(t)here and back again

 i received two men's robes

both cotton indigo that my friend found in japan

 i promptly washed them.

the lined one had accumulated years of dirt and dust which 

i washed once 

and rinsed at least a dozen times.

 both pieces dried on a very  hot day in a very 

short time.

are scented now with north country summer

not dust.

 the ikat patterning on the lined piece

 and the lining

 nearby

 the chimney brick with the lichen patterning sits in the sun

it has become the perch of some bird--lots of what we as kids used to call bird-do 

but still color that inspires me.

 i have been making some contact prints with the square flax sheets

and cloth, this is old cotton 

 here you can see a flax square

and the red daylily spent blossoms.

  the flax square still wet

 concrete steps are the perfect background, if narrow.

 and i made some more linen paper.

justaposition:

a.  plain raw flax paper                                           b. linen fabric, my sister's pants by Flax

c.  two sheets of the above with fabric inclusion    d. linen paper (made solely from above 

                                cloth 

 i decided to travel to maine

and then i undecided

 and took a happy walk yesterday evening

 overlooked by luna

 below that sky was the july harvest baled for the neighbor's cattle.

first time i ever remember it being cut almost on time.

evening shadows.

 two pair of little ruby throated hummingbirds played at the feeders 

this morning. 

 i'm wearing cotton socks on my feet today, 

celebrating happy respite from the humid heat.

over on fb i found a photo of two of my favorite australians

that i just had to share.

colleen and brian

collen of the astonishing hair, brian enwrapped in a hat and scarf,

probably needled by colleen.

and the title above? 

i was going to maine today.

but i decided not to. i love my maine family

i wanted to see them and 

see the ocean and

visit the arctic museum

but

i wanted to stay home, 

with the round bales and the hummingbirds

and the cresent moon

and the blessed cool weather, more.

i am off to make more prints and paper

and hang out my laundry and go to town

to resume mail delivery.

i'm home for a while.

in maine

 this is where i'm writing this morning 

i'm in northeast harbor, maine

in the maine studies room

in the village library.

 a fresh breeze coming in that bank of windows

  the collection here is all about maine

there are a few secrets

rarities that need special permission

 a book by someone who

i remember from ages past

 and a few titles i'd like to get to know

 bad beaver tales, indeed

 boats and ships appear everywhere

 and history is palpable

 hannah is archivist at this public library

when she's not hiking

 showing me amazing rocky places

 she knows the park* well, now

 and has favorite quiet, 

almost hidden 

places to look long

when she's not

 at work

 this library is beautiful

and new

with profound respect for place 

and books

and bookish things

 with all kinds of art

 and even a few ancient 

beautiful things

 these ships are "woolies"

made from yarn scraps 

 they're all over this library

 the archive has many treasures

 all about this place

 this treasure i love,

a painted interior door

of a safe

in the archive room

 and down the street

there is a funny funny fellow

lest we take ourselves

too seriously

this little maine interlude

is special, because in a week i will be

back at work

teaching in a different program and school.

*Acadia National Park

Mount Desert Island, Maine