find at King Sooper’s in Denver.  I’ve never seen this issue anywhere else.  Southwestern pictures, my home made soap, a bighorn sheep horn, a copper sheep bell, a bit of lace, an artificial barrel cactus, and photos of family members with horses fit nicely into this bathroom cranny. 

Meanwhile, out in my garden is a Western steer’s skull—just waiting to be cleaned up and added to the bathroom decor, Georgia O’Keeffe style.

Partially pictured above, in the lower left corner as you face the screen, is a unique bit of home grown art:  two large clay pots joined bottom to bottom to create an hourglass effect, and mosaic tiled with Native American symbols.  I think one of the symbols is a Harley® thing.  It’s orange and black and it has wings.  This gem was purchased at an up-north rummage sale for all of $2.00.

Pictured below in the same loo are switchplate covers decoupaged by my artist niece, Nancy, who lives in Colorado Springs.  Beneath the switchplates you can faintly see a painting of sheep, probably set in the Hebrides, unearthed at some antique shop back in the fathomless mists of time.

Our neighborhood abounds in funky finds.  In fact, the hanging art pictured below was purchased from a local recycle artist who has named her business FUNKY FINDS.  On this hanging wonder you’ll see an assortment of glass bottles, bells, beads, a butterfly, and even a die left over from a board or dice game.  The herb (catmint, I think) in tandem with the art is a snippet from my garden. 

Behind the funky find is a poignant, tinted photograph of my mother at age three.  The photo was taken in 1899.  On the small shelves to the right are some of my parents’ toothpick holders, and a Royal Doulton® Mrs. Tiggiewinkle which Joe and I bought in Beatrix Potter country—the Lake District of England.

Below, you will see an answer to the question, “What does one do with those boring kitchen cupboard doors?”  In past homes I have removed them altogether, as cupboard doors make a house look new—and who would ever want that!?!  Also, I’ve been known to paint the cupboard doors, to liven things up a bit.

When we moved here and I mentioned removing the doors or painting them, I could actually see Joe wince in his chair.  Finally it was Joe who said, “Why don’t you decoupage your art on them?”  So that’s what I did, and we both like the result.

Finally, the gallery pictured below is an integral feature of most every happy home I’ve ever visited:  The Refrigerator Door Gallery.  How precious is children’s art, nestled among snapshots and assorted fragments of family life! 

Margaret L. Been, 2010©

The girl who loves the water more than anything–actually did pretty good climbing a mountain. Well–it was more of a cliff. And to my flippered feet–it was a razor thin gigantic rock growing out of the earth. And one wrong step in parts–and I wouldn’t be here writing this. And that’s not an exaggeration. But it sure was beautiful. I climbed Angel’s Landing in Zion National Park, Utah. Here it is from the ground.

I went with my best friend Christal, who flew in from Florida for the trip. We were accompanied by my work buddy Travis, who grew up in the mountains and climbs like a monkey. I’m so glad the good Lord blessed him with a sense of patience–because we were…well, slow. Or just “careful” as I like to call it. We were both a little nervous and a lot out of our environment at the start of the day–Travis took things a little lighter.

Regardless–it was about a 5,000 foot rock. The trail at the bottom started of with a gentle upgrade, harmless, running alongside the Virgin River.

The trail below

It was beautiful–and we eventually worked our way up to a spot called Walter’s wiggles. 21 VERY STEEP switch backs at about 15 yards a pop. From there, we climbed up to Scout’s Landing–a nice spot somewhere near the top of the tree line where you could turn back before the really cool part started.

About halfway up, before the rocks started

There, the trail turned into a mountain of rocks, with chains bolted in for people to hold onto. On either side in many cases, there was nothing but a sheer drop down the cliff face. The Virgin River–a good size river with rapids at eye level, turned into a little line thousands of feet down. The tour busses running through the park looked like matchbox toys. But the air–it was so clean, and the sky was so blue–not a cloud in sight.

