What I saw here and there

Holly, from Quebec, as she appeared in Los Angeles, yesterday just as my plane started boarding. I would've liked to have talked longer, but it was a sweet effect of modern technology that I could talk to her there, that way.



In the next airport on the way to the luggage claim, I snapped this quickly. No longer Women/Mujeres with a short-skirt outline. All new and different here!


Jihong's house has a front deck with a beautiful view. And although she told me she cooked, this is beyond any expectation. She cooks. Her parents both cook. And I mean they can make art with food, and it's beautiful on the table, it tastes wonderful, and there's a great variety of it.

I would feel like a crazed hick if I took a photo of every meal, but every meal seems to be photogenic and stunning. There's a depth of creativity, too. Jihong is making things up—combinations never before attempted, and they're really good.




And here, in its imperfect cellphone-camera fuzziness, is the light as the sun came up behind us, and turned that island pink. It reminded me of the Sandias at sunset, except for the ocean all around it.



The birds and trees and flowers I've never seen before are overwhelming, but I'll keep collecting my thoughts enough to send something.

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And on the not-photos end of life, the discussions here are like the discussions online lately, and like Kelly Lovejoy's talk at the Great Big Happy Life conference in New Jersey: Somehow unschooling parents lately are missing the central points and jumping to some troublesome practices and ideas. How can we help make things clearer? These discussions are half dismaying, and half inspiring. I hope that doesn't mean they will cancel themselves out and I'll never even remember having them!

First evidence that I'm really there:

LAX not as nice as Albuquerque

LAX not as nice as ABQ. Just sayin'... and the women's room in United concourse 7 is like from the 1970's. So I guess in the 1970's they had one awesome, modernistic restroom!

Here are two images. One I thought was pretty. One was spooky.





The point of no return. Why didn't they just say so!?
or "I'd turn back if I were you."
It seems like a funnel-trap for wasps (but people-sized and people-shaped wasps).
That was one spooky hallway.

But I'm near civilization now, and they just said "Maui" over a loudspeaker somewhere. My charge is at 83%. All is well with my little corner of the world.

Folk Art, serious and silly

All art is serious to someone and silly to someone else, but here are a couple of examples from Albuquerque this morning:


These were in a gift shop. Each is a bottle cap with a magnet on the back, a picture inside, and glittery decorations glued on around the edges. They've been made for MANY years, as little religious icons. There's some branching out going on now (of art, and probably of religion).

Quiet like a library

The Albuquerque airport is quiet like a library (except for homeland security recordings).



This morning when Keith let me off at the airport on his way to work, he said he was glad I was being able to travel. I said I was having fun. He said I wouldn't have ten years ago, and that's true. I went alone a few times to an SCA event or a homeschooling conference, but it wasn't really fully relaxing, because I was worried about the kids and wanted to go home as soon as I could. But now I'm able to sit and talk, or sit and relax, and it really works!

Those with young children can feel that it's forever and ever. Having come out the other end with now-grown children (or largely mostly grown, at 18, Miss Holly Dodd), I'm more mobile and relaxed. Very nice.

Welcome Home/Farewell Dinner

Keith took me, Marty and Ashlee to dinner so I could tell stories about my adventures in Quebec, New Jersey and Connecticut, and so we could hang out some before I leave again tomorrow.

Tripod (thank you, Marty!)

This reminds me of most of the young men I know, and a couple of the women (Rosie S. is one of 'em).



If that seemed fun, check out Ghost Ship. Spooky. Scary. And then it gets weird. (Rated R-ish)

I have watered the yard, washed the van, packed for Maui, made lunch for me and Marty, done some laundry, watched some Tripod... This afternoon there's an unschooling chat on the more-complicated-than-you-thought topic of half full / half empty (what's IN that glass!? What is the glass made of? What is the humidity level—is that stuff evaporating or gathering more!?)

Yes, when I'm up I'm up
And when I'm down I'm still pretty much up
And when I'm only halfway up
Is the "up" half full or half empty?