Heading up the rocks

Long Way Down

We all made it to the very top, and the view was something I’ll never forget. Christal did a phenomenal job–despite her fear of heights. I was so proud. And up on that mountain, looking around at all of this beauty that I’d only seen in tv shows. It was so real–beauty everywhere we turned. The trip down the mountain–down the rocks, holding onto the chains, down the wiggles and the curves–led to a very surreal moment for me. Christal took my pack, and I ran the last mile off the mountain. It was mostly downhill, but there were a few uphill spots–and it was wild. The sun had dropped low enough that the canyon bottoms were in the shade, but the huge tops of the rock formations were bathed in golden sunlight. The river was back beside me, and all I could here were my footsteps, the sound of my breathing, and the rapids. We all met up at the bottom, played by the river, then enjoyed a beautiful outside dinner under the shadow of Zion. I’ll never forget the day.

The second big trip took me back home–well, sort of. Back to the ocean. Christal flew out and we took a short trip over to Huntington Beach, California. The drive took us through Death Valley, and some incredible mountainous terrain–probably the biggest mountains I’ve ever been in.

Finally–we got to the ocean. We stayed at the Hyatt Resort in Huntington for for two nights–and it was EXACTLY what the doctor ordered. I’d been to San Diego, but I’ve never been in the (cold) Pacific until that day. I got to get back out on my Custom X body board and ride the waves in the (cold) Pacific. My first trip out–I saw a dolphin surface about 10 feet in front of me. You can’t make this stuff up, people. We rented a cabana and two chairs, and had private beach butler service for the day–which meant we could stay hydrated and even eat lunch–without ever having to leave the ocean. They were the best fish tacos I’ve ever had–by far. A little sand and salt can only serve to make things better.

Home

Beach Butler service

We spent the rest of the time watching beautiful sunsets.

And getting cookie turndown service in our room.

And living the surfer lifestyle.

And unfortunatley–I don’t have a picture of the small child’s sandcastle Christal destroyed. Walking on the beach while trying to take pictures–when you’re coordinated challenged in the first place–can always make for a humours end. Fortunately, when she did fall in the sandcastle, the child didn’t cry–and even asked her if she was ok. Grace upon grace, I tell ya.

The weather was cold by Vegas standards–in the 80′s and 60′s, which meant I froze after living through the summer that has been 1000 degrees at least (or 112, but I never exaggerate.) And I cried when we left–but my time to return to the shore is coming. I just wonder who I’ll be and what I’ll be doing when that day comes. For now, I’m focusing on one day at a time–looking forward to the next wave caught or mountain climbed, and am so thankful I am getting a chance to live in the American West.

Palm tree from my pool

Vegas skyline

Vegas from roof

The following is the late biblical scholar Robert Funk’s contributions to the ongoing conversation in Christian theology to reform. Although I do not agree with everything stated here, it is a noteworthy suggestion for thought.

Theology

1. The God of the metaphysical age is dead. There is not a personal god out there external to human beings and the material world. We must reckon with a deep crisis in god talk and replace it with talk about whether the universe has meaning and whether human life has purpose.
 

2. The doctrine of special creation of the species died with the advent of Darwinism and the new understanding of the age of the earth and magnitude of the physical universe. Special creation goes together with the notion that the earth and human beings are at the center of the galaxy (the galaxy is anthropocentric). The demise of a geocentric universe took the doctrine of special creation with it.
 

3. The deliteralization of the story of Adam and Eve in Genesis brought an end to the dogma of original sin as something inherited from the first human being. Death is not punishment for sin, but is entirely natural. And sin is not transmitted from generation to generation by means of male sperm, as suggested by Augustine.
 

4. The notion that God interferes with the order of nature from time to time in order to aid or punish is no longer credible, in spite of the fact that most people still believe it. Miracles are an affront to the justice and integrity of God, however understood. Miracles are conceivable only as the inexplicable; otherwise they contradict the regularity of the order of the physical universe.
 

5. Prayer is meaningless when understood as requests addressed to an external God for favor or forgiveness and meaningless if God does not interfere with the laws of nature. Prayer as praise is a remnant of the age of kingship in the ancient Near East and is beneath the dignity of deity. Prayer should be understood principally as meditation—as listening rather than talking—and as attention to the needs of neighbor.  

Christology

6. We should give Jesus a demotion. It is no longer credible to think of Jesus as divine. Jesus’ divinity goes together with the old theistic way of thinking about God.
 

7. The plot early Christians invented for a divine redeemer figure is as archaic as the mythology in which it is framed. A Jesus who drops down out of heaven, performs some magical act that frees human beings from the power of sin, rises from the dead, and returns to heaven is simply no longer credible. The notion that he will return at the end of time and sit in cosmic judgment is equally incredible. We must find a new plot for a more credible Jesus.
 

8. The virgin birth of Jesus is an insult to modern intelligence and should be abandoned. In addition, it is a pernicious doctrine that denigrates women.
 

9. The doctrine of the atonement—the claim that God killed his own son in order to satisfy his thirst for satisfaction—is subrational and subethical. This monstrous doctrine is the stepchild of a primitive sacrificial system in which the gods had to be appeased by offering them some special gift, such as a child or an animal.
 

10. The resurrection of Jesus did not involve the resuscitation of a corpse. Jesus did not rise from the dead, except perhaps in some metaphorical sense. The meaning of the resurrection is that a few of his followers—probably no more than two or three—finally came to understand what he was all about. When the significance of his words and deeds dawned on them, they knew of no other terms in which to express their amazement than to claim that they had seen him alive.
 

11. The expectation that Jesus will return and sit in cosmic judgment is part and parcel of the mythological worldview that is now defunct. Furthermore, it undergirds human lust for the punishment of enemies and evildoers and the corresponding hope for rewards for the pious and righteous. All apocalyptic elements should be expunged from the Christian agenda.  

God’s Domain according to Jesus

12. Jesus advocates and practices a trust ethic. The kingdom of God, for Jesus, is characterized by trust in the order of creation and the essential goodness of neighbor.
 

13. Jesus urges his followers to celebrate life as though they had just discovered a cache of coins in a field or been invited to a state banquet.
 

14. For Jesus, God’s domain is a realm without social boundaries. In that realm there is neither Jew nor Greek, male nor female, slave nor free, homosexual nor heterosexual, friend nor enemy.
 

15. For Jesus, God’s domain has no brokers, no mediators between human beings and divinity. The church has insisted on the necessity of mediators in order to protect its brokerage system.
 

16. For Jesus, the kingdom does not require cultic rituals to mark the rites of passage from outsider to insider, from sinner to righteous, from child to adult, from client to broker.
 

17. In the kingdom, forgiveness is reciprocal: individuals can have it only if they sponsor it.
 

18. The kingdom is a journey without end: one arrives only by departing. It is therefore a perpetual odyssey. Exile and exodus are the true conditions of authentic existence.  

The canon

19. The New Testament is a highly uneven and biased record of orthodox attempts to invent Christianity. The canon of scripture adopted by traditional Christianity should be contracted and expanded simultaneously to reflect respect for the old tradition and openness to the new. Only the works of strong poets—those who startle us, amaze us with a glimpse of what lies beyond the rim of present sight—should be considered for inclusion. The canon should be a collection of scriptures without a fixed text and without either inside or outside limits, like the myth of King Arthur and the knights of the roundtable or the myth of the American West.
 

20. The Bible does not contain fixed, objective standards of behavior that should govern human behavior for all time. This includes the ten commandments as well as the admonitions of Jesus.  

The language of faith

21. In rearticulating the vision of Jesus, we should take care to express ourselves in the same register as he employed in his parables and aphorisms—paradox, hyperbole, exaggeration, and metaphor. Further, our reconstructions of his vision should be provisional, always subject to modification and correction.

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